I’ve been reading a book by Stephen Mansfield called “Faith of the American Soldier,” and in spite of all the theological arguments that exist, the soldier on the battlefield takes comfort in knowing that God is with him. In the book is an episode a chaplain has with a driver about to convoy on one of the most dangerous roads in Baghdad, Route Ireland. The chaplain asked the young soldier, “How can I minister to you?” What the soldier said has become for some the soldier’s prayer: “What do I want? Sir, I wanna’ know that Jesus is in my Humvee.”
Another chaplain said that his favorite name for God, and one he teaches his soldiers, is “Emmanuel—God with us.” It is a common confession among soldiers, “I want to live, but I want to be ready when I die even more.” With society changing in ways that is leaving the institutional religious construct in the proverbial dust, it is imperative that we translate GOD WITH US to our families, our friends, and with whomever we find ourselves. Will you be ready? The best strategy to for evangelism of millennials is to make the Truth relevant and make the Truth REAL. We must first demonstrate the practical application of Truth before our words can make a practical application to others. Do you know Immanuel?