Often we get side tracked with "peripheral
issues." These are things which take one away from the basic and most
important mission and purpose for our existence. In the military, planners have
goals and objectives. Once the goals and objectives are defined, then the
planners work out the details on how the goals and objectives should be met.
Then the mission is briefed to qualified personnel. Once the mission is
started, it is essential for the operators to remain on task and not deviate
from the plan.
Much of life as a Military Chaplain is the same. We at the
AGC are sent out by our local Churches to serve those in the military who
worship Christ. We also facilitate worship for those of other faiths and help
all, but as those with a Holy calling, we serve Christ first and foremost.
There are however, many distractions and it becomes easy for those of us in the
military ministry to go a little off kilter. As a result, this
"Shofar" is to encourage all those in military ministry to "stay
the course" and remember our mission and purpose for serving not only our
Country, but our Lord and Savior. Enjoy.
Our main feature is a reminder from our Acting President Jim
Poe that it is not enough just to know about Christ, but to have a close and
personal relationship with him. The second article is an "Opp- Ed"
from Chaplain Opp about the importance of Prayer... again, something which
takes us back to the foundation of who we are as Christians and our
relationship with Christ. May you be blessed and challenged by these articles.
Semper Fi.
JIM POE (CAPT-USN-Ret) - The Fellowship of Suffering
"He that hath seen me, hath seen my Father . . ."
John 14: 9
"That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the
fellowship of His sufferings and be made conformable unto His death."
Philippians 3: 10.
When I was an undergraduate student in college (more than
forty years ago), I heard a devotional from a fellow student on the verse from
Philippians where the Apostle Paul speaks of giving up all things, counting
them as dung, that he might know Christ. The devotional made an impression upon
me that I have never forgotten until this day, especially where Paul speaks of
knowing the power of Christ’s "resurrection and the fellowship of his
sufferings."
Of course, knowing Christ is not mere historical and correct
theological knowledge alone, but a personal experiential knowing, like I know
my wife or my child or parent. A lot of folk know about Christ but cannot be
said to really "know" Him. They have not in the past and do not now
share any common experiences with Him. In the same sense, Christ speaks of not
"knowing" some who will claim to have served Him when He says "I
will then profess to them, I never ‘knew’ you, depart from me ye that work iniquity."
Matthew 7: 23.
Most profound in the desire to really know Christ is the
desire to share in the power of Christ’s resurrection and the fellowship of His
sufferings, or afflictions. It is a fact of military life that men who share
the hardships of training and sufferings of battle develop a special bond that
others have difficulty in understanding unless they have experienced those same
sufferings. Sharing, or fellowshipping, in the sufferings of Christ creates
such a bond with Him that the world cannot know. The world of man by its sinful
nature hated Jesus Christ and persecuted Him at every opportunity.
That hatred culminated in Jesus being humiliated, tortured
and killed in a most horrible method. The world of sinful men has not changed.
It still hates everything about Christ, and it will hate anyone who is closely
associated with Him.
We must never lose sight of the fact that it was the Father
who gave Christ up to the hateful handling of wicked men. He could have
prevented it before it happened, and He could have stopped it once it began,
but He did not. He allowed the ungodly to openly revile, degrade and crucify
the holy One Who came to ransom a people from well deserved condemnation. And
we must not be surprised that the Father
subjects the ransomed of Christ to experience afflictions
and sufferings, both spiritual and physical, in this sinful, condemned world.
It is not that the Father doesn’t care for the troubles, hardships and
sufferings of those who have joined with His Son. The truth is that by such
experiences they will know their Savior more and more. These hard experiences
will only serve to draw the true Christian closer to His Savior.
Is suffering with Christ worth truly knowing Him?
If we know Him at all, we must declare unabashedly and without
reservation that it is worth it all.
Fellow Chaplains, if you are identified with Christ in your life and work, you
will experience trouble, even tribulation. Do not look for it, it will find
you. But take courage knowing that the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ
appointed Him to such sufferings, and He has appointed you a portion just the
same. While you pray for deliverance, keep in mind that the Father knows best
what you need and will in the right time and place have you to experience the "power
of His resurrection."
THE IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER
by Chaplain (CPT) Pat Opp
It sounds like a cliché during difficult times, doesn’t it? Yet, this is what we
are told to do when we go through the fiery furnace and face difficult losses.
Losses like the death of a loved-one; a child stricken with a debilitating
disease, or a spouse seeking a divorce, or finances taking a hit with the loss
of a job. In moments like that, it seems like prayer is the last thing we want
to do. Actually, it’s the best thing we can do!
Listen
to the comforting advice the Apostle Paul shares with the believers at
Philippi. He writes, “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about
everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for what He has done. Then
you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His
peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus”(Philippians
4:6-7).
God
led Paul to share this treasure of knowledge to comfort us. He did so not from
a comfortable townhouse on a beach, but with a prison sentence in Rome. Paul
knew that God was faithful, even as he was near the end of his days and yet was
at peace because of the wise, simple choices he practiced in our text. What
choices?
First,
Paul realized that worrying about life’s struggles does not help. Second, he
knew that praying to God with a childlike faith paid much better dividends.
Paul knew he could trust God to handle whatever he faced. Third, Paul learned
to “tell God what he needed and thank Him for who He is and for what He does”.
You see it is when we follow this “If…then” pattern that “God’s peace exceeds
anything we can understand. He also guards our hearts and minds to live by
faith in Christ Jesus.” Paul learned that faith in God leads to God’s peace.
Pastor
Warren Wiersbe practiced this same faith. He writes, “There is no need that
prayer cannot meet and no problem that prayer cannot solve.” Prayer leads us to
God who is the “X-Factor” that changes everything. While prayer admits I can’t,
it also admits God can. So, the next time someone suggests “Let’s pray about
it,” remember Paul’s God-given advice…and humbly pray about it!
