John Sager, an 87-year-old resident at Covenant Shores, has heard more “big brother is listening” jokes than he cares to recall.

Before retirement, this operations officer with the Central Intelligence Agency spent his fascinating career with assignments in pre-revolutionary Iran, Egypt and Soviet Russia. His years managing the CIA’s Moscow station during the Khrushchev regime were punctuated with a raft of colorful memories.

Upon moving to Covenant Shores four years ago, Sager began writing his memoirs as an intelligence officer focusing primarily on his years in Moscow. The autobiographical volume that resulted is titled “Uncovered; My Half-Century with the CIA.” Upon its release three years ago, Sager gave a book reading at the Mercer Island Public Library. Earlier this year, Sager was invited by the head of the Seattle Field Office of the FBI to share the contents of his book with new recruits.

But Sager’s passion for writing is not limited to chronicling his career. He recently wrote a book that illustrates the principles of a ministry in which he is involved at Covenant Shores. Sager became an active member of “BeFrienders” shortly after moving to the Mercer Island retirement community.

BeFrienders is similar to the Stephen Ministry program mainline churches have offered in which laypersons are trained to extend pastoral care to individuals going through difficult transitions in their lives. Sager is one of 15 trained caregivers on the campus of 380 residents.

According to the training materials, BeFrienders are committed to “caring not curing.” They are equipped to be active listeners who seek to hear the heart of the person in crisis without judging.

“We BeFrienders listen rather than offer advice,” Sager clarifies. “And there is no need for a wiretap. All that is required is a desire to be a friend.”

With the encouragement of the national office of “BeFrienders” in St. Paul Minnesota, Sager wrote an anthology of fictionalized case studies that illustrate the real life benefits of active, non-judgmental listening. His book is titled “God’s Listeners” and includes 10 chapters. Each chapter focuses on the kind of issues those involved in the volunteer ministry face.

“The title of my book reflects a primary premise of our program,” Sager added. “We believe that God is present when a BeFriender spends time with a BeFriendee. My colleagues and I want to convey the unconditional love and acceptance of our Heavenly Father to those pouring out their pain to us.”

“God’s Listeners” is being utilized nationally at all 12 Covenant retirement communities (including Covenant Shores) and through the BeFriender ministry network. It can be checked out through the King County Public Library (including the Mercer Island location) and can be purchased through Amazon.