Hey guys, would love for you to meet my friend Sara . Her story is a true example on what happens when we not only submit too God but let go and let Him take control!! Another example of allowing Christ to be UNLIMITED in your life!!
God,
ROTC, and Me
By
Sara Wagner
I’m not sure if it’s the “yes
ma’am’s” or the firm hand shakes, but I have been asked multiple times on
different occasions if I would ever consider going into the military. The truth
is, I never did. My sister was in the Army for six years and did one tour in
Iraq and another tour in Afghanistan. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely respect
all soldiers and every thing they do, but I just didn’t think that life was for
me. Well, we all know God has His own way of directing our lives.
I needed some way to pay for college
and the college I wanted to attend was by no means cheap. So, I was talking
with a friend who told me about a military scholarship that not only pays for
all four years tuition, but academic fees, book fees, and a $300 monthly
stipend. This is a national scholarship so I never thought I could get it, but
I decided to go ahead and just see what happens. This is for the Army ROTC by
the way.
Well, turns out, after hours upon
hours of filling out this lengthy application and all the interviews and
physical tests, I got it! I wasn’t quite sure how to take this at first. On one
hand, all of my schooling was taken care of in one foul swoop, but on the other
hand I was saying yes to going into the Army. Something I forgot to mention
about the stipulations of this scholarship; after I graduate college, I have
four years of active duty, and then the choice of either four more years of
active duty or eight years of reserve duty. An eight to twelve year commitment
to a profession I seemed to stumble upon was a little daunting to me. One more
thing, the scholarship was specifically to a school other than the one I wanted
to attend. That school was also nationally ranked number six as a party school.
So, needless to say, I was very conflicted in my decision-making. This means it
is time to get serious and pray. Any battle will be won if fought on your knees
in surrender to the Lord who is ultimately in total control of all affairs.
After all, as long as Moses kept his arms raised towards Heaven in praise and
worship, the battle fell in their favor.
There was one loophole in this
military scholarship; if I wanted to have the scholarship sent to another school,
I could fill out a transfer request. I did my homework and called the military
officers from both schools asking about the possibility of getting the transfer
request approved. The men from both schools essentially told me to go for it
and hope to get lucky, but not to get my hopes up. One officer told me that he
had been doing his job for many years and very rarely saw any transfer request
be approved. I filled it out and sent it in knowing that whatever the outcome,
God would have His way.
Something incredible happened
between the time period of submitting that transfer request and hearing back
from the Army. God revealed His calling for me in my life! What is it, you say?
He made me to be His missionary! Could you believe it, in the midst of all this
military stuff God shows me I’m going to be living as a permanent missionary
somewhere to serve! With this I said, “yes Lord.” To me this meant closing all
doors to the military rout. I was still unsure about how I was going to pay for
college, but I knew that following Jesus was far better than trying to figure
out my own way.
As far as the scholarship goes (you’re
not going to believe this), I got it! That’s right, my transfer request was
approved. The scholarship went from a four-year full ride to a three-year full
ride. And the school it got transferred to decided they would cover my tuition
for that first un-paid year as a thank you for my commitment to the armed
services. However, due to God’s call on my life, I did what I thought He wanted
me to do. I declined the scholarship. The conditions they gave me were to
respond back to them within fifteen days, otherwise the status of my
scholarship would become “inactive.” It was the beginning of May when I
received this notice.
All of May went by, and June and
July followed suit. There was no more talk about going into the Army and I still
sat idle wondering how God was going to pay for my education. One weekend, two
weeks before I was to leave for college, I went school shopping with a friend
in a neighboring town an hour and a half away. Upon my trip back home at one
o’clock in the morning by myself, I decided I wanted to pray while driving
home. At first I turned the radio on as an alert mechanism to keep me awake on
the road. But as soon as I turned the radio on, I had this desire to pray. So I
turned the radio off and began to talk with God. Soon enough I was pouring my
heart out to my Father and weeping uncontrollably with a renewed sense of
gratitude that He had given me. One area I talked to God about was college and
how to pay for it. In honest confession I admitted my lack of trust in Him to
provide the money I needed and the fear I kept inside. I must say that had to
be one of the most intimate moments I have ever had with my Lord.
The first thing I did when I got
home was tell my father what had happened to me on the ride home. Afterwards,
to my amazement, he said, “so did mommy tell you about he Sargent calling to
talk to you”. “No?” I said. “Well he called and talked to your mother and I and
wanted to know if you were still interested in taking the scholarship in the
fall.” Huh? “Dad, what are you talking about? That’s been long gone; the
scholarship has been inactive for a while now. I can’t do it anymore, even if I
wanted to. I’m going to be a missionary, remember?” “He said there was still
time and if you wanted to, you could go through with it.” This floored me, but
what my father said next are some words I will always carry with me. “You know
Sara, what better way to learn how to survive in a foreign land than in the US
Army.” I didn’t know what to say. I thought by turning down the scholarship I
was doing God’s will and following His path for me. The problem was I had
assumed that’s what He wanted me to do. I never actually felt Him close the
door on the Army ROTC program, and I never heard Him tell me to walk away from it,
I just assumed.
The truth is, I had been thinking
about the Army and how nice it would be do have that scholarship all week, but
each time I thought that, I would just pray and remind myself God is my
provider and it is far better to follow Him than anyone or anything else. I
received this news on a Thursday night, so from that day throughout the whole
weekend, my family and I were in constant prayer over what He wanted done with
my life. My father’s words kept coming back to me, and Sunday night I announced
to my parents that I felt God’s peace in taking this scholarship. My dad said,
“good, I feel peaceful about it too.” To me this was a confirmation because at
the beginning of this journey, my dad did not want me to go into the Army. You
see, my sister was in the Army and did great things, we were all very proud of
her, but while in Afghanistan, her husband was killed. This really seemed to
wreck her life and all her plans she had with her husband. I guess my dad
didn’t want another daughter to face that same plight. But when he told me he
felt God’s peace about this decision, it gave me even more peace in my spirit
about stepping out and following God in this.
So now I attend Liberty
University and am currently in their Army ROTC program. My testimony is not
about getting an amazing scholarship, it is about God being the Grand Weaver in
my story; it’s about Him proving Himself to be the Author and Finisher of my
story and yours. Because God was so faithful to do this for me, you should find
courage in that He will do it for you as well.
