Summoned: Esther - Megan Brown

Today on Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman what we can learn from a woman named Esther. I feel like, what, when the need to do is to be still long enough to sit hear God speaking his word through the ardent study of his Scripture and I feel like women are so sadly missing not because they're so busy chasing a job or role or a checklist that they miss Christ himself. Welcome to building a relationship with Dr. Gary Chapman, author of the New York Times bestseller "The 5 Love Languages" are gas today believe that he is an Old Testament book of the Bible speak into the issues of women and men in today's world, author and speaker Megan Brown will join a resource to the big book someone answering the coldly impossible study of Esther 55 lovely Jews.com.

You know little bit about power of studying the Bible and how that can influence real hard change people you seen that happen in lives through the years. 2 cohorts of others, but also small group studies personal study certainly nothing wrong with that always encourage people to study the Bible, personable, small group, things where you hear other people's response to the Scriptures and how they've applied to their life and that sort of thing really does him and I don't know anything really more powerful and not having changing things in your life that need to be changed, then studying the Scriptures because Scriptures cover everything. And as you study the Scriptures and discuss it and think about it in the house. Apply you're going to say that you know and and then if you talk to God goes in the Bible God stalking us and then were talking to him in prayer and asking God to make those things real in our lives. Yeah, I'm excited about anytime people get involved in a Bible study. So this is a real relational topic touches on the spiritual today and I have to say before we begin this conversation with Megan happened before the events that have unfolded recently in Afghanistan. Megan Brown is a military spouse, a mom Bible teacher in military missionary with crew military, a graduate of Moody Bible Institute with a degree in ministry leadership. She lives in South Mississippi with her husband, Master Sergeant Keith Brown, U.S. Air Force, and therefore children@ 5lovelanguages.com. You'll find her new study.

It's titled, summoned answering a call to the impossible. An eight week study of Esther find it@ 5lovelanguages.com Megan welcome to Building Relationships.

Thank you so much for having me. I am so excited to be here working to dig into your book, but in this first segment I want to hear little bit about your story, your relationship with your husband how you know Matt etc. and your family. So share a little bit about that journey. Well, as military couples are want to do. We met and married Barry learn in college and I was working full time and we met were barely 20 years old and before we knew it six months later we were taking that trip down the aisle really was an interesting story of how we know how we met through mutual friend and I if you if you know what I look like my picture I have bright neon hair. I was still just a stylist I met years I have been on the other hand, crisp white hot shirt with Danny at a nice little belt very clean and then you definitely will telltale track but he was a devout believer is a devout believer and he was so excited to tell me about all the things the Lord is doing in his life while we were dating what he thought the Lord was calling him to do the time. I really wasn't sure what I believe and he was so certain, and even on our first day, my gosh, I cannot wait to get married and I remember thinking out loud.

Okay, that was interesting but really, a few months after we had been married he woke me up on a Sunday morning and I would really love you to come to church with me and I remember joking and saying how you can go to church on. I'm not particularly interested and he just looked at me and said I would really really appreciate if you would go and I'm gonna be really disappointed if you don't and I remember thinking okay I can I can pull it together and go to church with. So I packed up the Bible. They give you when you graduate high school with the new international version. A lot of red letters in gold foil, and thank the Lord had so he took me to this church in Columbus where this older gentleman with that with that fabulous comb-over and a 3 Piece Waddled His Way to the pulpit and he began unpacking and and I remember he is that all right. Beloved, I want everybody to get everyone around me just plop their Bibles open to the right page and I'm kind of peering over to my neighbor to see if there's a page number. Within this man started talking about being predestined. The son said I adopted cared for by the Lord chosen these words around me and being in the car afterward asking my husband. Oh my gosh this is this true book like real in any took me to Chile and need to continue to unpack what we talked about the sermon and it was that day that I gave my heart to the Lord and Littlejohn up the road. I was baptized when I was pregnant with our with our first child and so he patiently discipled me but really something exciting just to find unique little note that you are "The 5 Love Languages" is one of the first books I received as a new believer, and its terms really separate and they plug back into that new lien nearly married Sunday school class and I never been a Sunday school class that was a new experience that they gave us a copy of this little purple book and workbook and they're like all right this is what working to do together and and really my husband and I attribute those early years will be really learned what it was like to care for one another and love one another well that really had a large part in our story as believers, as as a married couple and really disciples of children. So were so grateful for you and I'm so excited to be with you and your here is an exciting story to see the way God worked through your husband through the poster in the church to minister to you so much wonderful talk a bit about the military because I know you're at her husband full-time in military and you call yourself a missionary to military working with crew were familiar with that organization. I wanted like to be a modern military spouse. I guess in a worded chaos, albeit organized chaos, the experience of most modern military families really consists of the constant adjustments and recalibration in response to an ever-changing set of circumstances, employment relocations and temporary duty station and those are only part of the people that we as military families endure. We struggle to create new connections in new places, we often find ourselves exhausted and overwhelmed, or in seasons of long suffering and many times these hardships are hard circumstances are experienced completely alone while our spouse has boots on the ground somewhere else. I mean we long for community and for support and really were always in a constant state of reaction or recovery. It's really like a balancing act. If you can imagine, balancing a little round ball while spinning too many plates while their simultaneous cannon fire somewhere.

We have to kind of juggle our own emotional pickup while trying to stabilize our children and calm their fears managing our own. Essentially, the cost of serving alongside of our service member really adds that emotional and mental toll of labor. You now think you just described lifestyle that many civilian life or not from earlier with a vague idea of what it's like to be military but think what you just shared his reality had the privilege of being on a number of military bases through the years and actually wrote a special edition of "The 5 Love Languages" for the military press particular talking about how to speak these.

Love language when you're deployed so you can stay emotionally connected a while your report so thanks for sharing that. After the break. I want to talk a little bit more about your military ministry. This is Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman, author of the New York Times bestseller "The 5 Love Languages" . If you'd like to hear pass program take an assessment of your love language or see our featured resource today go to our website@ 5lovelanguages.com that resource is the book by Megan Brown summoned answering the call to the impossible and eight-week study of Esther just got a five love languages.com to find out more, but you are a military missionary work with an organization called crew which used to be campus Crusade for Christ and "what's that like what what you learning is you're trying to reach out to people and ensure Christ in the military most important lesson that I've learned is that women in our space military women and wives are really craving the Lord. They want to know him intimately, but no one is ever discipled them, plug them into the life of the church or taught them how to engage with Scripture. Well, I feel like they're always striving to find community and so often times there really disappointed me in our ministry started several years ago I joined crew on board last year and it it's been one of the greatest decision that ever made because they are nominal in infrastructure and encouragement and it and it no longer feel like I'm kind of a lone wolf doing mission work that our mission work started about seven years ago we were stationed on the Gulf Coast and all I did was open up our living room for small group Bible study. I just wanted to learn alongside of my peers and I thought you know I'm totally ill prepared. I don't really know what I'm doing but I'm sure that I can read through the passage of Scripture with my neighbors and we can learn something together and what happened was so interesting.

The first week we had six women that were just sort of huddled around my coffee table.

We were using workbook or any curriculum we were simply unpacking the gospel of Luke chronologically. Verse by verse, line by line in the second week there were 17 when in the week after that there were 25 and before I knew it our military housing unit. Our streets were packed with women dragging lawn chairs and red wagon full of my kitchen was a Plato nightmare. Gary and I we had children everywhere, women were just earnestly leaning and longing to hear what God has to say about who he is who Christ is and what he wants from us in response to the gospel and we end up reaching out to the local Chapel here and we partnered and opened ministry with 40 women and 50 kids and before we knew it two years later we had outgrown the government facility. The funding on the staff and I had to train these women to open their homes and so we launched 10 simultaneous Bible studies and the local Keesler area now you know. Several years later there are hundreds of groups meeting all over the continental US in the North Pole. We've got groups in Italy and England in Japan and Hawaii were seeing this revival just so we through our community and the Lord is just in such fierce pursuit of this community. I really would love to just catch the vision of what could happen if the local church could come alongside us and shepherd us and serve us and send us military families are perfectly positioned to be gospel carriers where in all 50 states. We're in the middle of the ocean. If you want the gospel to go to the Middle East man. We have guys over there and I think that that what I'm really trying to say is that within this community lies the potential for the third great awakening. I really believe in the gospel just explode through our community.

I think that we could see the great commission will build in our day excited about your excitement decided all sorts excel in the mood to hear how you started very very simply with having ladies over to your house and then you agree your house and then you use the facilities with the bugs provided and then you went back to houses because your group and know that their group scattered all over the world and I certainly agree with you military men and women are scattered all over the world. So there already in place and in other countries. The motor of the film have enforceable the relationship with Christ and then the vision of how they can be missionaries where they are so excited about what you're sharing in the introduction to your book. You tell a story about a postal worker coming to your front door was a buffet really that was an interesting time. You know when I first became a believer I really wasn't discipled. Well, we were plugged into a local church. But as soon as as orders dropped, we moved and so I spent several years in my early life as a Christian, just believing that you know the Bible was only for Sunday's I just need to take it with me that someone would explain it to me and little snippet I learned some of the language I learned some of the capillary but really I wasn't living in a way that reflected a deep and abiding understanding of the gospel in the call to live communally and so we were stationed at remote in Ohio and I was at a local church, but I wasn't really in one and one day you know the orders for my husband to go on his first big deployment drop. We've been married for maybe five or six years and our children were young and I was five.

My sons were three and wine our fourth child wasn't even idea and I was a younger mama, 26, 27, and so he went to the Middle East and he was driving convoys in the communication over there was not what it is today and we were able to connect or taught very often to me weeks ago by so it was during one of these laws between no calls or emails that postal worker shows up at my front door and she has in her possession.

My husband footlockers now.

We lived about an hour and 1/2 away from the nearest base and so the first thought in my mind is that this postal worker has beaten the casualty officers that my husband was killed in combat and that I am to learn it right now with this lady bringing his stuff to me before he was due home and I just turned why does the seat. I panicked and as a believer I didn't know how to access that hope and that comfort that we proclaim that we have in Christ knowing that we are watched, held and cared for, loved, I guide I didn't feel any of that in the moment. My greatest fear as a professing believer and so when she loaded those things in my garage door close behind her.

I froze. I remember standing in my doorway soaked in tears. Not really knowing what to do and no one to call, I was completely consumed with fear and I remember what I now know is the Holy Spirit you know that moment just something prompted me to pick up my Bible same gold foil red letter international version that by this point had been a little bit worn and torn because I got it with a long, I just block it open on my coffee table and it landed in first Thessalonians and I read it from beginning to end. The only thing was able to grab one to pray without ceasing, and thought all right. Lord, I will lead, and I will learn to pray in the fire. That's what were doing and so I would be wiping down counters and washing dishes and just saying out loud more. Please don't be dead. I would be bathing children. Please don't let my husband be dead first thing in the morning.

The only thing I could get out was please and and while you know I I didn't really know what was happening.

I just knew that there was calm.

It was called and communing with the Lord is calm in his word and ultimately a few days. I think it was like for five days later my head and called me what happened is that he was being moved to a different station, and they couldn't stop, so they stuck stamps on it and send it home and he couldn't tell me.

And it was just I was brought face-to-face with my greatest fear and what that showed me in that moment is that I was completely alone, completely unprepared and I had no idea how to go toward the Lord to hear what and if you would've asked me then I wouldn't have said this, but I truly believe that our lives as missionaries moment feeling that loneliness and an understanding. Fundamentally, that this there's gotta be a better way. Also wanting to make sure that no other military spouse was faced with that kind of fear alone without a home without the gospel without being discipled is that we just made our life's mission to serve this community to make sure that that there's no woman left behind surmising as God uses simple circumstances to bring us face-to-face with the reality of life and the news that the poster boy. You are loved and reminded me of a time in a suit with 21 military wives in Norfolk, Virginia their wives over Navy SEALs and also tell me what it's like in the military and one lady said will I know this might sound crazy but every time I hear a door slam outside my apartment a listen to hear first two doors slam because I know if there's been a casualty to people who come to my door fall to know civilian marriages.

We have our struggles but we don't we don't place living with the reality when your husband is deployed but who could not only have because liberty could could be good to know so well will. It's wonderful to see the way God use that in your life so that we been talking about your military career is along with the missionary career, but you've created a Bible study based on the life of Esther just finished reading a stream own personal quantum unknowing Job who could run after Esther yes so that this Bible study let me ask you what to work Christmas mood when we started this program. Have you seen evidence that studying the Bible can really bring about real heart change in the lives of people all my goodness yes yes yes a million times. Yes, one of one of those ministry milestones that I think all of us and that serve in some way.

Ministry experience is one milestone that just stands out in my mind every time I'm asked a question like that woman who had been attending some Bible studies, but it was they were. They were very service-level book club type. They were really not national in nature and she had been to Bible study and had never actually heard the gospel as she had studied on on biblical marriage.

I think they were doing a book. I don't remember which book the date they had lit look at the biblical principles of marriage that she really never had really heard the gospel or really understood what the Bible actually said about Christ, about his work and about the redemptive nature of Christ, and so after meeting with her over coffee and sharing the gospel with her. We said about eight weeks delving into the depths of the Bible. I mean we did a Birdseye view that we covered all the things that we could possibly cover the story of Scripture, beginning the middle and what's the Old Testament what's the new houses, every single Scripture lead up to, or is a result of the gospel. How do we do these things, what are we to understand and at the end she was so excited she says Megan I want to get in the water can I do it today. Can I call my family.

Can you do it. Can you call your church and I do it at your church.

I'll never forget that Sunday morning, our pastor, let me perform the submersion into the water, so the whole Bible study that for Q side to side full of families that were there to support her and so as I am Mercer into the water and pulled her back up you wouldn't of been able to tell where my fears current fears and those that ended in the Bible studying the Bible bring about real heart change. You betcha, absolutely, it can say is God uses his word to touch our hearts lead us to the mixed up that we need to be taken with you though, almost book of Esther. You have to admit that the story of a Jewish woman who lived in ancient Persia feels like it wouldn't really speak into today's world book but you disagree with that right. I do young Christian out that term as a baby Christian. It was so funny how I would study Scripture.

I feel I got a look back at this and think it was precious but I was a little embarrassed at the time I had a big girl Bible right Bible. I had a children's Bible and had a dictionary and I was just trying to understand what the stories were about.

I didn't really understand how you know these reason the Old Testament connected to the new.

What is this mean what is that mean what it what my supposed to learn and and really the first time I heard Esther and and several women have said they had the same experience. It was a very child friendly and sanitized version of the story. There was once a beautiful woman who fell in love with the powerful king and through her bravery.

She saved her people and it almost red like a Hallmark movie when you would think about it, but when we look at Esther is dark and there is some deep and insidious things lurking right at the surface. I'm either women that are kidnapped off the street into a government sanctioned Hera. The kids version that I was exposed to. First, you know, there were no pretty TRS here on, it was just it was and I thought if there was ever a story that would speak to us today. It could be this story and really the heartbeat of this study is that that God is good when things are bad and that she is so all I think our culture permeation of a story that God is only good when our businesses are thriving or when our marriages are thriving, or what healthy or when things for us are going well and and really this story and Esther shows that mankind is still good when things are not well that he is moving in and through and my goodness, shouldn't we praise him that he works in hard Providence. That's really the heart of this book is that God is good when things are bad and he is so faithful thanks for joining us today for Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman find us online@ 5lovelanguages.com we have some great resources tool to assess your love language you can hear a podcast of the program and find out about our featured resource. It's the study by Megan Brown titled summoned answering a call to the impossible and eight-week study of Esther.

Just go to find love languages.com regularly aspects of this Esther is being quiet to hear God's whisper to us what is a concept I really believe that God speaks through his word he speaks to us today and it and I think specifically in women's ministry culture. Women are pursuing purpose above a relationship with the Lord above the study of his word and and really what I want women to focus on is to be still long enough to know that that all our purposes are essentially the same Christ commissioned us to go and make disciples, and really the hard part is figuring out what context right. I deliver the gospel and make disciples in my context as a military spouse.

I go when and where God sends me all over God's green earth, but really I feel like, what, when the need to do is to be still long enough to hear God speak in his word through the ardent study of Scripture he's revealed himself to us in such a beautiful way and I feel like women are so sadly missing that because they're so busy chasing a job or a role or a checklist that they missed Christ himself who have to slow down sometimes to discover the voice of God wrote for their listeners who may not know anything about this biblical book of Esther and the story of Esther's life wanted to just give us an overview of the book will really this is set in ancient Persia and in a season of deist Borat naturally just a fancy word for exile. God's people have been exiled out his promise land there outside of Jerusalem and the temple has been raised to the ground and they have been dispersed all over the Persian Empire and where we find ourselves in this story is in the city of modern-day Iran is really important to know that the Bible is written on the mat and on the historical timeline. It's on the calendar right story did not start with Once upon a time in a land far far away, And actual place actual city and it is read as a rhetorical account and so we see these characters in the story of Esther.

Yet Esther Mordechai, her uncle all give the king has to wear a certain Xerxes getting under translation for a character sprinkled in, and through that really this is a spoiler alert. It's not really Esther story at all. God's story. It is God talking about himself and it's really ironic that you won't find God's name and Esther and and really that the invitation from the Lord in this book is to seek how he is moving in and through every aspect of a story where he seems and feels absent. So the king is ordered that all the Jewish people should be killed right right and how does Esther put into this. One of the things that I found in my research I was writing this book is that a lot of the comparable books on Esther really talk about her character, which is good.

The message and those books were be brave like Esther and and be courageous like Esther and really what I found what I was reading through and I'm looking at this horrendous edict right that there is life and death on the line and Esther her submission to the will of the Lord is really the focal point for me seeing how Esther was willing to risk her life in obedience to her Lord and Master to her king in heaven, not an earthly king.

It really spoke to me that there is such a bravery and courageous in the surrender of our will of our life of our want of our needs to the Lord who is good, you called us to do big things and small things for his glory and our good, so you said that this book is really not about Esther's about God certainly agree with. So what is God saying about himself in the book of Esther really one of the big questions in the book of Esther is will God be faithful right, there's this there's this nervousness will God be faithful when we are outside of his promise land right. There is no temple. They are not in the proper worship of the Lord as they would have known it to be in the law will God uphold what he said he was going to uphold when God's people were not and and that's really the big question in an spoiler alert again, he is faithful. He know all if we would get Esther from the 50,000 foot view he is preserving his people for his purpose. He is going to bring the Savior of the world Jesus Christ to the world through this people and so what they were wondering and Esther Simons will God be faithful to do what he said he was going to do and I think many believers today are asking that same question. Is God faithful and I believe I got a saying about himself in the book of Esther that is present is never far and oh so faithful Esther. God uses people through Esther that the Jewish people were spared because of what she do the briefing should do them standing before the King and requesting the this is a mode which he did unknowingly. The king unknowingly did this because he was talked into it by someone who trusted so it's a fascinating story of looking for God's hand and that whole the whole scenario God used Esther so women who are involved in Bible study. Why is it important for them to really engage with the Bible not to simply read it and see it as is history, but looking for the voice of God in the midst of one of the things that that I wanted to impart to women is that being confident to come to the Scripture is so important in the life of a believer you know I remember when I was handed my first Bible study. It was after our first time that we we moved to Keesler a couple of other women invited me to do a study through Ezekiel and Eric awaken more intend that another author called the first Bible study that was chapter and verse line by line context cultural implications. Big concepts and I thought oh my gosh I feel like I could go any book to any book in the Bible and know what it's trying to say because while the Bible is definitely written to us and for us it was written during a very specific time and so it's important for women to know how to get engage well with the Bible so that they can interpret it properly and so they can respond properly when you interpret the Bible and what the Bible is saying for you you you run the risk of making missing God altogether mentioned this earlier when Chris and I were talking and that is the value of starting the Bible with a small group of people. One of the advantages of being a nurse Bible study group like that. That's really the end of the Scriptures and you have opportunities and replace with others in an African proverb that I absolutely love it says if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. And I think going together will take you very very far and what I think it looks like it's accountability and encouragement and support really spiritual growth that is massively more than what we can accomplish on our own and really if I had a stop message to that message is that a small group Bible study can't and does not replace what the life of the local church brings to the believer so many times in our community when it will be part of a small group and they will dismiss or forgo the church still think well I'm studying the Bible. That's really all I need that man if I can impart any word of wisdom to those that are listening to her in the military community.

It is to attend a small group yes but plant yourself and firmly rate yourself in the life of a local church.

A study is supplemental that the connection to the local church is life-giving.

Every posterior leader in churches would soon go to ordering the church is the universal church where we are all coming true Christian churches are committed to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. And there's various ways that local church can minister to not owe to the parents, but to the children because are typically activities for children and young people, and most of our churches will join us today for Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman.

He's the author of the New York Times bestseller "The 5 Love Languages" Megan Brown as our guest. Her book is our featured resource@ 5lovelanguages.com. The title is summoned answering a call to the impossible.

An eight week study of Esther. Find out more at 5lovelanguages.com Megan in the slow segment. I want to talk to them a couple of the chapters in your study book and also in the Scriptures. What is one is entitled summoned to seek what you learn in that section of the study. One of the things that I hear often when women talk about the book of Esther is that they can readily quote they can readily quote Esther for the for such a time and time as this. And I think that that is amazing.

I love every word that is God's word. But I also want women to understand that there's an entire story behind the one Scripture that can fit on an Instagram squared so many times women will get get really stuck on one sentiment within the word and they'll miss the rest of the story so and seven to see him inviting these women to go deeper to learn to listen to look at historical context to look at cultural context to understand that there was a lot that led up to that really famous and wonderful line of Scripture absolutely yes God does call us to timely things and that's what I believe people are saying to one another when they use that Scripture that there is much more so in the section of seven to seek we really invite them to go deeper to hear more. See the bigger picture chapter, you discuss entitled summoned to share sorrow. What is important to share our struggles and sorrows with with others. I think empathy is one of the least developed characteristics and people today.

I think that we want to silver line hard things that I really have to say in my time is as a military missionary. One of the skills that I am so grateful for is the ability to perspective take and to sit with those that are in pain without trying to fix it. And really what I mean by that is in our in our community there there harsh realities. We talked about earlier. Sometimes spouses don't come back. Sometimes children pass too soon. Sometimes marriages and badly sometimes affairs shatter worlds right like we deal with hard things and and I think that to be an ambassador for Christ is to be a vehicle for comfort and and yes, sometimes we can give good constructive advice, but I think one of the most gracious and loving things we can do is share sorrow with people. One of the women that I know and love. She is a gold star spouse and it is my joy to sit with her on the days that things are hard sometimes you don't think about what these women are grieving that you don't really know what it is that thinking about when when a spouse chooses to have their their significant other, buried on the military cemetery and they remarry they give up the right to be buried next to them there so many different things Greek shifts chapters change in one of the biggest gifts you can give to these women. I miss the ability to just sit and share their sorrow. Loving them well and holding their hand until they have the ability to hope again I could fully agree with that as a counter of the last chapter in your book is called summoned to serve as that really what Esther stores all about. No really I think Esther story is really about God's sovereignty and his faithfulness, but one of the applications of that is our response. What is our response to this beautiful gift that the gospel gives us the freedom it gives us there should be an ignition of a flame in our heart of hearts for those who do not yet have the gospel who have not heard it.

No steering faith comes through hearing right and in the gospel is made of words and so we have to share this story the last chapter is really about*place in this big story and those that were delivered by our obedience to surrender herself to the Lord and I think that surveying is is a cornerstone in the Christian life and don't hear me say that it's a long list of doing that really what I'm talking about is a response with our lives. The full belief that the gospel is true and that because the gospel is true. We have a job to do a very good friend of mine and she wrote a beautiful book called love Brian Sarah Barrett. She says we keep thinking that discipling we have to reject the apathy that someone else's job.

It's our job and what you hope will happen for women who complete to study and work through the written own Esther my deepest prayers that women will be found. I I am will call me at Daniel right micro generation.

I was born in the early 80s I didn't have a cell phone until college I learned how to operate computers on DOS key commands right like I'm right there on the line, but what I see in my generation of millennial's is that they are being led off cliffs and roads chasing after the pursuit of purpose side hassle trying to start trying to check boxes and these letters that mean that they're going to be okay but I want women to lay down their checklist to lay down the striving and to simply sit with the invitation that the Lord is giving that getting them to come home and to be held by him seen by him saved by and and I hope that when you complete the study will gain a love for God's word that they will fall head over heels in love with him and his character's attributes, but also his word so that I can hear him speak through his revealed his revealed word and my hope is that women will be found really believe it can happen because of many many times as well. As we come to the universe will ask you one more question about the military you alluded to this earlier, but how can the local church, alongside active duty military members and their families. I think it starts with an awareness my plea for the local church is to realize that we live as a medicinal and sent people already where master community builders were moving every 2 to 4 years.

You are perfectly prime to carry the story of Christ to the four corners.

However, we need to be shepherded and discipled and cared for and really there needs to be practical help so many times I've had military families tell me that their frustration with the church that they will go every Sunday desperately grasping for community to find that the circles have Artie been closed. People have Artie built their communities, they been in churches for a long time to not really open to bringing other families and to the communities they built and simultaneously that their families suffered during deployments or TTY's are moving in the local church sometimes feels and seems apathetic because they don't have any way to offer practical help, you know I was talking with a few friends on social and and this one young woman share this beautiful story that a local church woman came up to her after her spouse gone for about two or three weeks, and just embraced her in the biggest hug and she said I can only imagine it's been a long time since he got what a beautiful story for this church member to see the struggle and to step in and meet the need.

And just to say I'm here for you. I want to encourage you you a basic need and I can meet that. I mean, there's so many big things that we needed during the seasons that the church seems to let us slip through the cracks and so my plea for churches being intentional don't treat military members like perpetual visitors, even if for only with you for six months nine months 12 months to years, you have an opportunity and really most churches do a great job of exiting the tax and their congregations right it. If churches are settled within an urban you know an urban setting may have great homelessness in soup kitchens at their in college towns that usually have really great young adult missions. But if you are church and God is established, your borders 5 to 10 miles away from a military installation, you should have military contextualize ministries and at a minimum a person who is tracking in caring for military is in your congregation and we could talk another hour, the military history and also this book of Esther, but I want to thank you for being with us today. I do hope the church leaders who are listening will hear what you do so.

Because I do believe that local churches that are near military bases can have a tremendous ministry and equipping others military personnel were for the go when they leave. They are there going to go closer and up with a closer walk with God and with the vision of how they can minister to others. Thanks again for putting this study together, a hope that many of our listeners, especially ladies and women's groups will hear this stability would also be good for man, but so thanks for your investment and thanks for being with us today.

Thank you so much for having me. I would love for us to connect follow me on social at Meg Brown right you can find me@meganbrown.com. I would love to hear how the story is impacting you and how the Scriptures are speaking to thank you for having me on.

I really appreciate your welcome. Thank you. I love the passion of Megan Brown in the title again of the resource summoned answering the call to the impossible study of Esther Megan Brown website. Five love languages.com five love languages.don't miss the conversation about raising joy to Dr. Marcus Warner and Chris Corsi will be with a big thank you today to our production team Janice Todd Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman is a production of radio in Chicago with Moody publishers a ministry. Thank you