Think About it -- Firearms Training? For a Church Team!?

Some proclaim there is no need for church teams to do firearms training. They state various reasons, including;

1. Since a deadly force attack is not likely at my church, we don’t train for it
2. We don’t want to look like gun-nuts
3. I can’t afford the ammo or the time

There are more justifications, but for time’s sake, let’s consider those three.

ONE “Don’t train for what’s unlikely.” How many police officers do you know? How many of them have ever stopped anyone with their firearm?

While the FBI is launching a new study to determine the frequency, the only current reliable data I have found comes from the Pew Research Center, with assistance from the National Police Research Platform. That polling of 7,917 sworn officers determined only 27% ever fired their weapon on duty.[i] That surprises me on the high side. I suspect when the FBI concludes their developing “National Use-of-Force Data Collection” it will be much broader, accurate and detailed than the Pew poll, and show less than 27%.

Though even law-enforcement officers are not likely to encounter deadly force situations, would you want your local police to drop their officer firearms training?

TWO: “We don’t want to look like gun nuts.” If you do ever have a deadly force incident, and none of your defenders ever trained, you have a good chance of looking like a nut. Maybe not a gun nut; just an ordinary, everyday, run of the mill, nut. The kind who endangers those around them.

THREE: “I can’t afford it.” With target 9mm at $0.30 / round (+/-), and $1.00 / round (and higher) for quality duty rounds, it is tough to keep enough on hand for quality training. However, as I reported recently, there has never been a case where a volunteer security operator accidently hurt the wrong person in a defensive action. You can’t afford to be the first.

Drive an older vehicle, stop eating out so much, and brew your coffee at home instead of stopping at Starbucks. Save money somewhere to be able to train. Do dry-fire exercises often.

Training is an investment in the safety of the people you love. Be confident in what you hope to never need.

Think about it

1          Train for both what’s likely, and what’s critical.

2          Don’t be a nut.

3          It’s well worth it to be well trained.