Though I was not yet excited about Alaska, I was thankful to finally be through with all of the continuous harassment and 'head games' that were part of basic training. I thought, "Now we'll finally be treated like men." Imagine my disappointment when at my first meeting with my Platoon Sergeant he lectured me for nearly 2 hours in what he called 'preventative counseling.' He had seen that I had a...  Read More

As I stood in formation at the end of Airborne School, the jumpmasters asked us if we wanted 'blood wings.' This is where they put your Airborne pin through your shirt with no back on the pin and then punch it into your chest. Obviously I said, "Yes," but those soldiers with a more delicate nature declined. Testosterone is a great thing. It's part of what it means to be 'man' created in the image ...  Read More

Jesus called out to some commercial fisherman, "Come! Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men!" At once they left their boats and nets and followed him. There is an important spiritual principle here. The very first time that these men encountered Jesus, they obeyed IMMEDIATELY. Isn't that interesting? They didn't say, "Talk to us when we're done with work." They didn't say, "We'll think abo...  Read More

It may not be true for you, but for me the hardest part about climbing a mountain is getting started. Just getting up early and putting on my climbing clothes is a victory, but it isn't a total victory. Many times I've dressed to climb and then not climbed. My second victory is simply getting TO the mountain. I must force my 'will' even when I don't feel like it. And then I have to start. Every si...  Read More

The night before last, it rained like it doesn't rain in Alaska- literally 'buckets' of water falling from the sky. I thought, "We should have laid out the plan yesterday and painted parking lines at the new church." But two days ago the cars of our volunteers were in the way- the parking lot was full. Early yesterday morning the rain stopped and the parking lot dried off.True, it was a small thin...  Read More

Crescendo is an interesting term. As the 'life' of something is being played out, it becomes more powerful, more energetic, more intense, more consuming... Fifteen years ago, the Lord laid it heavily upon my heart that we would one day plant a church in Anchorage- Alaska's largest and 'least churched' city. But I knew all along that this would not be a typical church plant. This would be a church ...  Read More

When I arrived at Airborne School, the first people I noticed were a soldier with one arm in a cast who was painting a building with his other hand, and a soldier with one leg in a cast who was hobbling along pushing a lawn mower. These men were 'recycles.' To graduate from Airborne School, you must complete five successful jumps in a row. If you are injured before jump five, you have two options:...  Read More

The first seven times that I ever flew on a large airplane I only landed twice. The other five times I jumped out of the open door of the plane. Airborne School was three weeks of highly intensive, highly professional training. Nearly 2 weeks was spent perfecting our 'PLF' (parachute landing fall). The objective was to get out of the plane quickly and to land safely. The infantry's small, round pa...  Read More

At the end of basic training, they were assigning us to our duty stations. We did not get to choose where we went, but were allowed to have a general 'wish' list. I was hoping to go somewhere in the south (where I could get a good tan) or overseas. They walked down the rows of soldiers, saying, "North Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas.... and then they came to me. They said,...  Read More

212 men lined up single file in front of the chow hall at meal times. The drill sergeants let in 10 soldiers at a time, and the rest had to do 15 push-ups before the next 10 entered. This was done very rapidly, but those at the end of the line had to do over 600 push-ups (after 2 hours of sit-ups and push-ups) before they got their breakfast. We were then given two minutes to eat and were required...  Read More

And just like that, my Montana life was over. I went to Minnesota to spend Christmas with family, and then headed to Fort Benning, Georgia, for infantry basic training. In those days, there was no separation between basic training and Advanced Infantry Training (AIT), so we had 13 continuous weeks of torture. At 25 years old, I was one of the oldest in my company of 212 soldiers. Life consisted of...  Read More

It was late November and the final day of the deer season. I never had filled my buck tag. I borrowed my friends .222 and went into the foothills of the Snowy Mountains to try to call in a fox or coyote. It was −23° and snowing. That temperature was extremely cold for late November, and it was even more unusual that it was snowing at the time. I was wearing insulated coverals over a heavy hooded p...  Read More