A while ago my co-confirmation teacher, Michael said, “One of the kids came up to me and said, ‘I’m confirmed. Now what?’”

It took a while, but I saw a pendant online. The pendant was based on Ephesians 6: 11 – 17 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take
your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the
powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the
day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.’ The pendant had a picture of a Roman soldier on it, in full armor. It got me to thinking about the “Now what?” With the approval from the Education and Youth Committees and the Church Council, I will be starting a group called “Miles Christi Sum” (Miles Christi Sum is Latin for, “I am Christ’s soldier.”) for Immanuel’s youth. We will roll this program out to our confirmation and high school students.

I have never been in the military, but I know that in the military there are two key components. The first component is training. Those who want to become Christ’s soldiers will train and make a commitment. They will promise to always wear or carry the pendant. They will pray and read a devotion every day. They will attend church, commune, attend Sunday school, and youth groups, not occasionally but regularly. They will arm themselves with God’s Word and train themselves to do battle against the forces of evil.

The second component is mission. The mission for Christ’s soldier is one of service. To volunteer time at church. To work on fall and spring clean ups. To assist during Sunday school and VBS. To help with meals at church and to usher, read lessons, and/or sing with the praise team. It means the soldier will never bully anyone and will offer friendship to those who are bullied and/or are alone. If the soldier sees a neighbor mowing the lawn or shoveling the snow, the soldier will help. The soldier will return a shopping cart for an elderly person or a mom or dad with little kids. The solider will go out of his/her way to live a Christ-like life of service.

To be Christ’s soldier is not for everyone. To be Christ’s soldier means that you know you need to continue to grow in the faith and that you want to serve and care for others. So, take a moment to talk to your children, your grandchildren, your nieces or nephews about the importance of being Christ’s soldier.

Veritas - Curt