Rhodes goes from the military to the Lord’s army

By Editor | April 20, 2011 |

“We’re supposed to attack Satan where he’s at…That’s the only way I know how to do it, as a paratrooper would do, just jump in with both feet.”
Rev. Carl Rhodes

The Rev. Carl Rhodes has been in the Lord’s army, the ministry, for four years, and “Believe it or not, God did it,” he said.
“I was in the military, and after I retired, I worked as a director of admissions for a little college. I was just waiting for her (his wife, Pat) to retire, and then we were going to leave Illinois and move south.”
“But there were some things we saw during our 35th wedding anniversary when we were on vacation, things we didn’t like seeing. We kept saying, ‘Boy, somebody should do something about that.
“On the ride home from Mississippi and Louisiana, everything we listened to on the Christian radio, every message was ‘OK, who is going to change it if not you?’
“At first, we thought we were being led to be missionaries, but no. God said, I want you in ministry,” he said. “My degree is in history, from Western Illinois University, so I had to get my ministry training in. I did that through the Christian Bible Institute in Cincinnati. I got that, and so, here I am.
“And God sent me south. I meant further south, but God said, this is south, south of Rock Island; that is where we were stationed last.”
Some Military History
Rhodes actually served two different terms in the Army.
“I first went into the Army in 1968, and after I was in seven years, I got out and stayed out for a long time. Then in 1988, I had an opportunity to go back in as a recruiter and keep my rank as a sergeant,” he said.
“Pat and I discussed it – should we really do this? There was a cut in pay because I was driving a truck over the road and making very good money, and I would go from that to a sergeant’s pay,” he said. “I went back in for the benefits. So I finished out my term in the military and got my retirement.”
He was stationed all over – Fort Hood, Mo.; Fort Ord, Calif.; and Fort Benning, Ga.
“I went to jump school in Fort Benning. I was a paratrooper. When I was stationed in Vietnam in 1969, I served with the 101st Airborne Division in Vietnam and over in Germany. It wasn’t easy, but I have no regrets,” he said.
Ft. Benning Bus Stop Love Story
Fort Benning was special in another way also, because that is where Pat and Carl met.
“In 1972, I was a military policeman at Fort Benning,” he said. “She worked at the hospital there as a medic. I saw her waiting for a bus. There was that red head. I was off-duty, and she had never had a ride in a Jeep, so I took her to work.”
They have been married 39 years and have four children: sons Chad and Casey, both of whom are in the U.S. Army; and two daughters, Katie and Erin. They also have nine grandchildren.
The Calling
Serving Northside Christian Church is his first ministry, but not his first experience serving the Lord. He had served as deacon, elder and youth sponsor.
“I did a lot of work with youth. I also went on a lot of mission trips to the Dominican Republic, Mexico. I built houses in Mexico. But I love this ministry. What do you tell God?” he said.
Rev. Rhodes and his wife, Pat, work together as a team in the jail ministry. “I don’t just sit, and ask them questions and talk; I preach,” he said.
He mentioned one young man who comes to the church he holds, opens his Bible and listens attentively.
“I think God was working with me all the time, letting me learn, just one hard knock after another,” he said. "I pretty much went into the ministry like I did into the military – I only know one thing, the old General Patton school of warfare, and that’s attack, attack, attack.
“Too many churches, I think, sit back in their fortresses of solitude, their forts, called the church building, and that’s their ministry. That’s not what we’re supposed to do; we’re supposed to attack Satan, where he’s at,” he said.
“That’s the only way I know how to do it, as a paratrooper would, jump in with both feet.”