There are a couple of hymns that seem to have fallen out of favor these days, like “Onward Christian Soldiers.” I do not know why, but there are some in the church who don’t liken themselves to being a soldier for Christ. Well, that may be the opinion of some, but my husband, Ken, and I were singing “Onward Christian Soldiers” earlier this year when we were a part of our first Warriors Get Away. That was a Joni and Friends Retreat for wounded soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan. I tell you what, it was four days of rock climbing, horseback riding, pro-bass fishing, golfing, and a great Texas barbecue, and I’m not ashamed to say a whole lot of patriotism… but best of all, times in God's Word and the giving of the Good News of Jesus Christ. There were 24 soldiers who attended our getaway – many of them lost a leg, some of them two legs from explosions… and many have suffered traumatic brain injury or severe burns… (Bless his heart, there was one young soldier who was in such pain, he hardly came out of his room – finally, on the second night, he had to go back into the military hospital because of an infection). My heart broke then because all of our warriors have suffered so much, their families included – they’ve made incredible sacrifice for our freedoms.
And everybody – all those wounded soldiers and their wives and children – everybody loved the fact that we called it our Warriors Getaway. It reminded me of Zephaniah 3:17 where it says, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy.”
Friend, you’ll be so happy to know that of the 24 wounded warriors who attended our Joni and Friends getaway, 11 of them opened their hearts to Jesus Christ for the first time. Truly, the Lord our God was in our midst, exalting over each one of them with joy and quieting them in His love. The Lord God, our victorious warrior, understands what it means to do battle against a vicious enemy… and He also understands what it means to win. And believe me, each one of these soldiers is definitely a winner.
Oh, one more thing. These soldiers never really knew weakness when they were in Iraq and Afghanistan, especially physical weakness, so pray for them as they learn a new way to be strong. And they’ll learn it from God's Word where it says they can do all things through Christ who strengthens them. I thank the Lord for our brave men and women in the Armed Forces. Let’s remember to pray for not just these wounded warriors, but let’s pray for every soldier and his family who has made that incredible sacrifice.
Used by permission of
JONI AND FRIENDS
P.O. Box 3333
Agoura Hills, CA 93176
© Joni and Friends