Week 2 - Day 3 (Wednesday)

It's a great day to be an Army Chaplain! As the days pass by, I become more convinced every day that I am right were God would have me to be. The days here are often challenging mentally, physically, and emotionally, but as each day passes, I become more excited about all that God is doing in my life here in the Army.

I am learning about humility! I thought I was humble, but as I face the loss of control in my day to day activities, I fight my pride. I am learning though, as hard as it may be, to be quite and smile.

I am learning about the Joy of the Lord! My friend Kevin has taught me so much about the joy of the Lord. In one of the pictures in my previous posts, he is pictured marching down the road with his full load gear on and sporting a big smile. Kevin always smiles because his hope is in the Lord.

I am learning about the chain of command. For most of my life, I have always gone to the highest level possible in order to accomplish what I needed to do. But here in the Army, it is imperative to start with the soldier just above you who in my case, is the the squad leader. If he can not answer it, he takes it to the platoon leader who then goes to the class leader who then goes to the Cadre, and so on until the question or problem is taken care of.

Most of all, I am learning to love God more and more. He is so good!

With that said, just a few words about my day today. We were blessed with a day of rest today in that we did not have to road march. However, with every blessing comes challenges. Tomorrow, we will march in full battle rattle to the NBC (gas chamber) to get just a small taste of how to use a gas mask, and what it is like to be gassed. There will be plenty of tears shed and breakfast regurgitated to make up for our day of rest today.

We prepared today for the gas chamber by being trained in how to use a gas mask. I am now very capable of putting on my mask and clearing the air inside in less than nine seconds - hoooah. However, I am still not excited about having to demonstrate that tomorrow.

One more noteworthy peace of news to share is that this afternoon, we had a convocation for all the students at CH-BOLC. The guest of honor was the Chief of Chaplains, Ch. (Maj. Gen.) David Hicks. He has been in the US Army for 42 years and will retire this fall. He shared with us some great thoughts on what it means to be an Army Chaplain. What a privilege it is to meet a man of his caliber.

Check back tomorrow for some great pictures of some very sick chaplains.