On a late Sabbath afternoon on May 19, 2018, Eddie General, Greater Seattle Filipino-American (Fil-Am) Church pastor, was commissioned into the U.S. Army Chaplain Reserves as a captain.
Pastors, church community, friends and family from as far as Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, joined together at the Greater Seattle Fil-Am Church to witness and celebrate General’s new step in ministry.
“A military chaplain is a calling; it’s not something you take lightly,” says Scott Tyman, Tacoma Central pastor and Army Reserve chaplain, who administered the oath. “It’s going to take courage to make the tough decisions as a chaplain, and you are going to be providing spiritual leadership and providing advisement to your commander.”
General had thought of joining the military chaplaincy when he was in seminary but had been called to another ministry. It was one day in General’s office that he received a text from an Army chaplain and began a process of decision making. General and his wife, Liza, prayed for God’s will on this matter.
“My wife, Liza, and I had prayed for God’s will on this matter,” says General. “This is not something that I just want to enter into without consulting the Commander of all commanders. Once I got the ‘go’ signal, we felt at peace that this was what God was calling us to do.”
“We pray that God will be present in every interaction that Eddie has with people as he serves,” says Craig Carr, Washington Conference vice president for administration.
At the end of the commissioning ceremony, pastors and elders surrounded General and his family in prayer as he began his new adventure as both the Greater Seattle Filipino-American Church pastor and an Army Reserve chaplain.
“I may be a captain in the United States Army, but I serve and worship a God, Jesus Christ, who is the Captain of my soul and salvation,” says General.
Eddie General, Greater Seattle Fil-Am Church pastor, and Scott Tyman, Tacoma Central Church pastor.
Pastors and elders surround Eddie General and his family in prayer.
Pastors and elders surround Eddie General and his family in prayer.
Eddie General, Greater Seattle Fil-Am Church pastor, and Craig Carr, Washington Conference vice president.
The Greater Seattle Fil-Am Pathfinder Club leads Eddie General into the church sanctuary for his military commissioning.
