For almost six years, Americans have watched the emotional scenes of families saying good-bye to their sons and daughters, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers as they headed off to war. You could see concern, fear, and uncertainty in the faces of family members. But you could also see how proud they were of their loved ones and their willingness to serve their country and to defend the cause of freedom.

As I’ve watched those scenes play out, I’ve tried to put myself in the place of those fathers who were watching their sons and daughters depart. If that were my son, how would I react? What would be going through my mind? How would I deal with the fact that my little boy, now a young man, would soon step off that plane and into harm’s way?

If I were that father, I imagine that I would be asking myself if I had been faithful as a Christian father in those precious years that my son was in my home. Did I show him by my example what it means to trust in Jesus, to be sure of God’s forgiveness in Christ, and to know the joy and certainty of salvation by faith alone? Did I help him to know that no matter where he goes, what he does, or what danger he faces, he is always accompanied by the protective hand of a gracious God?

Soon, I will not have the luxury of only imagining that scene.

Three years ago, my son Zachary headed off to college. But shortly before that, he also had joined the National Guard. After taking the required tests, he was told he could choose any training he wanted. Zach’s simple answer was, “That’s what college is for; I want to be a soldier.” So he joined the infantry, ready to serve his country in a time of war.

Next month, Zach will be heading for Iraq after a few months of training in Texas. And those questions I had only imagined before have now become real.

My wife, Andrea, and I know that we are certainly not the only parents who have faced this situation; thousands of other families have been there and done that. But it is a first for us. We will be asking ourselves if we have done enough to prepare our son spiritually for the days ahead. An honest answer will always be, “We could have done more.”

At the same time, we find true comfort in the fact that Zach knows his Savior. From the time that God brought him into his family through Baptism, the Word of God has been a part of Zach’s life. It is the Word of God that gives him the comfort of knowing his sins are forgiven. It is the Word of God that reminds him that his God will never leave him or forsake him. It is the Word of God that will enable him to carry out his mission, fully confident that his strength lies in God and in God’s unbreakable promises.