Chief Michael McClelland's Story

​Follow-up Notes:

• Real Dudes,
  We had 30 men in attendance this past Saturday at Ox Strong (which included two first-time visitors). Chief McClelland did a great job sharing his life story with us and how the Lord brought him to Grinnell. Here is the direct link to his message if you haven’t had a chance to view it yet https://youtu.be/kJyZIXJKF5Q. Below are just a few take-aways that I wanted to share with you in just a little more detail, along with a few summarizations of Chief’s career.
  • Chief grew up on the East side of Des Moines and went to East High School.
  • Had a few police officers in his family which drew him to become passionate about this career.
    • He too would end up getting his degree in Criminal Justice, and landing a position as a police officer in Aurora, CO.
    • Trained over 300 cops during his time in CO.
  • Joined the Army
    • ROTC
    • National Guard
    • Desert Storm…this was his first appointment into combat.
    • Iraq…was the platoon leader for their transportation unit.
    • Afghanistan…was the operations officer at the prison and was face to face with over 1,800 terrorists during his time there.
    • Retired in 2012 as a Major in the Guard.
  • A Few Take-aways from his challenge to us.
    • Chief stated that during his deployments he got to know the people, their lives, and their stories.
      Made me think of the Great Commission in Matthew 28:16-20. When a soldier is deployed it is not an optional decision. Some Christians treat the Great Commission as optional. Yet, when we read “Go” we must read it in its fullest intention…as a direct command from the Lord. When soldiers go to battle they know what they are fighting for and trust the training they’ve received…their adrenaline gets going and the excitement to put their training into practice is heightened. A few reasons many Christians fail to heed the call to GO is because they’ve failed to train (they’re not ready), have failed to put on whole armor of God, or they have failed to see the true importance of the message they should be delivering (Ephesians 6:11-20; 1 Peter 3:15; 2 Peter 1:3). You would think that anyone with Good News wouldn’t want to keep it to themselves…they’d have a genuine desire to want to share it at any opportunity provided them. How have you historically responded to God deploying you in the past? What needs to change? What resolutions do you need to make in your life so you can respond properly when God calls you?
    • Chief also made mention that being an officer is a humbling experience, and that such a career is a selfless service. Made me think of the following passages…John 15:13; Romans 12:1. These verses speak of what love and self-sacrifice look like. The Lord is our perfect example to follow. Do you view your life as a living sacrifice for Him and His message? Some worry about their reputation within the community, so would you be willing to set your reputation and pride aside in order to reach out to a lost soul when God leads you to do so? Do you genuinely love others around you, or do you only seek out conditional love?  
    • Please be in prayer for our troops and officers.

Doppelganger:

• Chief McClelland's doppelganger is none other than the star of Facing the Giants and Courageous, Alex Kendrick. I was thinking all morning that he looked like someone I knew. Alex is a good man to look like and to follow spiritually.

Practicing His Presence,
Nate