This week I read Acts 5 during my devotional reading. It was a bit convicting to read about the apostles who defied the rulers of their day when they were ordered to preach no longer in the name of Jesus. The apostles decided to obey God rather than man.
I, too, am under a gag order of sorts. As a military officer, especially as a battalion commander, I am prohibited from proselytizing. According to regulations, I cannot freely preach the gospel in my professional context. I can make it clear that I am a Christian and I can live according to Biblical principles. I am fairly safe to answer questions about my faith. Even my chaplain is not allowed to proselytize except in the context of a religious service for his specific faith group.
Sometimes I struggle with this. Should I be more forward about sharing the gospel and risk censure, or even losing my leadership position? Or should I abide by the regulations to protect my position because I can still open about what my beliefs are without actually "preaching" or "witnessing"? Obviously I am not going to be completely quiet about my faith and I am going to live according to Biblical morals. But I want to do more and I wonder how much I can get away with, or even how much I should try to get away with.
For now I have been trying to be content with just being clear where I stand. I look for opportunities to share more when talk sometimes turns to the spiritual. It gets tiring dancing around on the edge of regulations. Maybe that is why I am interested in retiring and going into Christian ministry.
There is coming a time, my friend, when we will let loose the Spirit through the Word and many will come to drink.
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