Chris' Christian Blog

November 11, 2019

"November 11, 2019" 

Prompt: "Veterans Day"

I don't recall doing an entry for November 11. I left early that morning to go to work. Thank you Applebee's for the delicious sirloin for Veteran's Day and thank you Golden Corral for the buffet in honor of Veteran's Day.

I am a veteran who lives at the West Virginia Veterans Home in Barboursville WV so every day is veterans day to me. I served in the US Army for a very short period of time and was injured so I was discharged. Even though I brought the injury on myself by making choices I would not make today, the guys here at the veterans home assure me I am just as much a veteran as somebody who served in combat. They all tell me I became a veteran in their eyes the moment I raised my right hand and took the oath to serve. The fact that I was discharged from Basic Training due to injury/illness that made me unfit for service does not seem to pause them. I often beat up on myself for not being able to complete the course but they do not. Perhaps they are correct. What makes us veterans is not necessarily how long we served, but the fact that we served at all. I still would have liked to have carried out my intentions and made a career out of the military, but it was not meant to be.
Today I serve in the army of the Kingdom of God. The branch I serve is the Salvation Army, a universal evangelical movement started by General William Booth in London England in 1865. The Salvation Army is best known for the benevolence programs we offer, particularly the Christmas programs and feeding the homeless, but we are so much more than that. We are also a church that holds regular worship services. Our officers and soldiers are our ministers. The officers are the commanders in a hierarchy just like the army, but we are all Christians united to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ to the end of the globe. I have been a soldier for two years and likely will remain a soldier until the day I close my eyes in death. I serve the Huntington WV Corps, Maryland-West Virginia Division, USA Southern Territory. I am the corps community outreach coordinator, welcome sergeant, men's minister,men's club treasurer, and adult Sunday school teacher. As the Community Outreach Coordinator my duties include nursing home ministry (I am chaplain of the West Virginia Veterans Home under the Salvation Army umbrella, jail ministry), and other outreach programs. As a soldier I signed a covenat with the army called a Soldier's Covenant declaring that I would abstain from certain activities and intentionally carry out other activities. For example a soldier does not use tobacco or alcohol/other drugs and a soldier does not divorce. A soldier walks a Christian walk and reads the word of God, preaches/teaches the word of God, and maintains a level of integrity. I am humbled to be a part of this organization.