A Long Time Coming

With my wonderful wife starting up a new blog, I figured it may be time to renew my journey here. We'll see how it goes.

Rob

Spring in Georgia

Yes, Spring is in full bloom here. Actually, the weather is more summer like if we were still in Indiana. We love it though.

Ministry is going really well. I love my job and am amazed that I have the wonderful opportunity to be a pastor to such wonderful soldiers. We have been working hard for the past few months and we will be continuing to work hard throughout the summer.

Part of the fun of military life is the military ball. Katie and I have been to three military balls since we arrived last September. They are a lot of fun! This past Saturday we went to the 3rd Infantry Division Ball. It was held in downtown Savannah and was full of lots of pomp and circumstance. It was only three weeks ago that we went to my Battalion Ball. Although much smaller in size, it was just as fun. It was cool to see folks in a setting outside of the daily work place. Katie and I had a great time!

For those of you who have not heard, my wonderful wife is going to have another baby! Believe it or not, it will be another boy. Imagine that, three boys. He is due at the beginning of August and we are really excited.

Not much else to say now. I know that I haven't posted in awhile, but I have to admit that by the end of the day, I am really tired and not in the mood to blog. This site may become more useful as time goes on, but for now, if someone is actually out there reading, this will have to do.

Thanks for all your continued prayers. God is definitely at work and it is exciting to be a part of the process.

Thanks for reading,

Rob

Way Too Long

To say it's been awhile is an understatement. As I compose this post I am sitting on a bus on my way to visit veterans at a nearby VA hospital. I am using my cool new iphone to do it. This just to tell you that things have been crazy busy. I want to blog more, but often when I get home, I just want to hang out with the family. Hopefully this new little device will help me write some short updates of our lives.

First of all, ministry is going really well! There are many unique challenges, but I am loving the opportunities God is giving me to minister to soldiers. As a family we have pretty well settled into a routine. The boys have made friends quickly and Katie has transitioned really well into her new roles as a stay at home mom and an Army wife. I am really blessed to have such a wonderful family.

We have gotten involved in a chapel service on post and Katie has jumped right in to ministry by helping lead worship at a weekly ladies Bible study. All this to say, thank you for your prayers. We are so blessed to have many people praying for us. With that said, please continue to pray.

Hopefully it won't take as long to update you next time. Thanks again foe all your support and encouragement. We really appreciate it!

Rob

Baptism by Fire.....Ants?

Yes, you read correctly. Actually, my first two days have not been too bad. Yesterday was my first day and I showed up for PT only to find out that there was a special brigade run scheduled. As a result, there was a formation at one of the parade fields just down the road from my house. Fortunately, I showed up in time to run with the whole brigade! It was really fun. Unfortunately, during the formation, I spent some time standing on an ant hill. Fire ants are interesting. Their sting/bite starts very "itchy," and later swells up and really kind of hurts. I may go see the doc tomorrow if it doesn't look any better. I would post a picture, but...well, it's not pretty.

We are starting to get a little more settled. Katie has already gotten involved in helping lead the worship time at PWOC. PWOC is an organization that has Bible studies on many military posts. I am excited that she has an outlet and a place to connect with other Christian women. The boys are doing well too. Our next door neighbors have a four year old who really enjoys spending time with Nat. He has some other friends as well too. Actually, Nat has transitioned really well.

Just a short update. Thanks again for your interest in our lives and your prayers. Continue praying for the family as we continue to get settled.

Blessings,

Rob

Fort Stewart

Greetings friends and prayer partners. I am sorry it has been so long. We have only recently gotten the internet hooked up, and things have been crazy busy. We left Fort Wayne on September 7 and traveled to see my parents in Maryville, TN for a week. After going to church with them on Sunday the 14, we traveled to South Carolina where we stayed with some of the Peterson extended family for the night. We had a great time with them and were thankful for a place to crash that wasn't a hotel. Now to the good stuff...

Many of you know that one of our prayer requests was for post housing. After our church planting experience a few years ago, God birthed into us a passion to live in the community in which we were doing ministry. For this community, that means living on post. Because there are so many officers of my rank, there is sometimes a shortage for post housing. During the process, we were told it could be a couple weeks to a couple months wait for a three bedroom house. Since living in a hotel with a whole family for a couple months was not really a viable option, Katie and the boys were initially going to stay with my parents in Tennessee. Although this was a viable option, we decided that Katie and the boys would at least come down for a week. The weekend before we came down, I talked with another chaplain who encouraged me to think about the possibility of a two bedroom house. Initially, it was not really an option, but with the bunk beds, we thought Ben could eventually move out of the crib and into his brother's room. So we called back to the housing office and asked if there were any two bedroom homes open. They said, "yes." As a result, we said "yes" as well. So, on September 15, the day of our arrival, we signed the paperwork for our house! No waiting! Our stuff arrived last Friday and after in-processing, I start my job next Wednesday! How awesome is our God?! He provided a home in one day, He got us our stuff in less than a week, and we have great neighbors and a small park right in our backyard! We are so blessed. All that to say, God has answered our prayers and we are home! Oh, by the way, I forgot to add, we closed on our house in Indiana yesterday! What a mighty God we serve!

Please continue to pray. I am excited about my job, but recognize some challenges. Please pray that God continues to open doors and give me wisdom as I start this new ministry with these great soldiers.

Thanks again for your prayers,

Rob

Promoted!

Greetings friends. Most of you know that I recently finished my classes through Liberty. I was also recently promoted to 1st LT, and given the opportunity to "pin" the cross on my uniform. As a Chaplain Candidate, I did not wear the cross of the Christian Chaplain, but since I was assessed and completed all the required "stuff," I was able to pin on the crosses. It was a really cool moment. The two Chaplains who helped out were CH (MAJ) Dave Bowlus and CH (MAJ) Doug Prentice. Both have had an impact in my preparation for this ministry, so it was really exciting to have them participate. I was issued my new oath of office by Major General (Ret) Dees, who was conducting some training for the C&MA Chaplains on PTSD. It was amazing training!

All in all, things are going well. The movers come tomorrow, so stuff is a little crazy. Two blessings to report: 1) Our house is sold! Well, we accepted an offer. The house will be sold when we close on the 30th of September. 2) Post housing is available. At least for now. There are three homes in which to choose. Just pray that no one takes all of them before I arrive for in-processing in just over a week. Since they are refurbishing the homes, it will take a month to get in them, but we are thankful that it is only a month as the initial estimates were 2-3 months.

Things are moving right along. Thanks for your continued encouragement and your prayers.

Rob

"Dog Face Soldier"

As of last Friday, I turned in my final assignment. It was nice to get everything off of my plate! As a result, I head to my new unit in just a few weeks. I will be the Chaplain of the 3rd Brigade Support Battalion of the 1st Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry division.

I am really looking forward to it. Since I'm heading to the 3rd ID, I will take some time throughout the coming weeks to share some historical information about the division. The 3rd ID is a very historic division serving in many conflicts with quite a few distinct honors.

But to begin this process, the soldiers of the 3rd ID are known as "Dog Face Soldiers." I'll quote from the 3rd ID site to explain how this division hooked up with Disney to create the picture you see at the top of this post:

"'I'm just a Dog Face Soldier, with a rifle on my shoulder.' So go the words of the division's theme song. Thanks to the creative genius of Walt Disney Productions, that 'Dog Face Soldier' was caricatured into a tan bulldog: 'heroic, but humble, fierce, but gentle, quick-witted and wise, with a confidence and dignity that comes from having proved himself.'

Major General Albert O. Connor, a Third Division commander, visualized verbally what he wanted for a 'Dog Face Soldier,' Walt Disney Productions complied and the caricature was created.

All it cost was one dollar. The bull-dog face soldier is the result of an exchange of letters between General Connor and Walt Disney Productions. In one of his letters to Disney, General Connor explained: 'For many years, the 3rd Infantry Division has been seeking a trademark based on the symbolism of the 'Dog Face Soldier.' The term 'dog face,' he continued, 'is an old one in our Army, dating back to the Indian Wars.'

The division received the final design of the bull-dog face soldier in August 1965. Along with the drawing came a contract granting exclusive and perpetual right and license to reproduce the drawing. The one dollar bill provided by the Marne Association was autographed by the division's Sergeants Major. Along with the autographed bill, which was framed, a letter of thanks to Walt Disney and his staff was sent for bringing to life the verbal conception of a song.

Since then, generations of Marne Soldiers have carried on the tradition of singing the division's song at morning formations and other official functions. Upon joining the 3rd Infantry Division, Soldiers are required to memorize the lyrics as part of the proud Marne heritage."


(excerpt copied from here)


Yes, I have already downloaded the song from i-tunes to begin the process of memorizing it. I may load a youtube video of the song in a couple days to give everyone the chance to hear. For those of you that have never been a part of the military, these types of songs and images are very important to the esprit de corps of a unit. They link soldiers of today with those in the past, making the stylistic differences from whatever era's "pop" music, unimportant.

So, in the coming weeks, sit back and learn more about the 3rd Infantry Division's illustrious heritage.



Rob