Pinning Ceremony

Sunday, May 4 was Chris’s pinning ceremony.
When someone is pinned, it means they have received a new rank in the military and their new rank is pinned on to the uniform. Chris is now a Lieutenant in the United States Army. He got to choose whoever he would like to pin on his rank. He chose his parents and me.

The service began with a military related video clip. Then our talented youth group performed a drama titled God’s Army. A second military video was then played. After it finished we said the pledge. After the pledge was the pinning.

When I pinned Chris’s rank on him, I thought I would cry. But I didn’t. I was too proud. I was glowing inside. I looked at his face and I could tell how proud he was to become an officer. He is the first military officer in his family. The only military officer I have ever known. I am proud to have a soldier on my arm and it means even more to have a husband who is following the calling of God. It seems like when I pinned on his rank, I changed. Instead of worrying what path God was going to take us down next, I thanked God for using us and found a new excitement. I am excited to see where He takes us.

After the pinning, Chris received his first salute as an officer. Jonathan did the honors.

Next, the third video played. Then it was time for Chris to speak.

When Chris spoke, I was in the very back of the church running the video camera. I wanted to make sure it was zoomed in on him. I heard how sincere his words were and I knew his message was from God. I watched him speak and the Holy Spirit was on him. I could tell he was nervous so I began to pray for him. As he finished his message, he went and sat on the front row. I was hesitant to go over and sit with him because I was in tears. (I hate for anyone to see me cry.) I kept feeling this tugging at my heart to go sit with him. I looked up to where he was sitting. He was sitting in the second seat of the front row. There was one seat next to him that was empty and it was as if the Holy Spirit said to me, “That chair is yours, go take your place next to your husband.” So I gathered myself and I walked to the front row and sat next to him. Pastor then called us to the front and had our family gather around us to pray for us.

When everyone was finished praying, service was dismissed. The family and our wonderful church family came around and hugged us. I cannot express how much love and support we have received. Our families are amazing. There has not been one person who has not supported us. We have been so blessed with our relatives and our church family. We love and appreciate each and every one. Support, love, and most of all, prayers, are vital. We need all we can get.

To everyone who attended the service, I want to say a special thank you for joining us on such a special occasion. The church was so much more full than usual. I loved seeing all the filled chairs and all the friendly and familiar faces.

Before I end this entry, I just want to say a few more things.
At the end of the third video was a picture of Jesus on the cross. When you see His bloodied body and the crown of thorns on His head, what do you think about?
I think of how thankful I am He died for our sins. I feel guilt for every wrong I ever did because here is a completely innocent man hanging dead on the cross. He never sinned, yet He had to die so that I could be forgiven of mine. I then think of how much God must love us to give us His only Son. I love my children so much that I think I would die of heartbreak if anything happened to them. Yet God willingly sent Jesus for us. He was beaten and then killed in such a brutal way. And what do we do? We keep sitting around and saying, “Bless me Jesus.” What are we doing for Him? If you died right now and had to face God, what could you tell Him that you did for Him? Would we be able to tell Him that we made a difference in someone else’s life? Would we be able to tell Him that we witnessed to people and risked our own lives just to help someone accept Jesus as their Savior? Most of us won’t even risk embarrassment.
We just sit around and talk about how much bad stuff other people are doing and what they need to do to straighten out their life. Instead of talking about what they should do, uplift them in prayer and ask God to help them be more wise. Help them out. The smallest things make the biggest difference. Call someone and tell him or her you are thinking of them. If you see someone making a bad choice, stop judging him or her for it and start helping them out when they need it. We all make unwise decisions and learn from them. It is not our place to punish someone for a bad choice they made by not helping them out. We have to do our part and leave the judgment to God.Another thing I think about is how much God loves us. Think of the person you love most in your life. You would do anything, even give your life for that person. It could be your spouse, a parent, or your children. Now imagine if that person didn’t like spending time with you? You love them so much but they do not want to give up any of their own time to spend with you. You keep trying to reach out to them and you give them all that you have…..but they just won’t come to you. Now imagine how God feels when we won’t spend just a little bit of our time praying or reading His word. We have made it such a chore to come into God’s house. We think if we come to a Sunday morning service that we are doing great, but how much time do we spend with God outside of church? What do we do to bless Him? If Jesus were to come spend an entire day with you, what would you do different?