The Latest Installment . . .

Not only does the title of this latest entry refer to the entry itself, but it has double entendre, which you may well know is a double meaning in French usage. And that is quite fitting, since we live in the French speaking sector of Belgium. The other latest installment refers to our service this past Sunday in which Paula and I were officially installed as Center Directors by presiding Bishop Christian Swift. Sometimes when I think that we are living in Europe, it doesn't seem quite possible. This all came about quite rapidly. My mother died in March of 2008 and three months later we found out that we had been recommended for this position and accepted. Then four months after finding out we had been accepted, I actually made the move. First it was me, then Paula followed six weeks later.

My parents had been center directors back in the 60s and 70s, and that was a role that I had always aspired to, but our ministry took us down many different routes. We served as young adult pastors, benevolence pastors, evangelists, short-term missionaries, teachers, just to name a few. Yet in the back of our minds we always wanted to reach our military. Even while living in Tacoma, Washington we saw the need for a military ministry center in that area due to the many military installations in the surrounding communities. It was still a dream to be realized. After leaving Tacoma, we moved to Kennewick in eastern Washington, on to Portland, Oregon, and then we decided to finish our college education, and we moved to Cleveland, Tennessee. We would graduate and call the southeastern United States home for thirteen years.

And then in a very short whirl-wind period did our world change, and our dreams that had been on the back burner for many many years finally came to fruition. The really amazing thing about all this is that it was a thing that we really didn't have to pursue. Our Father had known all along the desires of our hearts, and was just waiting for the perfect opportunity to honor us with the chance to minister to the young men and women of our armed forces. We are now teaching, mentoring young soldiers from all over America. Knowing that we may have a few years or a few months, and in many cases a few weeks, the Lord has ordained us to pour into these vessels all that we can, to teach, equip and send out soldiers not only in the physical realm, but in a spiritual one as well. How cool is that!