Dear Family- Around – The – World:
Greetings from sunny, stormy, humid Ft. Jackson, SC! Well, I’ve been here nearly 2 weeks now and am happily settling into a routine of working out, Death By Power Point (this is what we call all the classroom instruction – there is no army presenter who can present without pp…). I have really been settling in this time and am much more able to look around and be genuinely present (for the most part) to get to know my classmates and instructors better. This really is a much more laid back environment this time.
Surprises:
- There are 2 instructors here from last time – wonderful, approachable, pastoral types – one is PCSing (permanent change of duty-Station) and the other is the course manager.
- There are *GASP* 4 (!!) Covenant Chaplains here!! I think this must be a Bermuda triangle of some sort – I don’t think I’ve seen this many even at our annual conferences! 2 are instructors, I am a student, though a full chaplain) and one is a North Park student who ALMOST went to Denver Seminary (turns out I met him and his wife when they did a visit…hummm…perhaps this why he didn’t come to DS…*insecure!*)
- The PT is not as stressful as last time. I feel very used to the workout schedule and it’s not such a shock to my body or mind as it was last time.
- I did officially pass my PT test! I heard they ‘jacked up’ (messed up) the taping for body fat for folks, so that score did not come through right – they told us this test would count as a diagnostic and not the ‘real’ thing. But I have decided to do Special Populations (sp. Pops) anyway as I feel that I do probably deserve to be there and it just is nicer doing afternoon workouts with others…
This week has been a lot of classroom instruction on a WIDE range of topics from the bean counters (how we get/appropriate and use money in our units) to more helpful stuff for direct ministry, like how to do an annual training cycle around a deployment and all the different area of respoinsibility we will have. There has also been some good stuff on professional ethics, morality in war and practical learning as we perform Field Services in our platoons.
We did a live fire exercise yesterday where they paired us up with AIT (Advanced Infantry Training) soldiers and had us (and them) practice how to work with/protect a chaplain in a hostile environment. I am pleased to say our soldiers were up to the task and all the chaplains lived! I did sustain an injury in the field, however – I was ruthlessly attacked by a Yellow-Jacket Bee while standing by a bush listening to instruction….needless to say, my hand is very puffy right now and I am looking forward to the swelling to go down…
Do continue to keep me in your prays and do keep up the correspondence – I have LOVED the little note (thanks Susie and Robin!) I’ve gotten here and the emails just give me such joy!
Prayer Reqs:
- Continued good weight-loss
- More speed on my run time (I’d LOVE to be able to do it in 19.30 – I’m at 20.53 right now)
- Healing for my hand from the bee sting
- The presence and peace of God as I lead a practice Field Service on Friday
30 July 2008
21 July 2008
Hey Gang - just a quick update as things get rolling here...
I love it here. It's so much different than the last time I was here - I'm so much more confident and just know the Army so much more - I feel like I have a much better grid for knowing what's what and don't just have to take everything in. Folks here seem more laid back than last time as well...could just be me though. But there are a lot of folks from 2 years ago - instant pals! More soon - here's my mailing addy for while I'm here:
CH (1LT) Terri King
USACHCS
CH-BOLOC Class# 08-002
10100 Lee Rd
Ft. Jackson, SC 29207-7090
and do please pray I do ok on my APFT (fit test) this friday!!
I love it here. It's so much different than the last time I was here - I'm so much more confident and just know the Army so much more - I feel like I have a much better grid for knowing what's what and don't just have to take everything in. Folks here seem more laid back than last time as well...could just be me though. But there are a lot of folks from 2 years ago - instant pals! More soon - here's my mailing addy for while I'm here:
CH (1LT) Terri King
USACHCS
CH-BOLOC Class# 08-002
10100 Lee Rd
Ft. Jackson, SC 29207-7090
and do please pray I do ok on my APFT (fit test) this friday!!
16 July 2008
Hey Gang - well in a few short hours I will start the drive back to Ft. Jackson, SC to complete my Chaplain training - YEA!! I'm totally excited this time - not at all terrified (like last time!). I'm looking forward to a nice road trip, time with friends along the way and getting into the routine at the Ft. Please keep these items in prayer - and STAY IN TOUCH! ;)
- safe travels (Fred (my truck) is on the older side now (195k miles))
- good fellowship with God and friends I meet along the way
- good establishment/integration to the routine at Jackson
-favor on my PT test next Friday (25th)
- quickly build rapport with the other chaplains/make good friends this summer
For those of you on Facebook - check out my photo albums for some of my recent adventures. For those of you not on facebook, it's ok- I'll still post some pics here - it's just much more expedient to post them there...
I'll send my address again on here when I get it - I expect cards and fan mail! ;)) - love, ter
- safe travels (Fred (my truck) is on the older side now (195k miles))
- good fellowship with God and friends I meet along the way
- good establishment/integration to the routine at Jackson
-favor on my PT test next Friday (25th)
- quickly build rapport with the other chaplains/make good friends this summer
For those of you on Facebook - check out my photo albums for some of my recent adventures. For those of you not on facebook, it's ok- I'll still post some pics here - it's just much more expedient to post them there...
I'll send my address again on here when I get it - I expect cards and fan mail! ;)) - love, ter
06 July 2008
Reflections on Becoming Swedish...
Hey Gang! I am currently in Chicago for a week-long course on the History of the Evangelical Covenant Church. Of course I procrastinated the readings for this course (about 1000 pages...really, perhaps more) until last weekend, but have managed to get it down to about 200 remaining. Now, what I hate about that is that for the last 4 or 5 days I have had relatively little I could do besides read....what I love is that now that I'm here, I am literally staring at and interacting with the buildings and streets that I've just been reading about.
The short version is this: ok, so we've all heard of Martin Luther (famous catholic Monk and academian who posted his 95 thesis (suggestions for reform in the Catholic church) on a cathedral door on the campus he was working on in 1517 in Germany), well LONG story short -Luther's ideas change the world and every European country over the course of the next several centuries. Sweden (birth place of the ECC) is no different and by the early 1800s the Lutheran State Church is the officially sanctioned church of the people. The thing is, after several hundred years, even a good idea gets stale and people began to look again for a fresh movement of God in their lives. Pietism started in Sweden c.1800 as a movement of individuals and small groups of Christians started to gather together to read the Word and discuss how they can more deeply and fully live out the Scriptures. This is so common for us now that we instantly think - 'yeah, and?' - BUT this was revolutionary stuff 'back in the day' - at that time you were considered 'saved' if you went to church; birth an baptism into the Lutheran church = salvation, NOT personal relationship with Christ. So folks were not generally encouraged to read scripture for themselves; it was frowned on...after all how could the laity properly interpret scripture... I guess they put a little more faith in education (a good and useful thing) and not as much is the Holy Spirit (when He’s not being abused!)…So we think of someone as being 'Pious' as a really negative thing, but when it started out these cats were basically the original Charismatics -very lively and fully engaged in each other and the work of God in their lives and work...VERY COOL.
Well, even longer story shortened, there was more and more tension between the State church and these new pious movements (these people were called lasare (readers) and later banded together in groups called Mission Friends – NOT intent on separating from the Church at all, but again seeking a more vibrant spiritual life) until eventually the Church gave them less and less recourse to splitting off and forming new groups. Out of these groups the Swedish Covenant was eventually formed. Now (we’re up to about 1880 now), there was a really grievous famine happening in Sweden, causing about 1 million Swedes to immigrate to America. There had been a fair amount of immigration happening for various reasons before this, but the famine put it over the top. Many of the immigrants settled in the mid-western states and just did what they did in Sweden – set up Mission Friend societies and made contact with their local Lutheran church (I won’t go into the whole Synod’s thing here…). Well, this was ok for a bit, but eventually what the Mission Friends wanted out of life and fellowship could not be found in the Lutheran ranks and so they split (or were booted out, as the case may be) and formally founded the (now) ECC in 1885 in Chicago.
So it’s this interesting movement that started out with deep concern for the will of God, God moved some of them from Sweden to America where they experienced freedom to grow and become more of who God has for them to be. They’ve established a hospital, a seminary and undergrad school and a whole bunch of outreached and missions to the poor, disenfranchised and lost across the world…that’s how far I’ve gotten so far.
NOW, here I am, little English-Hungarian girl, in the middle of what used to be a predominantly Swedish and Jewish immigrant neighborhood. I’ve spent about a solid week reading all about Swedish history and immigration history and I’m wondering…Did I sign up to become Swedish when I joined this group? Lol! I don’t know yet – I’ll keep you posted on that – but even if I did, I’m thinking that might not be a bad thing!
The short version is this: ok, so we've all heard of Martin Luther (famous catholic Monk and academian who posted his 95 thesis (suggestions for reform in the Catholic church) on a cathedral door on the campus he was working on in 1517 in Germany), well LONG story short -Luther's ideas change the world and every European country over the course of the next several centuries. Sweden (birth place of the ECC) is no different and by the early 1800s the Lutheran State Church is the officially sanctioned church of the people. The thing is, after several hundred years, even a good idea gets stale and people began to look again for a fresh movement of God in their lives. Pietism started in Sweden c.1800 as a movement of individuals and small groups of Christians started to gather together to read the Word and discuss how they can more deeply and fully live out the Scriptures. This is so common for us now that we instantly think - 'yeah, and?' - BUT this was revolutionary stuff 'back in the day' - at that time you were considered 'saved' if you went to church; birth an baptism into the Lutheran church = salvation, NOT personal relationship with Christ. So folks were not generally encouraged to read scripture for themselves; it was frowned on...after all how could the laity properly interpret scripture... I guess they put a little more faith in education (a good and useful thing) and not as much is the Holy Spirit (when He’s not being abused!)…So we think of someone as being 'Pious' as a really negative thing, but when it started out these cats were basically the original Charismatics -very lively and fully engaged in each other and the work of God in their lives and work...VERY COOL.
Well, even longer story shortened, there was more and more tension between the State church and these new pious movements (these people were called lasare (readers) and later banded together in groups called Mission Friends – NOT intent on separating from the Church at all, but again seeking a more vibrant spiritual life) until eventually the Church gave them less and less recourse to splitting off and forming new groups. Out of these groups the Swedish Covenant was eventually formed. Now (we’re up to about 1880 now), there was a really grievous famine happening in Sweden, causing about 1 million Swedes to immigrate to America. There had been a fair amount of immigration happening for various reasons before this, but the famine put it over the top. Many of the immigrants settled in the mid-western states and just did what they did in Sweden – set up Mission Friend societies and made contact with their local Lutheran church (I won’t go into the whole Synod’s thing here…). Well, this was ok for a bit, but eventually what the Mission Friends wanted out of life and fellowship could not be found in the Lutheran ranks and so they split (or were booted out, as the case may be) and formally founded the (now) ECC in 1885 in Chicago.
So it’s this interesting movement that started out with deep concern for the will of God, God moved some of them from Sweden to America where they experienced freedom to grow and become more of who God has for them to be. They’ve established a hospital, a seminary and undergrad school and a whole bunch of outreached and missions to the poor, disenfranchised and lost across the world…that’s how far I’ve gotten so far.
NOW, here I am, little English-Hungarian girl, in the middle of what used to be a predominantly Swedish and Jewish immigrant neighborhood. I’ve spent about a solid week reading all about Swedish history and immigration history and I’m wondering…Did I sign up to become Swedish when I joined this group? Lol! I don’t know yet – I’ll keep you posted on that – but even if I did, I’m thinking that might not be a bad thing!
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