Of course, we know that such a day never truly exists for the pastor this side of Heaven. We attempt to bracket a Saturday or Monday, knowing that our Sunday will be spent pleading with God's people and the lost to be reconciled to God. But those days are pale imitations of the Lord's Day. Yet, even now, I can still preach to my own heart the same truths I bear to God's people.
In that vein, I continue to be blessed by these opportunities to lead the "traditional" chapel service on Sundays. Over the past three Sundays, 25-30 soldiers from different units and diverse backgrounds have gathered to hear about the grace and glory of our God in the story of Ruth. Over the past two Sundays, I have lead the singing in acapella form, lacking instrumentalists (which has been my norm for years now). Today, I had a guitarist lead us in Chris Tomlin's rendition of "Amazing Grace," played "Days of Elijah" over the sound system, and had a Gospel quartet (including myself) lead the congregation in singing "It Is Well." I have repeated the morning service in the evening the past two Sundays, drawing an additional 5-10 soldiers each time. I will do that again tonight. Next week, my brother chaplain here will be taking the Sunday evening service and making it a Friday evening "Gospel" service. I look forward to attending.
I continue to largely employ the "traditional" format with my chapel services. I employ a liturgy and preach Christ and Him crucified, without additional adornments. I will never be a PowerPoint preacher. That said, I do love bringing the old fashioned Gospel message to bear upon so eclectic a gathering as those who come each Sunday. I hope that, whether here or AFG, soldiers will be lured to that message from a variety of backgrounds and not simply scatter to the churches that fit their culture. I minister, not only to the liturgical, but believers of all backgrounds. I will continue to think and pray over these issues as I prepare to lead the traditional service on Sunday mornings at my post in AFG.
By God's grace, as I continue to get positive feedback regarding this series through Ruth, I remember that the power is in God's Word and Spirit, and not in my own feeble efforts and tongue-tied words. I usually pay little mind to the generic feed ("Good message, chaplain") as it tells me nothing about how God's Word has impacted someone's heart. But I am getting more specific feedback. Several soldiers have noted how much they appreciate how Scripture-saturated the sermons are (as they should be!). A few others have noted that they appreciate how real and personal the sermons are. My favorite remarks, however, are always the "I didn't know this was about Jesus." After chapel this morning, my good officer friend (a confessional Lutheran who goes to McLean Bible) said that he likes that I deal with historical context, point to Christ, and then draw out relevant personal points. His input reminds me of what I was taught in seminary-- to avoid moralism (jumping straight from the passage to me) and allegory (ignoring the passage and going straight to Christ). The goal is typology--understand the passage in its context, show how it points to Christ, and bring it to a close on what this particularly view of Christ's mercy means for me.
As I am buffeted by a million opinions about what the chaplain should say and when, as well as by the always unpredictable array of ordeals, and the deceptions of my own heart, may Christ my King keep me faithful by His Spirit to guard His Word and preach it in season and out, to the glory of God the Father.
