A Word & A Weapon Podcast

Matthew 13 | Cyber Security

WORD - Matthew 13 Today our word comes from the allegory in Matthew 13 talking about the scattering of the seed. I’ve heard this parable a number of times in my life as I’m sure you have but I have a different take on it in this episode. WEAPON - Securing Your Online Seeds  When we think of keeping ourselves safe in public spaces, we typically think of tangible tools such as a gun or knife. We might think of situational awareness or, if you’ve been listening to me for than a minute, you know I always promote the necessity for risk assessments.  But today I’m going to talk about another way to keep yourself safe and secure in the public space – the online public space.

Luke 10:25-37 | Good Samaritan

The Word In Luke 10, Jesus is asked "what is the most important commandment?" He responds that the greatest commandment is to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" and the second to "love your neighbor as yourself". Jesus was then immediately asked who counts as a neighbor and he responds with a parable or a story lesson that is an example for everyday life. This Parable of course tells the tale of the Good Samaritan Luke 10:25-37 ESV 25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" 26 He said to him, "What is written in the Law? How do you read it?" 27 And he answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." 28 And he said to him, "You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live." 29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" 30 Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, 'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.' 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?" 37 He said, "The one who showed him mercy." And Jesus said to him, "You go, and do likewise." The Weapon Emergency situations and disasters can take many forms. Hurricanes, floods, fires, earthquakes, car accidents and missing persons situations are not just the makings of television news stories. These events can occur at any time. The first responders to an accident or emergency often are not trained professionals but citizens and community members who are already on the scene. No matter where or what kind of incident it is, paramedics and police officers tend to always use the term "bystander." But bystander is a passive word. It means what it says; that the person is standing by—simply near what is happening. A bystander doesn't help. He watches. A bystander isn't useful. She just gets in the way. The thing is: most people don't really act that way. They jump in and help when the going gets tough. A witness comes forward and tells the authorities what he saw. A Good Samaritan pulls the injured to safety or tries to stop the bleeding. Whatever needs to be done usually gets done by the person on the street or the patient's coworkers. Most people don't just stand by. Your life and the lives of others may depend on your ability to respond during an emergency situation. As a first responder to an emergency or accident scene, you may be the only one to provide information and assistance until the authorities arrive. If you’ve followed me for any amount of time, you’re very familiar with the idea of two kinds of first responders. The first is the Professional First Responders: These are the folks who come to our aid when we need help. We’re talking about, police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and paramedics. As great as it is to be recognized as the people who lead the charge to help those in need, the reality is that First Responders often aren't first. – That’s where the second kind of responder comes in: True or Immediate First responder. It's the person, usually without training, who steps in to do whatever he or she can to stop the bad things from happening and start doing the good things. The True First Responder is already helping before the first responders have been notified of a problem. It's the True First responder who is doing chest compressions when paramedics walk through the door or pull up on the scene. The True First responder is the one who called 911 in the first place. The True First Responder will likely determine the outcome of an event before the Professional First Responders arrive. A first responder must ensure their own safety before helping others, but the following actions can help you manage the situation if you are the first on the scene of an emergency or disaster. Observe: First evaluate the situation. Are there injured individuals? Fallen power lines? Physical damage to nearby buildings or other structures? In addition to assessing the situation, you need to identify any potential dangers to you or other responders as a result of the emergency. Call for help: Do not assume that someone else will call the authorities. Call immediately and share your observations. Also, ask others in the area for help – especially if there are injured persons involved. However, just be cautious that you aren’t overwhelming the 9-1-1 system. If you can verify that someone already called or is calling, there is no need for additional calls unless you have pertinent information. If caring for a victim, remember A, B, C, D: • Airway: Make sure the individual’s airway is open and unimpaired. • Breathing: Is the victim breathing? • Circulation: Does the victim have a pulse? Are they bleeding? • Delicate: Be careful. Any mishandling of the neck or lower back after impact or injury can cause significant problems. Stay calm: In order to help the situation and assist those involved, you need to remain calm, make rational decisions and stay focused. This is sometimes easier said that done. One way to remain calm to to shift your emotions from scared, to confident and ask yourself why you are going to intervene. Tell yourself that you are capable, and you will do the best job possible. Another way to stay calm is to ensure that you quickly rehearse in your head what you’re going to do. Draw on your training and your past experiences to help you stay focused and calm. Secure the area: If you have located an injured person or discovered a dangerous situation, you will want to secure the area. If possible, direct traffic or pedestrians away from the area and protect the injured. Remember that every scene could develop into a crime scene where preserving every piece of evidence possible is necessary. Keeping out looky-loos and unnecessary people and vehicles from contaminating a crime scene may go a long way to determining the cause and any leads for suspects. Prepare for emergency crews: Do not leave the area. Make sure there is ample room for emergency vehicles to arrive. This might mean directing traffic or moving debris. Having an emergency, hi-visibility vest in your car is a great way to establish that you are there to help and it helps you to be recognized by traffic that might be moving in the area. You want to make sure that you don’t become another victim at the scene by getting in the way of emergency responding vehicles just as you don’t want to impede their access to the area or scene. Gather information: Ask witnesses to stay and give a report to authorities. Ask injured persons to give their names. Provide as much information as you can to emergency crews. Additionally, you may be the best witness especially if you were one of the first on the scene of an incident. A cell phone video or images from the fresh scene may be the evidence that police need to reconstruct an accident or preserve evidence that may get disturbed by responding emergency services. When the timing is right, give your name and all contact information to police and let them know you have pictures of the scene. While they likely won’t get them from you right then, they might follow up with you to gather that evidence later. Having your pictures on a disk or thumb-drive will be helpful.

Proverbs 21:5 | Biblical Goal Setting

The Word – Setting Goals  It's typical in this season, this New Year that we have resolutions. We have  resolutions for health – for wealth or some other important milestone in our  life.  In a survey by people that survey such things … 31% of survey participants  plan on making resolutions for 2021 while 19% are still undecided. Seems like  they should resolve to make up their minds.  Of those that made a resolution in 2020, 35% kept all their resolutions, 49%  kept some of their resolutions, and only 16% failed at keeping any of their  resolutions.  According to an Inc. study of 2,000 people, these are the 5 most common  resolutions that were made in 2019.  1. Exercise more  2. Eat healthier  3. Save Money  4. Learn a new skill  5. Quit smoking  Every year the number one resolution stays the same – Exercise more.  According to statistics, more than 12% of new gym memberships start in  January. During January, Google searches for health and fitness peak. That’s  fantastic – that’s awesome right?  Well not so fast – statistics also say that out of those new January-joining  members, 80% will quit within five months and 14% quit before the end of  February. Yikes – that’s crazy if you’re a gym owner and even worse if you are  one of the ones that quit.   But take heart - this isn’t a podcast on joining gyms or making new year’s resolutions – This is a podcast about real change – from a biblical  perspective…. Think of it this way resolutions are things you tell yourself – and work on for yourself with little to no help from anyone. Goals on the other  hand are things you commit to. I think as Christians we sometimes fail at our  resolutions because we have the wrong perspective on this tradition. You see,  resolutions are statements of intention, while goals are statements of  commitment. Resolutions are often vague like “I will get in shape” or “I will be  more productive.” Resolutions also tend to aim for extreme changes—I will  stop overspending— or I will lose 30lbs by April – this creates an intimidating  gap between where you are and where you want to be with no actionable  steps. This is like having two pieces of bread with nothing in the middle and  trying to call it a sandwich -- This is also why 80% of New Year’s resolutions  fail. I like to think of it as resolutions being secular while Goals are something  God desires of us. Resolutions are great intentions, but goal setting is biblical.  Just Listen to some of what the Bible has to say on Setting Goals:  Proverbs 21:5   The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty  comes only to poverty.  Philippians 3:14 – In Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi, he wrote:  I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Luke 13:32  He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will drive out demons and heal people today and  tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’ In this Christ is referring  to Herod as a fox.  Goal setting was a part of Christ’s thinking. First and foremost, His goal was to  do the will of His heavenly Father. This is the goal that got Him out of bed in  the morning. It was a joint mission with the Holy Spirit. His goal was also to  serve the people. He cast out demons, healed, and taught. Jesus was a focused  individual with specific goals in mind. God has a lot to say about goals and intentional planning, heck, even Jesus had  goals. God desires for us to live on purpose, not by accident. Living on purpose  is intentional and …. It’s easier done when you have goals.   Do you know what's so wonderful about God? Well - A lot of things actually  but perhaps most important is that He wants to partner with you in your life – He wants to do life hand in hand with you! When you feel lost in your goals  and purpose, when you’re not sure which path to take or what goals to choose,  He wants you to ask Him for help—and he loves giving it!   James tells us, 'If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously  to all without reproach, and it will be given him" (James 1:5 ESV)  Even with the best-laid plans—the best written out goals you could think of— we still need God’s help. We can’t achieve our goals with our power alone. It’s  just not possible. Thankfully, God didn’t design us to do it on our own.   If you’ve lived long enough you know that as flawed creatures, we can imagine  some pretty crazy things and by extension we could come up with some pretty  outrageous goals. So, to think that God can do far more than what we can  imagine is utterly amazing, and exciting, and a gift for goal setters!  God backs up this theory by giving us true stories in his Word about how he  did God-sized things through ordinary people.  • Joseph: A dreamer that was sold into slavery who was put in charge of  all of Egypt. (Genesis 41)  • Moses: A man slow of speech and tongue who was used to stand up  against one of the most powerful rulers of his day. (Exodus 4) • Saul: A persecutor of Christians who became one of the greatest  missionaries of all time. God even changed his name!  • Mary: A young girl from a town called Nazareth who gave birth to the  savior of the world. (Luke 1)  The Bible is filled with stories like these—stories where ordinary people, just  like you, end up being used by God in astonishing stories of life change.  Nothing is impossible with God!  Do you know what this means? This means you can dream God-sized dreams.  You can set God-sized goals. You can do this only because God can do  anything, and only because we can call on His power when ours begins to fail. Think of all of the times you made a commitment to stick to a new diet or were  excited about New Year’s resolutions—only to never see them realized. Those  are the times when God’s power and help can make your goals reality.  God is absolutely in the business of changing lives. He can take ordinary  people and do exceedingly abundant, remarkable and extraordinary things. By  trusting in God’s power to help you change and not in your willpower alone,  great things can happen. And you know what that means? It’s your permission  slip from God to go ahead and dream big. Go ahead and set God-sized goals. God can make changes in your life that you never imagined possible.  All we humans can do is believe that reaching goals in God's eyes is not like  reaching goals to the rest of us. No matter if every one of our senses warns us  we are not getting anywhere, we don't have to worry or try to measure our  progress against man-made deadlines. All we have to do is make sure we are  doing whatever God wants us to do right this minute. He will take care of our  direction and keep us on the path to His success, His way, in His timing. We  can trust God because His thoughts are greater than our thoughts, and His  infinite ways are beyond our finite ways.  So, go ahead and set your big goals! Then, talk them over with your heavenly  father. Pray on them with Him and listen to His guidance, hear His goals for  your life and then work together to achieve them!  The Weapon  Instead of making resolutions, setting measurable goals is more likely to lead  to success in seeing your hopes and dreams come to fruition. Want to increase  the chances of seeing your dreams become reality? Here are five goal-setting  tips that will get you started on your journey towards reaching your goals.  Write your goals:  Remember, these are your goals. They have to be what you want to do. Pick  goals you want to accomplish the most. Believe it or not, you won’t just fall  into a “routine” with your new goals. Achieving goals involves deviating from  the daily monotony, stepping outside of your comfort zone, and challenging  yourself. Writing down your goals allows you to free up some of that mental  clutter so that you can visualize those things that you want to achieve. Also,  tracking your progress by checking things off will give you a sense of  accomplishment, motivating you to keep going. Write actions steps:  We can have goals, but we need to know how to move forward. Write down an  action you can take this week that will move you forward in accomplishing  each of those two goals.  Find someone who will hold you accountable:  You want the following in a person who is going to  hold you accountable:  • Someone who is trustworthy.  • Someone who has your best interests at heart.  • Someone who isn’t going to be afraid to ask you how you’re doing. • Someone who isn’t going to let you off the hook when you aren’t getting  the job done.  • Someone who is still going to support you, even when you falter. • Someone who is going to be encouraging as you pursue your goals. • Someone who you will actually listen to when they ask you about your  goals and remind you of your commitments.  Make your Goals SMART!:  SMART Goals require that goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic,  and Time-bound. While this model is great for goals, it lacks the God  component that I think is very important in achieving goals. So, here’s another  option for SMART goals that might feel a bit better for those who prefer to put  the focus back on God.  Specific – We’ve got to be able to understand exactly what the goal is. “I want  to be a better person,” is not specific. What do you mean by “better person?” Keep in mind that goals are designed to help show you the way, especially  with God’s guidance. It’s nice to know that we’re not alone in the process. As  Christians, we are blessed with access to the guidance and support of the  greatest power in the universe  Measurable (or meaningful) – We need to be able to measure progress. How  do we know we’re moving forward if we can’t measure? That’s another reason  why we say your goals should be specific. When it comes to meaningful goal  setting, praying is the best way to jump-start the process. By setting SMART  goals in the context of prayer, there’s a much greater likelihood that they will  be meaningful and glorify God as well.  Attainable – attainable by you - “I want to go out with Taylor,” also depends  on Taylor. Therefore, the goal is not attainable by your own efforts. Caveat: if  this is God led (and your goals should be) and it requires God to intervene,  that’s fine – as long as you’re sure this is God’s leading and not your own. Trust that God will provide what is needed in His perfect timing. If you’re  anything like me, you want a perfect plan with infinite resources and a  schedule that is right on track. Ha! I make plans, but God makes better ones. I learned a long time ago to stop asking God for what I want and I started asking  God what He wants for me – and then I do that – it’s a lot easier that way.  Realistic – The goal should be something you’re capable of doing. I’m almost  50 years old – the likelihood of me dunking a basketball or playing football for  the Patriots is long past. So a goal of “being an inside linebacker for the  Patriots” is not a realistic goal. Maybe more important for the Christian here is  that we set Relevant Goals and set them with purpose - Setting relevant goals  that have purpose will help you develop the focus necessary to achieve your  SMART goals. Ask yourself How is the goal relevant to the purpose and gifts  God has blessed you with?  Time-Based – There should be some component of time to your goal – a clock  to completion. But be cautious that you aren’t setting a grossly unachievable timeline as well as making sure you aren’t setting a timeline that is only of you  and not aligned with God’s desires. Submit to His will and time frame. He may  want things done earlier or later than you planned. Be patient and have faith  that if it is truly meant to happen, it will when the time is right.  Remember: in all of our goal setting and prayers we are more successful when  we are being Humble, Specific, Persistent, and Expectant.  And as a last thought - Avoid comparisons  When you are working towards improving your life, it is common to compare  yourself to other people. Your perception is that they are superior to you, or  more privileged in some way. Social media certainly doesn’t help; your ‘news  feed’ overflows with announcements of your friends’ new love interests,  weight loss, and new jobs, quickly turning you into a green-eyed monster.  Jealousy is easy to get into if you aren’t guarded or protected against it. How  does this serve you, exactly? It doesn’t. When you compare yourself to others,  you rob yourself of time you could be spending on your own self improvement. It is also important to keep in mind that everyone’s journey is  different; although we have similar destinations, our paths are often quite  different. Follow your own path.  Goal setting is your biggest weapon against complacency and failing at  resolutions. Be intentional and show up every day in expectation of crushing  your goals.  Get addicted to your own personal safety!

2 Kings 4 | Family Emergency Plan

The Word  Stewardship  This is something that has been on my heart and mind lately. I don’t know if  it’s the holidays or the fact that I steward Protector’s Toolkit or that I steward  my house. While thinking about stewardship I also heard in in a message recently from one of my pastors – it was the story of Elisha and the Widow’s  Olive Oil from 2 Kings 4 – in which the widow tells the Prophet I have nothing  – “I have nothing in the house except a jar of olive oil.”  When she says she “has nothing” that is not entirely true. No matter what we  have, how little it may seem in our hands, there a couple facts that hold true:  • What you do have comes from God  • God gives in abundance  • And, there is nothing so little that God can’t do big things with it.   CS Lewis said this: Every faculty you have, your power of thinking or of moving  your limbs from moment to moment, is given you by God. If you devoted every  moment of your whole life exclusively to His service, you could not give Him  anything that was not in a sense His own already.  We are to be stewards of everything that God gives is – so the word  stewardship has been on my heart lately. Maybe it’s my 2021 word for the  year – I’m not sure but, I am certainly going to pray on that more.  Unfortunately, many Christians today only associate the idea of stewardship  with sermons they have heard about church budgets so let’s get aligned on  what stewardship is.  Contrary to worldly thinking, the Bible tells us that we are not the ultimate  owners of physical possessions or financial assets. We are to operate as  managers of our time, energy, money, and talents. God is ruler over  all…period.  There are three clear aspects of stewardship:   • Oversees what belongs to another.  • Carries authority to manage what has been entrusted.  • Is responsible—he or she will give an account to the owner.  At the core of stewardship is cultivating a cheerful generosity toward God, His  Kingdom, and others (see 2 Corinthians 9:6-7).  Responsibility is part of what it means to be created in the image of God  (Genesis 1). As image bearers of God, we exercise limited dominion and  authority… the Bible tells us that we are not the ultimate owners of physical  possessions or financial assets. We are to operate as managers of our time,  energy, money, and talents. God is ruler over all…period. As mid-level  managers within God’s great creation each of us are given the same general  responsibilities—caring for God’s creation, caring for ourselves, etc.—and we  receive specific areas of oversight and dominion as well—ministry, vocation,  family, etc.  With this in mind, Paul wrote that he was to be considered a steward of the  mysteries of God (1 Corinthians 4:1). One translation says he was “put in  charge of explaining God’s mysteries.” One of the gifts on Paul’s life was  revelation; to communicate mysteries—hidden truths that had not yet been  revealed.   Therefore, the exact stewardship he refers to is not managing money, time, or  resources (all valid stewardships), but rather managing the gift on his life.  The great thing about our responsibilities is that God created us in such a way  that He provides for us through the work of our hands. When we are lazy,  disobedient, or otherwise irresponsible with our various responsibilities, we  often suffer the consequences of “lack” by our own hands.  In the Bible, stewardship is the inherent standard to which God calls leaders— whether we’re leading a country, business, church committee, community  organization, pack of Cub Scouts, our family, or ourselves.  Contrary to popular understanding, the opposite of a leader is not a follower.  It is a submissive spectator—someone who waits for others to take  responsibility – someone that sits on the sidelines and is apathetic. Rather  than stepping forward, a non-leader steps back. Leaders don’t wait for  someone to tell them what to do. Leaders take the initiative and responsibility  to be a faithful steward in God’s Kingdom in both public and private life.  As a steward we will also have an accounting of how we stewarded what was  given to us. We must understand that we are all stewards of the resources,  abilities, and opportunities that God has entrusted to our care, and one day  each one of us will be called to give an account for how we have managed  what the Master has given us.  Like the servants in the parable of the talents, we will be called to give an  account of how we have administered everything we have been given,  including our time, money, abilities, information, wisdom, relationships, and  authority. We will all give account to the rightful owner as to how well we  managed the things he has entrusted to us.  So the questions we have to answer are:  What have we been given? What time, money, abilities, information, wisdom,  and authority do we have dominion over?  And – what is the return you are going to give on the resources you have? Are  you going to be a good steward?   The Weapon In speaking about stewardship, we should understand that we have  management authority over certain things and people in our life. If you are  like me, you have authority over your family and their safety – I am to steward  them and our resources so that they can be good stewards over their own  talents and so our resources are prepared and ready for us to use.   In being a good steward and paying attention to the world and worldly events  I know that I must prepare my family for likely and unlikely eventualities – one of the things we prepare for is evacuation. At some point there may come  a time or conditions under which you will decide to get away or there may be  situations when you are ordered to leave.   These are the general guidelines we use for evacuation:  Plan places where your family will meet, both within and outside of your  immediate neighborhood. Use the Family Emergency Plan to decide these  locations before a disaster.  Think of a family emergency plan as a guide your family will learn from. It is a  written plan that outlines that outlines the preparations, communications, and  procedures of your family during various disaster scenarios. This is a terrific  way to ready your family for worst-case scenarios. You can make a step-by step guide as thorough or basic as you’d like but having a rehearsed family  emergency plan on hand could save minutes during times when lives depend  on every second.   A family emergency plan may help ensure that:  • Your family quickly escapes from harm's way  • Your family is prepared to evacuate with the necessary belongings and  supplies  • Your family knows where to regroup should they be separated Some other considerations:   If you have a car, keep the gas tank full if an evacuation seems likely. It is also  good practice to maintain at least a half-filled gas tank in the event of an  unexpected need to evacuate. Gas stations may be closed during emergencies and unable to pump gas during power outages. Plan to take one car per family  to reduce congestion and delay.  Become familiar with alternate routes and other means of transportation out  of your area. Choose several destinations in different directions so you have  options in an emergency.  Leave early enough to avoid being trapped by severe weather.  Follow recommended evacuation routes. Do not take shortcuts; they may be  blocked.  Be alert for road hazards such as washed-out roads or bridges and downed  power lines. Do not drive into flooded areas.  If you do not have a car, plan how you will leave if you must? Decide with  family, friends, or your local government.  Take your emergency supply kit unless you have reason to believe it has been  contaminated.  Listen to a battery-powered or hand crank radio and follow local evacuation  instructions.  Take your pets with you but understand that only service animals may be  permitted in public shelters. Plan how you will care for your pets in an  emergency.  If time allows:  Call or email the out-of-state contact in your family's communication plan. Tell  him or her where you are going.  Secure your home by closing and locking doors and windows.  Unplug electrical equipment such as radios, televisions and small appliances.  Leave freezers and refrigerators plugged in unless there is a risk of flooding. If  there is damage to your home and you are instructed to do so, shut off water,  gas, and electricity before leaving.  Leave a note telling others when you left and where you are going.  Wear sturdy shoes and clothing that provides some protection such as long  pants, long-sleeved shirts, and a cap. Check with neighbors who may need aid.  Your plan may be to NOT evacuate under certain circumstances. That is ok too  provided you have done due diligence in preparing for at least a 30-day shelter in place. I live out in the country and we have a plan and an alternate  plan that is with-in 3miles of our area. Depending on the type of disaster we  will make a choice to use our shelter in place or if we need to pool resources,  we will make the hike to our alternate location.   The key is this – stewardship dictates that as managers of our resources we  must take charge to ensure that what we have been given grows and prospers.  We must give an abundant return on the investment God has made in us.   As Louie Pasteur famously said: Fortune Favors the Prepared Mind…. When  you prepare yourself for life, chances are often in your favor. That does not  mean that you will be the luckiest person in the world, but it does mean that if  you put yourself in a position for stewardship, God is always on your side.  Get addicted to your own personal safety!

Psalm 67 | Flashlights

A Word – Psalm 67  May God be gracious to us and bless us   and make his face to shine upon us,   that your way may be known on earth,   your saving power among all nations.  Let the peoples praise you, O God;   let all the peoples praise you!  Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,   for you judge the peoples with equity   and guide the nations upon earth.   Let the peoples praise you, O God;   let all the peoples praise you!  The earth has yielded its increase;   God, our God, shall bless us.  God shall bless us;   let all the ends of the earth fear him!  A Weapon  This portion of the podcast focuses on a weapon – typically something mental  you can take with you on your daily walk as a Christian to improve your  personal safety and security. Today is a little different – I’m going to  recommend a physical weapon for you to take with you every day and  everywhere – of course I can’t talk about it being darkest before the dawn  without talking about a flashlight!  Advances in flashlight technology have transformed the flashlight into a  valuable multipurpose tool with so many benefits it might be more beneficial  than carrying a pocketknife.