Lose My Soul

Every morning on the way to drop Carson off at school he makes me put in the Toby Mac CD so he can hear song 15. "Lose My Soul" I love the song too and have heard it hundreds of times and just the other day the lyrics really jumped out at me. "Father God, I am clay in your hands, Help me to stay that way through all life's demands,
'Cause they chip and they nag and they pull at me, And every little thing I make up my mind to be... I realized that as a Christian trying to do things for the Lord in this world it does seem like things are always chipping and nagging at me. The things I have made up my mind to be, or rather God has led me to be, have not always been easy roads. Sometimes it seems like God is testing me to see if I am faithful enough to serve Him. Through all things I try to remember God is in control. Sometimes it takes some difficult moments to lead us closer in our walk with the Lord. It is hard to see at the time it is going on but as you come through it you begin to see how at that moment you became totally dependent on the Lord. You realize without Him you would have never made it through that difficult time. "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" Romans 8:28.

Ice Fishing In Kentucky

Who ever said you can't go ice fishing in Kentucky did not know what they were talking about. I have pictures of my son Carter doing just that, Ice Fishing!
This particular fishing trip was not very productive, ended up hitting Captain D's drive thru on the way home! When the fishing is slow you have to find other ways to occupy the time. Like sitting on a pile of ice!

Oh Say Can You See...

I had the privilege of visiting Fort McHenry this summer while attending CAST (Chaplain Annual Sustainment Training). Probably one of the coolest places I have visited. Fort McHenry was the site of the battle that inspired Francis Scott Key to pen the words to the Star-Spangled Banner. Starting out in the visitors center we watched a video explaining how the battle played out over that night. From a ship in the harbor Francis Scott Key watched as the Americans took a pounding from the British ships. The next morning Key strained to see if the British had taken Fort McHenry. In the early light of dawn, Key saw the American flag still waving. At that point in the video our national anthem began to play. All Soldiers snapped to attention. All civilians there rose to their feet. The video screen raised slowly to reveal Fort McHenry through the large windows with our nations flag flying proudly above. Cold chills overtook my body as I remembered the perseverance of those Soldiers that night. As the song ended and people walked away you could see tears in some peoples eyes. A strong reminder of how great this nation still is.



The last picture is from the flag room at Fort McHenry. This is the room that actually housed the flag when it was not being flown. This room had a large table that the Soldiers could partially lay the flag out on to prepare it. The flag flying over the fort the morning Key wrote the Star-Spangled Banner was 30 feet X 42 feet. The stars on that flag were approximately two feet tall. I would imagine it was a task within itself just to raise a flag of that size.

Chaplain Candidate to Chaplain

I am edging closer to becoming a chaplain. I completed my Master of Divinity degree in May and will be ordained this August. Once I am ordained I can submit my request for endorsement through the NAMB. Then, I will submit my packet before the chaplain accession board in September hopefully. There is an open battalion close to my home so I am hoping to be assigned there. Little excited and a little nervous but still looking forward to it.

I have to admit it does feel good to not have a paper to write every weekend. School was pretty demanding at times and it took quite a bit of time away from my family. We have made up some time here lately and have had a really good time. Took the boys to Disney for the first time, we didn't want to leave. I am ready to go back but not when it is too hot. Long lines and heat do not mix!

CH-BOLC Training

For those who have not been to CH-BOLC you may not find the humor in this video. Those who have and have spent some time with the cadre in the video you will have a good laugh. After some time with the cadre you begin to pick up on their sayings and mannerisms. This video was made by LT Jones, 2nd Platoon, he put a lot of time into the video. This video was shown to the cadre at our graduation banquet. They seemed to enjoy it as much as we did. To my friends going through CH-BOLC right now I am praying for you. I pray the Lord will give you strength through each challenge you face.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! I am going to try to start updating my blog more regular. I have a break from class and a little extra time now. Seminary starts back on the 17th. This is my last full semester for my master of divinity. Ninety hours is almost like getting a second bachelors rather than the typical thirty six hour master degree. If I decide to move forward and get my phd I will need to full ninety hour degree to be able to do this. Still not sure what the future has in store, I am open to where the Lord leads me. I am currently attached to an Military Police Brigade as a Chaplain Candidate. Once I graduate in May I will hopefully become a Chaplain and be assigned to a battalion. Then we will see where that leads. It has been challenging and fun being in the Army Reserves. Big change going from an all chaplain school to an actual unit. It is fun to meet the people and hear where all they have been and all they have witnessed. I wish I could stay at my current unit, the chaplain's assistant there is an outstanding person. We have a lot of good conversations.

It has been interesting to talk to old classmates from CH-BOLC. Some are already in Iraq. One just happened to take his Elvis costume with him. I saw a good picture on Facebook the other day. CH Fry is definitely one of the coolest, most entertaining chaplains you will ever meet. I continue to pray for all of our soldiers safe return.

CH-BOLC was a lot of fun and a lot of hard work. It seemed to last forever while I was there but looking back it flew by. I made some good friends there. Some I wish lived closer so we could still hang out. We stay in touch through text and facebook though.

I wanted to include some pics from CH-BOLC for those of you either about to go through school or those who are thinking about applying. When I was preparing to go to CH-BOLC (chaplain school) I looked at all kinds of blogs to get an idea what it may be like. You can see there were good times and hard work.

Did I mention that it was about 100 degrees everyday while getting to do all of these fun things! It was probably the hottest summer we have had in a few years. Nothing like crawling through a mixture of sand and water when it is 105 in the shade. I cannot complain though, it was nothing compared to the heat our Soldiers in Iraq have to endure.