Air Force Sergeant Benjamin Wilson* saw more pain than he wants to remember. He saw brave men die and the devastating impact it had on their children. “It ripped the heart out of my chest,” he recalls. He saw hunger and suffering around the world. “A lot of things you can’t let go; you can’t get those visions out of your head,” he explains.

Wilson was deployed more than a dozen times to Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq, Afghanistan and other parts of Asia. But no matter where he served or what he saw, Wilson felt God’s comfort and peace because American Bible Society’s financial partners helped placed a Bible in his hands.

“It’s one of those things that I will cherish for all of my days,” he says. Wilson remembers one moment in particular when the words of Scripture gave him comfort. On a supply mission to an outpost in hostile territory, the enemy began firing on his helicopter.

“Pop! Pop! Pop! Our aircraft took probably about 15 rounds. [After landing,] we inspected the damage. There was a hole right where I was sitting. Nobody on the helicopter was injured during that attack. As many times as we were shot, it was an absolute miracle. It was a miracle the aircraft didn’t crash. It was just one of God’s blessings.”

The experience reminded the sergeant of God’s promises of protection in Scripture. Wilson says, “[The Bible] is just one of those unbelievable comforts. It’s probably one of the greatest gifts that they’ll ever get. You realize God’s alive. People will never get to know that if they don’t have a Bible. It’s the foundation of everything.”

American Bible Society’s Armed Services Ministry has served Military personnel like Wilson with free Scripture resources since 1817. The generosity of our financial partners helps us reach today’s 1.8 million active duty Service members, reservists and 21.8 million Veterans who continue to need God’s Word.

*Names changed for protection