21 July
It has been a fast but hard week since I last posted a blog entry. Since I no longer pay for the internet in my room, I have to walk over to the USO to do this--which is not as easy as I had hoped--and sometimes you still cannot get on the internet from here (too many people trying to do the same thing at the same time). But I got lucky today!
In the last week I have spent hours packing up my room to get ready to move out next week sometime. My replacement should be here by then, and I will give up my space for him. (Not exactly sure where I'll be staying from here on out, but we'll see. I may be in the big transient soldier tents with hundreds of others!). I have mailed home two large tough boxes and a duffel bag filled with military gear and clothing. We are all trying to pare down to the bare minimum from here on out, because each one of us will be responsible for carrying it all the way home! So the less I have with me the better. In fact, I may even send home one more box just before I leave to get rid of even more stuff right at the very end. My poor wife will not know what to do with it all!
I preached on "Forgiveness" from Genesis 50:15ff and Matthew 6:12, 14-15 last weekend. It went really well, and I received many positive compliments from people who stated it was what they needed to hear. I even had a guy come up to me after the morning service and tell me that he has stayed away from "organized religion" due to being hurt by several church members (including a pastor) in his past. He has attended chapel here sporatically, and decided to come last Sunday. He told me it was as if God wanted him there and that I was speaking just to him! That was a nive pick-me-up. Little did he know that God was also speaking to me through my own sermon! He does that sometimes, you know. I have learned over the years that God can give me an idea that He wants me to develop into a Bible study or sermon message, and it was designed with me in mind, too. Those can be convicting and painful messages for me. Anyway, I plan to preach on "Attitude" this weekend and use a clip from the movie, "Facing the Giants" (where the player does the "death crawl" all the way across the field). It's a great scene of not giving up and keeping a positive attitude. [Again, a message that God is using in my own life, too].
And on top of all that, I came down with a head cold last Saturday. I have the sniffles and cough now, but it is slowly getting better. I hope so, because I have organized a "Chaplain FUN RUN" this Friday morning for anyone who wants to run all the way around the base with me -- a total of 8 miles. So far I have a few takers, so I hope to feel up to it by then!
The pictures, by the way, are of a few new friends who came to my service last weekend. TIMMY and APOLLO are therapy dogs who are part of a new project here in Afghanistan. In fact, they are the first therapy dogs in this country being used by the US Military. The Army is opening up a second Warrior Restoration Center in the south east (the first one is here on my base), and they plan to use the dogs for therapy groups and sessions (much like they do at hospitals back home). I have been invited to lead a few therapy groups at the Warrior Center here over the past year, and think this is a great idea. Anyway, their trainers came through here last weekend and showed up to church! I was glad to have them. (I'm not sure if the dogs enjoyed my sermon, through. Timmy slept through it!)
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