Deployment Opportunities
Life will often throw us dangerous situations that can turn everything upside down.
I grew up in a Christian home, and was raised believing that being a Christian was all about being a “good” person. It wasn’t until I met The Navigators that I realized that the Christian life was about having a relationship with Jesus Christ.
About 10 years ago, I was a young soldier, accepted into flight school as First Private and first in my flight class. Once I was settled at the military base, I attended a chapel run by a few Navigator staff, who later invited me to join their Bible study. I decided to give it a try, and was immediately engaged because the guys took their spiritual walk seriously.
Being a disciple of Jesus was similar to the discipline found in the military; these Navigators and other pilots at the top of their class were dedicated to spending time with God, studying, and memorizing Scripture. Naturally, this became second nature to me. As helicopter pilots, we were always memorizing the manual on how to fly and maneuver the plane. Because we would not have time to look it up when we needed to reference the manual, it was critical that we knew it by heart. The same principle applied to memorizing the Word of God.
Life will often throw us dangerous situations that can turn everything upside down. If we are not grounded in the foundation of God’s promises and wisdom on how to maneuver the situation, life will be much harder. How grateful I am for this discipline to know God’s Word by heart, and to apply it to my life in the military.
After my helicopter pilot training, I was transferred to another base. The first thing I did was look up The Navigators. My wife and I are both involved (she also serves in the military as a nurse). For two and a half years, God has provided a training ground in learning how to disciple others. As I disciple others, I look for those who are open to being mentored, have a humble and teachable spirit, a desire to grow in their relationship with Christ, and expect the best that God has for their life.
In the next year, I will be deployed, and our unit will be serving together on the field. I didn’t used to look forward to deployments, but my attitude has changed. Now I see that deployment provides a unique opportunity to spend significant time with the other guys in my unit. Similar to a fire fighter’s schedule, we spend a lot of time waiting around for the “fire.”
This deployment is about seizing the opportunity for spiritual growth. Several of the guys in my unit are involved in The Navigators, and we are trusting God will deepen our walks with Him and provide the opportunity to share His Good News with others in our unit.
How can you be praying?
Please pray for open hearts to the Gospel and life transformation.
Pray for safety for all military personnel who are deployed, and for their families at home.
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