Old Dog I
I Was A Warrior
Bob Neuman
I was a warrior.
Quick to rise and to go when the call went out. To come against the attacks that came over and over. Trained with sword and shield, spear and sling I fought for wife and children, family and friends. to stand between the living who held my heart and those who would bring death that came against all that I loved and held dear. so I was a warrior who fought when the need arose, when the danger was present.
The warrior’s heart is filled with that for which he stands in the midst of battle. Whatever loyalty was evident merely matched the present danger, the enemy within sight, the destroyer that pressed the attack. My heart went no farther than the threat that was seen, the evil perceived. It was well to fight for my life in the midst of chaos. It was better to fight against an enemy I knew who came to kill, to devour, to destroy.
So then the Captain came and called me out. He called me by name. HE placed me in the battle line when i followed the voice of authority. I had never heard a voice like HIS. So I listened. I believed. I obeyed. I never imagined that there would come an attack greater than my strength. Stronger than a single warrior’s heart could stand. So in less than committed and willful obedience I learned the value of discipline and unity. For as wave after wave the darkness fell upon the gallant and the brave I watched as warrior after warrior fell. They too came to face the threat of the enemy. They willingly placed themselves between the innocent and the evil, the weak and the ruthless. But they would not stand under authority. They would not stand with those with like heart and purpose. For the greatest enemy they did not see for it was within them. And PRIDE always destroys from inside. And I watched as each fell, but not to a stronger foe or one with greater skill. But to time and exhaustion as they fought alone and in their own strength.
The mighty man, trained for battle and experienced in war is still but one warrior, alone and steadfast. Unlimited skill and courage will withstand attacks and assaults, but only for a time and not for a season. In the day of battle he comes and the heart of a warrior will carry any single day. But in a campaign of attrition the lone warrior falls as he fought, alone and unnoticed.
Courage and valor, skill and cunning are the tools of the warrior whose own hand must carry the day. and i was a warrior. And there was a Captain who came, stronger and wiser, who said
“STAND WITH ME AND THE DAY IS OURS !” And I stood on the GREAT DAY of BATTLE under HIS BANNER. as the waves of darkness crashed against the defenders of LIFE each wave receded only to regroup and to storm again against us. And I watched as the lone warriors slowly fell one by one… as the day progressed and the battle reached it’s heights the position of the Captain held over and over until only the Captain’s battle line stood between the living and those who came to kill, steal, and destroy.
The Captain stood alongside me in the front of the line. HIS PRESENCE and HIS COURAGE giving all who stood with HIM both strength and purpose. As the battle reached it’s peak HE turned and to face us. “IT IS TIME TO FINISH THIS, IT IS TIME TO OVERCOME.” HE shouted with a laugh.
“FOLLOW ME AND I WILL LEAD YOU BEYOND THIS BATTLE!”. And as one all who had stood began to march against the enemy and the VOICE of the Captain was heard above the battle’s roar. HIS laugh echoing through the ranks as HE started to sing. And as HIS SONG filled my ears and merged my heart and mind and spirit I began to sing HIS SONG.
And that was when the change occurred. No longer was HE the Captain, for from that point HE BECAME MY CAPTAIN. And I knew never again would I fight alone. And no other would I follow. under HIS BANNER alone would I stand. Suddenly the enemy whose numbers and strength seemed so great and so relentless stood in terror before HIS BANNER. For MY CAPTAIN’S SONG, the VICTORY SONG OF THE KING OF KINGS filled all of creation as HE crushed the enemy’s battleline and rolled their flanks. HIS LAUGHTER AND HIS SONG devastated and annihilated all that stood against HIM.
And I stood beside HIM below HIS BANNER. GREAT AND TERRIBLE was MY CAPTAIN before me whose sword and shield moved like lightening in the night. and HIS VOICE thundered as HIS SONG was sung and HIS ORDERS rang out in the Day of Battle.
I was a warrior, but now I am a soldier. A warrior quick and cunning, skilled and strong… but now I am a soldier of the KING. No longer do I fight my battle in my own strength, but I fight HIS BATTLES under HIS BANNER with HIS STRENGTH and with HIS SONG. Never again do I fight alone, no longer do I wait for the enemy’s attack. For I only fight the battles MY CAPTAIN chooses, and for HIS OBJECTIVES, and for HIS GLORY.
For I am a Soldier of the KING…. under HIS AUTHORITY and in HIS NAME will I march and will i stand. By HIS WILL alone do I come and do I go.
Under HIS COMMAND I have learned the importance of discipline and the purpose of unity. At HIS SIDE I have learned the importance of submission…
A warrior’s heart still beats in my chest, but it is MY CAPTAIN’S COMMANDS that focuses my mind and HIS SONG that fills my spirit.
Unto MY CAPTAIN WHO IS MY KING do I pledge my life… and to HIM ALONE I bow my knee.