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The Rev. Willie Caraballo-Lopez and the Rev. Will Butler, both of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, are currently serving with the National Guard in Iraq.

They recently sent this letter home.

Greetings from Iraq. I trust this finds you engrossed in the ministry and love of Christ.

Will and I recently traveled in the actual convoy, with gun trucks behind and in front of us, as we made the three-day journey to Al Asad in Iraq. It was a tense experience if I ever had one, not knowing what lay ahead of us, but yet trusting that all would be all right by God's grace.

Will and I divide up the ministry and responsibilities among ourselves. We make a fantastic team. I am using my Spanish-speaking skills to work with the Hispanic/Latino soldiers and teaching 'The Purpose Driven Life,' in Spanish.

In all, our days go by quickly. We begin our day usually at 5:30 a.m. and complete it at 7 p.m. Of course, since our Unit Ministry Section is made up of only two people, we are on call 24/7.

There will be three convoys departing Al Asad in the next 24 hours that are a part of our subordinate units. They will be going to different bases in Iraq. Before they leave, either Chaplain Butler or I will be there to see them off with a prayer and words of encouragement. They leave at 10 p.m., 4:30 a.m. and 5 a.m. from different locations on the base, so we'll be able to grab a couple hours of sleep. We never want to allow a convoy of our soldiers to depart our base without having the opportunity to pray with them and be by their side as they leave.

If the people from the Baltimore-Washington Conference are interested in sending care packages to the soldiers, some of the items that are hard to come by are: Ritz and saltine crackers, AAA batteries, powdered coffee and creamer, potting soil, flower and tomato seeds, flower pots, tuna fish packed in water, paper towels and copy paper.

My address is Sgt. William Caraballo-Lopez, SS#1015, Unit HHD 1297th CSB, APO AE 09389, Al Asad, Iraq.

Paz y abundancia en Cristo Jesus
Willie Caraballo-Lopez Jr.