Preparation for Battle

(As told by Chaplain Rick Casias, San Antonio Fire Department)

We were hanging around the kitchen, each of us either preparing our lunch meal or eating it, when the alarm sounded.  The crew either slid down the pole or briskly walked the stairs down to the first floor.  What seemed unusual and completely out of the ordinary was my casual demeanor, especially at a moment of an imminent emergency.  This lack of concern on my part continued even after I had boarded the fire truck and was in-route to the fire scene.

   Shortly before our arrival at the scene of the emergency, I started to think about donning my firefighting gear and, to my alarming surprise, it was nowhere to be found.  Frantically, I started searching all the interior compartments and, at the same time, asked the men on board if they had noticed an extra set of firefighting gear.

Upon our arrival, my search continued with the outside compartments in the hope that I would find my personal protective equipment there.  Thoughts of doubt and lack of preparedness started to take control of my mind.  It was at this point of the emergency that I noticed Pastor Randy coming around the front of the rig attempting to finish donning his firefighting jacket.  My thoughts raced when I saw him, "What was he doing at the scene of this emergency?  How do I address him?  Is it Pastor Randy or Chief Randy? . . .  since he was wearing a white helmet.

   The first order out of his mouth was, “I need this rig backed up from here (our arrival point was a paved road) to that area over there (which was an open field of what appeared to be dusty barren land) right by that cliff.  Haven’t you finished putting on your gear, Rick?  We have got to move on this, we don’t have very much time.”  This is when I had to tell him that I had left my gear back at the station due to the fact that it was wet from a previous fire.

   Pastor/Chief Randy got behind the steering wheel and started backing the unit up himself while I flagged other firefighters that had arrived at the emergency. Arriving at the edge of the cliff, Pastor/Chief Randy approached me and said, “You need to have your Personal Protective Equipment on before we do battle. Can I depend on you?” 

"Yes, you can," I said. "Before you reach the top of that rocky terrain, I will be ready."

"Lord, give me the strength to run back to the firehouse (which was about one mile away) and be back in time to serve you."

   Obviously, the workouts at the station, and the running of the bleachers and the track at North Side Stadium were paying off, because I was back in time.

Pastor/Chief Randy stood on a rocky cliff overseeing thousands of young firefighters . . .  or warriors.  In what had been a desolate deserted land, there now stood men of God ready to do battle.  And as I stood to the left of Pastor/Chief Randy, I finally realized what the seed that the Lord had mandated me to plant years ago really meant.  His will be done!

Chaplain Rick Casias