David Collier expects to be deployed to Afghanistan with his National Guard unit in the next few months. When this infantry man arrives there, however, he will be carrying more than the standard issued equipment: He will also be equipped with the helmet of salvation, a belt of truth, a shield of faith, and the sword of God’s word.
Todd DeatonAs a result, while he is there to fulfill a military mission, David believes it is also an opportunity to undertake a greater assignment from his High Commander: Operation Missions.
“This past summer, I spent two weeks with the National Guard for training, as part of the reserves,” David begins. “We got a Bible study started, and I can just tell that so many guys my age are just trying to serve God, but they lack someone to keep them accountable, to encourage them, and to help them trust,” he continues. “There are others who haven’t accepted Christ yet, but who seemed extremely interested.
“So, I’m really looking forward to the community that will be set up there with all these soldiers who are wanting to know more about God, but who are struggling to trust and obey in their daily lives, because they don’t have another Christian to rely on,” he says.
A graduate of Riverside High School in Greer, David is majoring in English at The Citadel and plays on the lacrosse team. David turned to Christ for direction in his life about 16 months ago after reading “The Purpose-Driven Life” by Rick Warren. He quickly became a leader in the Baptist Campus Ministry program and involved with Navigators at The Citadel. He also began attending East Cooper Baptist Church in Mt. Pleasant.
“At first, I didn’t have any Christian friends in my company,” recalls David. But when he returned from basic training for the Army, he found he had three new roommates. “One had become a Christian about two weeks before I came to school, and we started doing a nightly devotion with “The Purpose-Driven Life.” Then, the other two of our roommates joined them and became Christians,” he rejoices, adding that two or three more guys began coming to the Bible study group during that semester.
“As a new believer, David has exemplified what it means to be a Christ-follower by the way he lives his life,” says Peter Hyatt, Baptist campus minister at The Citadel. “David has taken on the role of being a leader in his company at The Citadel in leading Bible studies in the barracks and caring for his fellow classmates who do not know Christ,” Hyatt adds.
Last summer, David, whose parents are members of Brushy Creek Baptist Church in Greenville, participated on a summer missions team that worked in China for six weeks through the state convention’s Collegiate Ministry. He and two of his classmates taught English to students at schools in five cities. Team members were able to tell about Jesus as they spoke about American holidays, particularly Christmas and Easter customs.
While disappointed that no professions of faith were made, through the experience David says he learned about “planting seeds” for the gospel, and “to trust God more” and to realize “the results are in God’s hands, whether you see it or not.”
The summer missions experience not only helped him grow in his own faith, but also may affirm his developing interest in serving God through missions. “I’m still convinced it is an awesome thing to do,” David affirms.
Before he became a believer, David had been planning to commit to the Army after graduation. “He had a chance to sign with the Guard and that would have kept him from going to Afghanistan in January,” Hyatt explains. “But because he senses that God may have him serve as a missionary some day, he turned down the commitment with the National Guard, thus having to do his time now in Afghanistan.”
By fulfilling his duties with the National Guard after graduating from The Citadel, David will then be freed up to do missions, if that’s what the Lord has him do, Hyatt notes. “So he is sacrificing now, by going to Afghanistan, in order to serve the Lord as a missionary upon graduation, which is a beautiful thing.
“There is such evidence of a changed life by David’s desire and newfound purpose in serving the Lord on campus and around the world – whether to China with the International Mission Board or to Afghanistan with the U.S. Armed Forces,” Hyatt says. “David’s life is a great story of Christ’s power to redeem a life” – along the Way.