The Great (and not so great, but just as exciting) Commission
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” ~ Matthew 28:18-20
It’s been a while since I’ve put my thoughts down on paper. Blogging takes time, and taking time means to slow down your life from everything that’s going on. A lot has happened since I’ve last posted anything on this page, but it may be good to take a step back and see what God is doing in my life.
I received my acceptance letter of sorts to the Navy Chaplain Candidate Program Officer (CCPO) Program. It is a mouthful. The journey that started two and a half years ago has finally come to an end (or rather has reached its beginning). Soon I will get commissioned as a naval officer and can then begin ODS and chaplain school. Things seem to be falling in place.
Fighter pilots can sometimes get into target fixation, where one will focus so much on one thing that they miss what is going on in their peripheries. This can be true about many things, whether it is work, or your family, or even in your studies. I’ve been fixated on various different things throughout the past two years trying to make something of myself while in school. We can often see this target as our prize and reward waiting at the end of the finish-line. The Apostle Paul reminds us that the prize is not money or a degree, but or prize is heaven. He says, ”Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus (Phil 3:13-14).”
I am reminded again that this journey towards commissioning or chaplaincy or earning my degree is not an ends in itself, but that they are just small steps in running towards the true prize of heaven. My goal is not to be a chaplain, but to be a minister to sailors and marines. My prize isn’t to have bars on my shoulders, but to hear the words of Jesus saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’” ~ Matthew 25:31-40
