Americans should pray about war, ministers say

Editorís note: This is part of a continuing series about the stories and issues facing our local communities with regard to war and terrorism.
By Barbara Brown
As leaders of churches in the area, ministers around North Branch have taken the task of guiding their congregations through the theological troubled waters of wartime.
While many of the ministers understand their role is to comfort and give guidance to people during troubled times, they can understand the need for military action in some situations like that in Iraq today.
They also understand the power of prayer.
Justin Lefto, youth minister and now pastor at North Branch United Methodist Church, had to take the reins a couple months ago when head minister Chris Kneen was called to duty for the Navy Reserve.
The Navy still has Kneen stationed stateside, Lefto said, and he ministers to soldiers who are set to be deployed.
Kneen has asked church members to collect recreational reading materials, including novels, among other distractions to give troops a short escape from the pressures of being called up if they need it.
The church also collected and sent $800 to Kneen so he can buy birthday cards and cakes for soldiers who cannot celebrate with their families.
ìHis job there is to just focus on the people and ministering to them so they fell better.î
Another church member, Penny Keithley Foster, also has been called up to serve and was moved to Kuwait for duty recently. Two other members were on the verge of being called up including the church custodian.
Of the average 411 in attendance at worship services, that ratio seems high, but the United Methodists arenít the only ones who have a close connection with the war across the sea.
Five members of Neil Bonkoskiís congregation at Harris Evangelical Covenant Church are directly connected, either by children or grandchildren, with the war.
When Bonkoski found out one of the congregants at the church was being called up to Georgia for active duty, the church held an emergency prayer meeting.
ìHe was just married last fall and we prayed over him and his wife that he would return soon and safe.î
Harris Covenant has about 90 people on an average Sunday.
At First Baptist Church in Stacy, a 50-member congregation, Pastor Jerry Maart said two soldiers have received marching orders.
One member is in the Air Force as a jet mechanic and already has spent three years in the service.
A second member will be married in two weeks and expects to be sent in June to a U.S. base for training and then deployed to Afghanistan.
At least two of the 300 congregants at Abundant Life Church in North Branch face being called to duty. Former minister at Abundant Life Jerry Maulke and parishioner Aaron Staver both are in the National Guard and will be sent to Bosnia this summer for a continuing peace-keeping tour.
Stand up for whatís right
The ministers interviewed for this story agreed that no one in the world really wants a war to take lives of soldiers and civilians alike, but the time has come when taking down a tyrannical leader has made war necessary.
The first Sunday after the war started, Leftoís sermon focused on dealing with difficult times. He played an audio tape of Kneen addressing the congregants and explaining what was happening.
Last week the church saw a Marine video and prayed for the soldiers.
ìWe pray for the people,î Lefto said. ìNot necessarily the United States as being just and strong.
ìOn the whole, we would rather come across as a body who is in support of people.
ìPray that God will move in such a way that they will see Him.î
Maart said that his congregation has several veterans as members.
Maart said his first sermon after the start of the war was an ìemotional timeî for the entire congregation.
ìWe talked about the Iraqi people and how they are not the issue. Itís the regime who controls the people,î Maart said.
He said the group prays not only for the servicemen and for President George W. Bush, but also for the Iraqi people.
ìI know God has His sovereign plan in this but that doesnít mean we sit idly by and let the forces of evil take over.
ìI tell our people that as wicked and ungodly as Saddam is, I tell them Jesus died for him, too.
ìIf we donít pray that they will be saved, we are missing the grace of God.î
Maart said there is no quick and easy answer to a question that plagues most in tumultuous times.
Why?
ìGod is in control,î Maart said. ìSometimes we donít know why. The only thing you really know is God doesnít make mistakes.î
Bonkoski said he thinks his congregation agrees with him that the way to approach the situation is through prayer and trust that God will retain his control over circumstances.
Bonkoskiís sermon after the war focused on giving up stress and concern to God as it focused on Psalm 23: ìThe Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want ... î
ìNobody likes war,î he said, ìbut we support the government God has put over us and pray that peace will come quickly.î
He said he encourages his parishioners to pray for President Bush and the troops.
Bonkoski said he thinks the people are very supportive of the war effort, even if they donít fully understand the issues.
ìI donít think any of us really understands the full scope of what is going on,î he added.
ìThere are times when we have to stand up for whatís right,î Bonkoski said. ìWe canít let a tyrant overrun the world. It is important for us to do with passion the things God is calling us to do.
ìGod raises leaders up to their positions and sometimes they need to be taken out. I see this as the U.S. standing up against evil.î
Bonkoski encourages his congregants to not only pray for the safety of the soldiers and insight to the President, but also for the quick arrival and dispersal of humanitarian aid to the Iraqi people.
He also said he encourages the congregation to pray for the Iraqi people, regardless of whether they agree with the war.
At Abundant Life Church, Haseltine said he finds himself making an effort to address the war as a minister through biblical teachings without bringing politics into his sermons.
Three weeks ago, he said he did a sermon on the situation that was reaching the breaking point in Iraq.
He said he tried to address the situation with the church before the first bullet was fired, but he tries not to force his opinions of the war on anyone else.
ìI am against being anti-war just for the purpose of being anti-war,î Haseltine said. ìI donít want war, but sometimes we need to stand up for whatís right.î
Haseltine said the United States has earned its reputation as the police officer of the world and he likened the international scene to a city police beat.
ìWhether we are supposed to be there or not, I donít know. I donít think any of us has enough information.
ìWe are for freedom,î Haseltine said of the U.S. ìWe allow people to stand up and say what they want or bash our government, we send money all over the world. I think we have a responsibility to address the situation as a safety to the world.î
Haseltine said it may be hard, but Americans need to trust the president and trust the intelligence of the United States that we need to do something for liberation of the Iraqi people.
ìPray for the leaders of the world, especially this country. Pray for a low loss of life and that God will move and bring a quick end to this,î Haseltine said.
ìBiblically there is a right and there is a wrong. God loves the Iraqi people as much as he loves us, but you just canít wish (Saddam) to go away.î

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