By God's grace, I will have the opportunity to preach for the morning and evening chapel services tomorrow, on my final day at this post. And as you might expect, my mind is detained with thoughts of disease and death.
Putting my own morbidity aside, these thoughts are provoked in part by two items in need of prayer. One, concerning the soldier I mentioned in a previous post--his wife will have the spots removed from her cervix in the next couple of weeks, hoping to avoid the surgery that would remove the cervix entirely. Please pray for his comfort in his helplessness and her strength to prepare for the upcoming steps while also being a single mom to a two-year-old and baby. Two, another soldier just got a Red Cross message. This is one of my soldiers with a pregnant wife at home. They found tumors on the baby's head. The prospects are bleak. Please pray for a miracle. This soldier will travel home soon.
My wife reminds me on occasion that she was pretty oblivious to death until the loss of our friend, Kortney, a couple of years ago. The loss of this precious woman and unborn baby, and the loss to her widower husband was devastating (especially to him!). Since then, my dear wife sees death all around her. It's as if the curtain on this grievously broken world has been cast aside.
But as we stand naked before the inescapable winds of death, we cling more tightly to the cross. We are encompassed by the hand of the Good Shepherd, never to be let go or lost to the wind.
This (5 minute) tear-drawing video reminds us that the truths we confess will one day be the truths we depend upon (and hopefully even now depend upon!):
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2013/05/02/whether-i-live-or-die-god-wins/
And here is the happy outcome:
http://jenmcmanus.blogspot.com/
14.9.13
13.9.13
5 Reasons to Put Away the Porn (PG-13)
Due to its bold presentation, the universality of its availability, and the treachery of the human heart, porn has a near-dominant grip of men in our society and a sharply growing grip on women.
I talk with soldiers about this issue on occasion. Some celebrate their usage of it; Some are indifferent to their usage of it; Others are bothered or perhaps even repulsed by their struggle with it.
I hear many defenses of porn: "I'm not hurting anybody." "It's okay to look, just not touch." "I'm not looking at any of the hardcore stuff." "My spouse doesn't mind."
Here are five reasons why I believe this addictive epidemic must be fought at all costs:
1) Porn encourages selfishness. Sex is a time-consuming process that requires selflessness to be enjoyable. God created husbands and wives differently. They have very different needs and desires. Sex, unlike porn, requires mental energy, emotional intimacy, and words of affection. Porn, on the other hand, requires nothing but seeking one's own pleasure. It is self-love. And it is easy. There may not be others directly involved in the act, but those figures on the screen are made completely subservient to your pleasure. They are being used so that you can love yourself. And habits of the heart, even those enjoyed only in the dark, tend to become a lifestyle in the light as well.
2) Porn dehumanizes God's image-bearers. God, in His infinite wisdom, did not make men or women as a mere collection of body parts. He made them complex, with thoughts, emotions, moral sensibilities, and weirdness (those peculiar traits that set us apart from one another). He also made men and women very different from one another so that a veil of mystery obstructs easy love. Porn turns these complex people into mere animals, there to give another physical satisfaction, nothing more. All of the other personal dimensions are wiped away. And again, habits of the heart turn into lifestyles. People become what you think and you can not truly love a person unless you love the whole person.
3) Porn never satisfies. Like most addictive drugs, porn creates a yearning that only grows with time. This time, it might be a person in a swimsuit. Next time, that particular image will seem less exciting and more will be desired. Like other addictions, porn can become to take over your life. Hours a day are spent viewing images and videos that are increasingly perverse. Less and less time is spent with other people. More and more, social engagements, work, and other activities are seen as irritating distractions to the all-consuming addiction. That addiction grows until it begins to advance in the realm of the real, where illicit engagements are pursued, even at the cost of a marriage.
There is also great emotional/psychological consequences to porn. Unlike the stereotypes, porn addictions are not only fed by lust, but by loneliness, depression, anger, etc. If you feel rejected by your spouse, you can take refuge in porn. If you feel like no one understands you, you can take refuge in porn. If someone mistreats you, you can give them the other middle finger. But as with the physical component, the emotional rush quickly dissipates into emotions much darker than the ones that led you to that point. You feel even more alone, more unloved, more hopeless.
4) Porn destroys marriages. Spouses do not like being used or dehumanized. A porn addiction leads to that sort of treatment of a spouse. Life and love is no longer about sacrifice for another, but self-fulfillment. And an over-hyper sexual drive can quickly turn the creativity of marital sex into a gymnasium of the perverse. In addition, this seemingly physical act has ramifications for the rest of marriage. Emotional accessibility is blunted. Quality time is consumed. And a part of you is kept separate from your spouse, making them feel cheated, betrayed, and excluded. They are married to half a person, and most people will not suffer half a marriage indefinitely.
5) Porn distracts from what truly satisfies. Like a marital affair in the realm of real life, porn offers something that is already freely given. Song of Solomon talks often about the fulfilling pleasures of sex within marriage. Much of the fulfillment is found in the pleasure of the other, which is an ever-deepening cycle of joy and satisfaction. There is nothing satisfying that can be found in porn or an affair that can't be found with your spouse. Unlike the alternatives, marriage offers true marital satisfaction at the cost of sacrifice. Porn offers superfluous self-love at the cost of selflessness.
And the rich intimacy that can be found in your spouse alone points to the richer intimacy that can be had in Christ alone. Jesus Christ is not merely a buddy or best friend--He is the lover of the soul. The vulnerability, sacrifice, trust--all those things that belong to marriage also belong to those who are in Christ. God knows ever crevice of the soul, even the darkest places, and love the sinner in Christ to the very core of their being. Only He can truly satisfy the soul, and that satisfaction is found in glorifying the God who saved us. In the beauty of God's love for His people in Christ, porn is exposed as offering nothing but deceit and despair.
I talk with soldiers about this issue on occasion. Some celebrate their usage of it; Some are indifferent to their usage of it; Others are bothered or perhaps even repulsed by their struggle with it.
I hear many defenses of porn: "I'm not hurting anybody." "It's okay to look, just not touch." "I'm not looking at any of the hardcore stuff." "My spouse doesn't mind."
Here are five reasons why I believe this addictive epidemic must be fought at all costs:
1) Porn encourages selfishness. Sex is a time-consuming process that requires selflessness to be enjoyable. God created husbands and wives differently. They have very different needs and desires. Sex, unlike porn, requires mental energy, emotional intimacy, and words of affection. Porn, on the other hand, requires nothing but seeking one's own pleasure. It is self-love. And it is easy. There may not be others directly involved in the act, but those figures on the screen are made completely subservient to your pleasure. They are being used so that you can love yourself. And habits of the heart, even those enjoyed only in the dark, tend to become a lifestyle in the light as well.
2) Porn dehumanizes God's image-bearers. God, in His infinite wisdom, did not make men or women as a mere collection of body parts. He made them complex, with thoughts, emotions, moral sensibilities, and weirdness (those peculiar traits that set us apart from one another). He also made men and women very different from one another so that a veil of mystery obstructs easy love. Porn turns these complex people into mere animals, there to give another physical satisfaction, nothing more. All of the other personal dimensions are wiped away. And again, habits of the heart turn into lifestyles. People become what you think and you can not truly love a person unless you love the whole person.
3) Porn never satisfies. Like most addictive drugs, porn creates a yearning that only grows with time. This time, it might be a person in a swimsuit. Next time, that particular image will seem less exciting and more will be desired. Like other addictions, porn can become to take over your life. Hours a day are spent viewing images and videos that are increasingly perverse. Less and less time is spent with other people. More and more, social engagements, work, and other activities are seen as irritating distractions to the all-consuming addiction. That addiction grows until it begins to advance in the realm of the real, where illicit engagements are pursued, even at the cost of a marriage.
There is also great emotional/psychological consequences to porn. Unlike the stereotypes, porn addictions are not only fed by lust, but by loneliness, depression, anger, etc. If you feel rejected by your spouse, you can take refuge in porn. If you feel like no one understands you, you can take refuge in porn. If someone mistreats you, you can give them the other middle finger. But as with the physical component, the emotional rush quickly dissipates into emotions much darker than the ones that led you to that point. You feel even more alone, more unloved, more hopeless.
4) Porn destroys marriages. Spouses do not like being used or dehumanized. A porn addiction leads to that sort of treatment of a spouse. Life and love is no longer about sacrifice for another, but self-fulfillment. And an over-hyper sexual drive can quickly turn the creativity of marital sex into a gymnasium of the perverse. In addition, this seemingly physical act has ramifications for the rest of marriage. Emotional accessibility is blunted. Quality time is consumed. And a part of you is kept separate from your spouse, making them feel cheated, betrayed, and excluded. They are married to half a person, and most people will not suffer half a marriage indefinitely.
5) Porn distracts from what truly satisfies. Like a marital affair in the realm of real life, porn offers something that is already freely given. Song of Solomon talks often about the fulfilling pleasures of sex within marriage. Much of the fulfillment is found in the pleasure of the other, which is an ever-deepening cycle of joy and satisfaction. There is nothing satisfying that can be found in porn or an affair that can't be found with your spouse. Unlike the alternatives, marriage offers true marital satisfaction at the cost of sacrifice. Porn offers superfluous self-love at the cost of selflessness.
And the rich intimacy that can be found in your spouse alone points to the richer intimacy that can be had in Christ alone. Jesus Christ is not merely a buddy or best friend--He is the lover of the soul. The vulnerability, sacrifice, trust--all those things that belong to marriage also belong to those who are in Christ. God knows ever crevice of the soul, even the darkest places, and love the sinner in Christ to the very core of their being. Only He can truly satisfy the soul, and that satisfaction is found in glorifying the God who saved us. In the beauty of God's love for His people in Christ, porn is exposed as offering nothing but deceit and despair.
12.9.13
Rotten in Rome
In a fictional cartoon-movie, all dogs go to heaven. In real life, most people do not.
God makes this abundantly clear throughout Scripture. We are all sinners (rebels against God), and the wages of sin is death. And God does not veil Himself from the eyes of the world--thus, we are left without excuse (Rom. 1). We reject Him because we are dumb, deaf, blind, and treacherous, so that God is justified with He judges (Ps. 51; Rom. 3).
But in God's grace, Jesus was set forth as a sacrifice for sinners (Is. 53). He bore their sin in his body, becoming their sin so they would be the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5). And it is only through Christ that we are saved. He declares Himself to be the way, the truth, and the life--no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14). Following the teaching of their risen and ascended Lord, the apostles taught that there is no other name by which we may be saved (Acts 2). Ultimately, every man will bow the knee to Jesus--either in repentance now or in judgment later (Phil. 2).
Apparently, some of the most notorious figures claiming the name of Christ now deny these fundamental truths. Apparently, the man who claims the position of Christ over the church, Francis, has been swept up in the universalistic tide that has swept through Rome over the past half century and rejects fundamental Christian orthodoxy: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-francis-assures-atheists-you-dont-have-to-believe-in-god-to-go-to-heaven-8810062.html
Rome used to argue that one could not be saved by Christ outside of the Roman church. Shaken out of that blatantly anti-biblical notion, they have declared that all dogs go to heaven, as long as they are good dogs. They have caved to the spirit of the age, where a pagan monism (merging of distinct things into one--opposite of dualism) has blurred the lines of truth.
The orthodox from the early Church through the Reformation had an appropriate label for such teaching coming from a supposedly Christian platform--the spirit of antichrist. Let us hope that the Rome repents of such grievous errors and heresy. Let us hope, for Francis' sake, that he doesn't pin his hopes on his own conscience as he encourages others to do. My conscience, and his, apart from Christ is but another piece of luggage destined for eternal torment. And let us hope that he quickly corrects this false teaching or he will rue the day when he must give an account for it.
My friends, God confronts the lie of our self-righteousness and pretension of self-salvation through His Word of truth. Francis, and much of Rome, condones the lie and the pretension. Love detached from truth is no love at all, but a blood-bearing complicity in death. May God in His abundant grace convict those who uphold the name of Christ in name only, and drive them to zealously guard the truth, beauty, and power of the Gospel of God's grace for sinners in Jesus Christ (Acts 20:24).
God makes this abundantly clear throughout Scripture. We are all sinners (rebels against God), and the wages of sin is death. And God does not veil Himself from the eyes of the world--thus, we are left without excuse (Rom. 1). We reject Him because we are dumb, deaf, blind, and treacherous, so that God is justified with He judges (Ps. 51; Rom. 3).
But in God's grace, Jesus was set forth as a sacrifice for sinners (Is. 53). He bore their sin in his body, becoming their sin so they would be the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5). And it is only through Christ that we are saved. He declares Himself to be the way, the truth, and the life--no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14). Following the teaching of their risen and ascended Lord, the apostles taught that there is no other name by which we may be saved (Acts 2). Ultimately, every man will bow the knee to Jesus--either in repentance now or in judgment later (Phil. 2).
Apparently, some of the most notorious figures claiming the name of Christ now deny these fundamental truths. Apparently, the man who claims the position of Christ over the church, Francis, has been swept up in the universalistic tide that has swept through Rome over the past half century and rejects fundamental Christian orthodoxy: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/pope-francis-assures-atheists-you-dont-have-to-believe-in-god-to-go-to-heaven-8810062.html
The orthodox from the early Church through the Reformation had an appropriate label for such teaching coming from a supposedly Christian platform--the spirit of antichrist. Let us hope that the Rome repents of such grievous errors and heresy. Let us hope, for Francis' sake, that he doesn't pin his hopes on his own conscience as he encourages others to do. My conscience, and his, apart from Christ is but another piece of luggage destined for eternal torment. And let us hope that he quickly corrects this false teaching or he will rue the day when he must give an account for it.
My friends, God confronts the lie of our self-righteousness and pretension of self-salvation through His Word of truth. Francis, and much of Rome, condones the lie and the pretension. Love detached from truth is no love at all, but a blood-bearing complicity in death. May God in His abundant grace convict those who uphold the name of Christ in name only, and drive them to zealously guard the truth, beauty, and power of the Gospel of God's grace for sinners in Jesus Christ (Acts 20:24).
11.9.13
Fighting for Freedom
Tonight, we gathered in a square to remember the loss of 2,998 innocent civilians on 9/11. We stood to commemorate their lives and deaths. We fight to continue their legacy.
On that day thirteen years ago, the free world was painfully reminded that democracy is not the default. Free republics are but islands in an historical sea of tyranny.
On that day, untempered idealism was mingled with sober realism. Blood must always be the price paid to sustain freedom. Yet it is a price that Americans, by the millons, have been willing to pay.
On that day, the most entitled generation in this nation's history was taught responsibility. Their illusions of security without sacrifice crashed down like tumbling towers--they fell from the sky and plowed into the earth like an eagle clipped of its wings in mid-flight.
On that day, America rediscovered itself. It is not a nation of slaves or greed or hubris. It is a nation of free peoples, gathered from all ends of the globe, united in the imperfect pursuit of ideals. These ideals at various times have gone unrealized, but they have never gone unpursued and they remain unconquered.
On this day, a "pastor" who stands outside the confessional contours of orthodox Christianity will use fire to be politically incendiary. His actions are morally repugant, though fully legal.
On this day, a shadow of uncertainty will descend for a time over all those fighting for freedom, anticipating the bloody and violent response to one man's free, incendiary act.
On this day, I am glad that this man is still free. Other cultures will brutally punish the man with the warped conscience. Our culture defends the conscience of every man, recognizing that the conscience is the fount and foundation of freedom and virtue.
On this day, I cannot offer any moral justification for this man, but I can offer my pledge to defend his freedom. Only those left free to cry "Let's roll" will be willing to fight for freedom on the day of its challenging.
On that day thirteen years ago, the free world was painfully reminded that democracy is not the default. Free republics are but islands in an historical sea of tyranny.
On that day, untempered idealism was mingled with sober realism. Blood must always be the price paid to sustain freedom. Yet it is a price that Americans, by the millons, have been willing to pay.
On that day, the most entitled generation in this nation's history was taught responsibility. Their illusions of security without sacrifice crashed down like tumbling towers--they fell from the sky and plowed into the earth like an eagle clipped of its wings in mid-flight.
On that day, America rediscovered itself. It is not a nation of slaves or greed or hubris. It is a nation of free peoples, gathered from all ends of the globe, united in the imperfect pursuit of ideals. These ideals at various times have gone unrealized, but they have never gone unpursued and they remain unconquered.
On this day, a "pastor" who stands outside the confessional contours of orthodox Christianity will use fire to be politically incendiary. His actions are morally repugant, though fully legal.
On this day, a shadow of uncertainty will descend for a time over all those fighting for freedom, anticipating the bloody and violent response to one man's free, incendiary act.
On this day, I am glad that this man is still free. Other cultures will brutally punish the man with the warped conscience. Our culture defends the conscience of every man, recognizing that the conscience is the fount and foundation of freedom and virtue.
On this day, I cannot offer any moral justification for this man, but I can offer my pledge to defend his freedom. Only those left free to cry "Let's roll" will be willing to fight for freedom on the day of its challenging.
10.9.13
Man Made to Marathon
I have just finished the superb book, Born to Run, by Christopher McDougall, which has become a cult classic for most anyone who loves to run.
There was near-unanimous consent in the scientific community over the years that man was fundamentally a walking being. This seemed rather obvious when comparing man with the multitude of animals that can easily outrun him. In the past decade or two, this consensus has been challenged and perhaps even dethroned. In terms of anatomy, man is separated from the most similar species (i.e., monkeys) by elements specifically geared for running--from the achilles tendon to a particular muscles that balances the head over the body to the upright position which allow man to gain two breaths for every stride, compared to every other animal's one.
We were made to run--more than that, we were made to marathon. As some of the last remaining endurance hunters show us (the bushmen of sub-Saharan Africa), man for a portion of his history was forced to rely upon chasing much faster animals down over long periods of time in order to feed himself and his family and survive. How was this possible? Man, using his rational faculty, gathered with other men (and women and children), and would give chase to the faster animal, knowing that it would eventually tire out. Every time the sprinting animal would come to rest, another man from the hunting pack would give chase again. After a couple of hours, said animal collapses. No animal was made to marathon. Man was made to marathon, and that physically set him apart.
Why don't all men, then, love to run and do so for dozens, if not hundreds, of miles a week? Ultimately, man unique physical ability comes into conflict with his unique intellectual ability. As man was made to marathon, as opposed to sprint, his mind is constantly geared toward efficiency, looking to save energy for when it is most needed. In a post-industrial society, not much energy need be exerted in order to survive, so the the mind keeps the body off its feet.
But this mental faculty was meant to give a perpetually worked body a bit of rest, not enable a sedentary lifestyle. And by remaining sedentary, we cause our bodies much more harm than if we had a lifestyle involving running. In cultures that are still running cultures (few and far between), the incidents of cancer and other terminal and degenerative illnesses are vastly reduced. You want to live longer--run (or jog). As one elderly distance runner once said, getting old doesn't keep him running, running keeps him from getting old.
More and more, the science that said running is bad for your body is being debunked. Injuries are not as much a result of running, as they are a result of sedentary people trying to run. People run too hard. They run with very poor form. They wear expensive, padded shoes which take perhaps the most complex and sensitive part of our body (the foot) and numb them to correct landing, taking off, and pain thresholds. Our feet tell us how to run well. Our shoes often muzzle them. (Many recent studies have shown that the more you spend on a pair of shoes, the more likely you are to get injured.)
Of course, I make a boring, more mundane case for a particular lifestyle when the book I just read is really more about the greatest ultramarathon race of all time, between some of America's greatest runners and a dying breed of ultramarathoning super-warriors from the canyons of Mexico. The story presents a riveting narrative, with occasional sidebars like those mentioned above, that makes the reader want to close the book and go run barefoot in the grass without a care in the world.
The one true weakness in a truly fabulous book is its simplistic and forced evolutionary explanations for mankind's running ability. Instead of simply providing the anthropological (study of man--anthropos) and biological (study of life--bios) facts, it parrots a common cosmological (study of world--cosmos) explanation for these facts. If you assume that man adapted in accordance to a "survival of the fittest" principle, then he developed all of these innate running abilities in order to survive. Yet that assumption need not be made. If God made man to subdue the earth, and part of exerting mastery over every creature involved being able to outrun it as well as outwit it, then it shows the creative genius of God in making man with an achilles tendon.
God gave man the biological tools he needed to be a steward of this world as an image-bearing representative of God. Since the fall of man, man's task have become more difficult as he now must toil through thorns and thistles. Thus, an unruly creation sometimes subdues man.
But there will be a day when Christ puts all things under His feet. The lion will sleep alongside the lamb and the trees of the fields will clap their hands. On that day, we will begin to reign forever and ever with Christ over a subdue and bounteous creation, unhindered by the Fall. And on that day, I rejoice that my uniquely human anatomy, with the biological capability to run all day, will do so unfettered by injury or age in the eternal Garden of the Lord.
There was near-unanimous consent in the scientific community over the years that man was fundamentally a walking being. This seemed rather obvious when comparing man with the multitude of animals that can easily outrun him. In the past decade or two, this consensus has been challenged and perhaps even dethroned. In terms of anatomy, man is separated from the most similar species (i.e., monkeys) by elements specifically geared for running--from the achilles tendon to a particular muscles that balances the head over the body to the upright position which allow man to gain two breaths for every stride, compared to every other animal's one.
We were made to run--more than that, we were made to marathon. As some of the last remaining endurance hunters show us (the bushmen of sub-Saharan Africa), man for a portion of his history was forced to rely upon chasing much faster animals down over long periods of time in order to feed himself and his family and survive. How was this possible? Man, using his rational faculty, gathered with other men (and women and children), and would give chase to the faster animal, knowing that it would eventually tire out. Every time the sprinting animal would come to rest, another man from the hunting pack would give chase again. After a couple of hours, said animal collapses. No animal was made to marathon. Man was made to marathon, and that physically set him apart.
Why don't all men, then, love to run and do so for dozens, if not hundreds, of miles a week? Ultimately, man unique physical ability comes into conflict with his unique intellectual ability. As man was made to marathon, as opposed to sprint, his mind is constantly geared toward efficiency, looking to save energy for when it is most needed. In a post-industrial society, not much energy need be exerted in order to survive, so the the mind keeps the body off its feet.
But this mental faculty was meant to give a perpetually worked body a bit of rest, not enable a sedentary lifestyle. And by remaining sedentary, we cause our bodies much more harm than if we had a lifestyle involving running. In cultures that are still running cultures (few and far between), the incidents of cancer and other terminal and degenerative illnesses are vastly reduced. You want to live longer--run (or jog). As one elderly distance runner once said, getting old doesn't keep him running, running keeps him from getting old.
More and more, the science that said running is bad for your body is being debunked. Injuries are not as much a result of running, as they are a result of sedentary people trying to run. People run too hard. They run with very poor form. They wear expensive, padded shoes which take perhaps the most complex and sensitive part of our body (the foot) and numb them to correct landing, taking off, and pain thresholds. Our feet tell us how to run well. Our shoes often muzzle them. (Many recent studies have shown that the more you spend on a pair of shoes, the more likely you are to get injured.)
Of course, I make a boring, more mundane case for a particular lifestyle when the book I just read is really more about the greatest ultramarathon race of all time, between some of America's greatest runners and a dying breed of ultramarathoning super-warriors from the canyons of Mexico. The story presents a riveting narrative, with occasional sidebars like those mentioned above, that makes the reader want to close the book and go run barefoot in the grass without a care in the world.
The one true weakness in a truly fabulous book is its simplistic and forced evolutionary explanations for mankind's running ability. Instead of simply providing the anthropological (study of man--anthropos) and biological (study of life--bios) facts, it parrots a common cosmological (study of world--cosmos) explanation for these facts. If you assume that man adapted in accordance to a "survival of the fittest" principle, then he developed all of these innate running abilities in order to survive. Yet that assumption need not be made. If God made man to subdue the earth, and part of exerting mastery over every creature involved being able to outrun it as well as outwit it, then it shows the creative genius of God in making man with an achilles tendon.
God gave man the biological tools he needed to be a steward of this world as an image-bearing representative of God. Since the fall of man, man's task have become more difficult as he now must toil through thorns and thistles. Thus, an unruly creation sometimes subdues man.
But there will be a day when Christ puts all things under His feet. The lion will sleep alongside the lamb and the trees of the fields will clap their hands. On that day, we will begin to reign forever and ever with Christ over a subdue and bounteous creation, unhindered by the Fall. And on that day, I rejoice that my uniquely human anatomy, with the biological capability to run all day, will do so unfettered by injury or age in the eternal Garden of the Lord.
9.9.13
Oh, the Army!
Every so often, one responds to the unpredictable, seemingly spontaneous nature of Army life with some sort of resigned expression like "Oh, the Army." (We also use fun phrases to encourage adaptability to such a lifestyle, like "Semper Gumby.")
I was thrown for another loop this morning when it was mentioned at a meeting that the group of us who are moving will now be doing so by the end of this week. Thus, my "To Do" list has gone from preparing chapel services, Bible studies, and races to transitioning my chapel responsibilities asap, transitioning my race responsibilities asap, tie up counseling loose ends, and pack up my office.
As far as I know, I don't have an office or computer at our another site (that is another "To Do" that has now become urgent). So my first week there will probably be spent roaming around and visiting soldiers (which is never a bad or unenjoyable thing to do, regardless). I have touched base with the head chaplain at that post, and I hope to assume some form of chapel responsibilities in short order.
I am reminded more than ever that I am not in charge of my life. God directs. I follow. And I pray that, by His Spirit's power, He will work in me to will and work according to His good pleasure. May the glory of Christ be my aim in whatever circumstance.
I was thrown for another loop this morning when it was mentioned at a meeting that the group of us who are moving will now be doing so by the end of this week. Thus, my "To Do" list has gone from preparing chapel services, Bible studies, and races to transitioning my chapel responsibilities asap, transitioning my race responsibilities asap, tie up counseling loose ends, and pack up my office.
As far as I know, I don't have an office or computer at our another site (that is another "To Do" that has now become urgent). So my first week there will probably be spent roaming around and visiting soldiers (which is never a bad or unenjoyable thing to do, regardless). I have touched base with the head chaplain at that post, and I hope to assume some form of chapel responsibilities in short order.
I am reminded more than ever that I am not in charge of my life. God directs. I follow. And I pray that, by His Spirit's power, He will work in me to will and work according to His good pleasure. May the glory of Christ be my aim in whatever circumstance.
8.9.13
Perspective
In God's providence, I was standing at our post memorial last night, drinking in a number of meaningful sights.
I can't really say I was standing, but panting and pacing back and forth. I had just completed ten miler in what I believe was my best time, motivated in part by a soldier from Guam who told me he wanted to talk. I finished my run with about six minutes to spare, which gave me enough time to wobble-walk across our small post.
The soldier never showed, which gave me time to examine the memorial more closely. This memorial--and our post--was named after a soldier killed in 2004. That is almost ten years ago. I was in college. My brother was getting ready to deploy to Iraq. All of us were just a few years removed form one of the most consequential events of our lifetimes--9/11. In the ten years since that time, much has changed for all of us. But not for this soldier. His brief story came to a close in 2004. Lost in the passing of time is the memory of many thousands of soldiers who will never return home, play ball in the backyard, or fill a spot at the dinner table. Life is but a mist, and a life lost will leave a mother's eye amist for a lifetime. Come, Lord Jesus, come.
I was awoken from my thoughts about this memorial by the clomp, clomp, clomp of a group of runners. There was seven of them, led by one of my soldiers who has lost 100+ pounds in the past year and a half. They were not natural runners, which is why they banded together to run the ten miler that I had set up at the last minute for this weekend. Unlike most runners, this group was running back and forth and up and down our tiny post in order to complete the race. Every so often, a cheer would go up from the group as they drew closer to their goal. I interact with a good number of runners. I'm not sure any inspire me as much as this group.
Every day finds soldiers--like the cheery running band last night--exposed to danger and their own chance at a lonely memorial. May the enduring memorial and mental image of this trip be that of blood-strewn wooden cross, where my Savior sacrificed Himself to bring spiritual terrorists like myself into an abiding and permanent peace with my Father in heaven.
I can't really say I was standing, but panting and pacing back and forth. I had just completed ten miler in what I believe was my best time, motivated in part by a soldier from Guam who told me he wanted to talk. I finished my run with about six minutes to spare, which gave me enough time to wobble-walk across our small post.
The soldier never showed, which gave me time to examine the memorial more closely. This memorial--and our post--was named after a soldier killed in 2004. That is almost ten years ago. I was in college. My brother was getting ready to deploy to Iraq. All of us were just a few years removed form one of the most consequential events of our lifetimes--9/11. In the ten years since that time, much has changed for all of us. But not for this soldier. His brief story came to a close in 2004. Lost in the passing of time is the memory of many thousands of soldiers who will never return home, play ball in the backyard, or fill a spot at the dinner table. Life is but a mist, and a life lost will leave a mother's eye amist for a lifetime. Come, Lord Jesus, come.
I was awoken from my thoughts about this memorial by the clomp, clomp, clomp of a group of runners. There was seven of them, led by one of my soldiers who has lost 100+ pounds in the past year and a half. They were not natural runners, which is why they banded together to run the ten miler that I had set up at the last minute for this weekend. Unlike most runners, this group was running back and forth and up and down our tiny post in order to complete the race. Every so often, a cheer would go up from the group as they drew closer to their goal. I interact with a good number of runners. I'm not sure any inspire me as much as this group.
Every day finds soldiers--like the cheery running band last night--exposed to danger and their own chance at a lonely memorial. May the enduring memorial and mental image of this trip be that of blood-strewn wooden cross, where my Savior sacrificed Himself to bring spiritual terrorists like myself into an abiding and permanent peace with my Father in heaven.
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