“3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 12 Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. 13 I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, 14 since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. 15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.” (2 Peter 1:3-15 ESV)

“T” minus something soon, gameday readiness, eyes on the prize: words are incorporated in due time for their power to convict, to change and amend lifestyles, to ring home, all things told. Words have the potency to bring about meshing, melding, systems locked and engaged, with—let’s face it—a better man’s, woman’s, better wishes and intentions towards us. We can resume that bleaker outlook wherein we did fast some fifteen pounds off, or wherein we stood up to be counted, to make the prophetic Service-Oriented deed early and often, to be all we were hope for.

Because in the field officer’s basic training, boot camp, mental agility met with physical outlay, it is inconceivable another decade may lie in the cards, another eternity before Gameday Readiness. Yet we are not failures, we are not laggards, we are not too sinful or forgetful of our basic training, as to go cozy and entitled. Always, we are that generation that hungered, that had winsome hunger like the wolf, that was Decent Folk, in our heart of hearts. Educated, not in prowess or entitlement, but in Duty and Service.

We need more like you! It is said, it is said with a sadder man’s insight into the way the world is going to the dogs, all the wrong folks having the ambition to Serve, as in, to serve their own hubris. All the right folks giving pause: no desire to take the apple, sir, madam. No desire to… to what? To have the maddeningly lovely and beloved Life of service, wherein whatsoever your guild is, whatsoever your peculiar gifts, your social lives, your rare breeds accumulated, collected, your variant on the theme of Life and Life More Eternal, all this is tailormade to be a garment of Praise. To be Cause to celebrate said Life. Life abundant and eternally springing forth in the mind. The mad daydream called Prayer, being almost illicit were it not couched in the sane or sagacious Reality Check: one day, yes for sure. But as for Today? Dream on, Soldier of War: the eye on the prize, the end of personal vendettas or cozy cushions; the end of spoiling our children or harassing our parents; the end of all things that distract from the six generation hence Notion called Judaism or Abrahamic, called strangely-derived Laws and Checkpoints for the generations, two generations hence, three. In this generation be sure not to do such-and-such, or be sure to do so-and-so.

The soldier’s Peace, therefore, is resented like that of the Good Jewish Folk, the Good Mohammedan Folk, the Good Etc. folk. It is a far-seeing Peace. It is a frightful walk in the clouds that… that we in fact never come down from. It having no hangover the next morning. It instructing us and entertaining us, in that prayerful Daydream, the daysprings from on high that do illuminate us. Because always we should be found in mood celebratory, around the “what if” wedding, around the marriage banquet, around the attempts—in fasted, in curtailed, in revoked or forbidden union—to make all the good consequents come about even minus the literal hearts gifted to each other, apart from the honeymoon, apart from the choice of bridesmaids and groomsmen, apart from the tedious fact of two people in fact choosing to love and to hold each other until death do us part.

The time ticking down to liftoff, is a time strangely educated, entertained, bespoken, by grand plans and far-off visions. The permission from on high, from a reluctant but dutiful sort of King or Queen, the Service wherein we like those Jews do clamor for a King, and are warned of what a King will do… but so be it, that is our History as Christian Hebraists and as other guilds or religions. It happened, and none too soon. That the daysprings from on high will comfort us and with a social butterfly’s efficacy will Reassure and Comfort us. With tales of plain Life, not of egregious lamentable Law, not of heavyhanded might-makes-right or despotism, but with some Freedom Advertised. Advertised and Owned, the intangibles, the reason we were recruited, after all: the fact each of us is a prime target for hatred and ignominious slander. It is easy to fault the stars. It is easy to forget, we fasted for a reason; we learned to stop obsessing or checking the stock ticker for a reason; we oriented our lives, because the preacher’s words do find some landing zone a few days hence. And to that Reason and Decision we adhere, because it is no boring faith prerogative but a living and Active Holy Spirit who gives all good things, not lugubrious things, not a heavy-breathing person bearing down on us, but all brightness and goodness to those who patiently wait and ask.

The sicker leagues of persons are Prime and Forefront to the soldier’s prize and fight. That more lackluster spirits invade and depress. That our glee of prayerful thought, meets reality of not much happening ‘round here, at least on the surface. But strangely, like the long standing monk or nun who of a sudden has three “dates” or romantic opportunities in one day, like the bridegroom who has put off his soldier’s garb for a celebratory Day, we See a Tomorrow brightness that makes today’s trials all the more wondrous and tolerable. Yes, let us try and “earn it” a bit. Let us try and put up with the pain, for the sake of what Joy we can find in each other’s successes and celebrations. Let the deep movements of Christ, of His Spirit, teach us and energize us, unto Tomorrow’s Parties.