By Emmanuel Udom
Worship centers are places where people gather for religious or spiritual activities. It could be a church, mosque or a lodge. It has something to do with our belief system, our relationship with God, or the creator.
Therefore, the tag words that readily come to my mind as I write this piece are: worship, God, Allah, creator, source, relationship, building etc.
Quite a number of persons believe in the existence of God. Others do not. To those who think God exists, he is the creator, while these persons are the created. However, there are atheists out there who think God does not exist.
Let me zero in on tips for securing that building called church, mosque or lodge during periods of meeting. There must spiritual and physical security.
Spiritual security comes from having a one-on-one relationship with your God, Allah, creator, or your source. This is if you think God exist.
For you to be spiritually strong, you must have time for daily devotion, prayers or meditation. Some Christians call it quite time. With this, you will be able to hear from God, or whatever you call your source.
For physical security, there are definite steps you must take as a pastor, imam or master in other to secure your worship center.
Criminality, like every other thing is evolving and you must keep pace with the reality of the time. Why I am writing this is simply because for years in Nigeria, terrorists bombed some worship centers in the country. Take a good look at some of these tips.
1 sermon-what a pastor, imam or master say during sermon could cause war or peace. Remember, a worship center is situated in a community. And in that community there are people with diverse characters, motives and plans.
2 security committee-All worship centers must have a standing security committee. This committee must have people with experience in security matters. Members of the committee must partner with the police and other government security agencies in the community.
In addition to this, the committee should also work silently on information gathering through the worshippers and residents.
3 security equipment- Closed circuit televisions must be installed in worship centers and strange faces, who may disguise as worshippers politely checked before entering the church auditorium.
In some extreme cases, worshippers may be asked to drop their bags outside the church auditorium. But, this should be handled with care as some persons may complain.
4 Response- response times to security emergencies should be as quick as possible. So, security members must arm themselves with telephone numbers of the local police officers as well as other stakeholders on the area.