This "God Story" is taken from a series of events in the Coast Guard careers of two Christian officers who now serve together on the ACCTS staff.  It illustrates how God uses His people to fulfill His word and build His kingdom.

 

In the mid-1970s, two Christian Coast Guard helicopter pilots were assigned to Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod.  One of them was an aircraft commander in the single engine HH-52A, and the other an aircraft commander in the twin engine HH-3F.  In God's divine providence, they were assigned to the same duty section, spending 24 hours at the base every third day, ready to respond to calls for assistance within 30 minutes.  The others members of their duty section were a Mormon, another Christian H-3 pilot, and a young H-52 co-pilot.  On duty nights, the discussion would invariably turn to religion as the Christian pilots sought to evangelize the Mormon, and the young co-pilot listened.

 

This young officer had been raised in a Catholic family, but his parents had drifted away from the faith as he matured, and he had hardened his heart to the idea of Christianity.  The H-52 pilots often flow together, and the aircraft commander frequently shared the Gospel with the young co-pilot.  One of their crewmembers was also a Christian, and often joined in the conversation, sharing his faith and the trials he was facing, and explaining how the presence of the Holy Spirit in his life gave him the "peace that passes understanding" in the midst of his tribulations.

 

The H-3 aircraft commander liked to play racquetball, and the young H-52 co-pilot was the best player on base, so the Lord often placed them together on the racquetball court.  Racquetball players frequently take the Lord's name in vain or use other 4 letter words to express their frustration at missed shots and the like.  Despite being trounced on a regular basis, however, the H-3 pilot did not resort to such "racquetball court vernacular," but instead praised the Lord for the good shots, and thanked him for the bad ones.

 

Using these various testimonies, God began to work in the young man's heart, and within a few months, he accepted an invitation to join in Bible Study. After hearing the word, reading the word, and seeing the word lived out in the lives of others, the young man accepted Christ as his savior.  With 4 Christians and 1 Mormon, their duty section became known as the "God Squad."