Depending On GOD

Envision God allowing you to go through four seasons (SUMMER, WINTER, SPRING, and FALL) with each season bringing its own storms, test, and trials. I truly made some intense memories particularly within my initial 3 months in San Diego. Within the first month, I had to evacuate my apartment due to being surrounded by the California fires. And, I did not know anybody in San Diego. I volunteered to head up my unit’s control center, while sleeping in the building for ten days in a row. I prayed consistently for God to reassign me back to Virginia while battling the spirit of depression. God heard my prayer, but what was God’s disposition? He terminated the contract to build my ship. The outcome; I was without a JOB (valid billet to fill) and simply waiting on a miracle to get operational. In this brief delay, I was given downtime and began attending worship services consistently.

Thanks be to God, I was baptized on January 20, 2008. Not only was I baptized, I was filled with the Holy Spirit, with the evidence of speaking in tongues! As a result of being filled with the Holy Spirit, what happened? God shifted me. He became number one in my life and I began learning balance. No, my journey has not been a walk in the park, but God said, “He would never put no more on me than I could bear.” However, I have learned to fight to maintain that which God put on the inside of me. A few months after receiving the Holy Spirit, God elevated me to Master Chief Petty Officer, the highest enlisted pay grade in the United States Navy. I was then sent to Newport, Rhode Island for ship driving school. This was part of the Navy’s test case program to permit enlisted members into this officer’s only course. I completed the six weeks of intense training riding on God's coat tail.

Conversely, I did not receive my certification as a ship driver. My grades were above 95%, but my simulator scores were below failing. This test was hard, yet I took the approach of thinking this test was designed for me to fail. I had never failed anything in my life. I felt humiliated as I sat through the graduation. Yet, I saw the hand of God in all of this, as He taught me a lesson firsthand on humility. 1 Peter 5:6 says, "Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time." I learned a lot about me and tons about God’s plans for my life. The last 35 days of the course, I was on a fast with a 4:00 am prayer time. My relationship with God went to another level, not to mention my trust and faith level. To God be the glory for the things He is doing!