Chapter 31
IN A STRANGE COUNTRY
(The night of 13 March 1974,
departing from Iwakuni on the sleeper train. I bed down in that uncomfortable bouncing sleeper
berth praising God that all my past life in my native land (with all its joys and
blessing, trials and troubles) is now history. I profusely praise
God for allowing me the thrilling adventures of piloting Marine Corps small jet
warplanes in several far and wide locations on earth (including the adventures
of experiencing life in those domestic and foreign lands). I praise and thank
my Lord for keeping me safely thru all those Marine flying
dangers and that I am totally finished with that life (alive and
in good health at a prime age of life). But
much more so, I praise God for giving me a calling to preach Christ in
Japan till my earthly life ends. I feel like the most blessed human soul
on earth.)
At
this highly pivotal point in my eternal existence, I will speak
of important facts of my earthly journey up to this night on this sleeper train
headed out of Iwakuni for Tokyo (13 March 1974). At that time, I was not as
fully aware of their importance as I am now (in September 2016) (more than 41
years later) (and past my 70th birthday), nor was I as thankful then
for God’s abundant blessings as I am now with more maturity (both mental and
spiritual).
I
thank God for creating me with abundant physical health (physical strength,
stamina, endurance) and with a sound mind. I’m most thankful for the
beneficial, fulfilling and rewarding ways I have used those God-given abilities
from the time I was born, up to this date. I give God all the glory for
enabling me to do so, and for graciously allowing me to achieve my selfish,
proud, vain desire to become a military jet pilot.
I
am most blessed, (1) having been born of Christian parents, (2) unto hard labour
onto an old fashioned farm (our Creator’s ordained occupation for
the human race, Genesis 2 and 3). Both of those facts are a rich heritage.
College
days were ever so bright, carefree and cheerful, a most happy period
of my youth.
Then
God allowed me to obtain my boyhood dream of becoming a military jet pilot and
kept me safe and alive thru out my time in the Marines. I saw a good number of
fellow Marines and fellow pilots (with whom I worked) get
killed trying to live the dream of military hero and pilot. I had at least 4 extremely close calls with violent death while piloting
jets, just a split second or a few feet of safety between my plane and a fatal
crash or midair collision. But I will spare you the terrifying
details because likely your heart would not hold up to reading them.
“Pilot
boy, could the real reason possibly be that the
details would reveal what a dumb, dangerous, stupid pilot you were?”
‘Could possibly be.’
I
will continue to fly in my dreams for a few years. Some of those dreams are of
danger while piloting. But even if I fall off the futon (pallet) that I sleep
on in Japan, it won’t hurt because there is no distance to fall (the futon
being on my straw mat floor) J.
My
last job at Cherry Point (S-2 officer) was a loner’s job. My last jobs at
Iwakuni were pretty much working alone. That suited me perfectly. One day I
stepped over to the dispersing office on Iwakuni Base to inquire something of
the 1st lieutenant in charge there. As I
observed the noisy beehive of activity of 12 or more office workers, I remarked
to him that I would not want his job.
“One
gets used to it,” he heaved with a sigh. I’m glad I
never had to get use to such. Also, I certainly would
not have wanted to be assigned as an instructor pilot, constantly endeavoring
to keep a student pilot from killing us both. I wonder if any Marine officer
that was in as long as I was (and rose as high as captain) ever had fewer
Marines under his direct command than I had. I liked it that way.
Upon
entering the first grade of elementary school at age 6, I entered the “world”
(the devil’s kingdom that stands in opposition to God’s
created earth, onto which I was born). And
from that first day of school all way to this month, I have spent most of my
days studying and working in the “world”, together in close association
with the children of the devil. Bedding down tonight on this sleeper train
at age 29, I am coming out of the world to a great extent.
Thank Thee, Lord Jesus, for
now delivering me from labouring under Egyptian rule.
“I pray not that Thou shouldest take them
out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not
of the world, even as I am not of the world.” (John 17:15-16)
When
I was a lad, my parents (and most adults around me) were of clean mind and
clean speech. The sinners who were not so, were usually decent enough to
carefully guard their speech when children and youth were present. From grammar
school 1st grade on, I daily heard the sinful speech of several
school kids. The sinfulness of the voices around me steadily worsened thru high
school, university and the military. In the military, sinfully dirty speech was
exceedingly sinful. Tonight, I’m
thankful to now be separated (to a large degree) from the world’s horrible,
filthy voices (clearly manifesting the contents of their sinfully
degenerate hearts).
In
Chapter 23, I mentioned that I had trained with all 4
branches of our military. My experience was that the Army used the cleanest
language of the 4 branches (at Airborne training at
Ft. Benning). I was in Army training only 3 weeks. Had I been with the Army
longer, possibly dirty language would have abounded more. Next
the Air Force was 2nd in clean language. Third, the Navy was much
worse. And worst of all was the Marines.
As
a lad in my earthly father’s Christian home, I awoke
each morning to clean speech coming forth from the souls around me.
“This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be
glad in it.” (Psalms 118:24)
And
(in general) we daily awoke to that Scripturally positive attitude and outlook
on life (tho you well know how each of us awakens cranky and grumpy to varying degrees J).
I
left my earthly father’s house at age 19 to start each day with college guys and then later with military guys. Many of them each
morning cursed the new day. “Another ______ day!” Some
of them had the “brown taste” in their mouths from smoking. Some were hung over
from drunkenness, and such. I would observe them with coffee cup in one hand
and cigarette in the other hand, trying to get their physical motor started
with those 2 poisonous harmful stimulants, as they
cursed the new day. Thank
Thee, Lord, for saving me from each of those stimulants. I watched them dig premature graves with their tobacco
and alcohol shovels to soon no longer have to face a new day, but rather just endure
forever the eternal fate they freely chose. Such a
tragic waste of life!
Praise
God, I rejoiced to see each new day the Lord so graciously gave me. I awoke
refreshed and rested, thanks be to God for saving me unto living a clean life
daily. This night, I rejoice to come out from that devil’s “world”, to be
finished with starting each day in the presence of such foul mouth sinners and
daily working in close association with them.
From
the 1st grade of grammar school on, the “world” trained me to sing
songs of allegiance and to take pledges of allegiance to my nation, to its
flag, to school, to alma mater, club, and the Marine Corps (all those things
being things of this “world”). From now on, I will sing of my Redeemer and
pledge my all unto Him.
As
a lad, I had a “fantasy dream-world view” of the gallant life of
a “soldier”, i.e. all fellow cohorts pulling together in harmony toward the
noblest goal of keeping each other alive (and together defeating the enemy when
in war). Thus it was an eye opener and a most
beneficial education to be made aware of the horrible ways of the world 1st
hand.
Enlisted
Marines under my command (and around me) were such criminals; stealing, doping,
and even sabotaging the planes (they were supposed to keep in safe flying
condition) in attempts to kill us aviator officers who were trying to put a
stop to their crimes.
A
good number of higher-ranking officers who commanded me were plenty unjust and
unfair to me, mainly because they saw that I was an upright Christian.
Experiencing the sinful and unfair ways they ruled over me, makes me want to be
ever so careful to obey the following Scripture.
“He that ruleth over men must be just,
ruling in the fear of God.” (II Samuel
23:3)
As
you read this account of my earthly journey, most of the higher-ranking
officers you have read of being unjust to me are now in eternity, being years
older than I. Most were foul mouth, smokers, drunken
adulterers and fornicators as they ruled unjustly over me. The ones among them
who died in their lost sinful state (likely all of them) are now singing the
same tune as the rich man who lifted up his eyes in Hell tormented in those
flames. They desire that I loudly cry out to all living souls to repent and to
trust in the Saviour of the world in order to avoid joining them in the
never-ending torments of Hell fire.
“And
God said, Let us make man in our image, after our
likeness.” (Genesis 1:26)
“The Lord is a man of war.” (Exodus 15:3)
Reading
the 2 Scriptures above, I believe that Adam was
created as a man of war. No doubt, the Lord ordained that Adam take a warrior’s
stance against the serpent in the Garden. The man of war nature in the
fallen human race tragically results in much violence.
In
Old Testament times, our Lord ordained that men who obey Him fight physical
battles and wage war against human enemies.
“It is God…that maketh my way perfect…He teacheth my hands to
war, so that a bow of steel is broken by my arms.” (Psalms 18:32 & 34) David (a man after God’s own
heart) penned the truth of those eternal Scriptures.
But ever
so carefully consider what resulted from David being a man of war who
won many battles for the Lord. “But
God said unto me, Thou shalt not build a house for my name, because
thou hast been a man of war, and hast shed blood.” (I Chronicles 28:3)
I
believe that my desire to serve in the military stemmed from my nature as a
man of war, and from my desire for vainglory. I am
most thankful that my Lord kept me from going into earthly battles and wars and
shedding blood. (Reader friend, please tell every military and
ex-military person you know, that they may find my military
experience in this book interesting to read.)
My
Lord is presently building His Church. It is a glorious privilege that He uses
us believers as builders of his Church. “Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this
world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I
should not be delivered to the Jews.” (John
18:36) I have come to firmly believe
that it is not our Lord’s Will for Christian believers to enter
into nations’ militaries.
The
military of my native land has become ever so sordid. Young Christian believer
considering entering the military, listen carefully to your Lord’s Voice, The
Man of War. “Thou therefore
endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” (II Timothy 2:3) “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye
may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil…and having done all,
to stand.” (Ephesians 6:11 &
13) I believe it is God’s Will for every Christian believer to be spiritual
warriors for our Lord.
Reader
friend, please think on what I wrote in Chapter 12. I have not
had to seek major employment since the age of 19 (from February 1965 to
date-2016). That is a tremendously blessed life.
You
well know what most people experience during their lifetime regarding
employment or being unemployed.→ (Getting
fired. Getting laid off. Daily job searching by
scanning the “Help Wanted” ads and inquiring at places that hire workers, with
heart so filled with hope that today will be the day. Submitting résumés.
Sitting idle, mentally hemorrhaging, so wishing the phone would ring and that
it would be good news of employment. Never getting that one job
highly desired. And Such.) ←You well know how much of such agony has been a part of your life.
The solution to all such
problems is for any human soul to fully submit himself
or herself to their Creator God for His Perfect Will to be done in their lives.
Then call on God to clearly guide you into daily doing
His Will. “But seek ye first
the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added
unto you.” (Matthew 6:33) That
is The Key. Put God first, along with ALL that
pertains unto Him. Then watch Him enrich your life to
a miraculously great extent.
I
profusely praise and thank my God that from February 1975, I have
been self-employed, serving my Creator God, striving to do His Will
(crucifying all other heart desires). Since February 1975, I have felt totally free, as never before in my life.
Until
Daddy released me from his dominion, I was under his strict rule. I am so
blessed to have been ruled by a Christian dad on an old
fashioned farm. But regretfully and tragically,
as a little lad I suffered unfairly and unnecessarily under that rule. To wit,
my parents poured hot castor oil into my sensitive
little tummy (tho “For external use only” was clearly written on the
bottle). Also, busy Dad hurriedly bought me a pair of
new shoes in town as I busily laboured in his field, not allowing me to try on
shoes in the store. Oh, my little tootsies suffered horrible pain for months, till I wore out that pair of “too small” shoes.
(Parents,
keep in mind that this is a book on Parenting.)
As
I clearly wrote in Chapter 12, it was a great relief to forget all my toil, and all my father’s house,
upon release from that bondage. As a university student, I was
under bondage to making passing grades to fulfill my desire to
rise up in the devil’s world. Last of all, in the military, I was under bondage
to “succeed”. It can be said that I was under bondage
to the criminal enlisted Marines who vexed me, even seeking to harm and kill
me. And I was under bondage to unjust
higher ranking officers who issued unfair and unjust commands to me. Life
has been ever so much more victorious since all such bondage ended
in mid-February 1975. Thank
Thee, Sweet Lord Jesus, for setting me free.
“If the Son
therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36)
Thank Thee, Jesus, my Victory and my All, for making me free
indeed. In accordance to Thy Divine Will for each and
every human soul presently on earth, please make them all free indeed.
You who are employed, I commend you for diligently
doing any upright labour to earn your (and
family’s) living. That is commendable in God’s Sight. He commands such in the
Bible (for souls under human masters). But most of the
workplaces in the devil’s world are far from the pleasant natural
environment God ordained that you daily live in and labour in.
For
example, poor lighting, stale and polluted (sometimes hot) air, chemicals
present, noise and such in factories (and similar places) are all most harmful
to your health.
For example, daily going to the same place of work to
do the same mundane task 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, until one retires.
For
example, a high stress factor is inherent in many jobs in the devil’s world.
For you readers who endure such torment daily, likely it is
your Creator’s Divine Will that you pass each day in a more pleasant
manner.
For
example, often taskmasters are unjust and unfair.
On a whim, the boss can act gravely cruel toward an employee. A
true account of such lodged in my mind after I digested it from a readers’
magazine. The boss of a small printing firm told an employee, “Come in early
tomorrow morning before anyone else arrives at work.”
“This
must be something big,” the employee thought, in anticipation of the early
morning private meeting with the boss.
It certainly was big.
Early the next morning, the boss bluntly told the employee that he was
eliminating the employee’s position because the boss’s wife was hounding him to
spend more extravagantly on her. “Clear out your desk now and be gone before
other employees start arriving.” (Tho not stated in the writing, likely the
boss paid him another 30-day’s pay because a 30-day “firing notice” is common.)
Reader, you are well aware of how such treatment abounds in workplaces.
If
you were self-employed running your own business with you and your family doing
all the work, that would prevent great problems caused
by having a human boss over you and worldly employees under you.
Tho it can be said that you are servant to all the
souls who pay you for your goods or services, such is far lighter servitude than
having a human taskmaster over you.
My
first jobs (measuring crop acreage, roofing, and taking the agricultural
census) involved regularly moving around to several locations. That was
refreshing.
(I
did serve the girls in the university campus-dining hall in a fixed
location, feeling like I would be happy to stay fixed there for
100 years!)
As
a Marine, not only did I serve in various locations near and far, but also my
daily routine was quite varied. “Variety is the spice
of life.” It sure helps stave off blandness. My many decades as a missionary
have been packed full of variety, various locations,
various activities and involvement with various peoples. It is indescribably
interesting and blessed and
fulfilling. I thank God for that.
My friend, do not settle for any less in life, than that which God
ordained for your life. Before He
created the universe, your Creator ordained the perfect plan for your life that
will glorify Him to the greatest extent and fulfill your heart
perfectly. The best favor you can do yourself is to call on God to crucify
your “self” and to enable you to obey Him fully. Matthew 6:33!!!
As this sleeper train goes bumping along thru the
night toward Tokyo, I lay me down to sleep in good health (having recently
turned 29) and having watched fellow Marines around me destroy much of their
precious God-given health with their sinful vices by the time they reached 29
years of age. I am most blessed to be saved by the
Blood of the Crucified One!
My Creator installed a loner’s disposition
within me. I’m not a family man. I’m
not a homebody tied to my hometown, home state or home nation. I’ve had enough of the good ol’ U.S. of A. I’ve had enough of its vain songs finding their way into my
ears. “The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.” “Honkey
Tonk all night long. Honkey Tonk, same old song.”
Belt out your sinful songs, thou sin-laden fallen Christian nation. I praise
God for making me into an adventurer always desirous to see what is over the
horizon. In this sleeper berth, with joyful anticipation I am looking forward
to much rich missionary adventure far and wide in
Japan (and even a smattering in other nations).
My
Lord clearly commanded me to fully trust in Him to supply my every need
according to His Riches in Glory. As I pen these words in late 2016, I am a
living testimony to Christ’s Faithfulness to do so. Young aspiring servant of
The High King, rest assured that He will
take care of you.
I
have striven to glorify God by not begging from human souls. Back in the early
1980’s a young Christian man in the States came to know of me and wrote to me
occasionally for a season. (I’ve never yet met him in
person.) Once in his letter he asked me, “Do you accept offerings?” His
question made me ponder if I go too far in refraining from speaking of
“support”. (Much better that I go too far in saying too little than to
beg in the Name of My Lord God Who owns it all.)
I
dedicate this life story of mine, to each
of you who pray for me and who help in any way at all. Thank you for
giving to me of your substance. I pray for our Lord to richly
repay you.
“Writer
boy, ex-Marine pilot captain turned novice missionary, this chapter was most
refreshing.”
‘Well!
Thank you! Exactly which rare and excellent writing talent
in this chapter refreshed you?’
“Brevity, man, brevity. Brevity is an excellent writing (or speaking) talent, and it does appear most rare for you.”
‘Well!
I’m speechless.’
“Excellent!
And Rare!”