ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Episode Summary
Madison Frost is an Air Force officer who graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 2022 with a degree in operations research and from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 2024 with a master's in data science. She met her husband Brian, an Army officer, while stationed at Langley Air Force Base, and the dual-military couple recently PCS'd to the Colorado Springs area with their newborn daughter, Heidi. Madison has led women's Bible studies in Colorado, Ohio, and Virginia through ministries including OCF and the Navigators.
In episode 2 of our series Relying on God Through Military Transitions, Madison shares how prayer became her anchor through repeated moves, including a joint-spouse PCS complicated by pending deployment orders. If you're facing a move and don't know how to pray through it, this conversation offers a practical starting point.
Questions answered and themes covered in this interview include:
What should a Christian pray for before moving to a new duty station?
Pray that God has already gone ahead of you into the new assignment, and pray specifically for friendship and community once you arrive. Those two prayers came out of a senior-year Bible study on preparing for a first duty station, built around Scripture describing God going before His people. The prayer of praise was simple: Lord, help me trust that you're already at my next duty station and that you'll be there with me. The answer exceeded the request—instead of the one or two friends expected, God provided a church community and a group of five Christian women in the same season of life. Praying before the move, rather than only after arriving, changes what you're looking for when you get there. Why is prayer important during a military move?
Prayer does two things during a transition: it gives you peace, and it keeps your focus on who the move is really for. Philippians 4:6-7 frames the first, bringing requests to God with thanksgiving, and receiving peace that guards your heart and mind. It's the only reliable way to calm an anxious heart. The second is a shift in perspective: you aren't moving for yourself, your family, or even the military. God already hand-selected that next duty station, which means praying about it reminds you He will sustain you there. That reframe matters especially in a military culture where complaining can function almost like a hobby. How do you keep a prayer routine during a PCS move?
Keep a prayer journal with you throughout the move, and shift to short prayers on the days when sitting down isn't realistic. Journaling in the morning works when there's time. Move day usually isn't that day, so the tactic becomes little prayers, room by room, as the packers work: Lord, I pray the rest of the packing goes smoothly. Lord, keep us safe on the drive. Mix in prayers of thanks for the season you're leaving, such as gratitude for the friendships and experiences at that duty station. Both practices are brief by design, which is what makes them survivable in the middle of chaos. Why should Christians keep a prayer journal?
Writing prayers down makes them easier to carry through the day and creates a record you can look back on. Most people forget easily. A prayer written in the morning is far more likely to resurface later, for example, on the drive home from work, which might prompt a second prayer or a moment of thanks. The bigger benefit comes from flipping back: rediscovering small prayers you'd forgotten and seeing how God answered them, whether the answer was yes, no, or wait. Joshua 4 offers a good pattern: the Israelites set up stones after crossing the Jordan so that future generations would ask what those stones meant, bringing to mind not only the challenges of that season but also God's faithfulness. A prayer journal serves the same function: written evidence that God sustained you before, and He will again. What Bible verses help with a military move?
Pick one verse for the season you're in, something about God's faithfulness or His comfort, depending on what you need. Then, pray it back to God repeatedly. Hebrews 13:8 works well: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Praying it takes seconds: Thank you, Lord, for being the same. So much in a transition isn't the same—your family, your location, your routine—and anchoring to what is unchanging steadies you. Psalm 139:4 serves a similar purpose: Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. God already knows the fears and anxieties you can't articulate to anyone else. Repetition of Scripture in prayer encourages your heart and deepens your knowledge of God's Word over time. Scripture referenced (ESV):
• Psalm 139:4 — Madison's anchor verse • Joshua 4:5-7 — stones of remembrance • Philippians 4:6-7 — prayer, petition, and the peace of God • Hebrews 13:8 — Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever • Philippians 2:14-16 — doing everything without grumbling • Romans 8:38-39 — series anchor verse
Resources and upcoming events:
• OCF Women's Ministry • OCF Sisterhood Retreat: Nov 6–8, Spring Canyon Conference Center, Buena Vista, Colo. • OCF Leading Women Retreat: March 19–21, White Sulphur Springs Conference Center, Manns Choice, Pa. • Sisterhood Conference: Jan 30, 2027, Lakewood, Wash. • Episode 1 of this series: conversation with Cheyenne on deployment-to-PCS-to-training transitions
