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With the Love of a Clanging Cymbal

[…]troubled friend.  There are times when we need to stand up for the faith and proclaim the message of the Gospel in a clear and direct fashion. But there are also times when we need to sit back and carefully listen to what’s being said before launching into our critique of another’s life. In either case, love for the individual should always be our underlying motivation. When our speech lacks the love of Christ, Scripture clearly declares we are just a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.    Eric served twelve years on active duty as an F/A-18 Hornet pilot, […]

Finishing Strong, in Iraq and Life

[…]my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:3-6). Whether a military mission or in life itself, who doesn’t want to finish strong? Like the Iraqis, we have choices to make to ensure we finish our race with strength and dignity. There are some practical concepts for us from […]

Getting Intentional in Your Marriage

[…]seen in them how couples grow together spiritually and keep pace with each other for the sake of the gospel. As a spiritually smart couple in today’s military and society, what do you need to add or remove to be intentional about God’s priorities for you? Open the dialogue with your spouse and discuss what you believe is God’s purpose for your marriage. Get intentional in your […]

How Shall We Pray?

[…]by taking them as from God, and asking ourselves what reactions to them, and in them, the gospel of God requires of us; and second, by seeking God’s face specifically about them.” The Apostle Paul had a thorn in the flesh which the Lord addressed by saying, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” J. I. Packer frames our challenges in similar terms when he says, “They will have been sent us to make and keep us humble, and to give us a new opportunity of showing forth the power of Christ in […]

Implicit Trust

[…]gallop. Immediately the soldier lay down his arms, left his compatriots and passed over among the officers of Napoleon’s immediate staff. “What do you want here?” one of them asked, haughtily. “I am a captain in the Emperor’s Guards,” was the response. “You, a captain! Who says you are a captain?” “He said it,” answered the soldier, pointing in the direction of the Emperor riding in the distance, and immediately he was accepted by the officers as one of them. This was simple faith and trust on the part of the soldier. He believed his Emperor’s word and acted accordingly. […]

Leadership Came Naturally

[…]to salute anything that moved, and I was still in that mode. I’d developed a certain fear of officers, some of whom were certainly deserving of such fear. Not Tom. It was Tom Hemingway that I met, not LIEUTENANT Hemingway. I wanted to know why a robust, confident and clearly capable person like Tom chose to hang out at a Christian bookstore on a Saturday afternoon. Weren’t there more interesting things to do? When he told me the bookstore was an interesting place for a committed Christian I wanted to know more about that too. He had a magnetic personality […]

OCF and Leadership

[…]but the fact is that they are all commissioned to lead. From platoon leader to battalion supply officer to Chief of Staff (and equivalents for the other services), every officer is a leader. Are we communicating the right message in OCF? Are we focusing on process in training leaders, or are we focusing on vision? Is the question going into an installation Pray, Discover, and Obey, “How many Bible studies do we need?” or is it,”How are we going to build Christian leaders…families…fellowships at our installation?” The first is a process question, the second is a vision-a leadership-question. Ephesians 4:11-16 […]

Operation Iraqi Freedom

[…]there. There is a long and unconventional road still ahead of them. Pray especially for the spread of the gospel now that the doors are open, and that the doors would stay open for a long time as that country is rebuilt. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers over the last several months.   Captain Donna Kohout, USAF, is stationed at Misawa AB, Japan, where she is assigned to the 350SS as the Wing Logistics officer. Donna says that, “as a single person, OCF has often been the local family I otherwise lack, and a source of comfort and […]

Part of an amazing lineage

[…]Now a mother of two beautiful daughters, she and her husband are committed to living a life worthy of the call of Christ. With autumn’s arrival on the horizon, as you settle into the routines of school and work, I challenge you to carefully consider where the Lord has you, who He has brought into your life, and then answer if you are living each day for Christ. Rejoice that you have been bought at a price and are now part of this amazing lineage.  As we stand at the foot of the Cross, have we lived up to a […]

Preparing for Active Duty

[…]lives…Grow them deep…Commission them for service Active OCF Bible study groups exist at each of the professional military school here, and several evening Bible study groups meet on base and across the area. A vibrant partnership exists between OCF and the Maxwell/Gunter Chapel community. Here are six themes we hope to reinforce during your time with us and the end state we hope to achieve: Spiritual development An individual who is being transformed into the image of Christ and developing a right relationship with God and an understanding of the fundamentals and disciplines of the Christian faith. (Romans 12:1-2, 1 […]

Six Generations: 3

[…]article please use the following copyright notice: “Downloaded and reprinted by permission of Officers’ Christian Fellowship of the USA, Englewood, Colorado. Authored by Colonel Barry Willey, USA (Ret.). All rights reserved.” Copyright Information 2004 Colonel Barry Willey, USA (Ret.), by special arrangement with Officers’ Christian Fellowship of the USA. No portion of this article may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any way–electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or other–except for brief quotations in printed review, without prior permission of the publisher. Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible: New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International […]

Some Thoughts for Christians

[…]commander given the luxury of choosing a battalion commander. You have a choice between a secular officer of good character whom you know to be a top-notch leader, or a brother-in-Christ who is a good man and a hard worker, but just isn’t the natural leader the other man is. Which one would you select? In choosing leaders for the church, their beliefs and quality of Christian walk ought to be our first criteria. But in selecting leaders for our secular society they ought to be a factor we consider, but not the only factor. Finally, let us consider how […]

Superhero’s Faith

[…]else was doing, thinking it would take me somewhere. Now, I look back, and I long for that life of fun, of adventure, of true faith. I realize that in my attempt to recreate the “exciting life” that I had forgotten, I entered a life of drinking, status, and popularity, but it was actually making me more miserable. I would constantly return to that Clark Kent-like person, a lame, robotic person of whom I wasn’t really fond. I was never fulfilled-I needed to go to party after party and pump myself up by acting cool and buying cool things to […]

The Heartbeat of OCF

[…]service and Christian maturity.  As commissioned officers and Christians in the Armed Forces of the USA, most every one of us can find a wingman to pray with about starting an OCF group.  Once you have a meeting day/time set up, you’re ready for the next step. If the group consists mostly of peers (age/rank/job location, etc.) or specific demographics (sex/marital status/retired, etc.), you should be well attuned to needs and preferences.  Check the OCF website home page for Small Group Resources and click on Leading Small Groups for an article with excellent advice by Jon Harris. Topics include prayer, […]

The Role of the Chaplain

[…]the same evangelistic techniques. Different denominations employ different ways tof sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. If your chaplains are doing things differently than you assume should be done, look deeper into their operation with an open mind. You may learn something from the Lord that you didn’t know. You should not assume that you will be assigned a Christian chaplain. The U.S. Constitution provides for the free exercise of religion — and not just the Christian religion. So you may have a chaplain who is not of a Christian faith group, and you have no warrant to complain if […]

Time, Talent, Treasure: Academies

[…]service academies, deliberately designed as such to forge finely tuned military leaders from out of the fires of continual challenge. Cadets and midshipmen juggle jam-packed schedules that stretch them beyond the max physically, emotionally, mentally.  And spiritually.    These young men and women are preparing for lives of service and sacrifice as military officers to their country, a nation whose society is increasingly drifting off course into the ocean of moral compromise, severed from its Christian moorings.  Knowing full well the ever-increasing difficulties our nation’s future leaders are facing, four couples provide OCF presence at the U.S. Military, Naval, Air […]

Time, Talent, Treasure: ROTC

[…]topics such as “how to truly live as a Christian in the military, what they are allowed to share of the Gospel, and balancing military life pressures with their walk with God, and marriage.”  Rob, Chandra and staff all meet for Bible study, prayer and community time before mentoring the students, who in turn lead Bible studies or disciple others—and often initiate weekend events for outreach or just plain fun. We love the chance to be a part of those events with our family,” said Rob, who relishes the “forever friendships” that have been forged. Seeing a cadet sharing the […]

TTP – Platoon Leader

[…]on it because of its hypocrisy. So began my self-questioning. How do you share the Gospel with your platoon without crossing some EO line or offending someone? How do you stand up for Christ without standing on someone’s foot? It is such a fine line to walk. I started with the language issue. I simply made it clear that foul language and coarse joking were unacceptable around me. Folks still slip up, but they know to watch how they speak to others. Then I focused on being a servant leader and letting my feet do the talking. I don’t waste […]

TTP – Vision and Leadership

[…]mean what we say, and do the right thing even when no one is watching. From verse 13 of chapter 15 of John’s Gospel, Jesus tells us, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” That illustrates service before self for all time. We pledge to lay down our lives for our friends, our nation. That’s what we do. In addition, according to Paul in his epistle to the church at Ephesus, chapter 6, verse 7, “Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men.” Yes, excellence in all we […]

What is Required of Me?

[…]do not require checking our own faith in Christ at the door. We live our faith through the profession of arms in a way that allows others to see Jesus through us: through our love, integrity, honor, courage in the face of danger, and our moral behavior. Jesus said, “Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl…. Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:15-16). Respect for others. Developing healthy relationships with non-Christian friends and associates and accepting them where they are in […]

What you do and how you lead does matter

[…]of scripture memory, of staying in the Word, and especially being able to distill the essence of the gospel message. Stay on message of God’s great love for each of us, about Christ and His sacrifice for us. No Fear! Peter admonishes us to “revere Christ as Lord.” The Army’s Ranger Creed challenges its adherents to give “100 percent and then some.” In your professional and spiritual life, you must not waver; you must wholly commit, completely surrender, “go all in.” Do the right thing at all times—“Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good?” […]

Why We Serve

[…]of salvation to reach those who have yet to accept Him as Lord and Savior. As Jesus spoke in the Gospel of John. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him (John […]
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