August 22, 2025

 “I didn’t even know anybody lived in Rhode Island…”

Was what I said to my wife Shana just after we saw each other for the first time in a month---the longest we had been apart since we adopted our daughter from Uganda in 2016 and had to complete the process in global shifts. She looked at me like the doofus that I am, and we embraced more genuinely than we had in years.

This reunion in our country’s smallest state, little did we know, became an incredible second honeymoon of sorts, reminding us of the first one we had nearly 20 years before in San Francisco. We left our hearts there that time, but Shana would have to leave hers behind again, saying goodbye to me after only 3 days together so I could continue to train as a Navy Chaplain for another 7 weeks.

Keep the Faith

There is a romanticism associated with a spouse leaving another behind to serve the country. We read about this in books, see it in movies, hear loves songs about it…but when you actually live it…it doesn’t feel that way. It’s painful, it’s hard. And when my wife had to say goodbye not only to her best friend, but to seven more weeks of single parenting without a helpmate, those feelings were large and powerful and real.

My grandfather was a man of faith, who modeled Jesus Christ in all aspects of his life, but mostly in his unshakable belief that in the hard times, leaning into your faith is the thing that gets you through. He would always say to my mother: “Keep the faith.” And my mother always said that to me, and now I say it to my kids. Because it’s more than a saying: it’s the hymn of a person who can see the bigger picture because God is painting it for them. And our God is not a Bob Ross with a goofy haircut giving us a Masterclass on how to do it; He’s THE MASTER, and HE'S DOING IT FOR US.

Shana embodied that faith EVERY MINUTE of the 3 months I was gone, believing whole heartedly that God was with her. When I think about her now and the faith that she had, Psalm 40:1-3 cries out in a way it never has:

I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. 2He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. 3He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him.

There Is Always More Than One Hero

The above is a picture of a mother taking 3 crazy children on vacation by herself; looking happy; making the best of it. She stepped up, never complained, and always made it about me and what I was doing---never making me feel bad for being away.

She later told me Samantha Ebert's song "Flowers" was her “new song” (*see the Psalm above), getting her through some of the dark times, with lyrics that are richly influenced by the Word of God. The Chorus goes:

'Cause you're a good God with a real good plan

And you hold my world in a watering can

So I can have peace - 'cause flowers grow in the valley

{“Even when the way goes through Death Valley, I’m not afraid when you walk at my side. Your trusty shepherd’s crook makes me feel secure} – Psalm 23 (MSG)

So many times, the Service Member is called the “Hero.” But I was reminded recently in a speech by Admiral Carey Cash of the United States Navy and Chaplain of the Marine Core, that the spouse must be included in that praise. He mentions in his book, A Table in the Presence, that during his deployment to Iraq:

“He was walking with me in a hostile desert, upholding me as I ministered to Marines on the threshold of battle. And He was walking with her within our busy home, sustaining her as she raised our five children, strengthening her as she encouraged other military wives.”

The partnership of the Service Member and spouse is symbiotic…

A Final Word

In closing, we serve a God who is with us in everything, and wants us to be joyful in all circumstances…

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”

…WHICH CAN BE VERY HARD TO DO.

But I suppose a God who prepares a banquet table for us while we are behind enemy lines, and a God who grows flowers for us in dark valleys is worthy of that kind of trust.

What an awesome God we serve!

Darin Hudson

Ross Worship and Programming Pastor

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