My conversation with an American Soldier

In March I had the privilege of attending a Woman's Conference in Atlanta, Ga where my daughter Jessica was being honored. It was a fabulous event which I chronicled through FB. On our plane trip from California to Atlanta I had the honor of sitting next to one of our wonderful American Soldier's.

 

Jared is a young man of 19 if I recall, from the Sacramento area. He had just enlisted and he was headed out to Georgia for Bootcamp. I believe that God ordains all of my steps so there was a reason why He put Jessica and I next to this young man. 

 

After our get acquainted moments I asked Jared why he wanted to enlist in the Army, especially with all of the unrest around the world. What he said was simple but it still brings tears to my eyes as I write.

He said " To serve my country". 

 

Now of course that's what one would want to hear but he said it with such resoluteness that it stirred up within me feelings of pride and a longing to pull out an American Flag and sing God Bless America. 

 

Jared went on to say that no one back home understood. So he needed to make this decision on his own. He was leaving behind a new girlfriend, but he knew what he needed to do. He also admitted he could use some discipline in his life and knew he would get it in the Army. I began to tell him how proud I was of him and the great sacrifice he was willing to make.

 

Jared had met a fellow soldier who was also on the plane headed to Bootcamp. He was sitting in front of us so we didn't get to talk with him much. We had the honor of buying both men a meal on board which they were thrilled to receive. 

 

I began to talk with Jared about his faith. He is a Christian but hadn't really been pursuing his walk. I began to encourage and exhort him to press into his walk with Christ. I told him that it was his faith that would get him through. I told him that there will be a lot of things that he will be a part of that he won't always understand and that he will be tested but that Jesus will help him through. I emphasized the need for him to get a Bible and begin to study God's Word and to go to church, when he could. He was my captive audience, no doubt, but he truly seemed to be listening and responding. I could see faith and strength begin to well up within him.

 

I brought along a book I've been reading by Nick Vujicic entitled Life Without Limits. Nick is a young man who was born without arms and legs and is a traveling inspirational speaker. God is doing mighty things in his life. I felt led to share it with Jared. He looked at the pictures of Nick and was amazed. He then began to read some of the book on Nick's faith and how he doesn't let obstacles stand in his way from doing what he is called to do. Nick stresses his courage and abilities to achieve on his relationship with Christ.

 

We talked some more and then he pulled out a folded up worn piece of white notebook paper. He slumped over and began to study it intently. He sat back and told me that he had to memorize the Soldiers Creed along with some other things. He confessed that he was really struggling. Jared continued to study and I went off to the restroom. I asked the Lord how can I help this young man learn what he needs to learn. I got my answer and went back. I told Jared it might help for him to write and re-write out the words. Jessica had paper which she gladly handed over and he began to write.

 

I asked Jared if I could read what he was writing. As I did I began to weep. The words are so powerful, filled with declarations and commitment. As I read them I thought of this young man and all of the others who put their lives on the line everyday for me. I was filled with so much emotion. I began to think of  all those men and women so young responding to the call to Serve their country. Pride welled up within me. I took his paper and wrote them out for myself so I could sit and ponder their depth and meaning.

 

Here are the words of the Soldiers Creed

 

I am an American Soldier.

I am a Warrior and a member of a team.

I serve the people of the United States, and live the Army Values.

I will always place the mission first.

I will never accept defeat.

I will never quit.

I will never leave a fallen comrade.

I am disciplined, physically and mentally tough, trained and proficient in my warrior tasks and drills.

I always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself.

I am an expert and I am a professional.

I stand ready to deploy, engage, and destroy, the enemies of the United States of America in close combat.

I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of life.

I am an American Soldier.

 

As our flight was coming to an end I asked Jared to write me and let me know how things were going and if he needed anything. I prayed for him and we said good bye. Later I thought I should have taken his picture.

I saw him and his buddy a bit later in the airport and just missed the opportunity again to take his picture. The thought kept lingering in my brain though. We proceed through this very long airport to get our luggage. There were some great sculptures and I stopped to get a picture. As I pulled out my iPhone for the shots, up walks Jared and his buddy! The Lord REALLY wanted me to get his picture. I was thrilled for the opportunity and grabbed it. Jared is the young man on the left.

 

 

Last week I received my first letter from Jared. Here are a few lines that he wrote:

 

Dear Pam,

 

It was really nice to meet you on the flight to Georgia. You were very graceful and I needed that. Inside I was stressful on the plane but you helped me to relax...

He goes on to say that he has already been assigned as a squad leader and made responsible for 12 others, with helping them organize and get things done. He said it's a tough job mainly because some of the soldiers don't care about being there and they have a lot of bad attitudes.

He said he's been going to church every Sunday, which has been nice. It's a nice way to get away from the Drill Sergeants for awhile and get guidance from God. He said some people just sleep but hopefully they'll eventually look to God for guidance too.

 

He wrote this letter to me on Easter, after church.

 

Please join me in praying for Jared and all of our men and women around the world serving our country. Like Jared they responded to the call. They may not all want to be there but they are, for us!

 

God only knows what our future holds but for me I sleep just a little bit better knowing that there are people like Jared out there keeping a watchful eye out  as  "a guardian of freedom and the American way of life."

 

Ps.. Don't be afraid to step out and speak to someone. You may have those few words or that tender touch that God might want to use to calm fears raging in another. We're in this life together. Let's act like it.

 How's your Fruit? 

An Observation.

This morning I decided to go out and harvest some of our Raspberries. Yes, I know I put them in a Blueberry container. It already has holes for air so, why not? 

Last year I planted the Raspberry bush but didn't get any fruit from it. I was curious to see if this year we would get any? They say that sometimes it takes a year for a plant to produce fruit. Low and behold we got fruit and boy is it good! Much better than in the store. 

Something I noticed in my hunt for the fruit was that a lot of the fruit is sitting on top of the bush, brilliantly colored and easy to pick. Yet some other pieces I had to search for I found under leaves and branches which were also surprisingly vibrant, full bodied and juicy. I thought this was something interesting to ponder. The following is a glimpse into how my mind works with all of its crazy diversions. 

I believe God is always eager to speak to us through His Creation so I took some time to reflect on the similarity between the fruit on the bush and the fruit in our own lives. I am in no way a Naturalist, a Theologian or a Psychologist. I do however like to ponder the why's of a thing and try to learn from its existence and/or purpose.

Whether a person is a follower of Christ or not they will produce some kind of fruit. Some lives seem to be full of abundance and are thriving while others may be barely surviving. The phrase that he or she is a bad Apple comes to mind. Meaning that they are not one that is producing healthy and good fruit in their lives.

The production of good or bad fruit may have to do with how a person is raised and/or what they are exposed to. And yet you can look at a family with multiple siblings that are all raised by the same parents in the same exact way with the same experiences and some will grow up healthy and productive while others not so much. Why is that?

I noticed that on one sprig from the Raspberry bush, there were multiple pieces of fruit all grouped  together. Some pieces were ripe and ready to pick, some were not ripe yet and some were done- black and ready to fall off. They were all on the same little sprig and exposed to the same amount of light and water and yet at different stages of their development. 

In thinking about people, each person is created unique unto themselves and they can develop differently. Some grow up faster while others may lag behind. That said even though a group of siblings- while brought up the same way, by the same people and in the same environment- could easily be different from their sibling because they will have different likes and interests, even twins. Though quite similar they all have a different mind.

Of course there is no comparison with the fruit on a Raspberry bush and how it "wants" to grow. It's motivation etc. It doesn't have a mind to make a choice of when it wants to be ripe or not, that's just silly. However the point of this exposition is not to try and explain why the choices are made by a person, so much as it is on the outcome of a person's choices, and the direction of their life, versus the stages of development of the fruit on a Raspberry bush.

As more children come into the family unit the parents are getting older and may change their rearing approach for the younger child to the older sibling. (For this writing I'm not talking about multiples born at the same time) Maybe the parents have more patience, maybe they have less.  Some kids might be more sensitive than others, maybe some are angry while others happy. Some parents may teach a child to be selfish and thoughtless to the needs of others while another parent may teach a child to be generous and kind, always thinking of someone else before themselves. This might even be from the two parents in the same household because they themselves are two separate individuals with their own drives and motivation. So people are different therefore will have different strengths and weakness' and paths they decide to take when they are on their own.

I'm sure there have been experiments done on this. Doctors studying a group of children- all at the same age and exposed to the same things- looking for the outcome. I think there was an episode on the TV show Fringe that covered it? Maybe not. 

Can a person produce good fruit even though they had bad experiences growing up or were raised in a family of disfunction? Is there any way for a person to change? Maybe searching to find a common ground as others who appear to be "successful" that offers a solid foundation to grow from? Can they have the same chances and opportunities as another person? 

Being a Born Again follower of Christ myself I would say, Absolutely people can change, because I have. Using the Bible is a great foundation to build your life upon. You should also find a good teacher that has a sound Biblical lifestyle that you can emulate. And all of that is totally true and yet... there are many followers of Jesus out there that do Not necessarily have what one would call a fruitful and successful life.

So what is the answer? How can we grow to be vibrant, thriving and bountiful producing an abundance of good fruit in our lives? 

I have found that the Only true Source that I can rely on is the Holy Spirit of God. When an individual with all of their varying thoughts, ideas and experiences welcomes the Spirit of God into their life, a commitment is made by God to change the individual into the very Image of Christ, from the inside out. I think all will say that given what little they may know about the Person Jesus Christ is that He was a great example of how we should strive to be.

This is from the Message Version in the Book of Acts Chapter 8.

29-30 God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love Him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in Him. After God made that decision of what His children should be like, He followed it up by calling people by name. After He called them by name, He set them on a solid basis with Himself. And then, after getting them established, He stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what He had begun.

God made a choice to come to earth in the person of Jesus. He came to take upon Himself the thing that prevented us from being able to spend Eternity with Him (sin from Adam and Eve). Along with that He created a way, by Rising from the dead, to send His own Spirit to live within us thus conforming us into the Vibrant fruit that we were created to be.

The Book of John 14:26, The New International Version. (Red are the words that Jesus spoke)

26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

John 16:13 The New International Version.

13 But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

Jesus speaks to us, through His Spirit written down in the Bible, in the Book of John Chapter 15 vs 1-6 New International Version

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful. 3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. 4 Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

The fruit that Jesus is talking about is the fruit that our life produces. Those beautiful Red Raspberries that we want to be. The kind of fruit that is sweet to the taste. Yes some fruit may take a bit longer to ripen than others and that's where we must exercise love and patience allowing others to grow and ripen at their own pace. How do we have the love and patience that we need with others? It's by allowing more of the Holy Spirit a place within us Who will change us into the very image of God through Christ Jesus. 

What about the fruit that is hidden underneath the leaves of the bushes and yet still grows healthy and strong? For this comparison I have found that there are some people who have been so wounded in their lives that they need to be pressed in even closer to His protective care. A place where they can feel safe from the elements that could wound them even deeper. They need to be in that environment where they are able to grow and thrive. While others may not see them as clearly they can easily be found by the One that seeks them out.

As for the fruit that is on the surface of the bush ripe and ready for picking? That fruit has weathered some tremendous storms itself and yet has been able to overcome the turbulence and offer itself up for all to enjoy. My focus is not on why the fruit is in different places in the bush. It's more on learning how we can thrive wherever we are planted. There is a place for all and when we put our trust in the Lord we will be able to see our lives change for the better and begin to be all that we were created to be.

The other fruit that has died on the vine was left too long and ignored. It wasn't picked when it was at it's peak. Maybe no one noticed it or didn't care to make an effort to reach it before it withered away.

To sum it all up, we need the Holy Spirit in our lives to help us to be all that we were created to be. We learn what that looks like by reading and studying the Bible which allows us an insight into Who Jesus was and what He did. This enlightens us to see the changes that we want to see in our own lives. 

We also need to be aware of those around us. We should rejoice with those who are producing great fruit while we encourage those who are struggling to press in and learn more about what it means to have a fruitful life. Finally we need to be on the look out for those who are in need and withering away. They just may need to hear a greeting of hello or have someone who can come along side them and pour a little water, a little Living Water, into their thirsty soul. 

Eventually all of the fruit will die and the Gardener will come and prune back the bush for the next season of new fruit. This is the way of life on earth. We all are here for a short time and in the grand scheme of Eternity I feel we should make the most of our time. We have a choice of where we want to spend the rest of Eternity. 

That's my thought for the day. Now it's time to go enjoy some delicious Raspberries that are patiently waiting to be gobbled up!