“12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 14 Do all things without grumbling or disputing, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.” (Php 2:12–18 ESV)

Tempest in a tea cup suddenly writ large: our personal quagmire, battles, principled Objections, meet with those precious souls a little lacking in the self-confidence needed to pick up the phone, strangely Enabled though pleading delicacy, a delicacy admired but that should somewhat Disqualify from rough-and-tumble Headship. And we… we hardy souls are Entering, in inventive and ramshackle fashion, unscripted fashion, imperfect strategy, Entering a Tomorrow War.

This is a war that, whether winner or loser, we cannot throw in the towel ever, but must be Responsible to the Mission. We must be Responsible not to go wasteland, not to go scorched earth, not to go Ruinous exit strategy. So in the end, the Soldier in his or her Composure Personal, is a winner most sincere.

Christianity in history was an attempt to speak sadly of what Christ might have accomplished had not Judas betrayed Him. We, too, see christs in our recent history, and the doctor cannot easily summons up a new one except on some lengthy frame of time, a millennia, etc. Because then the pinions are seen, and an Enemy destroys the Possibility.

The goal of the soldier’s philosophy is not to go Fright Factor or Blunted aspects, not to Worry because our theoreticals are too Bold. Literally, we are Tempted and Threatened, even, in our own headspace, not to go down said route or such-and-so Boldness, Composure, Confidence. But we must entice the soul to be Headstrong and Inventive, evoking Life into a sterile petri dish, emitting Future Promise into a community, evoking Heavenly Citizenship into a church.

Christ Died. Whether He rose again, is called by the Apostle to the Gentiles, the key crux of our Faith: if Christ be not raised, we are most of all to be pitied, are still in our sins. But His Resurrection Strength is Received as a lived Encounter, not a down-pat yawn factor, too familiar and pedantic, too repeated, too cliche. Each of us can go the Unbored route, the unfamiliar extent, the zany life-affirming Creedal.

More, to the sick-bed, to the rested, suddenly life seems aged, compromised, weak, regrettable. Our decisions, they can cease to seem Eternal. Our mindset, it can cease to feel Expansive. Only too, we have a Cradle to dwell in, a Bosom to cling to, a Safe Place to live and breathe and thrive in. One Christian Deed, is all we are called to evince. And said Deed, it will sprout wings and bear fruit and soar. Because what the Atheist has right, is that Judgment will be efficient and severe, few being the number of those Saved, and harsh the justice meted out to unrepented-of sins. Nothing we’ve banked on, saved up, will Prevent the Judge from swooping in a convicting of sin. Each of us This Day is called to accept anew, that Christ knew our sins were more than we could handle, and Christ ended our hapless reliance on good deeds past. Christ really meant it when He said salvation was through Him alone. That He and the Father were One. That He was the door to the sheepfold. That He was a message from the Beyond, at a time when society was ripe to hear it, of a Teaching that could surpass the millennia. And we joke, we adore and hold up our favorite Exemplars of this Christ, but the truth is: no fear of immodesty, just of His claim that where two or three are gathered, He is in the midst. We all can be Christ to each other. We all can… and this Begins with the end to the shunned sins, and the beginning of the Mercy as Received, whether by us or by our worst Foe.

Take up the Gauntlet, O sinner! Whether victor or loser, there are always more battles to fight, and you must be Responsible in any case, to man the helm and labor in the vineyard, never to go mute and plead the loser’s mantle. If a loser today, then do your Good Works nonetheless, and you may be the Winner Tomorrow.