I Promise...I'll Bring You Home

By Keith Lay (Father of Timothy Brandon Lay)

Marine Sergeant Timothy Brandon Lay was deployed for two six-month tours to Afghanistan. He volunteered and trained as a Combat Engineer with the responsibility of finding and detecting Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). In fact, of the first five Marine Combat Engineers that were sent to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, in 2006, four came back in flag draped caskets with only Lay surviving.

During the missions that Marine Sergeant Timothy Brandon Lay conducted and led, he would always promise his fellow Marines: “I promise . . . I’ll bring you home.” According to the Marine Lieutenant who trained Lay, he stated that Lay was the best he has ever trained; it seemed that he could even smell an IED. Lay kept his promise to his men for he never lost a man to an IED during all the missions he was assigned. Even though Lay himself suffered many concussions, was knocked unconscious twice, and suffered from Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), he kept his word to his men.

If you are a Military Veteran, you are to be commended. You also made it back home to the United States of America. You were able to be reunited with family and friends after you had been deployed and served our country in a foreign land. Many of your fellow military comrades did not have that privilege for they paid the ultimate sacrifice of service.

According to the Bible, there is another home that God has prepared for men. The home that the Bible speaks about is Heaven. However, although God prepared it for all men, not all men will arrive there one day. God promises that Heavenly Home only to those who place their faith and trust in His Son, Jesus Christ. If a man goes to heaven after death, man must go God’s way—not man’s way, nor a religion’s way, nor culture’s way . . . but God’s way.

Well, there is good news for you. The Bible states in 1 John 5:13, These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life (emphasis added). The Bible also says in John 14:1, 3, Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in me. . . . And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Jesus Christ has promised you that He would bring you home—home to His Heavenly Home. But, there is a decision that you must make. That decision is for you to confess that you are a sinner and that you believe Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid the penalty for your sin. You must trust Jesus Christ as your personal Savior for He is the only way to gain a home in Heaven. Since it is God’s Heaven, one must go God’s way. There is no other way.

You can ask Christ into your life by sincerely praying something like this: Dear Lord, I know that I am a sinner and that I need your forgiveness. I believe Jesus Christ died in my place to pay the penalty for my sin and He rose from the dead. I now invite Jesus to come into my life as my Savior. Thank you for taking me safely home to Heaven one day for I am trusting only in you.

Timothy Lay went home to be with the Lord November 21, 2020, at the age of 36. He was studying to become a counselor to help other Marines who suffered as he had suffered.

As a tribute to him, the state of Iowa honored him by a service held in the rotunda of the capitol in Des Moines. Only two others had been so honored and both were governors.

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