Prayer:
Lord, make me dependent upon you no matter how comfortable my life already is.
“Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” (Psalm 62:8)
August 14
A GOOD FRIDAY
Lt. Paul Brian Kim, Chaplain, United States Navy
I’ll never forget that day what I heard, the miracle I witnessed, and its effect the Marines in my care.
Paul, make a U-turn, I heard in my mind.
Knowing it was the voice of God, something I’ve learned to listen to over the years, I immediately turned my car around.
I had been driving inside Al Taqaddum Airbase, which is between Ramadi and Fallujah. It was Easter weekend, 2006. My job was to serve as a chaplain to fifteen hundred Marines. Their jobs were dangerous. Many of them searched for improvised explosive devices. The enemy hid them in potholes, dead dogs, and any place they could.
Shortly after turning my car around, I saw a makeshift hospital. A corpsman ordered me to stop my car and explained the situation. Fifteen marines had been hurt by rockets in an attack in Fallujah, but only one was in critical condition.
I quickly parked and went into the tent where the doctors and nurses were doing all they could to save the Marine’s life. Soon his heart monitor flat-lined. A doctor declared him dead.
One of my prayers for my deployment was that none of the Marines in my care would die. However, when someone dies, a chaplain’s duty is to be available. A medic read his dog tag and announced he was Catholic. They called for the Catholic chaplain, who came and began issuing the last rites.
I heard the voice of God speak to me once again, as clearly as he had when I made the U-turn. Pray for resuscitation.
I began to pray, explaining to those around me that God had called me to pray for resuscitation.
“Revive him, Lord. Resuscitate him,” I prayed over and over again.
Others began to pray with me. Ten minutes later, the heart monitor suddenly started beeping. The Marine was alive. The medical personnel began their feverish work on him again. Soon everyone was crying tears of joy. Several began shouting, “This is a miracle.” The medical team stabilized the Marine, and he was flown to a hospital in Germany.
As I drove back, I was awestruck. I praised God for what he had done. Then the significance of the date hit me. It was Good Friday, the day of our Lord’s death. The Lord brought back to life a Marine on Good Friday. He answered my prayer. All of the Marines in my care came home alive.
Prayer:
You are a God of miracles. Thank you for revealing yourself in marvelous ways and may I keep my eyes open to what wonders you have planned for me.
“Jesus called in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.’” (John 11:43–44)
August 15
BAPTISM
Lt. Paul Brian Kim, Chaplain, United States Navy
The story of that’s Marines resuscitation spread quickly. The corpsman and the people in the tent began to share what happened. I talked about it as I led patrol prayer, a time of devotions before Marines went out on patrol.
My attention quickly turned to the upcoming Easter Sunday service that included baptism. Something I discovered is that the spirituality of the Marines is truly deep. They are hungry for God and his presence in their lives. As a result, I led five Bible Studies, not including Sunday service, each week. I wanted to give those who were interested an opportunity to celebrate Easter, and for some Marines and a few Iraqis to have a chance to express their new-found faith.
There was one problem. I had to figure out a way to create a baptistry in the desert. The task was not easy. I dug a deep hole, covered it with a plastic liner and poured eight hundred gallons of water into it. It took me all day.
That Easter service was amazing. The hundreds who attended, worshipped God for the resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ, and praised him for bringing the Marine back to life two days earlier. When it came time for the baptisms, I lifted the cover off the hole.
I was shocked, all the water was gone. Apparently a hole in the plastic liner had drained the water.
I explained what had happened to those attending the service.
“Let’s pray and see what God does,” I suggested.
Thirty minutes later, a water truck came out of nowhere. Here we were in the middle of war zone, and an Iraqi water truck was just passing by. We stopped it. The truck had a special pump on it that filled the hole in less than a minute. What took me eight hours the day before took this truck only seconds!
“Man, God is alive! God is working overtime,” I heard some of the Marines say. “First a man came back to life and then God provided water for baptism in the desert.”
It was a very special moment. There were no dry eyes in the audience that day as thirty were baptized. God filled our hearts with his presence in a momentous way on Easter Sunday.
God continued to use the miracle of the Marine’s resuscitation. Over one hundred accepted Christ as their savior, including some Iraqi Muslims and even some Buddhists, something I could relate to.
Prayer:
Thank you God meeting my each and every need. Thank you for the strength of your presence.
“Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’” (John 11:40)
August 16
PAUL THE EVANGELIST
Lt. Paul Brian Kim, Chaplain, United States Navy
“Chaplain Paul, you’re too evangelical,” another chaplain complained to my commanding officer.
You can fire me now, I thought.
The United States Military respects the faith background of its members. No one is required to see a chaplain. But when people are faced with their mortality, they need someone who can answer their questions. Depending on their background and styles, chaplains approach their work differently.
“I know that my life is short, and I know I need to live my life for something that will last forever,” I often explain.
I was born and raised as a strong Buddhist in South Korea. Becoming a Christian was the farthest thing from my mind when my family came to America. My great-grandmother was the only Christian in my family. She prayed for me, but I rejected her over and over. Then one day I was driving past a church.
The thought, Paul, why don’t you pray? suddenly entered my mind.
I didn’t know how to pray or respond to what I now know was the voice of God.
“I don’t know who you are, but thank you for a good day,” I replied.
I started praying every day, especially when I caught a glimpse of the cross on that church’s steeple. My heart became softened by those prayers. One day my mom and I agreed to go to church with my great grandmother. My dad and two sisters decided to attend another church that day.
At the end of the sermon I was crying uncontrollably. I felt God’s presence. It was a package deal. That same week, my mom, dad, two sisters, and I all came to Christ.
I went on to attend Georgia Tech. Instead of becoming an engineer, I attended seminary. After that, I served as a missionary for fifteen years in Africa and the Middle East. Then I became a chaplain.
“Bless me, yet the Lord loves me so much he sent me to Iraq and not Hawaii. He sent me to Fallujah and Ramadi,” This is what I tell people about my six-month deployment.
“My goal and vision is clear Jesus Christ didn’t die for things, he died for people. Chaplains are there to help those Marines and sailors realize there’s something deeper than what they’re experiencing,” I explain.
My commanding officer respected my perspective that day. “Chaplain Kim is doing a great job” he told the other chaplain. The matter over methods was settled.
Prayer:
Thank you God for being my commanding officer, one who knows me intimately
and understands my gifts and abilities.
“Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 9:17)
August 17
MEANT TO BE A CHAPLAIN
From the blog of Jessica Alley, wife of Chaplain (Capt.) Will Alley, Iraq (2008–2009)
When Will was first deployed, I remember feeling as though my world was falling apart. However, we both had a feeling that God would reveal his future plans for Will during this “wilderness” time.
Will had been deployed for only a month when a friend asked about Will’s future plans.
“I think he’d make a really good chaplain,” I heard myself say. My words startled me so much I jumped in my seat. That thought had never run through my mind before. Suddenly, I thought, That’s it! He’s meant to be an Army Chaplain!
When I got home I emailed him with my revelation. You can imagine my excitement the next day when I got this email from him in response:
Wow! I prayed last Friday that if this was really what God wanted me to do that he would put it on your mind as well. That’s amazing. I haven’t wanted to share any of this until I was more sure about what God wanted me to do, so I have been praying about his purpose for me and that he would speak to your heart as well. I wanted him to speak to you so that I could get a confirmation that it is his will.
As for being a chaplain, I knew the army was short of them, but it didn’t hit me until I was in a unit that was deployed and hadn’t had a chaplain for a couple of months… that’s just not right. So, I decided that when our chaplain does arrive that I would ask him questions about being a chaplain without telling him or letting him know that I have been thinking about being one. The more he would tell me about what his job is and what kind of things he does, the stronger I felt about the call.
Isn’t that crazy? This was in the fall of 2003. When he came home in March of 2004, we started planning. He departed the army in the summer of 2005 and began his three-year seminary tour.
Prayer:
Lord, open my eyes to see the next steps you want me to take in my own life.
“For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD.” (Jeremiah 29:11a)
August 18
SEVEN DAYS TO DEPLOYMENT
From the blog of Jessica Alley, wife of Chaplain (Capt.) Will Alley, Iraq (2008–2009)
December 6, 2008.
Will leaves one week from today for his second deployment. I choose to look at this as just a speed bump in the road for us. Will may be able to email me every day and hopefully, won’t be gone more than sixteen months. The bottom line is that the deployment is Will’s job and God’s will. How can I argue with that?
Will has an amazing opportunity to minister to soldiers who desperately need him. Since he was called to the ministry in the fall of 2003, he has been waiting for this moment. As a wife, few things are better than to watch your husband fulfilling God’s purpose for his life. He can’t wait to get his boots in the sand and start his mission.
With that said, looking forward to deploying does not mean Will is looking forward to leaving us. He has said many times how much he is dreading our final goodbyes. As most of you know, he and Carlee Scott are the best of buds. It stings his heart when he realizes that she’ll be almost four and a half-years old when he returns home. To think that Owen will be over two years old and walking and talking just baffles him.
I could not be prouder of him as a father, as a soldier, and as a servant of God. But while I may be happy for him, no wife ever wants her husband to leave for over a year. Knowing that I will be raising two small children alone while carrying (and delivering) a third is overwhelming. Even today, I’m not sure I’ll be able to do it. But I’m going to try. This is the road that has been chosen for me, and I will travel it proudly.
Although I will have many fearful moments, I can’t reside in fear. I won’t be ignorant and think something can’t happen, but instead I will recognize it, pray for safety and peace, and move on. I will not allow the enemy to hold me captive in fear.
Prayer:
Lord, help me travel well the road you have set before me.
“Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16–18)
August 19
SHOCK
From the blog of Jessica Alley, wife of Chaplain (Capt.) Will Alley, Iraq (2008–2009)
December 19, 2008.
On Wednesday afternoon, I dropped the kids off at Heather’s and went alone to the hospital for my ultrasound. While I was waiting for the OB doc to review the results of the ultrasound and come back in, I saw the still shot on the screen. It was the most perfect little baby, in early pregnancy bean-like form. I was in love and SO excited. When the doc came in, however, he was concerned.
“How much have you been bleeding?” he asked.
“Uh… none,” I replied.
“What I am seeing is a lot of bleeding around the baby. What I am not seeing is a heartbeat.”
After several moments of utter disbelief and questioning, he confirmed the truth: my baby had died. I proceeded to experience the greatest sadness of my entire life. I have never missed Will more than I did in that moment.
Finally, at 9 p.m., Will called from Kuwait. “So how’d it go?!?!” he asked, completely unaware.
I delivered the news. It was terrible. He was so devastated. He began grieving the loss of our baby as well as wrestling with the thoughts of me going through this grief alone and being without him at night.
I spent most of the night being either numb or sobbing. It’s a pain I’ve never experienced before. My emotions are frail, but I have been surrounded by the kind of support you could only dream of in a crisis. My constant tears have dried up, and I have clarity and peace. I long to see this sweet angel and I know one day I will. He/She is in heaven, whole, and complete with Jesus.
I never thought I would watch my husband deploy and then five days later be told that our unborn baby has died. If it happened to someone else, I would have thought that I could never handle such blows. Through it all the pain, the sadness, the anger, the frustration one thing is clear. God is Sovereign. He still reigns. He still loves. He still comforts. I will praise him in this storm.
Prayer:
Lord, in times of trial, may I cling to the truth that you still reign.
“The LORD upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.” (Psalm 145:14)
August 20
MEN DOWN
From the blog of Jessica Alley, wife of Chaplain (Capt.) Will Alley, Iraq (2008–2009)
February 9, 2009.
I knew this day would be coming but I had no idea it would be this bad.
From the Associated Press:
A suicide car bomber struck a U.S. patrol in northern Iraq on Monday, killing four American soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter in the deadliest single attack against U.S. forces in nine months.
Yes, these were soldiers from Will’s battalion.
My stomach turned. I knew this meant that Will would be thrust into the most difficult challenge of his life so far. I knew the weight he would have to bear for the almost 1100 soldiers in his battalion would be heavy. I wanted to hug him. My stomach turned for the families. My stomach turned for the unit. Later in the day, Will emailed again and said that he watched the fourth soldier die in the hospital with his own eyes.
I spent Monday in a daze. I searched desperately online, trying to find more details and more information. Before bed, Will had written me to tell me about the ramp ceremony (where they load the remains on to the airplane for travel back to the U.S.). I knew he was involved in that, and I ached for him. He was exhausted and drained, which I could tell by his emails. There was more work to be done, so our e-visit was quick. I
wanted to hug him again.
On Tuesday, he sent me the news that left me speechless… breathless. One of the four killed was his battalion commander the leader. OH MY…. NO! All four of the soldiers’ lives were precious and not one is valued more than the other. But the leader? I cannot believe it happened. I knew this guy and he was an amazing leader. This battalion has been rocked to the very core. How can I be consumed with trivial things like laundry or runny noses when such tragedy has just occurred? How is it possible that I am sitting in my beautiful, comfortable house when my husband is in the midst of crisis so far away? Oh, why can’t I be close enough to hug him?
Prayer:
Lord, when life doesn’t make sense, help me wait on you.
“We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.” (Psalm 33:20)
August 21
MEN DOWN PART 2
From the blog of Jessica Alley, wife of Chaplain (Capt.) Will Alley, Iraq (2008–2009)
February 9, 2009.
Then I learned more. Will was the one who identified the bodies at the hospital. This threw my stomach in turns again. My sweet husband’s beautiful brown eyes were the ones that saw these damaged bodies of his fellow soldiers, his brothers. Such a horrific sight cannot possibly ever be forgotten. I wanted to turn back time, erase this pain, remove such sadness and grief from his mind, from the entire battalion, and from all the families.
Then I learned that he almost went on that convoy that killed our heroes. He wouldn’t have been in that same vehicle, but likely the one behind it. He said it was a very frequently-traveled road. Reality has set in for me.
Stories of Faith and Courage from the War in Iraq and Afghanistan Page 32