Why Did God Choose Me To Be A Foot Soldier?

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.”

— Ephesians 6:12

“but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;”

— 1 Peter 3:15

Let me introduce myself. My name is John. I am quickly approaching sixty-nine years old. I am a twelve year United States Navy veteran and a retired software engineer. More importantly than that, I am a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although I do not possess a degree in theology (thought about going to seminary but didn't), I have spent many years studying God's word and sat under a few Bible Institute classes by Dr. John Whitcomb. Additionally I spent well over a year with several other men studying Wayne Grudem's "Introduction to Systematic Theology." This is my first ever blog.

I cannot understand “why me?" Sometime in the 1990’s God made me a foot soldier in defending the faith. Why did He choose me? Why not someone else who was well churched and more knowledgeable than me as a result. I was not well churched. I was raised in Roman Catholicism and never went to church as a teenager. I spent lots of time at sea in the Navy, followed by four very intensive years studying engineering. Even though I was not well churched I knew what I believed. I spent many hours reading the Bible. I knew nothing about Calvinism or Arminianism. All I knew is what the Bible taught about God, that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. I came to faith in Christ in 1973 (I was 20) and was baptized in a Baptist Church in Groton, Connecticut.

It all started with a guy named Steve. We worked together and ate lunch together. One day at lunch he asked me if I was baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. I told him that I was baptized as a new believer in a Baptist church. That was not good enough. I needed to come to his church and be baptized the right way - to contact the blood of Christ in the water where my sins will be forgiven, then I will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. I thought I already received the Holy Spirit the day I came to faith in Christ in 1973. Thus I was cast into the battle (baptismal regeneration) - for the next five years! I found out that I was a Calvinist (such a horrible thing to be - just kidding). I thought I was a Christian. I also found out from Steve that I can lose my salvation. Meanwhile the cults started coming at me - Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses - some at work, several at my front door. I was being confronted with falsehood from several directions!

I could have ignored all of it and gone on with my life like most normal people would do, but I admit, I am not, nor have I ever been, normal. Normal people do not volunteer to live in an iron tube called a submarine that spends weeks on end several hundred feet below the surface of the ocean where there is a Cold War enemy just waiting for the orders to destroy you.

I spent many late nights digging deep into God’s word. I have authored papers on salvation and eternal security. I became deeply convicted that there is only one God consisting of three eternal and co-equal persons: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. I spent lots of time on the phone with my ex-Mormon spiritual parents: Dan and Agusta Harting. Dan is at home with the Lord now. I still call Agusta my spiritual mother. They gave me plenty of material on the cults and taught me a lot.

I was then thrust into several other battles: creation vs. evolution, King James Version (KJV) only, must prove you are saved by speaking in tongues, Jesus did not come in the flesh yet somehow died for our sins (uh!), women must wear head coverings in church, conditional vs unconditional election, and several others.

I have a little pocket New International Version (NIV) Bible that I carried around at work. There was this guy that I was witnessing to on and off for several months over lunch. I shared various scriptures with him from my NIV. You could see in his eyes that he was becoming convicted. One fateful day a Christian coworker sat down at the table with us. He watched as I shared more scriptures. He then asked if he could see my Bible. I handed it over. He said, “this is not God’s word.” I thought he was joking. He was dead serious. “The only version that God authorized is the King James.” I was in disbelief! The guy I witnessed to got up and walked away. We never talked again. I went home that day angry and in utter shock. I could not sleep. I prayed that God would use what I shared to bring the guy I witnessed to to faith in Christ.

I am about ready to retire from the fight. My mind is tired, and I have concluded that many well churched people that I know are infants - they can only drink milk, and not eat meat. I have done all I could under the grace of God to teach truth from the scriptures. With the exception of a very few, it is falling on deaf ears. But it is not my job to change hearts and minds - only God can do that. It is my task to accurately and lovingly teach others the many amazing truths from God’s word. I should step back from the fight for a little while, get refreshed, then let God lead me into the next fight, if He so desires.

Getting back to my original question: why did God choose me and not someone else? Why

did God choose Moses and not someone else to lead His people out of slavery?

Answer: I do not know.

I am just humbly blessed that He did!

John Gandiello