Retired submariner shares the power of persevering prayer / Plus, integrating church and OCF involvement / January 2025
Release Date: 01/18/2025
Dear Christian leader: Why are you really doing that?
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Matters of Conscience, Part 2: In Part 2 of this two-part series, CH(CPT) Chris Erickson and West Point professor LTC Lee Robinson join host Josh Jackson to continue their candid conversation on matters of conscience for Christian military leaders. Together, they unpack a practical three-step framework for navigating the gray areas where faith and military service intersect—know your boundaries, check your motives, discern your impact. Drawing from their own experiences serving together, including a deployed Easter sunrise service and counseling soldiers from different faith...
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Making Christian decisions in the gray areas of military life
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Matters of conscience, Part 1: In part one of this two-part series on matters of conscience, Josh Jackson talks with CH(CPT) Chris Erickson, USA, an active-duty Army chaplain serving with 1-41 Infantry Battalion at Fort Carson, Colo., and LTC Lee Robinson, USA, an Army aviator and West Point professor who directs the American Politics Program. Together, they examine how Christian military leaders can think through gray areas of faith and profession when the Bible does not seem to give a simple, direct answer. Rather than focusing only on what is legal, the conversation explores how...
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What's happening in ROTC that most OCF members don't see
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Guest Spotlight: Approximately 60% of active-duty officers commission through ROTC programs at more than 1,500 colleges and universities—making campus ministry to cadets and midshipmen a strategic mission field. In this episode of the OCF Crosspoint podcast, we hear from John Hoyman, OCF’s Director of ROTC Ministry and a 30-year Army veteran (Active Duty, National Guard, and Army Reserve), about the renewed vision and momentum in ROTC outreach. John shares his personal connection to OCF, why evangelism and discipleship are central to his vision, what he is witnessing spiritually...
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Accelerate change or lose: A futurist's guide to Biblical leadership
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Guest Spotlight Today’s episode features more of the conversation between Crosspoint host Josh Jackson and Lt Gen Clint Hinote, USAF (Ret.). Within his 35-year career as a fighter pilot, military strategist, and senior leader, Clint also served as a futurist for the Air Force prior to retiring in 2023. He is now a professor of policy analysis at the RAND School of Public Policy. Clint breaks down how to think strategically about the future without getting paralyzed by uncertainty, how to read the signals of change, and how to communicate vision. Whether you're leading in...
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A new take on the “armor of God”: The power of fighting as a unit
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Guest Spotlight Today's episode features a conversation between Crosspoint host Josh Jackson and LTC Brittany Simmons, USA (Ret.). Brittany served 20 years in the Army Military Police Corps, including deployment to Iraq as a platoon leader from 2004-2005. In this episode, Brittany challenges the common individualistic reading of the Armor of God passage in Ephesians 6. Drawing from her combat experience and understanding of Roman military formations, she explains why Paul's analogy was always meant to be understood not only individually, but also collectively—as a unit linking...
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Christmastime reflections & New Year expectations with CEO/Executive Director Scott Fisher
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
Today’s episode features Col Scott Fisher, USAF (Ret.), who serves as OCF’s CEO and executive director. Throughout his 27 years of service in the U.S. Air Force, Scott and his wife Christie were involved in OCF ministry as Local Leaders across the globe, on OCF Council, and to our chaplains. Scott joins Crosspoint host Josh Jackson to share about the meaning of the Christmas story, to address those facing the unique challenges of military life during the holiday season, and to discuss God’s faithfulness to individuals and to the OCF ministry. After also sharing some expectations...
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“Anchored & armed”: Meet women's ministry podcast hosts Naomi & Mackenzie
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
OCF MINISTRY NEWS Support widows and widowers across OCF this GivingTuesday: Your gift—large or small—directly provides opportunities for widowed members of the OCF family to find comfort, community, and Christ-centered encouragement at our Conference Centers. Visit ocfusa.org/givingtuesday to learn more and donate now. Read the latest Annual Impact Report: Visit ocfusa.org/air to check out financial reports, members’ stories of impact, and year-in-review reports from OCF Service Academy & Gateways, Regional Coordinators, and Conference Centers. ...
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“No perfect leaders, no perfect lives”: 5 common qualities of Biblical leaders
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
OCF MINISTRY NEWS If you are interested in this opportunity at White Sulphur Springs (Manns Choice, Pa.), contact WSS Center Director Paul Robyn (wssdirector@ocfusa.org) or WSS Director of Hospitality Susanne Pappal (wssoffice@ocfusa.org) or call (814) 623-5583 for further information and an application. Your gift—large or small—directly provides opportunities for widowed members of the OCF family to find comfort, community, and Christ-centered encouragement at our Conference Centers. Visit ocfusa.org/givingtuesday to learn more and donate now. Register for a...
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Leadership Micro-series: A leader’s responsibility to care for people / Crosspoint Highlights
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
In the final episode of this Crosspoint Highlights micro-series on leadership, Col Jassen Bluto, USAF (Ret.), shares his third core principle—caring—and what it truly means to care for the people you lead. Far from being sentimental, Bluto explains that genuine care is a leader’s responsibility to meet both the physical and emotional needs of those under their command. Drawing from his military experience, he shares how simple, compassionate acts—like ensuring subordinates have proper equipment or recognizing when someone needs time to regroup—can transform a unit’s morale and...
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Leadership Micro-series: Four attributes of respect / Crosspoint Highlights
OCF Crosspoint Podcast
In part two of this Crosspoint Highlights micro-series on leadership, Col Jassen Bluto, USAF (Ret.), explores the second core principle—respect—and breaks it down into four key expressions: respect for your unit, for each other, for yourself, and for the authority entrusted to you. He explains that genuine respect begins with love for the people you serve alongside and extends to humility in how you lead them. Bluto cautions against the pride that can accompany rank or privilege, urging leaders instead to see their authority as a responsibility to mentor, develop, and care for others....
info_outlineOCF MINISTRY NEWS
- OCF Global Town Hall: Visit ocfusa.org/gth2025 to learn more about and register for the next iteration of this annual, virtual event, scheduled for 8 February.
- Regional ROTC retreats: Visit ocfusa.org/rotc to find the next regional ROTC retreat near you.
- Annual impact report: To hear more about Freddy’s OCF experience and other stories of impact from our conference centers, field locations, and more, download our Annual Impact Report by visiting ocfusa.org/air2024.
- Mentoring opportunities: If you’re interested in mentoring or being trained in mentoring and want to learn more, visit ocfusa.org/mentoring or contact Bill Rue via bill.rue@ocfusa.org.
ASK OCF
LT Will Parker, USN, who serves as the OCF Submarine Community Coordinator, answered this frequently asked question from another OCFer: How do you balance/integrate OCF involvement with commitment to the local church?
To learn more about church-OCF dynamics and ways you can integrate your involvement in both, visit ocfusa.org/handbook/chapter-22.
If you have a question that you want us to consider for a future “Ask OCF” segment, send an email to podcast@ocfusa.org.
GUEST SPOTLIGHT
This month’s episode puts the guest spotlight on CAPT Terry Wichert, USN (Ret.). Having served in the U.S. Navy for 30+ years, he now serves as the executive director for Association for Christian Conferences, Teaching and Services (ACCTS), a sister ministry of OCF.
Through personal experiences and some of the 650+ recorded prayers in the Bible, such as those in the books of Nehemiah and Daniel, Terry unpacks the power of persevering prayer. He explains what prayer is and what it isn’t, gives some ideas for developing a prayer life, and viewing prayer as a way to have a relationship with our Lord and align our hearts with His.
If you would like to share your own story, complete the form on OCF’s “Be a Guest” webpage. Alternatively, if you have an idea for a guest or topic we should consider for a future episode of the show, send an email to podcast@ocfusa.org.
POINTS TO PONDER
- As you listen to this conversation with Terry, here are a few questions to ponder in your personal time, with a small group, or with a mentor:
- Terry reminds us that God “loves for us to pray” and “hears our prayer.” How do these reminders affect your view of prayer?
- To pose the question Terry says he often asks other believers: Are you satisfied with your prayer life? Why or why not?
- Terry mentions a monthly habit of spending an entire day in prayer before the Lord. What habits might benefit you in your prayer life?
- When was a time you prayed often about a certain topic but ultimately the Lord orchestrated circumstances that differed from your prayers? How did you respond? How did that experience grow you in your faith in Him?