Wow... the xanga team wants me to bring back Xanga...

I'm not so sure about this, I mean it's been so long now...

We'll see

Hey Everyone!

Happy (late) 4th of July!  Independence Day has come and gone again.  This year for July 4 I went through a customs clearance.  These past few weeks were filled with packing all my personal stuff in two tuff boxes and two duffle bags, making sure that all I have now is able to fit into one ruck sack.  The 4th was spent unpacking all of that again, so that customs people could look at all our stuff and make sure we aren't taking back anything that is illegal.  That lasted all morning.  But its finally done.  In fact our stuff might even be on its way home already.  Last year on the 4th of July I was in Texas, training on the Entry Control Point range.  I remember that was a very exhausting day.

This past Monday was the first of several award ceremonies.  Each unit in our Battalion will go through an end of tour awards ceremony where each soldier receives some sort of award for the work they've done over here.  They hand out awards and at the end there is a cake and some refreshments to follow.  My unit's award ceremony was Friday.  But anyway.  I took a look at the cake and just started dying of laughter.  I think a picture of the cake will show why...

While I was at the award's ceremony I was coined.  Being coined is not an official award, rather it’s a recognition of some outstanding efforts and work done by individuals.  Each command team designs a coin that they can hand out for soldiers to receive.  The command team from our Group (Brigade level) coined me for the efforts and hard work I've done.  It was kind of weird since most of the time when any type of recognition takes place; they gather the entire unit together to do so.  But this was done off to the side, where no one could see.  Didn't bother me, but it was just different.

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of taking one final tour of the ruins of Ur.  I've been trying ever since March to go back down there.  I plan a trip and everything is looking good, then all of sudden, at the last minute I have to cancel the trip because of some circumstance that prevents us from going down.  Most of the time it was because our flight was cancelled or used for something else, so we get bumped.  Towards the end, my Chaplain got sick and tired of the effort and work (actually the waiting for flights since I do all the work in coordinating the trip) so he allowed me to take over the entire trip.  On the week that we decided would be our final week in attempting to go, we went.  It was a rather interesting trip.  We got down there on a Thursday.  I was in charge of 7 soldiers, two of which were higher ranking than I.  Normally when we get there they give us a pretty nice place to stay/sleep.  This time we ended up getting cots and tents.  We survived and managed though.

We visited Camp Dracula...

We remembered The Alamo...

We got lost as to which way was home...

We signed up for a tour on Saturday.  When Saturday rolled around, I gave a little class/presentation/lesson on the history of the area and talked to them about spiritual roots.  I could tell that it definitely opened some eyes.  I guess you could say, the group that I took down with me isn't so much the "church going type."  So it was good to be able to share with them and witness with them over the week.  So after the lesson, we had to meet at the Religious Activity Center (RAC).  We had about 20 minutes to spare so we hopped on a bus.  However this bus was not like the others we rode.  Instead of going straight to the RAC, it took us clear to the other side of post, which I became extremely nervous about.  By the time it got anywhere remotely close to the RAC I decided it was time to get off and run to the center.  We missed the tour by about 2 minutes.  I was so frustrated.  At one point I was tempted to throw my helmet on the ground, but the thought of what the others would think of me, and how that reaction could potentially ruin my ability to witness kept me from acting upon that frustration.  It was so frustrating because we had been trying since March to go, we finally go, and then we missed the tour.

We had roughly one full day left at that base.  So I talked to Chaplains and Assistants to see what could be done.  The biggest problem was coming up with transportation to get out there.  We finally came in contact with a chaplain assistant named SGT Johnson.  She was extremely helpful.  Her response to the whole situation was, “Why aren’t we doing everything to help you guys get there?”  Between her and another Chaplain we were able to get a humvee and a pick-up truck to drive out to the site.  I got to drive the humvee out to the site.  That was pretty exciting.

So we did get to visit the city after all...

Earlier in the week I made the suggestion that the soldiers to go to Chapel on Sunday.  That Sunday I walked in with 4 of them.  (The others were planning to go to the Catholic service later that day; however, our “last minute” tour took place instead.)  I was pretty happy about that.  Some of the soldiers had never been to a chapel service since they left.  Despite invitations from me and others prior to this point, this time they decided to go.  If I could do the trip again, I sure would.  We’re too close to going home now, so the trips are over.

The week after I got back I had an email waiting in my inbox about another opportunity to help someone out.  A long time ago I agreed to play my guitar in the hospital along with another Chaplain Assistant who frequently made visits to the hospital.  He does magic tricks for children and was wondering if I would like to play my guitar for them.  So I cheerfully agreed.  When I got back from Ur, I found the email asking if I was willing to show up and play.  So I went to the hospital and sang some songs for three kids.  They had become casualties as a result of some explosions.  The kids were so happy to see me pull out a guitar and start playing.  They couldn’t understand what I was saying, but an interpreter helped out a little.

I’ve come to realize the Chaplaincy hasn’t lost impact or influence, as I felt earlier in this deployment.  Earlier there was a sense of the Chaplaincy being a political add-on that makes the military look good and “feel” good.  I was wondering at time the value and worth of my job.  I was wondering do they really need me, or would this deployment have been fine without me?  But these past few weeks have been really encouraging and uplifting in that sense.  I’m still very sick of this place and ready to go home.  But my value and worth was reassured.  There are a few things I would do differently if I ever have to do this again.  God has taught me a lot; I’ve learned a lot.  But now it’s time to come home.  I will see you all very soon.  Thanks for your prayers and support.

God Bless!

 

Hey!

I wanted to pose a question.  Not too long ago the Chaplain and I had a discussion involving different practices and approaches to ministry.  In one approach, the minister uses the pure Word of God.  He or she reads directly from the Bible and "let's it speak for itself."  God's Word is living and active and is described as a double edged sword, penetrating soul and spirit, joint and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.  When giving the pure undiluted Word of God, you offer the plain and simple truth.  The Holy Spirit guides, directs and stirs the minds and hearts of those who hear the Word so that the individual may grasp that truth and be convicted and then call upon God.  It's like in Nehemiah when the Israelites gathered to listen to the Law for hours and they all responded in worship by bowing before the Lord.  Needless to say, the minister stays true to the calling to preach the Word of God boldly.

In the second approach, the minister uses stories.  He uses mostly illustrations to help deliver a message.  The illustration helps relate the message in an everyday language.  The story touches the hearts and minds of the individuals listening; often captivating them and leaving memories of a particular illustration more than the message itself.  The minister will also use jokes, statistics, catchy phrases, pictures, cartoons and one liners that don't come from the Word of God, but do illustrate a message whose origin does.  Needless to say, in this approach the minister uses words guided by the Holy Spirit to speak a message of truth originating from the Word of God.

Now, I don't think one can say this way is correct and that way in wrong.  I think we need both approaches to the ministry.  My question is, where does one draw the line?  The reason I ask is because in today's world, one approach is often more accepted by listeners than the other.  Here's another way of looking at it.  All too often we feed on the Cake of Life.  We take our fill from it, enjoying it immensely with all its frosting and fluff.  It provides us what we want, leaving us satisfied.  But we never partake of the Bread of Life.  The Bread of Life is often equated with a stale, flavorless taste in our mouths.  Although sustaining and substantial, being what we need, we sometime refuse to take it in -- pushing it aside, asking for the cake.

Where do we draw the line?  How do we as ministers take the Word of God to listeners who don't want to hear it?  But in the same breath, how do we keep integrity without dumbing it down and fluffing it up?