The Children

I had an opportunity the other day I have not had in a while, to stop and talk to some kids.  I was at work doing what I do and we had to take send someone dangerous to prison; this guy was not exactly the block captain, although everyone in the neighborhood was scared to death of him.  On the other side of a tall chain link fence from the place where I was standing was assembling a bunch of kids, just watching us.   All the kids came up after we had a stand-off with a bunch of the bad guy's gang members- they decided to go home, probably a good decision for them, because I work with a bunch of professionals and we do not scare too easily.  Anyway all these kids are talking to me and running around pretending to ram open door with sticks-and then placing each other under arrest, it really was funny and a sight to see given where we were at.  So I walk over to the fence, lean down and I ask each one of them what they want to be when they grow up, there had to be at least 8 or 10 of them gathering up close to the fence to see me.  Of course most of them always give the typical answer “I want to be a police”.  One small girl, she looked to be mixed race, maybe 7 years old told me she wanted to be a baby doctor, she was holding a doll, and she would barely look me in the face.  But then she asked me, "Do you think I can do that".  My heart sank, I told her and I told all of them, to come a little bit closer and to listen to me, one of the older kids got all of them quiet.  I told them to look at me and I said you can be anything in the world you want too, never let anybody tell you otherwise and "can't “ain't” a word.  I gave all of them a knuckle bump through the fence and as I did I hoped I would never see any of them on the other side of a permanent barrier from me.  The last thing I told them was to always keep Jesus in their hearts and then I went back to work. Those kids were pitiful; I wonder what kind of chance they have.

 It was many miles later and two days later before I finally got to see my own family again and when I did of course they wanted to tell me so many things. My youngest told me the most touching story which was told at school.   A woman who is paralyzed from the waist down was able to complete a marathon with the aid of something like a spine board and braces for her arms, keep in mind I am getting the version of this story (which my wife confirmed as true) from a child.  My child finished the story and was so happy about it and then I got a look which told me I was about to hear something good, “Daddy you are right, can't ain't a word".  I have taught my children the same thing I told those kids.  All of a sudden in my mind I was miles away, to those kids I had met, my heart raced as I revisited the rush I felt that day and then  I was devastated, and sickened by what I remembered.  I had to snap to and re-focus and be daddy to my little children.  And the one thing I have left out, this was not the worst thing I saw that day.   Some days you just have to wonder if you are really making a dent in the world's problems, along with continuing to bear your own cross.  I pray for those children, those days I hate my job.  I just want to get rid of all the bad guys and keep the children safe. Later before we left the scene I heard a woman cursing her kids telling them to get back into the apartment and don't talk to those men...I remember who she is  and I know what she does.  Now I am tired and I am going to power down so I can recharge.

In closing I leave you with this- get ready, time is short.  There are signs everywhere, we are at war.  My prayer is that God gives me an opportunity for a righteous fight and will use me as an instrument in the awful moment of hostilities.  Be safe fellow warriors and don’t forget to pray for your children.

“A people that values its privileges over its principles will soon lose both” Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1953

Be Still

Silent

It was raining, it was the kind of rain that makes you think it will never stop again; it was the kind of rain which was so loud, you could not hear any movement and you could not even carry on a conversation.  It did not matter anyway I was alone.  PLOP PLOP PLOP, a flat, loud, gray sound the large drops made as they were married to the brown mud on the ground.  From the wood line I now lay just forward of this mud, I had low crawled to just inside of the tall switch grass, standing about six foot it was good cover.  Just prior to the start of the storm I moved in,  this way the rain and muck covered the heave of my body across the ground, which would have give the impression of a large snail, something I was accustomed to covering up but because of timing I did not have to do this, the rain continued.  My drag bag lay near me, soaked it was used to protect all the essentials of my life-rifle, ghillie and a small amount of food and water; this would be life for the next 16 hours or so.  I never minded the rain…but it was starting to annoy me, it began to inch through my ghillie; I dare not wear my rain gear, as it would become a sauna on such a humid night.  Growing up on a farm, we were always taught-thank God for any amount of rain, even if it messed up your time to play and run, because God grants us rain today and we may not have it later on and just as the word of God is breath for life, so was rain for our crops.

I knew they had dogs on the perimeter, I doubt they would scent me, but I kept my .45 dry just in case it was needed.  Lights from the tower began to glow; I imagined I would be able to hear their whirl as they came to life, if it were not for the down pour.  Darkness neared and they would use the tower lights to inspect outside the fence…just where I lay.  Tonight my mission was simple- observe, not get caught and bring back a report of the most penetrable points of the target.  My team would return and they would bring thunder and lightning when they did, but it was not yet time. 

During these times of quiet, harnessed, strength I talked with God.  Tonight he must have known I was on the cusp of danger because he told me to be still.  I remember on leave last year I had a chance to go deer hunting with my old buddies.  As I walked out of the swamp from my morning hunt I was surrounded by 100 year old tall White Pines and I had been talking with God all morning, suddenly it was as if I could not move my feet, as if they were cemented in cinder-blocks.  There in the quiet, stillness of the woods, God spoke to me- Be still and know that I am GOD, I remembered this was from Psalms..I felt a need to just stand there, then I decided to kneel and pray; but I dare not move more than this.  God chose this moment to remind me, he is unbounded and I am limited, he can do all things while I cannot.  Wow what a powerful experience he allowed me to have with him.

But now, I felt he just wanted me to be still because danger was a foot and any movement would likely give away my location and here…the mission would be over.  So once again I asked myself…why am I here?  I have been told I barely had a pulse so I felt pretty good at this grown up game of hide and seek, but at times I longed for home.  I wiped the rain from my face with a hidden hand I kept tucked under me to limit even my smallest movements, I had the appearance of one more dark spot in the tall switch grass.  I missed my sweet wife and my children and I wondered if they worried over me; I hoped not and I also hoped they knew why I do what I do.  I was reminded of Lt. Colonel Joshua Chamberlain who was in the 20^th Maine outfit fighting for the Union Army during the Civil War.  Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was a devout Christian, a College professor and dearly loved those whom served with him.  He was once referred to as a man with the heart of a woman and the courage of a lion.  Being a dedicated Christian he prayed over major decisions and loved God, he did not have to fight in the war, but sought out an enlistment because he felt a calling.  A calling-all you are supposed to be and do in life according to the plan set forth by the master Painter- GOD.

I am here…I was called to be here- same answer every time I asked myself…why am I here?

As I continued to observe from my vantage point…I continued to tire, I would need sleep soon so a couple of hours before dawn I could inch forward and finish gathering what I needed and then slip away…never here. The rain…continued to beat down, would it ever stop, I felt as if I now weighed twice what I did before I left the wood line.  Footsteps neared…I could barely make it out over the rain but I could distinguish the suction cup sound of a boot maneuvering through the mud…be still…….a brush near the front of the grass, man and canine were so close I could touch them, his silhouette from the tower light showed me he was young, pockmarked face, maybe 20.  I hoped he would continue on by, I prayed he would not have to die tonight.  I also prayed although being on an opposite side, there was still hope my enemy might somehow also love the same God I did, I hoped so, but was left torn and unknowing over my question. I have always felt a sense of solace in the hope my enemy in his own way may also know and love my GOD…But I do not know.

Alone, felt so alone, as I lay my head down in the grass to doze, I asked God to lay with me, to comfort me and to protect me while I searched for sleep.  As I fought to find a calming assurance I remembered why God spoke to me that day I was in the woods, the command to be still has taught me to listen to what God can do, idly busy is no way to honor our Lord and Savior but to be still and in silence, to be surrounded by an awe of what he has done for us, is so loud and so teachable, yet if we do not pass it on, it dies, same as a mission in the field, observe, report for it was all part of the greater plan. 

Psalm 42

¹ As the deer pants for streams of water,
   so my soul pants for you, my God.
² My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
   When can I go and meet with God?
³ My tears have been my food
   day and night,
while people say to me all day long,
   “Where is your God?”
⁴ These things I remember
   as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go to the house of God
   under the protection of the Mighty One
with shouts of joy and praise
   among the festive throng.
 ⁵ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
   Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
   for I will yet praise him,
   my Savior and my God.
 ⁶ My soul is downcast within me;
   therefore I will remember you
from the land of the Jordan,
   the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.
⁷ Deep calls to deep
   in the roar of your waterfalls;
all your waves and breakers
   have swept over me.
 ⁸ By day the LORD directs his love,
   at night his song is with me—
   a prayer to the God of my life.
 ⁹ I say to God my Rock,
   “Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
   oppressed by the enemy?”
¹⁰ My bones suffer mortal agony
   as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
   “Where is your God?”
 ¹¹ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
   Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
   for I will yet praise him,
   my Savior and my God.

The Ability to Lead

The Ability to Lead

There are many differences of opinion on leaders, specifically the one that frequently comes to mind: are leaders born or made?  Well I certainly do not have the answer either way but I do know this; leaders- God led leaders are called, this is as simple as I can put it.  I have said it before I did not choose this profession; I did not choose to be placed into specific roles in my Church or in my profession, some things I certainly desired to do, but to be fair it was out of selfishness, not out of wanting to please God. But God’s time line and my time line are two very different things.  Have you ever felt you had to wait on God for an answer to what you considered to be a life altering decision?  I know I have.  But I firmly believe in the principal of patience and again…God is on a different time line, not yours not mine..but his.  And I think we usually find out after we get through such life altering events, that God’s time line was most appropriate.  So to be in prayer for God led decisions is what we will discuss this time.  I do not know that praying about something will necessarily make it happen (or not happen depending on what you want). But I do know prayer works especially if God has decided it fits into his plan.  We need to learn as warriors and leaders of others that we need to pray TO God, for his specific will to be slowly revealed to us, not pray to God  FOR ourselves.  As warriors we serve in an awesome capacity and we are accountable for all of our actions, so before we can lead others, we must first lead ourselves and a good place to start is knowing how to pray.

In Jeremiah 6: 16-19 it talks about Jeremiah being a watchman, this is a good example of the job of a leader.  The watchman was charged with blowing the trumpet, protecting the flock, alerting others to trouble and supervising others and keeping them prepared to stay in line with focus on the vision at hand.  In an effort to follow this lead and do so effectively we cannot lead if we do not have all of the strengths it takes to do so effectively.  Jeremiah was effective as a watchman but, not so effective he was able to keep most of the people from going astray, how do we accomplish this task- ask God to help us do it…in prayer.  God has already laid out for us what we need to lead ourselves and others we just need to ask him to reveal it to us.  In 2 Timothy 1: 7 it stated God has supplied us with power, love and sound mind.  Asking God for clarification in a tough situation is my hope we will do more frequently.  God has supplied us with an awesome power to solve the problems we face, a love connection to reach each other, even those that would despise us simply for what we stand for and a sound mind to effectively communicate our instructions and vision with others.

In an effort to be the watchman, the warrior that guards the gate allowing no evil to cross in we must pray for his God given power, his love and a clear, sound mind.  How do I do this?  The model prayer is laid out for us in Luke Chapter 11, you may know it as the Lord’s Prayer, from Luke Chapter 11.  Jesus’ disciples asked of him to teach them to pray.  In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus describes for his disciples the need to pray to God the Father.  God the Father is the leader.  This is where you come in, as the paternal leader you are aware of your responsibilities and the need for you as a leader to do what is right and just.  To require of God his will to be done.  Only by asking for his will to be done…can it slowly be revealed to us and we can respond with what he has tasked us with doing.  Always be prepared as a leader, you may have heard the expression lead from the front, I believe in this principle and understand where it comes from, but to add to that; while leading from the front do so with a devoted, awesome power to the conflict you face, with love for those you serve and always utilize a clarity of communication to present your vision.

Stay safe and keep your head down!!

The Warrior’s Journey

A young warrior walked upon the beach at sunrise and soon the Lord joined him.  As they walked silently side by side the man began to ponder life and death and the prospect of what could possibly await a man in Heaven.  He turned to the Lord and said, “I have done many things in my life, some unbearable for most men, I have held a dying child and felt helpless because I could not save her.  I have fought hand to hand with the figure of death and looked down at him desiring for him to get back on his feet and waiting for the storm.  I have hidden many of my fights from those who love me and I have sinned.   I know I fall far short of being much more than I hoped I would be.  Of these things my Lord I have hoped I have done enough of what was good and right to live in Heaven; tell me my Lord what does it take to go to Heaven?”

The Lord glanced out at the ocean and with an adoring gaze he looked in the man’s eyes, the Lord could see the pain, the appearance of exhaustion and he said all you need to know is in your heart.  Believe in me, that I am the son Jesus Christ who died for your sins and all is forgiven and you will retire to heaven.  The Lord then told him, sheepdog you have many sheep to protect from the wolf; your work is not done.  It is a nasty, vicious, horrible duty to attend to but you must continue your walk for I have chosen this path for you.  The sheep will not love you, at times they will despise you, and they will not understand you; love them and protect them anyway.  The Lord walked ahead and disappeared in the haze of the sunrise.  The warrior began to jog again.

Many days passed, many seasons passed. The warrior fought many battles, each one brave, some he only fought within himself. Each fight he won although he felt a piece of him dies with every other horrible death he was a part of.  As he continued to struggle on, he thought of what he had inscribed on the stock of his rifle, Matthew 5:9.  The warrior struggled on, across wasteland, across desert and across countryside he continued to search for the answer he felt his heart did not possess but inside his head always echoed “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God”.   Through all of his struggles in his heart he thought he could not find the answer.  As he sat on the mountain top the sun began to fade across the skyline; it painted a beautiful picture, he knew just as death, it could only come from above.  A crack of lightning went off, he checked his phone to confirm and he knew it was time to go to work.

Again alone within the realm of deadly battle he lay in the dark woods at the beginning of the great effort, scared he was not. Radios crackled, rounds barked all around him…some too close, scared he was not.  The shadow seemed to float out of the portal yet it did not dance in the cross hairs.  The sheep whimpered with fright and begged for mercy as the shadow violently squeezed the trigger, her death was near certain.  In between a heartbeat as the warrior pursed the air from his lungs across his lips, one motion of a trigger finger three pounds of pressure were manipulated, the man felt his own thunder bark.  Through cold rugged eyes his action was resolute; through the glass he saw it all.  The shadow fell, most likely all the way to hell.  The sheep would live, the warrior breathed a sigh and then he just walked away.  The sheep did live and he, the warrior again struggled for the answer, he was sure now he was further from finding it than he had ever been. 

Many more years passed and an old man walked through across the beach, he was reminded of fonder times before pain, he reminisced of a simpler time when all that mattered was being a child then a young warrior, an old warrior felt a quickening as his feet felt the cold spray of the ocean….he sensed he was close to home; he reached out with a struggling hand for the final moment….but not yet.  As he bent down the sea lightly brushed against the palm of an old man’s hand and made him feel slightly more alive and his eyes flashed back to the familiar sound of his thunder; he had relived it so many times.  He struggled to push back every moment of pain and then old wrinkled eyes lay rest upon a final sunrise and a visit from the Lord.  The old man looked up and said to the Lord, I thought you would never come……  The Lord asked, do you know the answer to your question. An old warrior man, rugged and tired with a tear in his eye looked up to the Lord and said yes it was with me all along just as you were, you never left my side.  Lord, I have learned to do my best, I can’t fix everything, I can’t save those who don’t want to be saved, and even the lambs sometimes get stolen by the wolves.  Lord I have also learned even in trying to find my own way I sometimes fell, I sometimes bled, I sometimes thought I would never make it.  Lord I learned I had to kill the wolf in order to protect the sheep, for along time I was not proud of that, but Lord then I saw the path you put me on and how it fit into everything under the heavens that is right.  Lord I never intended to send any man to hell but I understand at times I was the instrument you chose.   Lord I have learned to love; I have learned to forgive scorn and hatred and how to live happy despite the pain of an old warrior.  Lord I have loved a woman and a family and they have been proud of me.  Lord I understand now,…… take me home.  The Lord smiled at the old warrior and said to him, “Well done thy good and faithful servant you may enter into the house of the Lord”.

Together they left the beach walked toward the mountains and entered into valley, and crossed the river Jordan; just across the river the old man fought the urge to look back, the Lord told him, go ahead look back then let the pain go because all you will remember now is love. I now have love in my heart absolutely nothing else, I saw the face of love as I lay dying, with the escape of earthly breath, and we walked home together.

Why Open Door Warrior Project?

Why Open Door Warrior Project?

I am a warrior, I say this not to sound special or different in any kind of way.  This is just the perspective life''s path has chosen for me to view the world from.  It is a unique view, unlike any other but not more significant in any way.  Because I am of this discipline I have not always known mercy, gentleness, kindness, empathy; I have only known strength and resolve and never to soften my heart.   However the older I get, the more seasoned I become the more the Lord has continually worked on my heart and my head.  Through dutiful prayer he has taught me to strengthen my resolve but to soften my heart.  I will discuss my career path, but to those who do not yet personally know me, I will not reveal who I am, where I am or exactly what I do.  In referencing Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman and his discussion on three types of people-victims, predators and sheepdogs...I am one of the latter and it is my hope to offer strength and support for all of you who are alike.  There are different types of sheepdogs, but they all have one thing in common-a defense of people, whether it be behind a military uniform, a law enforcement badge, a pulpit, a lectern in a class.

I have arrived on this very page after much prayer and leading from God.  He has placed a burden upon my heart, I say burden because failure to me is not an option.  Although we stumble I fear failing my fellow warriors as Christians sometimes will do one another.  It was not my decision to do a blog, it was God's;  as I write this I am still not 100 percent sure exactly what a blog is.  It is my understanding a "blogger" is someone who posts information via a website called a blog.  I believe God has placed upon me the responsibility to use this type of medium to reach the most Christian warriors and potential Christian warriors I possibly can.  So why is it called Open Door Warrior Project, or ODWP for short.  Simple reason- my Sunday School class at my Church is named the Open Door Classroom.  It is often said of our class we are a close knit family, although like any community of people there are differences of opinion but we come together for a central purpose-to worship God, spread the gospel and bring as many people as possible into the fold of God's family.  After much prayer and plenty of resistance from me despite God working on me I have embarked on this journey with you. So in summation the Open Door Warrior Project is an effort open to all warriors which will be supported by several goals which I also pray will serve you well in your respective discipline.  We all grow weary, we all grow tired, sometimes we feel despair,  we all need support.  I am here for you.  I hope you find the inspiration to keep you going.  Each of you can make a difference in someones life and if you have fought for your country-you already have.  It is a thankless job from most, but from me, as your brother in Christ I thank you for what you do, may God provide a set of keys to heaven and allow you to patrol his streets unabated.

As the life of a warrior, there is a distinct line in the sand between Church and State, although I agree with this separation in union for constitutional purposes, in the individual hearts and lives of warriors it has to co-mingle.  The only way we can don armor for battle is to know it is for a righteous purpose worth defending and if I take someones life it is legally and morally defensible or if I lose my own life-it was worth the cause, and oh by the way because Jesus died upon the cross for me-I will go to heaven.  I feel it is my purpose to explore warrior responsibilities and provide Christian teachings, leadership principles and positive support that what we do is for a purpose.  I realize this blog is catered more toward a specific lifestyle, if you feel this does not exactly fit you, you have the right to stop reading at any time, but I hope you do not because I need you.  We all know officers, military personnel or other emergency service workers-you can spread the word and share this with them, this is my prayer that you will do this and the amount of followers will grow, just as the love of Christ does in all of our hearts. In this line of work there has been several times when I almost walked away, I seriously considered it, but I asked myself a question-If I do not protect my family, if I do not do this, then who will?  I received my answer everytime-God told me get back to work you have much yet to accomplish, you did not choose this career, I had it choose you.  I have always believed him.

Goals

1) It is the first goal of the ODWP to be a means of Christian support for all eyes that may find it.

2) To provide necessary leadership principles which come straight from the word of God as recorded in the Bible.

3) To provide inspiration and solace to all warriors in times of need.

4) Offer a means of prayer for any needs which need to be met.

5)To strengthen us as warriors in defense of the kingdom of God, to assist us in continuing to fight for those who can not or will not.

6) To bring to the Lord all who seek him and his word, to provide a method for warriors to connect with each other.

We are near the end of the first blog, that word stills sounds weird coming from me.  I have talked about who I am, or maybe I have just left you not knowing who I am, at any rate this is not about me, it is about Christ and his love for all of his flock I am simply the messenger he has chosen.  I have told you why the ODWP and we have layed out the ground work for the goals which will be accomplished.  I believe in goals, if you do not have a physical plan of where you are going, you lose track of where you came from and you have no idea how to improve or accomplish what you were chosen to do.  Tonight a special verse is on my heart, along with a special Psalm which I hope as a fellow warrior- you will decide to keep nearby for referencing. 

Phillippians 4:13-I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Be safe, watch your six and keep your head down.

"The Soldier's Psalm"

Praise be to the Lord my Rock

who trains my hands for war,

my fingers for battle

He is my loving God and my fortress,

my stronghold and my deliverer,

my shield, in whom I take refuge,

who subdues peoples under me...

Part your heavens, O Lord, and come down;

touch the mountains, so that they smoke,

Send  forth lightning and scatter the enemies

shoot your arrows and rout them.

Psalm 144: 1-2, 5-6