As you probably already know, the military has become antagonistic to Christianity. Reports have indicated that Christian military chaplains in the US are being prohibited from praying "in the name of Jesus" and using their Bibles. They are being censored and coerced to compromise their standards and to accept non-Christian religious groups as valid, which is essentially the New Age movement. According to a Wikipedia article on US Military Chaplains, there is pressure to prevent chaplains from evangelizing. It stated, "Numerous complaints have been made against chaplains for mandatory prayers, coercion, and using government money to promote Evangelical Christianity."
These are supposed to be the pastors of our military personnel, and they are not being given the freedom to do so according to the Bible. In fact, they are being given training that is anti-christian in nature. Not only is the US military trying to silence our chaplains, they are doing so to other Christian military personnel as well. Christians in the US military face a culture of fear, intimidation, ridicule, mockery, harassment, pressure, antagonism, open hostility, and even unjust punishment for doing right. They are denied the privilege to freely exercise religious freedom. They are prohibited from sharing their faith, forbidden from praying publicly, and even dismissed from duty for refusing to surrender their religious convictions. They are being attacked for holding to the fundamental truths of their Christian faith. They are portrayed as a “right-wing extremists” and “potential terrorists.” Indeed, the US Military has become an overtly anti-Christian institution.
In addition to all these hardships, many of our military personnel are stationed far away from home, away from Church and family, and they may have little or no Christian fellowship. This was my own personal experience in the military in the 1980's, when I was stationed in Germany. Many are stationed overseas in places where the light of the gospel is very dim, and even in Muslim nations, fighting various wars our nation is involved in.
Moreover, there is a suicide epidemic in the US military with an average of at least one suicide happening per day. According to CNS News, "In 2013, the suicide rate among members of the U.S. armed services on active duty was 18.7 per 100,000, according to data from the Department of Defense (DOD). That was 48 percent higher than the suicide rate among the general population, which was 12.6 per 100,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC)."
The purpose of this new blog is to touch the lives of those who are on active duty in the military, or who are considering joining, and point them to our other online resources to help them grow in Christ. So it is our hope that this blog will give them a way to stand firm in the Lord in an environment that is very difficult for Christians to live in. And we trust it will also help to touch the lives of those who don't know the Lord, as well.
If you are a Christian serving in the military, I have not forgotten you. One way that I would like to offer to serve you is by pointing you to some resources that will encourage you in your walk with Christ. One of those is my collection of Christian articles at Writing for the Master. In particular, I recommend Eternal Destinations, Seeking the Lord, Working God's Way, and Be Fruitful and Multiply. If you are a Christian woman serving in the military, please read Women in the Military. Another way I can assist you is with our discipleship school, which is an online, three-year, distance education opportunity called Doulos Training School. Please have a look at it and prayerfully consider whether that is something the Lord would have you do.
And if you are serving in the military, but are not a follower of Christ, or you are gone astray from the Lord (backslidden), I want to tell you that He loves you and died for you. He shed his blood for you on the cross, and is calling you to follow Him. Repent and turn to Him now! I recommend reading my testimony of how I came to know Christ in the military, in my article, The Truth Set Me Free! There are also several other excellent testimonies at Testimonies from Budapest and Eternal Destinations. Below you will find an invitation to know Him personally as Lord and Savior.
Sources: The following sites will take you away from Doulos Military Ministry:
Faith Crimes: Christian Persecution in Obama’s America
Christians Are Being Systematically Purged From The U.S. Military
Military of the Beast : Christian Army Chaplain punished for sharing his Faith
One every 18 hours: Military suicide rate still high despite hard fight...
Attribution notice: Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. The "Forget Me Not" painting © 2012 Danny Hahlbohm, all rights reserved by the artist. His artwork is available at inspired-art.
Author's Note: There are 1.4 million active duty personnel in the US military today. I also recommend reading Before You Join the Military, Onward Christian Soldier, Women in the Military, Bearing Arms, New Age-New World Order, The Truth Set Me Free!, The Rise of Antichrists, Keeping a Good Conscience, The Evil Spirit of Alcohol, Alcohol and Cigarettes -- Ten Divine Revelations, Tattoos and Body Piercing, Drifting Away, Carrying Your Cross or Cross Dressing?, The Lord Healed My Backsliding, Sins That Will Keep You From Heaven, The Cost of Discipleship, Costly Grace, The Origin of Sin, Satan, and Secular Music, The Kingdom of Darkness, Ask for the Ancient Paths, Is Obedience Optional?, Restored Truth, Aim for Perfection, The Straight and Narrow Path, and Rock, Rap, and Reggae Music -- Six Divine Revelations. You are invited to view my collection of blogs at Writing for the Master.
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?
“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and believe.
Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"
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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International. He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
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