Chaplain Kay

On Friday, I learned that a wonderful woman, know as Sweet Betty, passed away. The news shattered my heart while filling me with joy. Sweet Betty was a darling woman I knew from our last church. She was at church week in and week out, weather and health permitting. Sweet Betty lived with her sister (one of my favorite people in the world) who has taken care of her for many years.

My memories of Betty are nothing but fond ones. She is easily the least self-centered person I have ever known. She always had a smile and a hug for me and wanted to know how the “baby” was. She would show me her newest bracelet and tell me something about her week. Not a birthday, holiday or special event day would go by without my getting a card from this dear lady. While Sweet Betty is with us no more, and we are sad with that fact, she is now present with the Lord and everything is right for her now. I wish I could have been at the funeral, but our proximity didn’t allow for it. If you think of it, please pray for her sister, Mrs. Lottie, as I know she is sick with grief from the loss.

I must apologize for my lack of writing for the past two weeks. There is really no excuse, although there are a few I could use: shortage of time, tired, not much to say. These are all possible reasons but are probably secondary to not wanting to. Oh well.

The past two weeks have been great from a learning standpoint but not so much a blogging one. There has been a lot to take place and I will hit some of the high notes.

New Chief of Chaplains – CH (BG) Douglas Carver

CH Carver came to the school house during week five and gave us an awe-inspiring and realistic view of the chaplaincy. He pointed out that this is a hard time to be in the military and is not for the weak at heart. Deployments are not a possibility but a certainty for those of us that are going active duty. America will more than likely be in this war with terrorists for years to come which might very well mean more multiple deployments for our troops. I for one appreciated his candor. It is too easy to beat around the bush and try to talk about the “fun” of the chaplaincy. The truth of the matter is we are at war and that requires the deployment of troops. CH Carver is definitely a motivated man and impressed me to know end. He is, by the way, the first Southern Baptist Chief of Chaplains in 54 years. Go SBC!

July 4th

With July 4th being a national holiday, we were off last Wednesday. CH-BOLC, therefore, had a voluntary “fun day” out at the lake and we had a ball. We threw the football and Frisbee around, played a little basketball, ate some good hamburgers, had a talent show and hung out with new friends. Amy Maxwell was even there for a visit. It was a great day. There is only one thing that would have made the day better: My Love, Little Man and Baby Doll being present. Oh how I miss them!

Battle at Cowpens

On Thursday the 12th, CH-BOLC went on a staff ride to the site of the Battle of Cowpens. It was there that the Patriots made a valiant stand against the British and won the day. It was one in a series of battles that turned the tide of the American Revolution and got the ball rolling towards victory. This was actually quite an experience. It is a rare occasion that a group of 179 chaplains gets to visit an historical site where a major battle took place and then reenact the battle. I was on the American side and we of course won. To walk on the ground where men lost there lives so we can be this great nation was sobering.

Discussion

Phase 1 was riddled with great briefs and discussion. We went over Just War Theory, Religious Leadership, the Military Decision Making Process, Assessing Religious Needs, Media on the Battlefield. Army Writing, Staff Briefs, Staff Positions and much, much more. The information has been great.

Conclusion

Honestly, I am quite overwhelmed right now. In six weeks I will leave the comfortable setting of CH-BOLC and enter the real world of the Chaplaincy. In six weeks I will be responsible for carrying my Commanders religious program. In six weeks, I will “really” be in the Army. The overwhelming thing is I know that I cannot do it on my own. If God does not show up and do something big in and through my life, I AM LOST.

It is actually a nice position to be in. The Bible says, “Greater is He who is in [me] than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4). I am so glad I serve a God that is so much bigger than me or anything else I will ever face. There nothing or no one as awesome as He. Praise the Lord He gives us strength to continue on day by day. And thank God for JESUS!

The Kay family continues to covet your prayers. Thank you for your prayers and petitions made to a most high God on our behalf. They are felt and needed.

This past weekend, my wife and I attended the Missionary and Chaplains Commissioning conference for North American Mission Board (NAMB) missionaries and Chaplains. I must say the event was incredible. NAMB did a fantastic job of putting on the event and took great care of all those involved. It was especially refreshing to have the coordinator of the weekend come from a Military Chaplain’s family. She never ceased to add us Chaplains in with the other missionaries.

God was in the weekend from the get go. On Thursday morning, as my wife and I ate breakfast, we found ourselves at a table with another military Chaplain. Not just a military Chaplain, but an Army Chaplain. Not just an Army Chaplain, but a Chaplain who will be attending CHBOLC with me in two weeks. Even further fun, this new Chaplain and I received our MDiv from the same seminary, MABTS. Coincidence? I think not. It was nothing but the providence of God. What a Weekend!

Out of the 83 missionaries and Chaplains being commissioned, there were only 3 military Chaplains, all Army, and 1 health care Chaplain. The four of us and our spouses became quick friends with one another and spent the entire weekend loving on one another and growing in the Lord. What a Weekend!

The highlight of the weekend, and there were many, would have to be the time we had to sit down as Chaplains, with our spouses while being joined by 2 men from the Chaplain division of NAMB. Both men are prior service Chaplains and had a wealth of information to share. They were there to teach us and give insight into our future responsibilities, but most importantly they were there to encourage us while letting us know they would be behind us every step of the way. What a Weekend!

When the time came for us to say our goodbyes, there were plenty of tears and hugs to go around. We were able to connect so quickly and made lifelong friends. I will see CH Scott and CH Herb here in 2 weeks and I am excited about the reunion. What a Weekend!

I also can’t wait to finally meet CH Ken, CH Candidate Dave, CH Ham, CH Mark and many others. Wow, it will be some kind of ride. The time is fast approaching when we will say goodbye to our families and descend upon Ft. Jackson. Our time at CHBOLC will be busy, difficult, time consuming, exhausting, fun, spiritually demanding, physically demanding, emotionally demanding, and the list goes on. Until then, however, I continue to enjoy my time with the family. May God bless all of you and I look forward to our meeting and the journey God has called us to walk together.

Dr. Jerry Falwell Dead at 73

The great and controversial Dr. Jerry Falwell passed away this morning, Tuesday, May 15th. He was an incredible man that pushed and preached the need for conservative and biblical values. Dr. Falwell not only loved the Lord, but dedicated his life to the instructing of those called to ministry. He will be sorely missed.

I want to encourage everyone, if anyone, who reads this to wander on over the Chaplain Ken’s website and read his post on Surrender in which he references another great post and one of my favorite bloggers: Chaplain Candidate Amy Maxwell. In it, he makes some wonderful observation about the nature of surrender for us as Christians and more specifically those who have answered the call to the Chaplaincy.

People often ask me what the hardest part of entering the Chaplaincy will be and even have the audacity to think and verbalize that leaving the pastorate for the Army is a cake-walk decision. Like CH Ken, I am thrilled to wear this country’s uniform. I relish the thought of putting on that uniform and ministering to the needs of our soldiers. I am not scared of the work, the running (although that is something I could do without) or even the possibility of going to war. I do, however, flinch at the thought of driving away from my home with my family in the rearview mirror. I cringe at their already present tears and the tears I cry while they sleep. In short, I must surrender my family unto the Lord.

I would call myself a typical “solve it all” male. I want to have my hands on things and fix things when I can. I don’t like to see my family hurt and it pains me to know that this decision to surrender to God’s call results in their hurting. However, I wouldn’t trade God’s will for all the gold in the world. I want to be right where He has me.

I am reminded of a story Henry Blackaby tells in Experiencing God. When he was called mission work, it required him to spend a good deal of time away from his family. This pained him at first, but then God opened his eyes. Henry Blackaby wrote, “We came to believe that the heavenly Father, who loves His servants, could take better care of our children than we ever could” (Blackaby, Experiencing God, 137).

Like CH Ken and my fellow Chaplains, I must continue to trust in an Almighty God. Without His help and guidance I cannot get through this. However, with His wonderful ways and all-knowingness, I believe He will supply our needs day by day. For this reason, to Him I surrender my family and my life.

It’s hard to imaging that yesterday has come and gone. My wife and I have been looking towards yesterday for quite awhile, and not that it is over it’s mind-boggling to think it actually got here.

Yesterday morning, I let our church know of our new ministry in the US Army, and consequently the end of our ministry here. It was a difficult and emotional time. I have been preaching a sermon series on “The Will of God,” and concluded the series yesterday morning with a sermon entitled “The Cost of Obedience.” We examined Abram’s call by the Lord in Genesis to leave his country, his relatives and his father’s house and to go to a land God would reveal later. After the service I told the church I had a personal announcement and read my letter of resignation.

The people of our church were so gracious. They had nothing but wonderful things to say which makes the move all the more difficult. I am thankful for my time here. I have enjoyed the gracious opportunity by God to preach His Word week in and week out. I have enjoyed building relationships that I pray will last until eternity. I have enjoyed being the pastor of a great church.

But, the time has come to put on a different hat of ministry. I will still have the opportunity to preach at times and eventually might get to preach with some regularity. The Chaplain ministry, however, seems so different from pastoral ministry. First, I will not be connected to a church, but instead to a battalion. There will be a specific group of soldiers that I will be responsible for when it comes to their spiritual well-being. My job is not to convert all I come into contact with, but to provide for their spiritual growth as well as their right to worship however or whoever they want. Second, I will not only be tied to “ministerial” work. As a Chaplain I will serve as an “expert” concerning religious matters. To be honest, it is all quite overwhelming.

We will miss this church deeply. They have been our family for the past three years and will always remain in our thoughts and prayers. I rest in the truth that God is in control and while yesterday came as a surprise to many people, it did not come as a surprise to Him! Praise be to God!

This past Monday, my wife and I welcomed a beautiful 6 lb 2 oz baby girl into our family . Now I understand that I’m biased, but she is the most beautiful thing I have ever laid eyes on and she already has me wrapped around her finger.

There was a scary moment right before she was born. Her heart rate dropped to around 40 beats per minute and the nurses had to “get her out.” Well, the nurses and doctor were incredible and God was gracious. Come to find out, my little girl had the umbilical cord in her hand holding it like a purse as the doctor said. She is already playing to role of a princess.

Words cannot express how much I love my little girl and my two year old son. It’s simply amazing how God instills within our hearts the capability to love our children equally. The Lord has blessed us beyond measure and we are eternally grateful. On Sunday we were a family of three and now we are a family of four. I am so blessed.

I took a trip up to my former seminary yesterday to spend some time saying goodbye to old friends. During my seminary studies I met three men who have all become wonderful friends. We had all planned on continuing our education together and pursuing Ph.D. studies. Well, they are currently in the doctoral program and God has called me to the Chaplaincy. I wouldn’t change it for anything although I do hope to continue my education in the future.

Anyway, the four of us went out to eat and had a wonderful time with one another. We talked theology, church, family and military. One of my friends has a wife who is a, Ophthalmologist in the Navy, and in August they will be PCSing to Japan for their first Duty Station so he had much to share about their impending journey.

The time we were able to spend together was great. To be honest, I made the trip to say goodbye to my friends. In June I will spend 3 months at FT. Jackson for CH-BOLC and then my family is moving to Ft. Hood. There is no telling where God will lead us after that. It was difficult spending that time with my brothers in Christ and ministry knowing that it might be the last time I see them this side of heaven. I thank God for the people He has enabled me to run into over the past four years. Once the Lord led our family to this part of the country to serve He did a mighty work in our lives and allowed us to meet some fantastic people.

Before our final hugs, my friend who is moving to Japan told me, “See you around the world.” How neat would that be? I want to leave you today with a passage from Philippians that comforts my heart in times like these and captures the love I have for these friends.

Philippians 1:3-8 (NKJV)

3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; 7 just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. 8 For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.

This is the third and final article in a series of articles addressing the use of the phrase “The God I know . . .” This week I address the third and final statement of misplaced theology and then wrap up the series with some closing thoughts.

#3 – The God I know would never let bad things happen to good people

Once again, emotions and feelings supervise such thinking. It is important that true believers always allow the Bible to circumvent what they might feel about a certain aspect of God. It might pain us to think that God would let bad things happen to good people, but we must realize that we are nothing but retched sinners living in a sinful world; therefore, bad things will happen to everyone. In fact, Jesus said no one was good except God.

In the book of Job we find a particular story that completely debunks the myth of good people not having to suffer. Job, as righteous a man as one could be, was pointed out to Satan by God. God actually said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job.” Scripturally it seems that God initiated the incident with Job to prove His (God’s) own sovereignty and power. Job was allowed to suffer so God would receive the glory.

Conclusion

Christians must be careful when making comments concerning God. You might not know what you are saying, but a few misplaced words might infer you believe something about God that you would never knowingly believe. We must also tread carefully in the area of emotion and belief. God gave us emotions, but not so they would govern our lives. The Word of God is our guiding document. It was given to us so we could not only know the story of Jesus, but know the person of God.

The three false statements discussed in this article are born out of the perception of fairness; however, the Bible never says God is fair. Instead, the Bible says God is just and merciful, loving and jealous. Fairness, in all actuality, would naturally lead God to send everyone to hell because no one could ever earn the gift of eternal life. That is why God says we are saved by His grace and not our own works (Ephesians 2:8-9). We all need to do a little thinking before we talk and make sure we describe God as the God He is rather than the God we want Him to be. His way is BEST!!!

Recently I shared my concern over a statement finding its way into people’s conversations more frequently. The statement begins with the phrase “The God I know . . .” Today I would like to address another statement that contains this dangerous phrase and debunk scripturally its believability. In another blog I will tackle the final statement.

#2 – The God I know would never let anyone spend eternity in Hell.

A statement like this is usually made based entirely on feeling and emotion. To say that God would never allow an individual to spend eternity in Hell denies totally the God of the Bible and the existence of Hell.

This statement, like many others, imposes something upon God that is truly our own fault. People do not spend eternity in Hell because God is mean; instead, people spend eternity in Hell because they are unrepentant sinners. Jesus was abundantly clear when speaking of the way to obtain eternal life. He told Thomas, “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man comes to the Father but by me” (John 14:6). Jesus is not a way but THE way. There is no other way in all the world or universe to gain everlasting life. Therefore, the burden of belief is placed on the individual. God, in all His wonder and splendor, does not force people to come to salvation. Therefore, He will not force anyone to spend eternity with Him. The sad thing is once people are cast into the fiery Hell they recognize their misfortune but the time to repent has passed (Lazarus and the Rich Ruler - Luke 16:19-31).

Hear you me . . . Hell will not be a place to party but a place of torment. For all eternity those confined to the prison of Hell will not only suffer pain beyond human understanding but will spend FOREVER separated from God, and this will be the greatest pain of all.