So what does the United States Secret Service do anyway? Most of us, unless we are pretty up on our government agencies, think first of their role in guarding our president and ranking officials. But that is not their first assignment, nor was it the reason the Secret Service was founded.It is estimated that in 1865 nearly one-third of all currency in circulation in America was counterfeit! The "Secret Service Division" was developed under the Department of the Treasury and commissioned with the task of the suppression of counterfeiting. (Coincidentally, the legislation creating the agency was on Lincoln’s desk the night of his assassination.) The agency was given the commission to provide Presidential protection after the assassination of President McKinley in 1901. They remained a division of the Department of the Treasury until transferred to the Department of Homeland Security in 2003.
On September 11, 2001, 67 Secret Service agents stationed at the New York field office at 7 World Trade Center were among the first-responders to victims of the attack. They were later honored for their bravery as they set up triage centers, helped people evacuate the buildings, provided trauma care for the wounded, and assisted the police and fire departments in their rescue efforts.
The following statement was in an article I read concerning the Secret Service:
Due to the discretion of this organization, many details about the Secret Service are currently classified.Obvious, if not redundant. Secret Service will most likely be undisclosed, private, unrevealed, anonymous, or private.
So what about our service? How often do we look for ways to serve others and plan to remain anonymous? Do you have a plan for touching the lives of people in need without disclosing your role in blessing them?
I am fully aware that so much of our service to others calls for our engagement with them. Jesus’ ministry is filled with service to others, and they knew he did it and profusely thanked him. But there are other moments where he heals and then "slips away" before his identity is revealed.
The key issue is motive. Even when our "light so shines among men that they see our good works," it must still be for the purpose of them "glorifying God" (Matthew 5:16).
I’m planning some "secret service" during this 40-Day Journey Toward a Life of Active Compassion. I anticipate that it will be both fun and transforming. And ultimately, people will simply have to give thanks to God for the good gifts He has given us to pass on to them (2 Corinthians 9:10-15)!
- Don McLaughlin
