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    At a church security seminar: Guns, God and 'get those heads up' when you pray

    by Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times May 23, 2018 6 minutes

    LOS ANGELES - Just as the people in Mariners Church began to pull off their hats, bow their heads and close their eyes to pray, Jimmy Meeks snapped at them.

    "Get those heads up!" said the pastor and retired Texas police officer.

    Hadn't he just warned them that closing their eyes made them targets? Sheep in the presence of wolves. "What's wrong with y'all?"

    Their eyes duly peeled, he then led the crowd in a prayer.

    "Wherever we are, Father, should the wolf cross our path, give us the wisdom to know what to do with that moment, and give us the power and the courage to act to stop the wolf and protect our sons and daughters."

    Churchgoers, preachers and law enforcement officers from across Southern California had gathered for a church security seminar in Huntington Beach hosted by the California Rifle & Pistol Association, which delivered a warning: Faith alone will not protect you in a house of God.

    In the sleek sanctuary of Mariners Church, the mostly male

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