My Greatest Battle

My military career continued through 2021 as COVID-19 vaccines became available under the emergency use authorization (EUA) laws. At the time, the Army could not mandate the injections, but highly encouraged them and began implementing discriminatory actions against those of us who exercised our legal right to decline. We were forced to wear masks, undergo weekly testing, and faced various other restrictions based on unproven science that has since been discredited.

Growing in the Lord and holding firm to the convictions He had given me regarding COVID-19, my faith and trust for protection remained in Him. In August 2021, Pfizer and the FDA announced the approval for an FDA-licensed vaccine. Through a sleight of hand using Webster’s definition of interchangeability rather than the legal definition according to 42 U.S. Code § 262, the Army and the DoD mandated all service members become fully vaccinated with a DoD-approved vaccine. The problem was no FDA-licensed vaccine ever became available to the U.S. Army or the DoD.

Despite this, thousands of service members were illegally and unethically removed from the military for declining the EUA product, and tens of thousands have since voluntarily left due to the violation of trust within the DoD. I was at 17 years of military service at that time. I submitted a religious accommodation, which was eventually denied, and I began working on and finally submitted my appeal. This process spanned 14 months, from August 2022 until January 2023. Finally, while my appeal was being processed, Congress forced the DoD to repeal the mandate in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act. My career survived by the grace of the Lord.

This battle against my own leadership was the hardest battle I’ve faced in military and spiritual warfare. I’ve spent many years in combat, including exchanging gunfire with the enemy, yet the most traumatizing battle was fought within our borders. I was lied to, betrayed, and harassed in ways that are difficult to describe. Having worked for and supported the Army for so many years, the betrayal cut deeply.

Praise be to the Lord, I transitioned from fighting to keep my career and reaching retirement eligibility, to the Army asking me what they could do to keep me on board. Long story short, the Army acquiesced to my family’s needs, and we remain in the Army today. My mission focus has shifted; I first serve the Lord, then protect and raise my family, and finally serve this Nation. I continue to support my commanders and the U.S. Army with my full effort as unto the Lord, but I am a servant of Christ first.