Officer Seth Amos
By Chris Amos
On Sept. 4, my son and 9-year Norfolk Police Department veteran entered an emergency room for a deep cough. On Oct. 19, 45 days later and on my 53rd birthday, Seth went home to be with the Lord. The nearly seven weeks from the time Seth entered the hospital to the time of his death was an emotional roller coaster and yet one that, as his father and pastor, the Lord had prepared me for months earlier. It was then that the Lord revealed something was going to happen to one of my two sons, both police officers in Norfolk. I assumed it would have been in the line of duty. The Lord also revealed to me I would be officiating my own son’s funeral. I chased the very thought out of my mind as ridiculous, pure nonsense. I would come to learn it was not ridiculous or nonsense, but preparation for the longest, most difficult day of my life. The following is a Facebook post I shared on Oct. 29, three days after Seth’s Celebration of Life Service.
“It’s been 10 days since Seth went home to be with the Lord. Put another way, we are 10 days closer to seeing him again. Seth’s Celebration of Life Service was unlike ANY I have ever experienced. It was charged with emotion for sure, but there was something much more powerful, The Holy Spirit.
The service itself had Seth written all over it. From the music played to asking police officers to sit with their families and not as a group. Seth cherished his family far more than his job. Hundreds and hundreds of people turned out for the celebration. The heart wrenching tributes by members of Seth’s family and friends were followed by an emotional Photo Memory Montage.
I was slated to give Seth’s eulogy. I spoke briefly about the journey we had been on and attempted to answer the question, “Why Seth?” before introducing a guest speaker who knew Seth far better than I. With that, I introduced Seth himself before taking my seat, you could hear a pin drop. Those in attendance sat motionless and listened to a 20-minute message given by Seth four years earlier on the subject of “Courage, Obedience and Perseverance.” As Seth began to speak, the Holy Spirit began to fill every nook and cranny in that large sanctuary. It was as if Seth knew the circumstances that brought us to that place, that day. Truth be known, Seth did not... but God the Father most assuredly did.
As I looked out over those in the congregation it appeared as if everyone was wiping their eyes. At the conclusion, Stacey took the stage and introduced a song Seth had written following the Line of Duty Death of Officer Brian Jones in May 2014. The song was entitled “I’m Ready.” Seth began to sing the song, choking up with emotion at times as he assured Stacey and his family that if anything ever happened to him not to worry because he was ready.
We had begun the journey nearly two months earlier praying God’s will, God’s way for God’s glory. Friends, Seth’s passing was God’s will done God’s way and his Celebration of Life Service was an outpouring of God’s glory, like I have never experienced in almost 30 years of ministry.
Now friends do not think for a moment that God’s will and way passed with Seth! God has His own perfect will and way for each one of us and longs to be glorified in all our lives. Please don’t allow the work the Lord began in your life these last two months to become only a distant memory. Seth may have finished his race, but you and I are still running. Please keep pressing into God. Do not stop!
As for our family, you can check out our church service at Chr1st Fellowship on Facebook. Take care my friends, God bless you, keep you, provide for you and protect you.
God’s will, God’s way for God’s glory!”
See you at the finish line!
Chris Amos is a retired officer and former spokesperson for the Norfolk Virginia Police Department. He is currently the pastor at Chr1st Fellowship Church in Norfolk. He is married for 30 years and is the proud father of three children, two of whom are police officers. He serves as the volunteer Chaplain for Norfolk Police Dept. and Norfolk Sheriff’s Office.
