A Bronx pastor who earned a Purple Heart Award serving in Vietnam received the President's Volunteer Service Award on Friday night for his decades of ministry aiding persecuted Christians and others impacted in war zones worldwide.
Pastor Bill Devlin, who serves as co-pastor of Infinity Bible Church in South Bronx and runs the ministries REDEEM! and Widows and Orphans, was an honoree at a gala banquet in The Hilton Hotel in Melville, Long Island, New York. The President's White House Council on Service and Civic Participation administered the award ceremony.
The award honors individuals whose service impacts their communities and inspires others to take action.
Devlin told The Christian Post he is "grateful to God" for the award, which came more than half a century after he first abandoned his ways as a "God-hating atheist" and came to Christ.
"I was a radical God-hating atheist, and when I was hitchhiking on the San Diego Freeway on June 23, 1971, a Jesus freak shared the Good News of Jesus and the Gospel with me," he recalled. "And that night, I received Jesus into my heart and life."
"I immediately started in ministry as a young Christian," he added. "And a week after I was converted to Christ, … I volunteered to go into the military, to the United States Navy."
Devlin served in Vietnam until he was "shot up" after a bomb landed on his ship, which was located off the coast at the time. While he "initially refused the Purple Heart" because he still had all his limbs intact, Devlin's commanding officer insisted that he accept the honor.
Following his service in Vietnam, Devlin spent a quarter century in Christian ministry in the U.S., got married and had five children. He and his wife, Nancy, have been married for over 44 years.
The 70-year-old has made headlines over the years for his willingness to travel the globe to stand in solidarity and provide practical aid to Christians persecuted for their faith.
- Culled from: The Christian Post
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