Tug of War

Last week the entire class was given a kinda recreation day with games and lunch. We originally planned to have this event outside, but the weather was rainy. Nearly seventy of us hung out in a concrete block recreation hall and played some social games. There were a few rounds of a four way tug-of-war that was definitely a chance for the preachers to show that they have testosterone. Being the enlightened liberal that I am, I checked in with our only female to see how she was doing with all of this. She grew up with several brothers so it wasn't really an issue for her. When I got in the game, I admit that I jumped in a pulled on the rope as hard as I could. We had one round that was the North vs. South. There were nearly twice as many Southerners as there were Northerners. This may give you a clue as to the clearly Evangelical flavor of most of our chapel services. I have never been in a group of people that publically prayed so much. The phrase "object constancy" popped into my head while we kept praying and praying. I wondered if all the praying was to make sure God was still there or whistling in the dark. The day was part youth group activities and revival mixed in with a praise and worship service. There is just so many times that I can sing "Yes, Lord, yes, Lord, yes, Lord, yes." And I think I passed the mark that day.

Our lecturer/homilist chose to give us a study on the greek word, "to submit." The context was that the military is a place where you submit to authority and that within this order there is accountability and service. This is clearly an appropriate talk for a military context.

Later on we broke into small groups for prayer again! Although prayer groups are not typically my speed, I appreciated the need for intimacy that is expressed. I think this is often difficult for men. Chaplains need to show compassion for each other because we tend to take on so much. Plus, knowing how to model how to support each other spiritually makes us more effective with soldiers.

More to come.