Category Archives: Christian Living

Dungy to Return to “Pulpit”

“I look at this as a job, but I also look at it as a ministry…” – Tony Dungy, Colts Head Coach

The Indianapolis Colts’ head football coach Tony Dungy recently announced he would not retire, but would return to coach next season. 

Dungy’s outspoken Christian faith, the Colts’ 2007 Super Bowl victory, and his best-selling book have made him a unique and reluctant celebrity.  (See the “Perspective” section of this post.)  Dungy had been criticized for leading the Colts to 13 regular season wins this year, only to be eliminated in the first game of the playoffs.

The experience gives Dungy the ability to continue his Christian witness even though his team didn’t win–a reminder to people that being a Christian does not guarantee “success” (at least not by the world’s standards).

Navy Commander “heeds God’s call”

An interesting article chronicles Navy Commander Rich McDaniel and his family while he is deployed.  Some interesting quotes:

On their family’s role in the Navy:

Together and yet so often apart, the McDaniels believe their family unit has been called to a peculiar mission in life — as missionaries to the Navy community, serving God and country in peacetime and war.

On finding a church as a military member–and balancing the God and family priorities:

In some churches…the focus tends to be on “How can you serve others and how can you serve in the church?” While he endorses that…it can be heartbreaking to know he has only a few days with his wife after one to three months at sea and she feels duty-bound to stay in the nursery during Sunday morning worship because it’s her usual ministry at the church…People don’t understand why it’s so important for her to be [with] her husband [when he] happens to be home with little to no notice.

Revisited: Military Christian Priorities

ChristianFighterPilot.com has published an ongoing series of articles on the priorities of military Christians.  As stated in the first article, the most-often cited Christian priorities are God, family, and career.  The God priority was addressed in the October article.

Since the November article on the importance of family, there have been two interesting and related news events.  In one case, the Air Force Leadership published the recent Airman’s Roll Call and highlighted the importance of family:

It’s [our families’] support that helps us perform our vital Air Force mission, and for this very reason, we must make the most of the time we have with them.

Historically, the Air Force has been the most “family friendly” of the services.  It has repeatedly shown that it recognizes the importance of the Air Force member’s family to the accomplishment of the mission.  As noted in the article on the family priority, there is a spiritual reason for holding the family so dear.  As the Air Force notes, however, valuing our families is also a virtual military necessity.

The second item of interest was the announcement of this year’s Heisman winner.  Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was effusive in his thanks to God for his success, and the article notes that

Football rates a mere fourth on his list of priorities behind God, family and academics.

The young college sophomore displayed an unusual degree of maturity and understanding of life’s bigger purposes.  Much as Indianapolis Colts’ head coach Tony Dungy related in his book, Tebow realized that football wasn’t everything, and that his life needed to reflect what was truly important:

[Football is] a game that I love and you’ve got to remember that He gave me the ability and the opportunity to play and it can be gone at any moment…[In] football, in school, in living, I want people to…say, “Hey, there’s something different about this guy, and that’s because he has a relationship with Jesus Christ.”

The pastor at his Florida church noted Tebow’s “postgame interviews and the ongoing Christian witness that’s quickly becoming his trademark.”

There is a special place in the imagination of the American public for football players–especially quarterbacks.  The same is true for members of the military–especially fighter pilots.  Just as their positions give football players unique platforms for Christ, so, too, do those of military Christians.  Military Christians could probably learn a lesson from the life choices and boldness of the young college sophomore.

The Air Force Family

The necessary priority of a military Christian’s family was the focus of a recent post.  The (official) importance of family in the Air Force is shared in this week’s Airman’s Roll Call.

Make the most of this time with your loved ones – Meeting the needs of today’s Air Force means many of us have to spend time away from our friends and family. It’s their support that helps us perform our vital Air Force mission, and for this very reason, we must make the most of the time we have with them. Set aside time for your spouse, children, significant others and yourself.

The Second Priority of Military Christians

This is the second in a series of articles on military Christians and life priorities.  The first addressed the necessity of the priority of God in a Christian’s life, and looked into the potential responses that others may have to that priority.  The second priority that a military Christian must consider is that of his family.

The Family Priority

A military Christian’s second priority should be family.  The Air Force has generally been regarded as the more “family friendly” of the services, and it continues to recognize that a military member’s family life directly influences the performance of his duties.  (Incidentally, November is National Military Family Month, as noted by the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force’s recent Enlisted Perspective.)  Still, the nature of the military environment virtually ensures that there will be conflict between the military profession and a service member’s family. Read more

Military Christians and the First Priority

“What is the most important thing in your life?”

When asked what takes precedence in their lives, many active Christians have answered that their priorities are God, family, and their job, friends, or others. The answer is often repeated across career and social boundaries. Football players, soldiers, and politicians have all listed similar priorities: God, family, and job. This series of articles will expand on those three priorities, beginning with the first, or “God priority.”

One beginning note, however: A Christian’s priorities should serve as a guide, not necessarily a list of rules engraved in stone. Even if he has his priorities “set,” there are times that sacrifices must be made, and situations in life may require temporary adjustments to priorities to achieve a required goal or fulfill obligations. In the most obvious example, war often demands that soldiers be separated from their families for years at a time, which obviously has a negative impact on a military Christian’s “family priority.” The priority of family, though, does not override a serviceman’s duty to defend his country in time of war. Each situation, then, must be assessed on its own; in many cases, it depends… Read more

The Ethics of Gouge

The recent cheating scandal at the Air Force Academy has highlighted, once again, that the temptation to compromise one’s integrity is a continuing threat.  In this case, nearly three dozen cadets are accused of cheating by sharing answers on an ‘inconsequential’ military knowledge test.  Other cases have revealed that the same temptation occurs on active duty.  In 2005 a dozen students were kicked out of pilot training for obtaining the answers to an Emergency Procedures Quiz (EPQ) prior to the test administration; an instructor pilot facing court martial for providing those answers subsequently resigned under less than honorable conditions.  Again, the EPQ was an ‘inconsequential’ quiz. 

Why would cadets or officers risk their careers over such insignificant tests?  Read more

Lifeway Offers Troops Magazine Alternative

The likes of Maxim, FHM, and other ‘non-pornographic’ magazines of partially dressed women in sensuous poses are readily available for deployed fighter pilots and other military members, often delivered for free by the publishers.  According to Christian Post, Lifeway is attempting to provide a Christian alternative through a distribution scheme with thousands of churches.

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