089 Ben Peterson on when God told me to go

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Ben Peterson has been many things: a doubting high schooler-turned-believer; a soldier and lapsed disciple; a successful salesperson and non-profit builder. Through all of that, He has tried to listen to the voice of God and go where God tells him to go, when God tells him to. That call has lead him to start a nonprofit whose goal is to help military come to know Christ and be discipled in the local church.

Who is Ben Peterson? Ben Peterson is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Engage Your Destiny, a group that provides experiences that draw military people to events and gives them the chance to make an informed decision about the Gospel for themselves. They do this through offering resiliency training, emotional intelligence training, and other tools to bring Kingdom values to military venues. Before starting this venture, Ben was a successful salesperson who one day realized that God was calling him to something else — so he went. Ben also served 8 years in the Army and deployed to Iraq for a year in 2008-2009. His experience as a soldier helps him to understand what military personnel are going through on a personal level, allowing him to preach the Gospel in a compassionate, comrade-to-comrade way. After his time in the military, Ben completed his bachelor’s degree in Music and Biblical studies, and has worked with companies like Polaris, Sleep Number, and the Minnesota Vikings while at his creative agency job.

Ben’s mission is to reach military and veterans for christ and get them discipled through the local church. He believes our military deserve to know the God that died for them, just as they are willing to sacrifice their own lives for their American brothers and sisters.

Quotes:

“We believe those who are willing to die for their country deserve to know the God who was willing to die for them.” — Ben

“I heard that story and said ‘Okay, God. I’ll go. Who else is going to go and heal these people? I’ll go.’.” — Ben

“If God has put a dream or desire in your heart, then it’s time to go.” — Ben

“We are dealing with a fatherless generation. Sixty-percent of American Millennials are fatherless.” — Ben

Action Steps:

• How can you step in and help someone else to carry their burdens? Galatians 6:2 calls us to love others through action in order to fulfill the law of Christ.
• Helping others through their own struggles can often help us through our own.
• If you are focused on complete healing from a past trauma, you might be focused in the wrong place. Complete healing may not come this side of heaven.
• If you’re in a moment of discontent in your own life, ask yourself: what are you waiting for? If it’s your own shortcomings holding you back, that’s not faith in a God that can move mountains to see His plans through.

Resources mentioned:

• Official website: engageyourdestiny.com
• Connect with Ben Peterson on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

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