How To Pray For Your Military Man..

HOW TO PRAY FOR YOUR MILITARY MAN

The Bible tells us that “The prayer of a righteous man [or woman] is powerful and effective” (James 5:16). So what are you praying for? Most, if not all of us pray for our husbands. But do you know exactly how to pray for your military man’s unique needs? I asked Chaplain (Capt.) Scott Koeman, currently in Afghanistan, for some specific things we can be praying for. Here is the insightful list he shared with me:

Pray that he would have the Peace of Christ with him — especially if he travels outside of his Forward Operating Base (FOB)

Pray that he will depend on the Love of God to keep him from bitterness at others (who needlessly make life difficult on their subordinates especially when they aren’t the most competent leader).

Pray for Protection. Psalm I25:2 “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore.”

Pray for that he will be vigilant if he is called upon to fire upon the enemy. Psalm 144:1-2 “Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. He is my loving God and my fortress my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.”

Pray that the enemy will be turned back. Psalm 40:14 “May all who seek to take my life be put to shame and confusion: may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.”

Pray that our Soldiers will be fulfilled in their jobs. Without purpose time out here is extremely long and difficult.

Pray that Soldiers/their husbands will resist lowering themselves to low levels of conversations and instead seek to be examples of goodness and righteousness.

Pray that Soldiers/husbands find “good and solid” Christian brothers to have fellowship with.

Pray for the leadership in Platoons, Companies, Battalions, Brigades ….depending on what level the Soldier/husband works. Leadership can make or break a man. They have the biggest impact.

If you're not in love with a solider you wouldn't know any of these..

          IF YOU'RE NOT IN LOVE WITH A SOLDIER

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can't know adventure. You don't

 know smelly gray PT uniforms that require a daily washing.  You can't

 understand green and brown camouflaged bags flooding your bedroom floor.

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can't understand the meaning of the

phrase "going  to the field" and the weeks you spend away from each other.

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can never imagine the hole in your

 heart when that phone call comes? "Honey, I am leaving tomorrow to go

 overseas.  I don't know how long I will be gone or exactly where I am going,

 but I want you to know that I love you - always!"

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you don't know what it's like to say

 that final good-bye. You don't know what it really means to be glued to the

 television. You don't understand fear and you can't possibly understand the

 sleepless nights of endless crying wondering if you will ever see the love

 of your life alive again.

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can't know the immense joy, the

 uncontrollable smile, or the butterflies in your stomach when you see your

 soldier march into the family waiting area upon redeployment.  You can't

 understand the self-control it takes to stand on the other side of the room

as some higher-up gives a seemingly endless welcome home speech while all

 the soldiers stand in formation. You don't know what it's like to have

that second first kiss or what it's like to experience puppy love all over.

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can't truly understand how to make

 every moment count because you never know when that phone call may come again.

 If you're not in love with a soldier, you can never really understand how

 very delicate life really is!

 

The Silent Ranks...

The Silent Ranks

I wear no uniforms,
 No blues or army greens.
But I am in the military
In the ranks rarely seen.
I have no rank upon my shoulders.
Salutes I do not give.
But the military world
Is the place where I live.

I am not in the chain of command,
Orders I do not get.
But my husband is the one who does,
this I cannot forget.
I am not the ones who fires the weapon,
who puts my life on the line.
But my job is just as tough.
I am the one that is left behind.

My husband is a patriot,
A brave, a prideful man
And the call to serve his country,
 Not all understand.
Behind the lines I see the things needed
to keep this country free.
My husband makes the sacrifice,
but so do our kids and me.

I love the man I married,
Soldiering is his life.
But I stand among the silent ranks
know as the Military Wife.

In Honor of My Husband (Joseph A. Precup)

Military Girl HandBook....

MILITARY GIRL HANDBOOK

1. Don't count on anything!

2. Don't listen to ANYONE on the outside. All you will get is negative remarks, which will make things harder for you to deal with.

3. When he becomes stubborn and a royal pain in the ass, just remind yourself he's probably had a bad day, and being away from you is hard on him too. So just let him rant and dont take it personal.

4. When youre down, treat yourself.

5. Learn how to listen if you dont know how! He will need you, you will be the one he comes to when he needs to bitch, but dont bitch back...that is what the Navy/Girlfriends/Fiancées/ Wifes are for! This is a hard time for our men and they NEED us much more than sometimes they think they do!

6. Love your Sailor be truthful, and reassure him, even if he is deployed he'll have someone to come back too!

7. He will try to pull away at some point. Whether directly telling you to move on, not wait for him or just becoming distant. It's a way they try of dealing, stick with him cause he really does want (and need) you there.

8. When he is away for a long time, or even just a couple hours away, write a lot of letters! Communication is key to a relationship.

9. Some of his friends will probably be morons - expect this.

10. You arent the only woman in his life (his mom misses and loves him too!) so make sure she is updated on what is going on with him.

11. He needs to feel important so don't hold back on the compliments - remind him how proud you are of what he does.

12. Chances are they won't call when they say they will (that especially applies for deployed!).

13. Don't buy that nonrefundable airplane ticket too early. 

14. When eating with a sailor you either finish your "chow" in 15 minutes or less or be stared at until you are finished.

15. Never take one single minute with them for granted. Live each day with them like its the last one you'll have for a while, because with the Navy, it just might be!

16. Take lots of pictures, so you can remember what each other looks like!

17. Don't even TRY to compare your Sailor to ordinary men. You can no longer bitch about broken plans, that phone call you were supposed to get but didn't, missed birthdays and anniversaries, his snoring (hey, at least he's sleeping BESIDE you), spending more time with "the boys" than you, etc., etc., etc...

18. Always look on the bright side of things. How many of your gal-pals get their first encounter, first date, first kiss from their men over and over again??

19. Gotta be able to keep up with your man. We give our Sailors a whole new meaning of PT =)

20. Even if he says he will, he probably won't. Maybe really means probably not OR probably not when he said he would (example: "I might be able to call you tomorrow" but he can't find the time to call until a week later or "I might be able to come home next month for a week"...that might turn into 2 weeks)

21. Being a Sailor's girlfriend/fiancée is the toughest job in the Navy. You have to deal with stress similar to the wives, without the promise of forever or the benefits and support they get.

22. We find ourselves using military lingo. "I'm gonna go get my room squared away", "It's chow time", or using military time

23. Patience is the biggest key to making the relationship work... you have to wait a lot but in the end, waiting is what made it all worthwhile.
(I didn't write this)

The price You Pay Loving A Seabee...

The Price You Pay for Loving a Seabee

Loving a seabee has a high price to pay.
It's an ache in your heart while he is away.
It's being alone with nothing to hold,
It's being young, yet feeling so old.

It's having him whispering his love to you.
And whispering back that you love him too.
Then comes a kiss and a promise of love,
And knowing that you have been blessed from above.

Then reluctantly, painfully, letting him go.
While your dying inside from wanting him so.
Watching him go, with eyes full of tears.
Standing alone with your hopes, dreams and fears.

It's sending a letter with the stamp upside down,
To a far away love in a far away town.
It's going to church to kneel and pray,
And really meaning the things that you say.

And all the while that he is away,
You just keep on loving him more each day.
That love will bring hope and foster your dreams,
And lift you to Heaven where his love light gleams.

Days go by and there's no mail for a spell,
You wait for some word to hear that he's well.
Then the letter arrives and your given to joy!
You're like a small child with a shiny new toy!

With fingers a-tremble and heart beating fast.
You tear open his letter and read it at last.
Yes! He is well! But he misses you so...
It's filled with the love you've wanted to know.

Weeks are now months, and months are a year.
You wait for the days when you'll have no more fear.
Time passes slowly, yet it's gone very fast,
You're barely aware it is here till it's past.

Yes loving a soldier brings bitterness and fears,
loneliness and sadness, and despondent tears.
Loving a soldier really isn't much fun,
But it's well worth the price when the battle is won.

Remember he's thinking about you every day.
He's sad and he's lonely being so far away.
So love him, and miss him, and hold your head high.
Be strong and have faith, wipe that tear from your eye.

No, he won't be the same when he finally comes home.
He'll be older and wiser than the man that you've known.
But you'll also have changed, being stronger and bolder.
That's the price that you pay for loving a sailor.

(I didn't write this)

I'm The Girl... The Military Wife

IM THE GIRL

You don't know but i'm the girl who cries every night wondering when his next return will be. 
I'm the girl who drags herself out of bed every morning so that he will be proud of me when he comes home. 
I'm the girl who lies in bed longing for him to be lying next to me. 
I'm the girl who sits queitly during class because all I can think about is that next moment when he will be safely in my arms again. 
You don't know but i'm the girl with a million things to say but not one will come out without the thought of him.
I'm the girl who checks my cell phone every five seconds to make sure I haven't missed his call or a text message. 
I'm the girl who stops and stares and wishes for him to return soon each and every time another man in uniform walks by. 
What you dont know is that I know love on an entirely different level from most.  I know the love that spans time and space. 
The love that most people are constantly searchiong for.
I'm one of the girls who waits months for a single kiss, a kiss that will make the months apart worth every second.
A kiss where everything in the world stops and for what seems like eternity, you can see into the person's soul and know that without them, life is not worth living.
You tell me i'm too young to be "so in love" I know that love has no age limit.  You tell me I don't even understand what love is, I tell you, I know more love in one homecoming than most know in a lifetime. 
You don't know that every time he leaves a part of me goes with him and part of him stays with me.
You tell me that people change and I tell you true love will always remain the same. 
You tell me i'm too young to be in a serious relationship, I tell you that i'm too in love to not be. 
You tell me you know how I feel and that you understand what i'm going through, you have no idea. 
What you don't realize is that I understand the true meaning of not only love but longing and anticipation.
You don't see but i'm one of the few who gets goose bumps as my hearts fills with pride every time the National Anthem is playing. 
I'm one of the girls who will stand tall and stay strong on the outside but be dying on the inside. 
I'm one of the girls who will make friends with complete strangers for only they can even begin to understand what I am going through. 
You don't understand that I picture his face everywhere I go and that he is with me in everything that I do. 
You think I don't cry anymore, that I have gotten over it, but what you don't know is that I just hide it better.
You don't know the feeling the first time you hear the word deployment or the feeling of his hand as it slides out of yours for what could be the last time.
You don't know what that last hug or kiss means and how important that good-bye truly is.
I'm the girl you see standing alone in the airport watching quietly out the window with tears rolling down my cheeks.
I'm the girl you see walking by with a disheartened face staring silently at the ground.
What you don;t know is that I know true love and that no matter what obstacles we have to face, our love will live forever.
You tell me you support the the men in uniform I tell you i'm in love with one.
I'm one of the silent but outgoing, weak but strong, scared but grateful.  What you don't see is that without me he is nothing and without him I am nothing.
I'm one of those girls. the girl who stands tall behind her soldier, behind her hero, stands strong behind her man, watching silently as he serves and defends our country.

"Friends Forever"

Forever Friends

Sometimes in life,
you find a special friend;
Someone who changes your life
just by being part of it.
Someone who makes you laugh
until you can't stop;
Someone who makes you believe
that there really is good in the world.
Someone who convinces you
that there really is an unlocked door
just waiting for you to open it.

From the bottom of my heart 

I thank you all for being my friends

I love you all

By: Natalie Precup