[…]two is delight in and meditation on God’s Word. As a military Christian, you will be involved in spiritual warfare. You understand combat. A military force has specific needs to perform properly on the battlefield. You also have these needs, which include the following: PSALM 119:105. You need light–the ability to “see.” 1 PETER 1.23-25, 2:2. You need food–energy to perform. EPHESIANS 6:10-17. You need protection and weapons. EPHESIANS 5:19 and 6:18,19. You need to communicate–up, down, and laterally. CONTINUE EACH DAY to read God’s Word and to commit your circumstances to Him in prayer. If you have never established […]
[…]through these many activities that gave him an opportunity to study God’s word, prepare lessons, and share his faith. Perhaps most significant in his spiritual maturing process was an encounter he had with a field house maintenance man sometime during his first or second year at the Academy, the exact time being uncertain. Exactly when Jon made a specific decision to become a Christian and when he had the encounter with Hank Rhinefield is not what’s important. What is certain and what is important, though, is that Jon was greatly touched in his heart and encouraged in his faith by […]
[…]the faithfulness of a generation of men who were willing to risk ridicule and perhaps spiritual persecution while living a godly life as a cadet. Being recognized not only as an upperclassman, but as a spiritual leader with responsibilities to the Lord and to his fellow cadets was a distinct honor…and an awesome charge. I felt a deep awe at this nod to my potential as a spiritual leader and a little bit of trepidation, hoping and praying that I could live up to the expectations inherent in this tradition. One more handshake and a heartfelt, manly hug sealed our […]
[…]inroads in my life and the lives of several other cadets, and set me on a course of personal spiritual discipline and training. During my senior (Firstie) year at West Point, I asked two younger men in my battalion–Greg Schumacher and Jim Blackwell–if they wanted to join me in a year of intensive spiritual growth together. They both eagerly agreed. My desire was to share the disciplines of the Christian faith that I was taught from my parents, and then had learned from and seen so clearly in Jon Shine and the Christian faculty officers who had “adopted” me. I […]
[…]as Christ would have us do. Seek the Father’s Will The second part of Jesus’ leadership lesson was that he constantly sought to do His Father’s will. He continually sought secluded places in order to pray and to seek His Father’s will. Jesus was accountable to His Father and had to get one-on-one time with His Father to ensure that He, Jesus, did His Father’s will. While Jesus introduced new paradigms to fulfill the old ways, He was operating fully within the guidance and intent of His Father. This could only be done because Jesus took the time out of […]
[…]in every commissioned leader, particularly as our Army fights the dirty battles of urban warfare as initiated by terrorists, jihadists, criminals and thugs. Even more, it takes this highest moral character coupled with the personal courage to exercise it routinely, to be the moral exemplar within your command. This is something soldiers in combat will discern in a flash, for they earnestly seek it in their leaders. I must note that the display and use of such moral character is the one big difference between where you have been here at UCLA and where you are going. In the civilian […]
[…]times, and I have always found sustenance and comfort there. My experience has convinced me that spiritual faith-faith in God-must become the solid bedrock of an individual’s character. While the leader must demonstrate the highest standards of conduct and, ideally, personify the values that define his organization, he must also ensure that those same values are instilled in his subordinates. He must endeavor to cultivate both a spiritual appreciation for them and confidence in the integrity of the institution. In the Corps, we have long strived to imbue every Marine with a profound appreciation of our cherished “core values.” These […]
