The Ordination Service

Sunday night was my ordination service at my home church. Now that I have been cleared by the Army and passed my exam on the floor of Presbytery, this was the last official act before I could become a Teaching Elder in the PCA.

The service itself was great. Our Pastor spoke about Heroes from the 2 Samuel 23:8-17. After the sermon was the actual ordination and charge for the ministry. I hope that I will be able to get a copy of the message and charge so that I will be able to listen to them periodically.

I wish that my mother could have seen me become a pastor. Dad was able to be there though and he has now gone back into the hospital for the second round of chemotherapy.

These pictures are what my friends did to my car after the service. They have been walking alongside me through this whole process which has taken years, from my first class in seminary to my ordination this past Sunday. The only phrase that may require some explanation is in the picture below. "Ask me about sacramental union." This is somewhat of an inside joke as that was the only question that was asked of me by the presbytery members (apart from the Credentials Cmte. members who examined me). The question about Sacramental Union came from my good friend Pastor Chris, one of the Associate Pastors at our church. I knew he was going to ask at least one question but when I was telling the story, some my friends took it upon themselves to have some fun at his (and now my) expense. He told me later that he was "getting the reputation as 'Pastor Meanie'" for asking me a question at Presbytery. To be quite honest, I thought I would have gotten more questions but I am thankful that I did not.

All in all, a very good night. One that I will remember for a lifetime.

The Tiger Strikes Again

Ahhhhh. One of my all-time favorite comic strips. The whole Calvin and Hobbes universe, every comic, for $150.

Christmas is on the way.

ESPN.com - NCF - Opponents seeing red over Iowa's pink locker room

Another piece of bizarre news. Why do people get so worked up over something so trivial. The country is a war and folks are getting upset over the color of a University locker room. And what is worse, people who do not like what is being said are threatening the those who want to change the color.

What is the country coming too?

School Defends its Decision on "Intelligent Design"

Even if you are a hard Church/State sepratist, how is teaching "Intelligent Design" alongside "Evolution" an endorsement of religion.

It would seem to me that if you do not teach both you are in fact endorsing the faith of atheism. Why is it not "inhibiting the free practice" of religion when the government allows only evolution to be taught which is making a religious statement.

Teaching both should make everybody happy.

Ordination Update

I passed my exams on the floor of Presbytery and I got a call from the Army that they are ready to take me. So, this coming Sunday, Oct. 2nd, I will be ordained as a pastor in the Presbyterian Church in America. It has been a long time coming and has also been alot of work. My wife and I are both looking forward to the service and getting on with ministry.

Also, my Dad officially has "complete remission" of AML. He will still go back to the hospital for the consolidation round and, Lord willing, that will be the end of it. With everything that has happened this summer it has been nice change to have good news.

Baseball Chapel Leader Suspended

Nationals Suspend Chapel Leader

Great, I should have known that this would be the response. In a climate of "political correctness" and always trying to say the right thing, a chaplain gets suspended for nodding his head.

When Ryan Church, an outfielder for the Washington Nationals, asked if his Jewish friends were "doomed," the chaplain simply nodded his head. It is the right response for someone who believes and teaches the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are all "doomed" apart from Him. Everyone. Not just Jews but all people because no one keeps the commandments that God has made. If Jesus is not our substitute, then we are going to be judged by God for breaking His Law. The Chaplain's answer to the question is correct. If you are Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Druid, whatever, apart from Jesus Christ we are "doomed."

Now, I do not know why, I have not seen any evidence to the contrary, but it seems to me that only the Christians are called out about statements such as this. If Jews or Muslims are consistent with their faith then they too believe that anyone who believes differently from them are damned. As a protestant, the Catholics believe and have taught since the Council of Trent that all protestants are going to hell because we are not part of the "true church," the Roman Catholic Church. These groups are wrong but I do not have a problem with them saying these things and they have for centuries.

It is a place to begin a dialogue about faith. The Chaplain said the same thing that anybody who has read Genesis, Deuteronomy, John, Acts, and Romans and believes what they teach would say. The Bible is clear, apart from the Child of the promise, Jesus Christ, salvation can be found in no other.

Ordination Trials

Today I finally passed my ordination exams for the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). This was the second time I went before the committee that examines men seeking to become pastors. Half of my exam was sustained (meaning I passed) last month and today, the parts that I did not excel in then, I met the committee's expectation today.

So now I am one step closer to becoming a chaplain. Saturday, I go before the whole presbytery to complete my ordination exams. Hopefully there will not be to many questions from the floor. In any case, there is, at long last, light at the end of this tunnel.

Summer Reading

Not too long ago I finished reading the most recent Harry Potter novel The Half Blood Prince. With the way my summer has gone, it was a nice distraction to catch up reading years 3-6 in the Hogwarts world.

I still do not know where I fall in the Severus Snape debate. Without giving to much away, the 6th book really muddies the waters with regards to his guilt or innocence as a Death-Eater. Anyway, the curious can check out all things Harry Potter at the Harry Potter Lexicon website. It could possibly be more information than you really want to know. Enter at you own risk as it could lead to many wasted hours in the wizarding world.

Michael Yon : Online Magazine

This is a very interesting blog by an imbedded reporter in Iraq. The "Gates of Fire" post is jaw-dropping. Quite a vivid picture of the fight in Mosul, Iraq and modern urban combat.

Gametime Over Weekend

Well, I did get in a game over the weekend but not Panzer Command but the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit #2 (ASLSK2). The scenario was Ambitious Assault (S9). It has American paratroopers taking on Italians in some urban terrain with British reinforcements coming on in the last half of the game.

All in all a great scenario. It came down to the last Defensive Fire by the allies but the remaining Italians (most had either broken or were KIA) held tough and eeked out a win. Only two squads were still in good order by the end of the game while the allies were just about untouched (only lost a British squad and an American half-squad) and were mostly in good order. Poor shots by the allies at the end coupled with good morale check rolls for the axis brought the victory for the much bloodied Italians.

The two pictures are both from the game end. The one highlights the whole board and shows the movement of the forces over the course of the game (Allies in Red). The other shows where the pieces were at the end and also shows how much fire was brought to bear with little effect against the grey colored Italian squads.

This scenario is definitely worth keeping and using to show how to move in ASL as well as conducting a defense with few quality assets. Very fun.

How the game progressed 

Back to History

I wanted to note that as September approaches, we are nearing the 66th anniversary of the onset of WWII in Europe. I do not think that any other human conflict in history has had as great an impact on how we see the world than this one.

As someone who is interested on conflict simulation (or wargaming), this has to be one of the most written about and gamed subjects in that community. I have not found very many games or books that discuss the early war but it is a topic I am interested in.

On other fronts (?) my life is settling into days of study and driving my dad back and forth for his various check-ups at the hospital. I hope that the cancer will be gone by the time I am inducted into the service. It would also be nice to have a little time to spend in my hobby. Maybe I can get a couple hours later this week. Perhaps I will pull out the old Panzer Command series and play the campaign in Poland that is depicted above.

Catch up

Things are still go, go, go. My dad has come home from the hospital and thankfully responded to the chemo treatments very well. "A textbook patient," his doctor said.

This is a great relief to our family. I hope that as we complete the second round that it will indeed by the last one and he will be cured.

It also looks like I will still be in the area until January. My paperwork for the Army did not get to the Chief of Chaplains Office until it was too late. The next board is set for 20 Sept. and that will be after the September Chaplain Officer's Basic Course (CHOBC) has started. At least I will be around to help Dad through the second round.

I also will need the time to complete my ordination exams for the PCA. Half of my exams were sustained (meaning I passed) but I need to do half of them over. My next meeting with the committee is set for mid-September. I hope that I will pass the remaining portions of the exam so that I will at least have the news that I will be ordained before Dad goes back into the hospital.

I will be so glad when this is all over.

Nothing Like Letting Half a Year Go By

Where do I begin? Here it has been over six months since my last entry and my whole world has been turned upside down. In an almost "you name it, it's happened to me" kind of way, my whole world has changed.

After recovering from the "car" incident, I was able to pick up a temporary job as a painter. I have continued to look for full time employment in ministry but have been unable to find a church that would give me a call to the ministry. As my wife and I prayed and talked about this, she took it upon herself to contact the US Army Chaplaincy Corps for opportunities. They contacted us and to make a long story longer, we are in the process of joining the Army as a chaplain. I do not know why we did not think of this before but God has really moved in our hearts and we are both looking forward to this tremendous opportunity.

But the past several weeks have been very challenging. My father went into the hospital with chest pain on the right-side of his body (not heart related as we found out), and we discovered that he has AML (a type of Leukemia). After my father was released and we were preparing to fight the AML, my mother had a massive heart attack and died. One of the hardest things I have had to do is comfort my father in the emergency room and watch my mom's heart stop beating. This happened just over two weeks ago.

I gave the eulogy at her service and the next day, we took Dad to the hospital to begin chemotherapy treatments. Needless to say this has put my faith to the test. Do I really believe in the God of the Bible? Do I really believe in His Son? I can now answer without hesitation: absolutely!

Having gone through all of the physical preparation for the Army and the mental preparation for my ordination exams, this emotional shock has forced me to look at my faith under the surface. Did I believe in the truths of the Bible that I had preached to other people? As much as my Mom's death hurts and watching Dad get chemo to kill the cancer (and all that entails), I think these events have put into sharp focus what I and my parents believe.

While I do question the timing of all these things, I trust that God knows what He is doing. I am thankful that He has the control and that I do not.

So there it is. There is even a possibility that I could get shipped off to basic before Dad gets home from the hospital (the timing is close but I think I will still be here). I need to finish my written exams and paper so I can proceed to the oral examination for ordination. When it rains it pours.

Now what am I going to do?

Two months since my last post. The reason for this lag in content is twofold.

First, on Nov. 30th I was involved in a car accident. My Honda Civic (boy do I miss that car) was struck by a gentleman running a red light. Just prior to the collison, the though "I wonder how many times people run this light" crossed my mind. The answer, frequently.

The car was totalled but I managed to escape serious injury (some brusing and a big bump on the head).

A couple of weeks following this incident I was told that I was going to be laid off from work in January. So as it stands right now I am in full job hunt mode. Little income and few prospects have made for a dark start to the year.

It is the worst time of year to start looking for work. Now that businesses are past their year end buget crisies they are beginniing to hire again. But, the mid-year college graduates are also looking for work. A guy with a MA in Religion and BS in History is not going to be at the top of the list. One would think that experience would play a key factor but thus far it has not. Managment, people skills, willingness to learn, and a varitey of ablities from teaching to being comfortable with a wide range of computer programs and web/database languages only goes so far. Companies are looking for, well, I do not know what. Apparently not me at the moment.

Life goes on and the bills keep coming. I hope that the job front will open up in the future but at the moment things are tight. A friend of mine who was in a similar situation years ago said, "Sometimes it seems like you can't even get a job picking up pieces of paper off of the street." Right now this rings very true in my life. Maybe next week will be different.

It has been awhile since I have gotten a chance to blog. I think I let life interfere to quickly. Not much has changed in my status except that I have allowed myself to be tied down by busy-ness.

At any rate, the fracas over the election seems to be starting to die down. What a mess. I just cannot believe that so many people are so emotionally invested in the election that they are threatening to leave because their guy didn't win. I will leave out my personal feelings on the matter but I do want to say this: If I survived 8 years of President Clinton, a man who I had no respect for as a person (but I do respect him by virtue of the office that he held; that is to say, even though I did not vote for him, he was still my president), the left can surely tolerate another 4 years of President Bush.

There is much more I want to say on the matter but I feel it would generate more heat than light. Now if we can just get past the "He stole the election" garbage, things should start to return to what passes for normal.

From Treating to Murder

Now They Want to Euthanize Children

I am appauled that things have slid so fast in Holland. Where is the ethics? This is as bad as what the Nazi German doctors were doing during World War 2. Now it is acceptable?! I just do not know what to say.

Where am I?

I just wanted to check in and say that I have not totally fallen off the face of the earth (only mostly).

I have been very busy the past couple of months as things at the church where I work have kicked into gear for Fall. I have also had the opportuity to preach a couple of times and give a tour of Antietam national Battlefield.

I hope now that we are halfway through October, the pace of life might slow down a bit, just in time for the start of Christmas season.

On Tour

Yesterday, my wife and I went with some friends from our church to the Gettysburg National Military Park. On my church's men's retreat in the spring, I go to Gettysburg during the freetime on Saturday since it is only a 20-30 minute drive from the retreat center.

This past year was so popular with the guys they asked if I would lead another tour over the Summer so they could spend more time talking about the battle and seeing the park. We set the date and yesterday the group went up to the battlefield.

It was raining early in the day but it did not last too long and brought the temperature down. I have been to the battlefield several times (as you might imagine, being a historian and only living about 2 hours away), but this time I was able to go to several place I had not yet had a chance to see. Everybody had a great time. Even my parents came along and when they spoke with my sister's husband that evening, he said that he would like to go up as well.

It is an awe inspiring place. If you live close by, take a weekend and vist. The town is great and there are several nice restaurants in the area like the Farnsworth House. It is a nice trip and even if you know nothing about the battle, a stop at the Visitor's Center will give you a good overview of the events of July 1-3, 1863 and you can even take a self guided auto tour.

Well, as you can tell, I try to promote people to learn the history of the nation in which we live and for those on the east coast of the USA, it is all around you. Take some time to appreciate the areas that are quite literally in your own backyard.

RCC May Have Gone Overboard on This One

MSNBC - Girl with digestive disorder denied Communion

OK, this is a little much. The Roman Catholic Church (RCC) has revoked a first communion because the wafer contained no wheat. The little girl who has had her sacrament denied cannot have wheat because of a rare allergy that causes her small intestine to block the absorption of food and may damage the organ as well.

Now while I do not agree with the doctrine behind the RCC's move, it should not really be a problem. Since the Catholic Church holds to a view of transubstantiation, that the bread and wine really become the body and blood of Christ, then why does it matter whether or not you start with a wheat or rice wafer. The institution of the sacrament, in RCC doctrine, means that the wafers are no longer wheat (or rice) but only appear to be wheat.

With the importance to Catholic regading the Lord's Supper, you would think that they would accommodate those who may not be able to take part using the traditional elements. You can still use the wafers and wine, just use rice or corn or whatever to make the Mass accessible to all who want to take part.