Ben... On Point!: Ministry

Bagram Update #10

Sat, 12 May 2007 07:10:18 GMT

We have now completed the 4th month of this deployment... and there is still no final word on whether or not we're going to be extended 3 months.

Things are going well... as I mentioned in the past, we are in a routine now, and it can at times feel monotonous. I never get a day off. The closest thing to "time off" is when I simply turn on a movie and watch it in my office, or when I go outside to smoke a stogie on our back deck, or when I go to the gym to lift weights.

I continue to conduct worship, counsel, visit soldiers, conduct briefings, attend meetings, do memorial ceremonies, etc... During my scheduled "office time" I am essentially on hand to provide counseling to walk-ins. While waiting for folks to come in, I am able to do some reading. That has been nice. I'm averaging about one book per week. I'm about to begin some of the substantive material to which I would not normally have time to devote much attention. (Carl Henry's God, Revelation, & Authority... etc...) I'm toying with the idea of reading Karl Barth's Church Dogmatics. He was, after all, a giant in the early and mid 20th Century. But we'll see...

I am VERY VERY VERY excited because I get to go home on R&R leave in a few weeks. Most of you have no idea what it is like to be away from your family for extended periods, but let me tell you... it is NOT fun!

Well, I'm going to go eat lunch and smoke a stogie while I start reading a book that my wife recently sent me.

Oh, that reminds me... for any of you cigar lovers out there... check out this site: www.cigarsintl.com which is the website for Cigars International. They also operate the site www.cigarbid.com that I have used on multiple occasions. Their selection is incredible. Their prices are amazing. Their quality is fantastic. Their service is stupendous. (For those of you wishing to purchase a gift for me... a box of Onyx Reserve Robusto would be wonderful...)

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #7

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 08:35:11 GMT

I'm sorry to say that I've let you down... in my last post I wrote that the fact that I have not posted any "new" pictures in quite a while would be remedied in the near future. Unfortunately, I haven't taken many interesting pictures lately. However, that should be changing fairly soon...

I hope you can understand what I mean by this: I've been very busy, yet bored. Make sense? What I do keeps me busy, but the nature of much of my job is so monotonous that though I'm busy, I'm bored.

When we first arrived we were informed that eventually it would feel like we're living "Groundhog Day." Now I know what they meant!

Things aren't going bad, though. In fact, they're going quite well! I continue to visit my troopers a couple days a week. The series that I preached from the book of Jude in the Korean service has been modified and now I'm going through it in the Traditional Protestant service. They are enjoying it very much. Last week I preached for 52 minutes on Jude 3-4 and several expressed disappointment that I didn't keep going. After all, as I was told, "What else do we have to do around here on a Sunday night?" However, because there is a pentecostal service after hours, we can't go on indefinitely.

This coming Sunday I'll be expositing Jude 5-16. The title of the sermon is "Under the Microscope: An Examination of False Teachers." I'm going to go into all the root sins, characteristics, tactics, etc... put forth by the Holy Spirit inspired author (Jude) in that text.

The first two messages in my series have resulted in a couple guys coming to me for some beginning discipleship stuff. It has been pretty exciting to see one of them, even in such a short time, begin to change from a "me-centered" approach to Christianity to a "God-centered" understanding. He's a USMC Sergeant (that's an E5 for those in other services). The other is an Army Second Lieutenant (that's an O1 for my Navy readers). For their privacy I'm not going to name them, however, please keep my guys in your prayers.

Some big news for me is that this Saturday, March 31, I will have my promotion ceremony. I'm being promoted from First Lieutenant (O2) to Captain (O3). It's always good when you get a huge pay raise AND more respect from your peers, but no corresponding increase in responsibilities or duties!!

What this promotion COULD do for me is that if there ever is a company commander not wanting to "play nice," I now have the rank to go toe to toe with him - because company commanders are Captains. But, fortunately, I have a bunch of great commanders in my battalion and even as their subordinate I never had any issues with anyone.

Last night we were rocketed. It was a pitiful attempt, but nonetheless we had to assume a defensive posture. After the all-clear was given, a few fellow chaplains and I went out to our patio and smoked stogies with actor/comedian Tom Arnold. I got a couple pictures and those will be posted in a bit. He had such a great time that he wants to do it again before he leaves.

Well, I need to get going... I have to give a new-comers brief in ten minutes.

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #6

Sun, 11 Mar 2007 07:58:47 GMT

Today marks the completion of my second month of this deployment. I am now 1/6 of the way done...

It is strange to me that though this place is my home for one year - a fairly significant amount of time - I have resisted the urge to make my room "homey." I don't want to fall into the mindset of thinking of this place as "home." I want to remind myself that I'm here for only a short while.

Aside from the spike caused by the suicide bomber, the main issue for which I've been counseling folks is simply missing home. They don't like being so far from home, for so long. I know how they feel. There are times that I would like a break from my family, but the break I desire is several hours or a day... not two months!

However, as unpleasant as it is to be separated from our loved ones - and to make it worse, to now be surrounded by folks who would love to kill us - I do believe in the goodness of what we're doing here. I believe that helping stabilize Afghanistan - by hunting the folks who would oppress, by building an infrastructure, assisting with the establishment of a democratic system, etc... is a good thing in and of itself.

But even better things are happening in this country!

Recently, a chaplain from an allied nation stopped by and he was excited to inform us that out at the remote outpost at which he serves, he has led two Afghani nationals to faith in Christ. The first is a local national employed on the camp... and at grave danger to himself this man shared his new found faith with his brother, and together the two of them travelled several miles to meet with this chaplain so that he could share the Gospel with him as well. Slowly, but surely, Christ's promise is kept even in places like Afghanistan: His Kingdom is being built, and all the powers of hell cannot stop it!

My Korean congregation will be departing for home in a couple weeks, and it is still up in the air whether or not the incoming bunch will need my services. But I pray that the folks going home would be strong in the Lord, holding fast to the faith once delivered to the saints as they reenter a culture every bit as pluralistic as America.

I realize that it has been a while since I posted pictures. I will try to remedy that in the next coming weeks.

As always, please pray for my family. And please pray for me - not so much for my safety as for my faithfulness.

Until later,

Ben

February 27, 2007

Sat, 03 Mar 2007 05:12:23 GMT

As you probably know, this past Tuesday we experienced a walk-up suicide bomber at our main personnel entry point. Fortunately, our guys were doing their jobs, and the guy was stopped before he could actually enter the control point. He spooked and detonated himself, killing 1 American soldier, 1 American civilian, 1 Korean soldier, and 15 Afghani locals. Additionally, 32 Afghanis were injured in the blast – one, a boy of 10 years – just yesterday passed away.

I was about a half mile away when it happened. I had just finished paying for another month of internet in my room, and I was walking back to my office, when I heard a sort of muffled far away sounding “boom.” I didn’t think anything of it because dogs routinely walk into a minefield and get blown up, and ordnance disposal frequently does detonations to destroy weapon caches that were discovered. About a minute later the loud speaker came on advising us that the base was under direct attack. I started running to my battalion area and when I came into sight, my commander told me about the incident. At the time, however, we didn’t know the casualty breakdown… we only knew that 1) there were “several dead” and “countless wounded” and 2) that it happened in our area of operations.

I thought that we’d just lost half our guys who work out there.

I asked my commander for permission to go out to the site, but was told that I couldn’t go until they’d established security. So instead I ran over to the hospital to assist with ministry to the wounded. I was surprised that there were no Americans. Relief set in when one of the medics told me, as he was unloading a litter from the back of his ambulance, that as far as he could tell there were no Americans wounded. I entered the hospital and found several of the victims to be kids. Many appeared to be about 8 -12 years old. More than being sad, I was infuriated.

Within 2 or 3 minutes of my arrival, the hospital commander told another chaplain and me to go ahead and leave to return to our unit because the hospital chaplain had things under control.

I returned to my unit and the commander gave me permission to enter an armored vehicle to get to the site. When I arrived at the gate… it was a scene from hell. Bodies – and body parts – were everywhere. Blood was on everything. They had not yet moved the bodies of the Americans and the Korean. To get to the other side of the blast site – to where the American troopers were pulling security – I had to walk through a very large puddle of blood. I don’t believe I will ever forget that sight or that smell.

I made it to the soldiers and I was so proud of them. Many not much more than a year out of high school, and here they were... some had tears in their eyes… yet they were still doing their jobs like professionals. You should be so very very proud of them.

The Lord was gracious to me and He enabled me to walk amidst bodies blown asunder, vast amounts of blood, pieces of flesh, and organ matter, to minister to every American out there. Those who knew the American soldier were understandably the most upset. I am most proud of them for demonstrating the professionalism and restraint to not take out their anger on the Afghanis they were then securing.

At the end, after I had left the blast zone, I had to take a stick to get a piece of flesh out of my boot treads. I have since thrown those boots away because the blood had come up over my sole and had stained the leather. I was not about to wear blood stained boots for 10 more months.

In the aftermath, I’ve done the memorial service for the Korean soldier – who was a member of my congregation – the ceremony for the same soldier’s body as it was loaded on the plane to be returned to the family, several critical incident stress debriefs, countless one-on-one counseling sessions… and in every case the Lord has given me the words to say to help them make sense of the situation and to point them to the Cross.

It was a terrible experience, but this – as all things – was not unknown to God. Though we don’t know how, somehow this event contributes to the unfolding of God’s plan for this world… and He will be glorified through it.

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #5

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:48:30 GMT

The past couple weeks have been anything but boring. As usual, I've been busy with mandatory meetings and briefings - though my briefing schedule was recently lightened up when the daily briefs were changed to three times per week. The counseling load has continued to mount... this past Monday I counseled a total of 6 people, which is a personal record for the number of people I've counseled in a single day.

We've had some unfortunate events: one soldier committed suicide, a helicopter crash killed 8 folks, numerous problems back in the States (including the wife of a soldier being raped) resulting in folks having to fly back home... all these things have kept the stark reality of the need for the Gospel in the forefront of my mind.

As usual, going out to visit my troopers is one of the highlights of my weekly schedule. Among the guards morale was high this week upon receiving news that they would be switching from 12 to 8 hour shifts.

Last Sunday I was supposed to fly out on a mission to visit troops at other bases and conduct religious services for them... but my trip was cancelled due to inclement weather. The event has been rescheduled for some time in the near future. Though I can't give dates and times on this site, I would nonetheless appreciate your prayers.

The highlight of this week was getting word that my wife is pregnant with a BOY! Now I'll have 3 boys to carry on my name for another generation! I'm pretty excited about that. :)

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #4

Sat, 10 Feb 2007 17:24:37 GMT

Getting in a groove. That has been the emphasis this week: Getting into a sustainable "battle rhythm " - or routine - for the long haul. The last of the previous rotation's chaplains have left and it is now us, the new guard, running the show. To operate the Enduring Faith Chapel, we have two chaplains in the building. My peer handles the administrative stuff, I handle the briefings, and we share the counseling load - though he does take a slightly larger portion since I also have a battalion that has swelled to over 1500 people with all the National Guard attachments we've managed to pick up along the way.

My books and - most importantly - my coffee brewing equipment arrived safe and sound. What a happy day! I made a command decision and I cleared my schedule of all my other obligations in order to get my office "set up" with all my goodies... hey, my morale is just as important as everyone else's! My office is now a home away from home. I just need some pics of family and friends - so please send them! ;) I share my coffee with my peer (sorry, I'm going to withhold his name for his personal privacy) and the Catholic priest who stops by from time to time. They are both very impressed with what good beans, good water, good equipment, and good proportions can do for a cup of Java.

I continue to enjoy getting out with the troops. I can't adequately express how enjoyable - or natural - it is. I can only think of a handful of things that are more fun...

Today I went out to every last one of the many guard towers that are on the perimeter. I didn't take my camera, but I will not forget it the next time I go out: many of these towers are within a stone's throw of the village (literally) and others are right out amidst the minefields. What is interesting is that though the locals don't have the technology to safely remove the many landmines, they DO have the wherewithall to locate and mark them. They've actually color-coded the mines according to their type. So out in the field you see white markers identifying anti-personnel mines, blue markers for mines large enough to take out an unarmored vehicle, and red for anti-tank mines. It was very freaky to look out at this vast plain peppered with these markers.

One of the interesting things that happened today is that I was accompanied by an Afghani interpreter. He resides in Kabul and makes the hour and a half long drive each day. I asked if it is dangerous for him to do so and he said that it is, but that being a part of reshaping his country is worth the risk... that plus the salary we pay him is insanely large for this place. I am not supposed to proselytize the locals... but nothing says I can't talk about my faith with Americans while in the presence of the interpreter. So that is what I did. As we were driving back in he spoke up and told me that he had never heard of Christianity and Christian belief as I had been explaining it. He sounded interested at the prospect of a faith whose implications touch upon all of reality. Maybe, just maybe I'll get the chance to speak in his presence again!

The counseling load has continued to increase - slowly but surely - as the weeks have gone by. My "tell-it-like-it-is" approach, which would probably offend many in the local church who want to be coddled, speaks clearly with the troopers. I'm glad for a venue in which my personality, counseling theology and methodology connects.

Tomorrow I'm going to begin a short series on the book of Jude in my Korean service. Please pray that this series would be challenging and edifying to these Korean brothers. They are very serious about their faith and they have a missionary fervor that makes anything I ever saw drummed up at Moody or Southern pale in comparison.

Well, it was one month ago that I kissed my family good bye. One down... Eleven to go.

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #3

Sat, 03 Feb 2007 17:36:32 GMT

What a fun week this has been! This week I've had some very good counseling sessions which have resulted in me being able to lay out the Gospel more thoroughly and meticulously than I've ever been able to do in the past. Hopefully the Holy Spirit will draw these people to Christ.

Additionally, I was able to spend some good time with my new Korean congregation. In case I forgot to mention it, the powers that be decided that I would be a good fit for the Korean service. In the words of my boss, "Hey, you're a Presbyterian... they're Presbyterian... except for the language barrier it is a perfect fit." I didn't know what to expect when I went out with their commander to visit them at their various worksites. Though I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into, I was taken back by their warmth and hospitality. Fortunately about 20% of them speak English well enough for us to have basic communication. Some are fluent in English. In fact, one of them was raised in the US but he had to go back in order to fulfill his 2 years of obligatory military service so that he could continue to enter Korea - something that he needs to be able to do in order to see his family. He serves as my interpreter. Though I don't have any pics from today, I had lunch with them in their dining facility. What great food! I don't know exactly what I ate - but whatever it was, it was at least cooked! I got nervous when, upon finishing my meal, everyone around me clapped and cheered. I was surprised by the number of people who were very delighted to know that I enjoyed the food they gave me. It really was very good... and though it has been over 10 hours since I ate, I haven't become ill, so I think I'll be happy to eat it again in the future!

The other day I assembled an entourage of chaplain assistants to serve as my “security detail” in order to walk to the village outside our gates, visiting every American soldier along the way. I jokingly told my "security detail" that I'd ensure that every single one of them was dead before I took a bullet. We had a great time, talked to a bunch of people and saw some interesting sights.

During the course of this week I went out multiple times to the guys guarding the perimeter. One time I went out at night and I was literally moved by the dedication of our soldiers: Imagine being an 18 or 19 year old kid standing guard at night for a 12 hour shift... you can't smoke or turn on a flashlight because that would let a would be sniper know your location. You have to keep quiet. It is cold, dusty, and for the most part... very boring. Yet they faithfully stand guard and peer out into the darkness to ensure that no one is attempting to get within range to shoot mortar rounds into the base. They don't get to go to the restroom whenever they want. They remain alert and vigilant no matter what. I sure am proud of them. I'm also proud of the 21-22 year old sergeants who provide leadership to these troopers. As I watched one of them move from position to position to check on his soldiers I couldn't help but think of the qualitative difference between him and most American guys his age... He could be at some university attending a frat party, but instead he's a leader of some of America's finest - American paratroopers. You can - and should be proud of all these men. It is my honor to have the privilege of being amongst such heroes.

Please check out my new photo album for pics associated with this entry - the name of the album is "Bagram Update #3."

Until later,

Ben

Bagram Update #2

Sat, 27 Jan 2007 08:39:49 GMT

What a busy week this has been! Yesterday I conducted a memorial service for two activated National Guard soldiers. Preparing for this service took a surprisingly large amount of time and energy. I was humbled and honored when afterwards the chaplain in charge of relgious coverage for the entire American presence in Afghanistan said that he wanted to post my message on our website (for intra theater communication between chaplains) as the standard for all future memorial messages in this theater of operations.

This morning I participated in the ceremony which officially transferred authority from the outgoing unit to my own... this too went off well and my speaking gifts were again recognized - this time by generals.

This week has also been difficult because (as many of you have probably heard on the news) 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division has been extended here for several more months. These soldiers have already done an exceptional job of agressively taking the fight to the enemy during the past year. In fact, though this isn't reported in the news, the biggest reason why this past year had an increase in American deaths in Afghanistan is because the 10th Mountain Division aggressively entered areas that were formerly considered Taliban sanctuaries... you can't kick a hornet nest without getting stung a few times. But the 10th Mountain guys did an outstanding job, killed a whole lot of really bad guys, and were ready to go home... in fact, some of them had already redeployed back to the States when the word came out that they had to stay... so those back in the US had to promptly get on a plane to come back. The others had to go over to the flight line to get their gear off the pallets that had been prepared to be loaded on the plane. This has understandably resulted in a higher than usual counseling load.

Last night I heard my first arial bombardment of an enemy objective... though it was many miles away, the sound was very similar to being a mile or so away from a major fire works display. The sound of the jets taking off and then landing was unbelievably loud. The whole ordeal provided surreal background "music" for the conversation that I was having with a couple fellow officers, in which we were discussing our families. Well, I need to get going... I have yet another briefing to give...

Until later,

Ben

Bagram update #1

Sat, 20 Jan 2007 11:54:01 GMT

Things are BUSY, BUSY, BUSY here! Our guys are busy taking the reins from the unit we're replacing. I have a very nice office in the chapel, but I don't get to spend much time in it... I have numerous meetings to attend, briefings to give... and troopers to visit. Today was the first day I went out behind the wire to visit some forward troops. It was great!!! The locals were very - overly - friendly. Especially the kids. It was perhaps the most gratifying moment of my short career when one of the 10th Mountain sergeants expressed surprise that a chaplain would come out, and the soldier in my unit said, "We see him all the time!"

They're probably going to give me the contemporary worship service... I told them (read: I warned them) that I wouldn't do certain things and I wouldn't let certain songs be used... but they want me to go ahead with it.

This place is pretty spectacular. The scars from the Soviet invasion are everywhere. During their 10 years or so here, they threw down mines by the millions. Today there are somewhere between 7 and 10 MILLION active land mines in Afghanistan... in fact, there are marked minefields here on Bagram. Afghanistan is the 3rd most mined country in the world: 11% of its landspace is mined. Even now it is common for animals or people (especially kids) to be maimed or killed due to them. The people themselves are mostly illiterate, so it doesn't due much good to write something in their language. Translators are priceless here.

The people are eager to work. We pay them something like $3 a day, but for them that is like a month's wages. Generally speaking they are very compliant - because they don't want to lose permission to work here. Another good reason why we hire them by the droves to do all sorts of things is because if they are busy working, they're not at home making IEDs... and if we treat them well they often tell us about various threats.

The counseling load has been manageable. It is nice being in a situation in which folks are willing to listen to the chaplain. This would be the perfect place to minister if only I could have my family with me.

Well, I need to get ready for yet another meeting...

Until later,

Ben

In Manas

Sat, 13 Jan 2007 11:56:53 GMT

We left the USA at approximately 1:00am on Jan 11... about 24 hours later we arrived at Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan. We're waiting for the weather to clear up to allow the planes to take us to our final destination. Here's what the weather is like: Cold, lots of snow, and fog that is the thickest I've ever encountered. Seriously, it was almost 9:30am before we could even see that light was up in the sky (though even then the fog was so thick that we couldn't make out the shape of the sun). The architecture here is very intriguing to me: this air base was built by the Soviets and due to this nation's membership in the USSR a whole lot of Russians moved here. Their presence is still felt. The natives have that "Asian steppe" look that caused me first to think of images of Mongolians (I couldn't help but think of Genghis Kahn), and second, the eskimos of our own continent. The traditional headwear and footwear of natives is this material that (to me) resembles very thick felt with the soles of the boots being some form of leather.

Saturdays brings the locals onto the base for a bazaar. Soviet memorabilia abounded... I was very close to purchasing one of those old Russian fur-lined winter hats (you remember: the kind that has the ear flaps that fold up). I was even closer to purchasing an old Soviet propaganda poster that praises the collective and (in a passing reference to their pre-Revolution days) denounces the wealthy as wicked. (Strange, that they who were responsible for more 3x the number of deaths than Hitler would have the audacity to call the then recently exterminated upper and middle classes "wicked.") Anyway, the poster was humorous to me because its tone and logic sounded like a host of various things I've heard or read in various union soundbytes and publications back in the States. Perhaps the poster could find a good home in a local union hall?

On a more important note:

Ministry is going very well so far. Before we left the States I led in a devotion at which about three dozen attended. I've passed out numerous Bibles and had several conversations. Perhaps the most significant were two that I had last night while sitting in the coffee shop (yep, you read that correctly). The first involved a young soldier who wanted me to explain the differences between Protestants and Catholics... the second involved a company commander who is Mormon. It was perhaps the most cordial and thoughtful extended conversation I've ever had with a Mormon concerning spiritual matters. He overheard my conversation with the young soldier and after the trooper went away the commander came over and wanted to know why we (evangelical Christians) don't think Mormons are Christians. We talked for nearly an hour.

Today I built more bridges with some troopers by schooling them in several games of spades. (They thought it was great that I, the chaplain, had a deck of cards in my pocket and that I was able to win.) This afternoon I worked out in the gym with my commander and we had a good conversation.

Please continue to pray for me... there's a lot to do and I have only so much time and energy.

Until later,

Ben

There's always hope

Thu, 04 Jan 2007 04:29:00 GMT

In my ministry I routinely counsel married couples who are on the verge of divorce. Today included one such counseling session. As in virtually every situation I've encountered, both parties have done things wrong... both have contributed to the state of their marriage. In this case, as in many, one spouse wants to work on the marriage while the other simply wants out.

The spouse who wants out says that there is no hope of change... there is no hope that their marriage can work. I asked why. The response: "People don't change."

While such a jaded (and overused) statement is obviously ridiculous and easily contradicted by numerous examples, I used it as a spring to touch on something of great importance:

People CAN (and DO) change their behaviors, their tastes, their likes and dislikes... but we CAN'T change our heart, our inner nature, our true self.

But God can. God can - and routinely does - perform heart transplants in people to make us be what we can't if left to ourselves.

Regardless of what we may think, feel, or perceive... if we will only turn to God and quit living to ourselves, there is no hurt that is too deep for God to heal.

In this instance I called upon the couple to acknowledge that their particular problems were symptoms of a far greater matter: their estrangement from God. I advised them that God is in control over all things - not just Christians - and that maybe, just maybe, He'd brought them together so that their own individual sinfulness would so grate each other that they would be led to see, recognize and repent in the sight of God. What I told them is also true for each of us: We like to think that God brought my spouse to me so that I could/would be happy... but the truth is that God brings our spouse to us to help make us holy.

Understandably, both were taken back by what I said... but they agreed to meet with me again.

Maybe in your life you have a relationship that is fractured or hemorrhaging. You see no possibility for things to be right again. But with God there is always cause for hope... if you will humble yourself before Him.

Until later,

Ben

First Military Funeral

Sat, 23 Dec 2006 03:37:48 GMT

Today I drove over six hours to a tiny mountain town in far western North Carolina. Tomorrow I will officiate at my first military funeral. The deceased was a noncommissioned officer who died in a car accident just four weeks after returning from a year-long deployment in Iraq.

This NCO was an outstanding soldier whose death really can't be chalked up to a lapse in judgement or foolish action. It was simply one of those tragic events that serve to remind us that our lives hang by a thread and that even the strongest of us is, in all actuality, quite frail.

Please hold the family of this man in your prayers. And give thanks to God for every breath you get to take.

Until later,

Ben