Greetings and welcome to this month's AGC "Shofar" journal/blog. This month's feature is a special treat featuring an article written by Master's Seminary Executive Vice President and Dean Dr. Richard Mayhue. Dr. Mayhue is a Viet Nam Navy veteran and has some insight into what makes a good Military Chaplain. Enjoy his thoughts and glean some Helpful hints for those either currently in ministry or thinking about serving in the military as a Chaplain.
Our second feature is an article written by our field representative LCDR (ret.) Pat Doney. His "Monthly Meditations" is an uplifting piece on conversion and serving the Lord Jesus Christ. May you be blessed and encouraged as you read this month's articles written by two proven and tried and true warrior/servants of our Lord. God bless.
What a Navy Chaplain Should Be Like"
The AGC has invited
me to write a piece on this theme. My meager
qualifications consist of a brief Navy background
(1966-1971) during which time
I served as a junior officer (ASW Officer) on a
Norfolk-based "tin can" which
operated mostly with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean
tracking Russian subs,
piloted an Air Cushion Vehicle in Vietnam near Hue
(operating frequently with
the 101st Airborne Div., 1st Air Cavalry Div., 9th Infantry
Div. Mechanized, and
the 2nd Marine Div.),
presented daily operational briefings to Admiral Zumwalt
(COMNAVFORV), and taught at the ASW School in San Diego.
While in Vietnam, I
received a "Dear Dick" letter from my wife
demanding a divorce. But during my
last duty station, neighbors made sure we heard the gospel
and my wife and I
trusted Christ as our Savior and Lord. Shortly afterward,
believing that Christ
would have me train for ministry, I resigned my commission
and went to seminary.
"B" and I just celebrated our 46th wedding
anniversary to God's glory and I am
in my 38th year of fulltime ministry.
I met numerous chaplains (both Navy and Army) during my
service for our country,
but cannot remember ever consistently seeing or hearing from
them the
suggestions that follow. But before I begin, two caveats are
in order: 1) as an
unbelieving Naval officer, it is quite possible that I was
blind and deaf to the
truth possibly presented by the chaplains that I encountered
and 2) I am not
inferring that all military chaplains fit the
chaplain-profile that I remember
from those "before Christ" days. I have the
highest admiration for you men who
serve our Armed Forces as chaplains on Christ's behalf and
pray for you often.
Since my conversion,
many fine military chaplains have crossed my path
(especially Navy chaplains) and I base much of what follows
on their examples.
There are dozens of categories that could be addressed to
develop the content of
this blog; however, I have narrowed my approach to the Navy
chaplain as seen
through the eyes of those to whom he hopes to minister.
These qualities are just
as applicable to a civilian pastor as they are to a military
chaplain since they
all were exemplified by our Lord Jesus Christ during His
earthly ministry.
A Navy chaplain should be:
1) Visible - spending
considerable time out of the office among the assigned
flock.
2) Available - ministering beyond normal office hours.
3) Approachable - practicing casual interaction on lesser
issues that will often
invite follow-up involvement regarding eternal truth.
4) Admirable - ensuring that you will be respected because
your life matches
your message in every area.
5) Predictable - employing a consistently biblical approach
to your chaplaincy.
6) Capable - handling God's Word accurately, clearly, and
relevantly.
7) Personable - working overtime to be likable/winsome in
order to overcome the
various caricatures of chaplains.
8) Reliable - striving to go above and beyond what is
expected of you in order
to earn this kind of sterling reputation.
9) Durable - not allowing ridicule and/or rejection to
diminish the enthusiasm,
faithfulness, joyfulness, and thoroughness of your ministry.
10) Indefatigable - continually and energetically seeking
avenues of ministry to
your people.
The unbelieving portion of your flock might be blinded by
Satan to the truth of
their need for Christ (2 Cor 4:4), but they won't be able to
ignore or forget
your exemplary, Christ-like chaplaincy.
Richard Mayhue, Th.D.
EVP and Dean
The Master's Seminary
Sun Valley, CA
rmayhue@tms.edu
Monthly Meditations
By Chaplain Pat Doney (USN-ret)
Recently I was thinking about the conversion of Saul of Tarsus.
He was a religious man. In fact, he describes himself as a most zealous
individual seeking to eliminate Christians and Christianity during its
earliest days.(cf. Philippians 3:1-11.) Why would God "recruit" such
a man to be His apostle to the Gentiles? What was it about Saul that made him
the man of God's own choosing? Look with me to Acts 9:15: The Lord is speaking
to a man in Damascus by the name of Ananias who has heard bad things about
Saul. However, Jesus tells Ananias, "Go, for he is a chosen vessel of
Mine to bear My name before the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.
For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My sake."
God knew Saul's heart and the Lord knew that once Saul was
converted, he'd become the greatest Christian of the first century. Part of
the heart of Saul is revealed in his short conversation on the Damascus road.
Notice Acts 9:4: "...Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me...it is hard
for you to kick against the goads”...(Saul) answering said, "Who are you,
Lord?” Saul recognizes that the God of Heaven, the Creator of the Universe is
speaking to him. What Saul didn't realize was that JESUS was the God of
Creation, and it was HE who was speaking to him: I AM JESUS..." Saul knew
about JESUS, but Saul did not know JESUS as his personal Lord and Savior. But
Saul was converted on the Damascus road, and from that moment forward he was a
new creation in Jesus Christ. cf. II Corinthians 5:17. It was not too much
later that Saul began to be called Paul, the little one, and he immediately
turned his life over to JESUS CHRIST. It was not a gradual change; it was
immediate; he was completely changed from the inside out. Saul's second
question to the Lord was, "...LORD, what will you have me to do...?"
Saul/Paul recognized that he was no longer 'his own man', but that he belonged
to God in Christ; he was ready to "turn a corner" and not look back;
JESUS was his new Master, and he was prepared to go and do whatever JESUS had
for him. What a great example for us, personally, as we live and serve our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Paul sets the 'bar' high, but reminds us, "...I
can do all things through Christ who strengthens me..." Phil. 4:13. But
let's not forget what Paul wrote in Philippians 2:13: "For it is God who
works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.. One of the lessons
God has for us here is that we are not "lone rangers." In the Great
Com-mission, Jesus says, "...and lo, I am with you always, even to the end
of the age..." Matthew 28:20. The message of the angel to the shepherds
from that first Christmas night still rings loud and clear: "Fear not, for
behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all
people...:" Don't be afraid to move forward in serving HIM; you'll be a
messenger of great joy to those to whom you minister in HIS name. May God bless
and enlarge your great ministry in the days and months ahead for HIS glory.
Read and meditate on II Corinthians 4.
AGC Logo
Serving God and Country
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Monday, June 18, 2012
IS THERE NOT A CAUSE?!
In the Shakespeare play "Richard III," the first line starts out with the quote: "This is the winter of our discontent..." The play is about a former king of England who is an unhappy man who lives an unhappy life and eventually dies. For us as Military Chaplains, this is the summer of our discontent because another ruling by leaders in the military has taken away the association of Christianity and Judaism with the SEAL of our Armed Forces. It is now illegal to have the SEALs of each of the military services on the cover of a Bible. The storm will obviously get worse before it gets better... if it does get better at all. Chaplain Timothy Libertay writes about it in this months' blog.
For our second "Opp Ed," Chaplain Pat Opp talks about "Through the Lens of Faith." Read, pray, meditate and enjoy this month's Shofar. God bless.
WILL YOU CONTEND FOR BAAL?
By
Chaplain Tim Libertay
In Judges 6:28 and following, Gideon’s father had built an altar for the pagan god Baal.
One night Gideon destroyed the altar and in the morning all of his fellow Jewish townspeople wanted to punish him for what he had done. Rather than rejoice that one of their own had
the intestinal fortitude and moral courage to stand against an oppressive religious and civil government, (not to mention obeying the God they all worshipped), the mob wanted to kill Gideon.
It was a sad state of affairs for the masses were willing to keep the status quo instead of doing what was right before the Lord. It was at this time that Gideon’s father said something very insightful. As the mob wanted blood, he confronted them and said “will you contend for Baal?” In other words, even though you are being forced to maintain the status quo from the pagan government, why are you actively supporting something that is against God? These villagers were so backslidden in their faith that they were willing to actively fight against the Lord by
helping their enemies. Perhaps they were more afraid of the pagans than they were of God. Whatever the reason, from this point on Gideon was used by God to accomplish great things which ultimately brought down the enemy’s army and government.
Such is a time right now for those of us who name the name of Jesus Christ as our Lord and
Savior. Last week, the Department of Defense caved into another demand from an atheistic group who contend the Military Seals of each branch of the military cannot be used on Bibles. Ignoring literally centuries of American civil and military history another foundational keystone has been wiped clean. Our military and spiritual leaders have contended for Baal because now we can no longer have Bibles with military logos on them. THIS IS AN OUTRAGE AND SHOULD HAVE EVERY SINGLE CHRISTIAN IN THE MILITARY WRITING THEIR LEADERSHIP!!!!!!!!!
In Islam there is a saying called the “Death of a Thousand Cuts.” It is the belief that one does not have to have a single decisive and devastating blow to the enemy in order to kill them. Instead, a slow and methodical plan is used to defeat their enemy. From its inception every opportunity the person has is focused on using every tool and means to accomplish the eventual demise of their enemy. Finally after a long protracted fight, the victor merely blows a kiss at the enemy and the victim merely falls back dead, never to fight again.
While Bibles themselves are not outlawed (at least not yet), the dominoes are falling and
this will not end until Christians themselves are silenced. I’m not a prophet or a son of a prophet, but we are starting to see in our culture our freedoms gradually being taken away
for the sake of meeting a secular agenda. We are already at the point where a person’s faith has no relevance in the public or secular arena. Once Christians are fully neutralized socially, it becomes a matter of time before we ourselves are the targets. Don’t believe me? Well, look around to see what is happening in our country. For instance: The government is mandating where the Catholic Church has to provide birth control insurance for their female employees, even if it against their faith tradition. No longer is freedom of religious convictions an argument or defense against public policy. Futhermore, when openly gay Soldiers and Sailors were allowed in the military, Biblical minded Chaplains were protected because the government passed the “Defense of Marriage Act.”
Now that the President and the Justice department has declared the legislation essentially null and void, the stakes have changed. What does one think will happen in the future to Believing Chaplains? To refuse to do this and other services for homosexual Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen begs the question that one who believes this is immoral is now considered to be “intolerant” or worse yet (think promotion) not “diverse and
pluralistic.”
There are other examples, but mark my words, this is an all-out war declared on every God
fearing Chaplain for the heart and soul of the military. It has an analogy with the frog placed in
water. If the water is hot, the frog will jump out immediately to protect itself. If the frog is placed in cool water which is gradually heated up, it will end up boiling to death.
So what is the answer and our response to this onslaught? I suggest the following:
A)
Get on our knees and pray morning, noon and night for our country and God’s intervention. God accomplished great things through the apostle Paul as he spread the Gospel. Do we actually believe in the power of our Lord or do we not? God’s power in the time of Gideon worked miracles. We need God’s people to be serious about the things of God in an honest to
goodness revival. We need to be the God fearing and loving leaders God expects of us. For the others, we need to pray for the salvation of those who have no opinion. I believe that is the start which is the foundation for real change!
B)
We need to counter and answer by any means possible this creeping secularism in all aspects of our lives. Understand that we wrestle not against flesh and blood (Eph 6:10-12). Be strong in the Lord! This work is Satan’s tactic and we who see it need to be active! Even though God gave the victory to Israel through David, the people still had to show up for the battle! If
this means preaching, preach. If it means by writing and blogging, so be it! Put on the whole armor of God.
C)
See what is happening from the perspective of God and not man. We are tools in the hands of
the Living God. Make sure what you say and do is from the Lord and not from one’s own arrogance and pride. As Jim Poe our acting President said one time, “don’t look for trouble, but do God’s work and will and if you are doing God’s will, trouble will find you.”
Gideon did what was right and his peers were ready to kill him. Sobering thought for doing what is right before God.
May we as God’s elect repent of our own sin and come before God with all humility and
fear. Only then will we be effective warriors for the cause of Christ. Amen!
Through the Lens of Faith
By Chaplain (CPT) Pat Opp
3rd Battalion, 10th Infantry
Regiment, 3rd Chemical Brigade
Everyone agrees that safety is important. When we adhere to safety it helps protect us. In tours down range, Soldiers wear eye protection at all times. It is critical to protect our eyes from dangers like the sun’s harmful rays, wind, dust storms, airborne particles, and in combat situations. During the day it demands a shaded lens while at night a clear lens. So, it is imperative for one to see to wear the correct lens.
The Bible encourages us to wear the correct lens too! Faith. While Scripture doesn’t say to wear sunglasses, it does tell us to trust God. It’s true, that we are to walk by faith and
not by sight. Yet, God knows opposition, challenges and trials can negatively influence and discourage us in how we see Him. So, the writer of the Book of Hebrews reminds
us that; “Faith is the substance of things hoped for; it is the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith teaches us to see God in life and each event. When we do, we learn to trust Him and act appropriately. Chuck Swindoll adds, “Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react.” Faith is the best way to react.
In Hebrews 11, the great heroes and heroines of the faith put on their “eye-pro of faith” and chose to trust God despite the odds. Instead of looking to the difficulties, they looked to God. By faith, Enoch walked with God. Noah built an ark that saved him and his family from the Great Flood. Abraham looked ahead to God’s future city. Moses chose God over Egypt’s palace and riches. Joseph led by his integrity. David defeated the giant. Israel walked through the Red
Sea on dry ground. Many others trusted God too!
Perhaps these acts of faith in the Bible are wonderful examples of safety for us to adhere to. We are safe when we trust God and take Him at His word. So, the next time you face
difficult challenges, practice this safety principle and view God and your circumstances through the lens of faith. After all, it is only faith that pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). When we do, we’ll enjoy His rewards and be glad we did!
For our second "Opp Ed," Chaplain Pat Opp talks about "Through the Lens of Faith." Read, pray, meditate and enjoy this month's Shofar. God bless.
WILL YOU CONTEND FOR BAAL?
By
Chaplain Tim Libertay
In Judges 6:28 and following, Gideon’s father had built an altar for the pagan god Baal.
One night Gideon destroyed the altar and in the morning all of his fellow Jewish townspeople wanted to punish him for what he had done. Rather than rejoice that one of their own had
the intestinal fortitude and moral courage to stand against an oppressive religious and civil government, (not to mention obeying the God they all worshipped), the mob wanted to kill Gideon.
It was a sad state of affairs for the masses were willing to keep the status quo instead of doing what was right before the Lord. It was at this time that Gideon’s father said something very insightful. As the mob wanted blood, he confronted them and said “will you contend for Baal?” In other words, even though you are being forced to maintain the status quo from the pagan government, why are you actively supporting something that is against God? These villagers were so backslidden in their faith that they were willing to actively fight against the Lord by
helping their enemies. Perhaps they were more afraid of the pagans than they were of God. Whatever the reason, from this point on Gideon was used by God to accomplish great things which ultimately brought down the enemy’s army and government.
Such is a time right now for those of us who name the name of Jesus Christ as our Lord and
Savior. Last week, the Department of Defense caved into another demand from an atheistic group who contend the Military Seals of each branch of the military cannot be used on Bibles. Ignoring literally centuries of American civil and military history another foundational keystone has been wiped clean. Our military and spiritual leaders have contended for Baal because now we can no longer have Bibles with military logos on them. THIS IS AN OUTRAGE AND SHOULD HAVE EVERY SINGLE CHRISTIAN IN THE MILITARY WRITING THEIR LEADERSHIP!!!!!!!!!
In Islam there is a saying called the “Death of a Thousand Cuts.” It is the belief that one does not have to have a single decisive and devastating blow to the enemy in order to kill them. Instead, a slow and methodical plan is used to defeat their enemy. From its inception every opportunity the person has is focused on using every tool and means to accomplish the eventual demise of their enemy. Finally after a long protracted fight, the victor merely blows a kiss at the enemy and the victim merely falls back dead, never to fight again.
While Bibles themselves are not outlawed (at least not yet), the dominoes are falling and
this will not end until Christians themselves are silenced. I’m not a prophet or a son of a prophet, but we are starting to see in our culture our freedoms gradually being taken away
for the sake of meeting a secular agenda. We are already at the point where a person’s faith has no relevance in the public or secular arena. Once Christians are fully neutralized socially, it becomes a matter of time before we ourselves are the targets. Don’t believe me? Well, look around to see what is happening in our country. For instance: The government is mandating where the Catholic Church has to provide birth control insurance for their female employees, even if it against their faith tradition. No longer is freedom of religious convictions an argument or defense against public policy. Futhermore, when openly gay Soldiers and Sailors were allowed in the military, Biblical minded Chaplains were protected because the government passed the “Defense of Marriage Act.”
Now that the President and the Justice department has declared the legislation essentially null and void, the stakes have changed. What does one think will happen in the future to Believing Chaplains? To refuse to do this and other services for homosexual Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen begs the question that one who believes this is immoral is now considered to be “intolerant” or worse yet (think promotion) not “diverse and
pluralistic.”
There are other examples, but mark my words, this is an all-out war declared on every God
fearing Chaplain for the heart and soul of the military. It has an analogy with the frog placed in
water. If the water is hot, the frog will jump out immediately to protect itself. If the frog is placed in cool water which is gradually heated up, it will end up boiling to death.
So what is the answer and our response to this onslaught? I suggest the following:
A)
Get on our knees and pray morning, noon and night for our country and God’s intervention. God accomplished great things through the apostle Paul as he spread the Gospel. Do we actually believe in the power of our Lord or do we not? God’s power in the time of Gideon worked miracles. We need God’s people to be serious about the things of God in an honest to
goodness revival. We need to be the God fearing and loving leaders God expects of us. For the others, we need to pray for the salvation of those who have no opinion. I believe that is the start which is the foundation for real change!
B)
We need to counter and answer by any means possible this creeping secularism in all aspects of our lives. Understand that we wrestle not against flesh and blood (Eph 6:10-12). Be strong in the Lord! This work is Satan’s tactic and we who see it need to be active! Even though God gave the victory to Israel through David, the people still had to show up for the battle! If
this means preaching, preach. If it means by writing and blogging, so be it! Put on the whole armor of God.
C)
See what is happening from the perspective of God and not man. We are tools in the hands of
the Living God. Make sure what you say and do is from the Lord and not from one’s own arrogance and pride. As Jim Poe our acting President said one time, “don’t look for trouble, but do God’s work and will and if you are doing God’s will, trouble will find you.”
Gideon did what was right and his peers were ready to kill him. Sobering thought for doing what is right before God.
May we as God’s elect repent of our own sin and come before God with all humility and
fear. Only then will we be effective warriors for the cause of Christ. Amen!
Through the Lens of Faith
By Chaplain (CPT) Pat Opp
3rd Battalion, 10th Infantry
Regiment, 3rd Chemical Brigade
Everyone agrees that safety is important. When we adhere to safety it helps protect us. In tours down range, Soldiers wear eye protection at all times. It is critical to protect our eyes from dangers like the sun’s harmful rays, wind, dust storms, airborne particles, and in combat situations. During the day it demands a shaded lens while at night a clear lens. So, it is imperative for one to see to wear the correct lens.
The Bible encourages us to wear the correct lens too! Faith. While Scripture doesn’t say to wear sunglasses, it does tell us to trust God. It’s true, that we are to walk by faith and
not by sight. Yet, God knows opposition, challenges and trials can negatively influence and discourage us in how we see Him. So, the writer of the Book of Hebrews reminds
us that; “Faith is the substance of things hoped for; it is the evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith teaches us to see God in life and each event. When we do, we learn to trust Him and act appropriately. Chuck Swindoll adds, “Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react.” Faith is the best way to react.
In Hebrews 11, the great heroes and heroines of the faith put on their “eye-pro of faith” and chose to trust God despite the odds. Instead of looking to the difficulties, they looked to God. By faith, Enoch walked with God. Noah built an ark that saved him and his family from the Great Flood. Abraham looked ahead to God’s future city. Moses chose God over Egypt’s palace and riches. Joseph led by his integrity. David defeated the giant. Israel walked through the Red
Sea on dry ground. Many others trusted God too!
Perhaps these acts of faith in the Bible are wonderful examples of safety for us to adhere to. We are safe when we trust God and take Him at His word. So, the next time you face
difficult challenges, practice this safety principle and view God and your circumstances through the lens of faith. After all, it is only faith that pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). When we do, we’ll enjoy His rewards and be glad we did!
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