Three Simple Requests

A week or so ago, I asked the Lord for one simple, specific request, and lo and behold, the Lord was pleased to graciously answer that request.

Today, on my first (unofficial) day with my new unit, I asked three simple things of the Lord on my 2 hour drive from the Dells to Eau Claire (beautiful, by the way):

1) Put one person in my path who can show me around and give me the lay of the land. A wonderful female NCO provided the answer to that prayer as soon as I walked in the door.

2) Enable me to reserve a time and room for a chapel service tomorrow (the first one conducted for the unit in about two years). It will be at 1100 CST in the classroom of the training site.

3) Use me to bless one soldier in particular today. I'm not sure how the Lord may have answered this prayer, though I had a lot of buoyant introductory chat-versations with soldiers.

Please pray for the chapel service tomorrow. Usually, these services draw 5-10 soldiers (the number balloons on deployments), often because of poor advertising and conflicting duties. Pray that the Lord would bring some believers and unbelievers, and we would all grow in our knowledge of and love for Jesus Christ through the power of His Word and Spirit.

A Long Night with the Legion

Before my first session meeting at Falls Presbyterian drew to a close, one of the elders stopped the discussion, turned to me, and said "I think it's almost time for your American Legion event. You have our blessing to go." Another elder helped me pack some food to go, and then the session prayed for me. God's grace is so clear to me in the way this dear group of brothers and fathers in the faith stand alongside of me and behind me.

I proceeded to my first American Legion meeting at their building in the center of town, wolfing down southern-style BBQ on the way (as we say in the Army, "Eat now. Taste later."). I sat down amongst a group of men who were almost exclusively from the Korea and Vietnam eras. Only one other veteran my age was there (also a member of the Village Council and follower of Falls Pres on Facebook).

The meeting was pretty standard: Funds raised for those in need and funds dispersed to those in need. Past and upcoming events. Resources for veterans facing all manners of hardship.

The time afterward was not so standard. A few of the older vets invited me to the Legion bar in the basement (a great place, filled with older folks and the hometown Miller Genuine Draft on tap). I sat down next to the occasional tender of the bar, who I met on one of my first days in Menomonee Falls. He is a funny, gregarious, get by day-to-day musician. And his dad in Florida is dying.

He updated me on his dad's condition since the last time we talked, and will go down in the next week to be with his mom in these final days. I talked with him about Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus, and the beauty of God as the unfailing father. He is bringing his Bible down to Florida with him. Please pray that he would find comfort through that life-giving Word.

While talking to the bartender-musician, I also chatted with the commander of the post and one of the few black men in Menomonee Falls. As the commander told me about a veteran who could use some extra care, my other friend told me of his inspiring climb up the economic ladder in inner-city Milwaukee. He also wanted to know what the DC elites would think about a conservative, black Republican who wears a Confederate belt buckle and loves to hunt. :)

On the other side of the bar, a half dozen widows (all of whom reminded me of my deceased grandmother) put back shots and bantered back and forth. When the conversation on my side died down, I went over and visited the women. "Oh, you're the new chaplain!" they said. I told them how good it was to meet each of them and sat down to talk with one of them in particular.

This particular widow told me that her husband died just two years ago. He didn't join the Legion until late in life because he was only in the Army for a few months and didn't think he was allowed. BUT, she readily declared, he was pushed out of the Army because of poor eyesight, despite the fact that he excelled in every test he ever took. I was inspired by how quickly she defended her husband, as if he was still there beside her.

She said he had been sick in recent years, but still always drove her if she wanted to go somewhere so that he could spend more time with her. 58 years of marriage. "He was always my best friend."

A powerful final experience to think and pray over on my drive home.

The Smell of Grace

I signed up to attend the local Toastmasters club on Meetup.com. I knew that Toastmasters give people the opportunity to practice and grow in public speaking and hoped that I might have an opportunity to give some glimpse of the Gospel to folks from the community.

Just before the meeting, I had dinner with an older member of the congregation--a passionate evangelist--and he had once been in Toastmasters. He told me that one exercise they may do is take a random topic chosen for the night and ask for volunteers to speak on that topic.

I arrived in the back room of a local pizza place, where about 20 people were gathered. I tried to make small talk with others in the few moments between speeches. An hour into the meeting, I wondered whether I had chosen the wrong venue to take a stab at outreach.

Then the random topic was announced: Potpourri. I didn't know how the format worked, so the lady who introduced the topic called upon someone to to talk about potpourri. She then asked for a volunteer and I thought "What the heck!" and volunteered.

I said something along the following lines (though not nearly as polished--I was later told I said "Uh" five times!).

"When I think of potpourri, I think of the smells, the sights, the sounds of this world in its original beauty. I think of the glory of this Creation and the world as it was meant to be.

I am a soldier, and when I deployed, it didn't smell like potpourri. It smelled like exhaust and chemical-laden burn pits, and figuratively, carried the stench of death. Potpourri also reminds me of the sweet scent used to cover the smell of death.

When I think of potpourri, I think of a world without these things. I think of a world where burn pits are filled, deserts are turned into gardens, and every tear is wiped from our eyes. I look forward to that day."

Was I too abstract? Too morbid or sentimental? I don't know. There is nothing polished about sharing the Gospel. I am a sinner trying to communicate biblical truth with other sinners. I appreciate the fact that it was noted that I said "uh" five times. My weakness was clearly exposed! I hope and trust that God showed His strength in my obvious weakness. At least I am doing this now rather than just talking about it.

Afterward, I met a number of people including a few fellow believers from different denominations. I handed a few of my old cards from Sterling. Still riding my extroverted social high, I gave a cheerful goodbye to the gals working in front of the restaurant and started kicking myself as soon as I got to the car, thinking I should have tried to talk to them a bit.

I then realized that I forgot my Toastmasters folder and went back in to grab it and found myself in a good conversation with four or five of the workers at the place. I told them about Falls Presbyterian and invited one of them in particular to come. I acutely felt the emptiness of my pocket, devoid of any current business cards or church invitation cards. I won't make that mistake again. They will be on the printer by the end of the week.

In any case, one of the gals was interested in visiting the church. She was convinced we have a sign with constantly changing messages in front of the church (we don't). I just continually repeated the intersection--"We would love to see you at Falls Church at the intersection of Pilgrim and Good Hope!" I hope she comes.

Please pray for these continued endeavors, dear friends. And may our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, be known and loved by more hearts and confessed by more tongues!