Friends, I would like to take this opportunity to convey a few
words of thought to you, and become reaquainted with the group
that God led me to organize over three years ago.
Although I made the choice to withdraw a few years ago due
to personal reasons God has brought me back to it. Chappy asked
me several times in the past to return, and do my part. Upon careful
consideration and prayer the decision for me to return as your
temporary Chaplain came about.
Many of you remember back in the days at CSAFB, Oklahoma I
was not a model christian. I knew God and had accepted HIM back
in my younger years, but as time went on I drifted away. It was not
until after the birth of my oldest son that I made the choice to start
attending base chapel on Sunday. In that capacity I was not all that
active, but as the years went quickly by, I would attend church on
occasions, but I knew something was definitely missing in my
spiritual life.
This went of for years, I tried different donominations but kept
leaning toward the pentecostal faith I knew as a small boy. All those
years I kept relying on my earlier teachings and what I learned in a
little old country church near Snook,Texas. I accepted Jesus Christ
before I was a teenager, and at about the age of thirteen I was called
to minister the gospel.
As we know....Satan can plague us with doubt and fear "if " we
let him. He worked on me ...whispering to me that I didn't know
enough, that at the time I had a speech problem and would not make
a successful minister. Instead of standing on the word of God I
drifted away and chose not to preach. After a failed marriage, I
stopped attending church, and blamed God for all the misfortune in
my life. All the while I still knew what was missing. As we grow older
we become wiser, and at the same time God never gave up on me.
There were many nights I would wake up in the middle of the night
from a deep sleep, with my heart pounding and in a cold sweat. I
begin to have dreams of death and the one thing that really stood out...
I knew I was not prepared for eternity. To make a long story short one
night I cried out to God in my lonely bedroom and I told him that I was
sorry for running away and for all the things I have done over the years,
and I asked HIM to take me back into HIS fold if HE would still have me.
For the first time in many years a "calmness and serenity" enveloped me.
He gave me peace, and I knew I was a child of God again.
I started searching for a good Bible based church, and I found it once
I retired from law enforcement and returned home to the area I grew up.
Yes, you probably guessed it....one Sunday morning I attended services
at the little old Assembly of God Church at Snook,Texas and they haven't
managed to get rid of me since.
I became active in many faucets of this church to include leading the
boys Royal Rangers which is a lot like the Boy Scouts, except its geared
toward worshipping God.
Once again God got hold of me in my bedroom one night....during my
devotional time, and HE reminded me of a few things. First, that I had
left HIM, that HE never left me. Also, that HE protected me all those years
as a law enforcement officer, but now....I have returned home where it all
started. Now HE wanted me to finish the job, to work for HIM and bring
other souls to Christ. I have accepted the challenge this time and told
Satan I belong to God, and would work the remainder of my life to win
other souls. I am a layman minister, and someday even at this old age,
hope to enter the fulltime realm ministering the gospel to those in need.
This late in life God has made me realize that HE has brought me
through many things. He also, has brought to my attention that I still
have a job to do that was left unfinished. That job is to serve HIM and
minister HIS word. Our time is short, and Jesus Christ is coming soon.
I welcome this challenge of being your chaplain for as long as God
allows it. I have a wonderful wife who supports my ministry and we plan
on living the rest of our lives doing God's will. I hope that we will get
around to meeting all of you soon, and I have agreed to start writing a
devotional column for the newsletter from time to time. There is so much
more to tell you, but due to limited space we may have to continue in
segments. I hope you will enjoy the articles prepared for your reading
pleasure. If Doris and I can be of assistance to you in any way please
do not hesitate to contact us. May God bless each and everyone of you.
Tom Lewis