Building Up the Lord’s Army By Dr. Bill Lewis
	Written for the July 2005 Georgia State Association of FWB Promotional Bulletin
As a boy I remember well seeing replicas of the World War II army recruiting posters that pictured Uncle Sam with a stern look on his face and his boney finger pointed straight at you with the caption, “I want you for the U. S. Army.” It was, however, a different poster that drew me into the service of my country. The poster that caught my eye showed a Marine in his dress blues standing in front of the Eiffel Tower. The Marine poster was on the wall behind the desk of the recruiter in the basement of the Moultrie, Georgia post office. The memory of that summer day in 1968 will forever be with me. I had gone to the post office to join the Air Force, but it was not the Air Force recruiter’s day to be in Moultrie. It was the Marine recruiter’s day. The Marine recruiter smiled and said, “What can I do for you, boy? I quickly responded that I had come to join the Air Force. His next words still ring in my ears. Staff Sergeant Lucas looked me in the eyes as sternly as Uncle Sam had looked on the Army recruiting posters and said, “Son, why in the world would you want to join the Air Force?” What followed that statement is now history. Once a Marine, always a Marine! Incidentally, I never made it to the Eiffel Tower. Sergeant Lucas was an extremely skilled recruiter. He convinced a reasonably smart young man with some college to join the Marine Corp instead of the Air Force, and he accomplished that feat at the height of the war in Vietnam. I’ve often thought of my Marine recruiter and longed for the same level of skill in recruiting people into the Lord’s army. Recruiting souls to the service of Jesus is my assignment. That is what I am doing in Valdosta, Georgia. I’m a recruiter for God in Valdosta, and you are a recruiter for Jesus in your city. He has called us to build up His army by recruiting people into His service. Remember what Paul told the elders in Ephesus, ^“But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24; NKJV). Paul knew that he had been called as a recruiter for Jesus and sharing Christ was his life. It has always amazed me that those in the New Testament who became believers after having met Jesus immediately shared the experience with others. Those numerous New Testament stories under gird the words of John, “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself…” (I John 5:10a, NKJV). Such good news simply can not be contained. It is evident from the Bible that those who join the Lord’s army will be recruiters. Pray that we at Open Door Fellowship will faithfully and skillfully recruit souls to the service of Jesus.