Carried by Christ

Courage is an incredibly attractive quality. It took a hobbit named Frodo into the depths of an evil kingdom and it took a wizard named Harry to the precipice of an unnoticed death. C.S. Lewis says that such accounts are memorable because they mirror the greatest of all accounts: the historical work of Christ on the God-forsaken cross. Many of my favorite quotes (displayed on my Facebook site) are those that show a courage drawn from the work of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit.

One such quote is from the famed Dr. David Livingston--the first missionary throughout much of Africa. People marveled at his exploits and kept telling him to come home before he died in his work. His response: "Cannot the love of Christ carry the missionary where the slave trade carries the trader?" Livingston saw the horrors of the largely unheard of Islamic slave trade of eastern Africa, and sought to combat it with the Gospel. If evil (or even a civic good) could carry a man to a certain length, cannot Christ carry His followers to those same points and even further? Livingston eventually died in his work, fulfilling his words "In this work I truly live; in this work I hope to die."

This sentiment echoes in my ears whenever I consider doing missions work in Malawi or Sudan, or prepare for the Army Reserves Chaplaincy. If people must face death for a cause other than Christ, I will surely face death alongside of them and perhaps even on behalf of them, that they may know Christ--or at least have His name ringing in their ears. This is not reckless bravado. I cannot carry the Gospel anywhere, only recline my sinful heart upon the Gospel, which could carry me anywhere.

That said, I received the following email from the NAE Chaplains Commission tonight:

"It is with great sadness that I must inform you of the death of Chaplain (MAJ) Maury Stout, United States Army. He was buried with full military honors at the Leavenworth Veterans cemetery on Friday, November 16...

Maury was a gifted speaker and teacher. He was given and faithfully completed responsibilities way beyond his rank and the Chaplaincy will be indebted to his contributions for years to come.
Maury leaves behind a wife and 5 dear children. Please remember them in your prayers."

It sucks to read something like that, but encouraging to know that this man is now with our Lord in glory. Being carried by Christ means being carried to suffering and even possibly death. Yet, in these ways, we know that our faith is forever secured, because we are following the footsteps of our Savior and are likewise being hated by the world.

"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace." (Acts 20:24) These were the words given to me by Chaplain Cooper at Calvin College right before leaving for seminary. They were the words of Paul as he left his beloved Ephesian brothers for a likely martyrdom. Martyrdom is not our goal--only God's glory and whatever that entails.