Jane Cook - Stories of Faith and Courage from the War in Iraq and Afghanistan

A couple of months later my mom heard on the radio about a camp in Colorado called Modern Day Knights (now Knights of Heroes). I went to the camp. When I saw all the boys that lost their dad too, in my mind I knew that I wasn’t the only one without a dad. That week I made a lot of friends and it was cool! I was out camping in the woods and doing lots of boy things. It was more fun then going to Disney World and made me feel better to know that I wasn’t the only one. My mom and sister had fun doing girl things too. I wait all year for camp time to come again. This year will be my third year.

Lord, show me how to support those who feel forgotten.

“A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.” (Psalm 68:5)

Thirteen-year-old Haley Hartwick gave the following testimony at a Fields of Faith Rally for Fellowship of Christian Athletes in October 2008:

In December 2005, my father left for Iraq on his second tour. I didn’t realize it would be my last goodbye. On April 2, 2006, my mom, my seven-year-old brother, and I received tragic news that my dad had been killed in action while on a flight mission the day before. We were all brokenhearted. All I could do that night was cry my heart out. Friends and our church family came for comfort. I stayed locked up in my room. I was asking God why he had done such a dramatic thing to me. Why me Lord? Why such a great man? At the time it was so hard to glorify and understand the Lord, but my mom always said to praise the Lord through the good and bad. My mother was such a great role model through this time. She led us strong with encouragement.

God was testing our faith for him. When God gives you a situation you have to try your hardest to praise him and make it. A few months after his death, this wonderful organization (Snowball Express) gave us a trip to California with other Gold Star Families. I came home from the trip overwhelmed by how much God has really blessed me by having ten years of memories to cherish. I knew my dad loved me and I know my Heavenly Father up above loves me. As long as you have faith you’ll be good, because faith is like a muscle. The more you use it the stronger it gets.

I honestly believe that everything rides on hope and faith. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me if have faith, trust, and love the God almighty. I know for sure I’m going to see my dad and God someday in heaven. Are you?

Lord, grant me child-like trust and faith in you, even when life isn’t what I expected.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will not enter it.” (Mark 10:15)

Sara Horn spent her twenty-sixth birthday aboard the Navy aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman off the coast of Iraq, among 5500 sailors and Marines waiting for a declaration of war by the Commander in Chief. On Sara’s birthday, March 19, 2003, they got it.

Though her husband Cliff was in the Navy Reserves, Sara saw herself more as a journalist than a military wife. Sara’s mission during her ten-day stay on board was to find and report stories for Baptist Press. She wasn’t disappointed. She met a fighter pilot who prayed for his leaders and clothed himself with the armor of God (Ephesians 6) along with his flight gear. She even witnessed the first baptism take place on board using a joint direct attack munitions (JDAM) crate filled with water. “This is normally used to end life, but we’re using it today for the beginning of life,” the chaplain had said.

In November 2003, Sara traveled to Baghdad to cover more stories for a book she wrote with Oliver North, A Greater Freedom. There she talked with an American sniper who, six hours after recommitting his life to Christ in Baghdad, encountered fire on a mission. While taking cover behind a metal gate, Sara recalled what the soldier had told her. “He distinctly felt God tell him, You’re not safe, you need to move. So he did. When the firefight was over, he went back to that gate. The sides were riddled with large bullet holes. But where his chest had been, there were thirteen dents. He told me, ‘I put myself in a place to die but God pulled me out.’”

The trips were life-changing for Sara. “Faith is so important in life and death situations,” she said. “God is all you have sometimes. And when it comes down to it, God is all we need. That trip was a real wake-up call for me.”

It was also the beginning of Sara’s call to minister to military families, especially through the written word. In addition to A Greater Freedom, Sara has written dozens of articles for military wives and authored the book, God Strong: A Military Wife’s Spiritual Survival Guide (Zondervan, 2010).

“War serves as a reminder that we need God,” said Sara. “A lot of people have forgotten that.”

Lord, remind me how much I need you; help me depend on you alone.

“The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save.” (Zephaniah 3:17a)

When Sara’s husband Cliff was scheduled to deploy to Iraq in 2007, she realized another benefit her trips to Iraq provided.

“My experience in Iraq helped me so much to be able to share and explain things to other military wives,” said Sara. “They ask, ‘Why does he have to leave and help these other people?’ I can tell them I’ve talked to Iraqis and know how thankful they are.’”

Sara understood that she needed more than that insider perspective to get through the upcoming deployment.

“God made it very clear that I must have other women to connect to during my husband’s absence,” said Sara. But she was four hours from Cliff’s drilling base and she knew no other military wives in her town.

Before Cliff deployed, an army wife living in Nashville while her husband was deployed saw a newspaper article about Sara and contacted her. The two met for lunch.

“We had the best time talking and laughing and realizing that neither of us were crazy; we related to what we were going through,” said Sara. “We wondered, Is there someone else in Nashville who would enjoy this fellowship too?”

Within a month, Sara created a website and an email address with the intention of finding other Christian military wives in Nashville. It worked. In December 2006, ten ladies from all branches came for their first meeting and began meeting monthly. Wives of Faith was born.

Soon, other military wives across the country heard about Wives of Faith and modeled their own groups after Sara’s.

“We have ladies who contact us all the time about starting chapters,” said Sara. “I’m in the process of putting a lot of content on the website ( www.wivesoffaith.org) to help them along the way.”

Military wives have emailed Sara for help with marriage, family, and deployment struggles. “So many times all I can do is pray for them and point them in the right direction,” said Sara. “But when I walk beside another military wife, I am making a difference in ways I might not realize.”

No matter what challenges God allows us to face, we can all use those to support and encourage others in the same situation.

Lord, help me see my trials and springboards for ministry to others.

“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)