God Finally Reached Him

(Photo/Lauren Buffamante Photography)

Cadet Keith Becker is answering the call to officership and fulfilling a verse written in his Bible years ago.

“From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” —Luke 12:48b

In 2024, Keith Becker’s life hit rock bottom. His career and 15-year marriage were at an end. He was one check from losing his home in Glens Falls, New York. His family relationships were strained, and he admits he had a “poor attitude.”

“I didn’t have any support or anything—nothing. I was kind of on my own,” he said. “I was lost and angry and had kind of made a mess of my life.”

The son of retired Majors Monica and Ronald Becker, Keith celebrated his first five birthdays in five different states as his parents moved to new appointments. They remember him hanging around the Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Center (ARC) and encouraging the beneficiaries at the age of 5.

“I would run around the ARC telling the men, ‘You need Jesus. Jesus loves you.’ I was on fire,” Keith said. “I knew at a young age I wanted to tell people about my friend Jesus and how He was gonna save you.”

In his 20s, Keith was accepted as an officer candidate, but he let fear, a lack of faith, and anxiety derail his call. He wondered if he was too young, if he had enough education, and whether he had the skills to counsel people through life’s challenges.

“I thought, ‘Who am I to do this?’ I let doubt creep in and I walked away,” said Keith, who has ADHD, or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Nothing filled the gap

Keith embarked on a 20-year career as an IT professional. While he was good at the work, he didn’t find fulfillment. It was just a job and a paycheck.

“God was there to help me clean it up by giving me a job and everything, but I was still messing it up because I wasn’t doing what I was meant to do. I wasn’t doing what God’s will was for my life,” he said. “I made money, but it was hollow and somewhere to hide out.”

Majors Delia and Stephen Carroll, who were old family friends, had arrived as the new corps officers of The Salvation Army in Glens Falls the past summer. With his divorce now finalized, Keith decided to drop by and say hello. He planned to stay for five minutes, but he ended up staying through the Sunday morning service and a handwashing ceremony. As the congregation sang the hymn “Come to the Altar,” something hit Keith and he sought out Major Stephen before praying at the mercy seat.

Cadet Keith Becker stands on the campus of the College for Officer Training in Suffern, New York. He took some detours along the way to get there, including a 20-year career in IT, but he is finally ready to give his all to God. (Photo/Lauren Buffamante Photography)

“I told God, ‘I don’t have anything left but You, so what are we gonna do?’ I would say be careful what you ask God for because He’ll give it to you,” he said. “Sometimes you might not be ready for His answer.

“I felt the calling again. It never went away. I just ignored it for years, thinking I knew better.”

That still small voice

At first Keith was reluctant to put a label on what kind of calling it was, knowing that it might not be officership. He asked God to reveal it to him, and it happened at family camp—during a 5 a.m. time of prayer on the dock at Long Point Camp in Penn Yan, New York.

“In the quiet moments with the sun coming up, I had an assured certainty I had never had since I was a kid of who my Lord was and what His will was for my life,” he said. “I ran back to the cabin to tell my major, ‘It’s a call to officership.’ I was sure.”

Keith didn’t want to be a single officer, but he also was still hurting and not looking for a relationship. About three months later, he accidentally friended Lieutenant Holly Bilbay on social media. The two contacted each other and eventually got married.

“She’s the best partner I could ever imagine,” Keith said. “I couldn’t have built a better partner. I realized that I could love again and would need to do that to love others as an officer.”

Bilbay, who was commissioned two years ago, will serve on staff at the College for Officer Training (CFOT) in Suffern, New York, as the campus ministries officer while Keith goes to training. He reported to the CFOT on August 18 with the rest of his Rescued session of cadets.

Ready to dig in

Keith, 46, now understands the sacrifices and commitments his parents made as officers. He remembers his mother scrubbing toilets at one appointment when there was no one else to do it.

“I want to do everything I have to do because I owe everything to God,” Keith said. “So, if He says, ‘Keith, go scrub toilets,’ I’m going to go scrub toilets. If He says, ‘Go down this street and preach the gospel and tell people about my Son and about Jesus being our Savior,’ I’m going to go do that. I’m just glad to help in the communities where I can share the gospel with everyone willing to hear it and give them what they need for the hereafter.”

Keith is also looking forward to working with youth. At the Glens Falls Corps, he helped with a martial arts class and taught archery. He also is a juggler and blessed musically as a percussionist and guitar player and hopes to use all those talents.

“I light up when little kids listen to what I have to say about God,” he said. “That gives me goosebumps sometimes because I’m like, ‘Did that just come out of my mouth?’ I just allow the Spirit to move. That’s what I’m excited about.”

When he announced his call to officership, the least surprised person was his mother, who recognized God’s blessing on his life. Years ago, family friend Major Ed Forster had written Luke 12:48 in Keith’s Bible and told him he had been given many gifts and to put them to use.

A family legacy

Over the years, Keith’s mother used the same verse to encourage him.

“My mother writes it inside the cover of every Bible I’ve ever had,” Keith said. “Whatever I do … whether it’s juggling or drums or plunking things out on a guitar as poorly as I can, I know it’s because God has given it to me for His use and not for mine.

“I was the 5-year-old kid running around the ARC telling people about Jesus, and now I’m going to be telling people again.”