Returning to “Black Hawk Down” with Bulletproof Faith

“Unless the LORD had helped me, I would soon have settled in the silence of the grave. I cried out, ‘I am slipping!’ but Your unfailing love, O LORD, supported me. When doubts filled my mind, Your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.” — Psalm 94:17-19 Can you identify with the writer in the verses above—hanging on just as his fingers were losing their grip on hope? Sgt. Jeff Struecker called out to God in just that way in the Somalian battle of 1993 which we call “Black Hawk Down.” As the fight became more intense and his hope for survival gone, he cried out in desperation, “God I need your help, I’m in over my head!”
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What Every Parent and Every Church Owes its Children

Psalm 78, the second longest psalm next to Psalm 119, is considered an historical psalm, an instructive psalm, and a relevant psalm. This psalm is not just for the children of Israel. This psalm is for parents and the church today. In referring to the Old Testament we find this verse in the New Testament: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of Scriptures we might have hope.” (Romans 15:4). So what are we to learn from Psalm 78? What is the priority given to us? We are to raise our children to have hope, trust, and confidence in God.
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Saying Goodbye

Perhaps before deployment you spent sweet time with each other going over all the good memories of wonderful times together. Then you gave a “charge”—to be careful, remember that they are loved, know that you’re grateful for them, and promise to stay in communication whenever possible. And of course you made plans for your reunion and spoke of how wonderful it’ll be to be back together again.
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Shine On!

Jesus was talking to a gathering of followers and just after telling them that they were like salt, He also told them that they were like light.  They were salt because God used them to preserve those around them, but they were also light because through them, Jesus intended them to illuminate the truth of who God is.  What is interesting to me in these verses is that Jesus doesn’t suggest that a city in a valley or a light under a bowl has any less light, He just focuses on what to do with the light.  This is a call to do more with what we have.
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God of Creation

With a group of military wives in a Bible study on Friday morning, I wondered out loud how our deployed service members ever got used to so much sand-color—that it all must be “very beige” in the desert. A soldier’s wife quickly corrected me with a rebuke — “Oh, Linda, you’re wrong! My husband tells me that he has never seen such beautiful sunrises and sunsets. And the stars—oh my . . . he tells me that at night he has never seen so many stars!!”
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Through It All

It is a beautiful thing to see a couple get through something that challenges them in every area of their lives (like a deployment)—and because of faith they do not give up. When the deployment is over, they can look back over the months of discouragement/loneliness/fear and say with confidence, “My God took me through this.” And what if things did not go easily—struggles with children/finances/ temptations/health?
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iWorship

You might recall this story of Moses, how he went up to the mountain for forty days where he met with God face to face. While there Moses bowed in adoration, listened and heard commandments from the Almighty. In the meantime . . . . his whining, self-absorbed followers decided they wanted to worship a golden calf instead. I could never imagine as I read this rendition that while the very Creator of the Universe was only a mountaintop away they could possibly want to bow to a baby cow molded from rings and things. “Silly, silly people” I would think. But recently I’ve been personally reminded about this act of worshiping in front of something other than the Almighty. After all, we are in a world of fingertip access to information, data, and facts. Our relationships are emailed, twittered or facebooked. We stay connected through Bluetooth, android, or iWhatevers. In the meantime our Lord is only a whisper away. We can have an intimate conversation with God, yet so often we choose a man-made machine instead. “Silly, silly us.”
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More Evening Prayers with Chaps

Shepherd of my soul and provider for my deck plates, thank You for the rest and replenishment You bring us each day and for the promises of the next. Help us Lord to rest in Your anointing, as we gather for Your purposes upon our life. May the rod and staff of our Group share in the protection and comfort of all who seek the sound of freedom . . . and may we all hear Your voice while walking through the darker valleys of our days. Amen.
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Evening Prayers with Chaps

Day One—The Best Ship in the Navy I wanted to thank you personally because, though we are logging long hours, we are having a good turn at the wheel and we are building our team one cat shot and trap after another. Looking deeper within the skin of the ship, the CIC, Galley, Engine Rooms, Admin Spaces and more are all turning out what keeps us moving and keeps us safe.
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