Since June 7^th I have been deployed to Iraq.  With the deployment comes many long days and long hours as well as heartaches and hardships.  As we arrived in June the temperatures were reaching in the upper 110 to 115 and as the summer months approach it will start to reach temperatures of up to 140 degrees.  With our tour being 12 – 15 months we have along road ahead of us yet one that can be exciting due to how the Lord will use me in his service.  Being a Soldier not only allows me access to many places it allows access to reach numerous soldiers with the Gospel of Christ.  As I go through my daily tasks of maintenance and meetings I am able to be a witness to soldiers.  On Wed 23 July 08 we will start our first Bible Study.  The Battalion Chaplain has asked me to help him teach the Bible Studies so I am excited about the opportunity to give the soldiers the word of God from the King James Bible.  As with a lot of Chaplains our Chaplain doesn’t use the KJV so I have an opportunity to share the truth when I teach.  I have had quite a few soldiers ask me when we are going to start Bible Studies so now I just have to help get the word out of when the Bible Study is to be held.  What a blessing to have an opportunity to share the Gospel in a Combat Zone.

While we have been here we have had a few mortar attacks but no one was injured.  While deployed to remote locations in Iraq I have an opportunity to be able to see some of our biblical history first hand.  Here in Al Nasiriya and Camp Adder, Iraq is the Ziggurat of Ur just outside of the main perimeter wire.  The Ziggurat was built an estimated 4000 years ago as a temple to sin against God.  Ur is the city where Abraham started his journeys from in Gen 15:7.  As I deploy with the Army God just throws in little blessings of history as I go.  As I have been here I received an Email from Bro Tyler Ryberg.  At one of his meetings he met a man who has a step son stationed here in Tallil, Iraq, so Bro Ryberg emailed me and asked if I would be able to contact this young man.  Through Gods intervention I was able to get in touch with this young man and talk to him.  He had been discouraged and backslidden from God so I was able to talk with him and I invited him to church service on Sunday.  Well praise the Lord he came on Sunday to church and is interested in the Bible Studies that we will be holding.  What a joy to be able to reach a Soldier that has not been to church since he has been here and see him come to church service.  God truly does Bless even though we look at the situation as a hardship.  I am glad that God can use me for his service.  Please pray for the safety of our Soldiers as they drive up and down these roads and that I will be able to be an encouragement through Bible Studies and person walk.    Also pray for this young man Wesley Enderle as I will have an opportunity to be an encouragement to him while he is here.