Military Training and Christian Transformation
What have they in common?
By Brendan Healy
(From the January - March 2020 issue of VOX)
One of the challenges for Christian leaders in our day is seeing people’s lives transformed and developed as mature followers of Christ. This type of transformation impacts our thinking and how we live our daily lives. One way that Jesus taught His followers was to observe their environment; to “look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest’ or ‘look at the birds of the air” or that “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven,” to bring clarity to what He was teaching. As I was thinking about how Christians are transformed by the renewing of their minds, I began to consider my time in the military and how it majored in the transformation of civilians to soldiers.
The military have been involved in transforming civilians to soldiers as long as, if not longer than, the church has been involved in discipleship. Most armies now conduct this process over a period of 12-16 weeks called ‘Recruit Training’ followed by basic training for 8 – 12 weeks. The soldier is then ready to begin active service and undergo specialist training. There are many things we, in the church, can learn from the military in their transformation process, but I would like to outline three overarching concepts which have particular relevance to us as Christians. I have discovered that people who have accepted these paradigms have a much better chance of growth in their Christian maturity and development.
None of these concepts ever appear on a training plan or syllabus yet they are essential to the development and ability of the new soldier to operate within the military environment. Likewise, I believe these three paradigm shifts are essential to our transformation and development as Christians.
Paradigm Shift 1: It’s not about ME anymore.
I remember so clearly my own introduction to military life and the shock of realising that I am not the centre of the universe and that life is not all about me. In fact, the only thing important about me was my contribution to the team, called a ‘Section’ consisting of ten recruits. We learned very quickly that if you got into trouble, the other nine in your section suffered, receiving the same punishment as you. It’s unfair of course, but a bond of togetherness was forged even in misery. My contribution was only relevant as part of the team’s success.
“We belonged to something much bigger and greater than ourselves.”
We were never alone. We did everything in twos, fives or tens. There was no such thing as an individual task. All this was part of a great overarching concept of teaching us that we belonged to something much bigger and greater than ourselves. Together we could achieve more. We were better together and we were part of something very important. I remember the discomfort of being told that what I thought wasn’t important anymore. My job was to do what I was told.
I am not suggesting that we train people like this, but I like the fact that even the military realise how important it is to live outside of ourselves, or as we say spiritually “die to ourselves”. What a lesson for us as Christians to know. We are not on our own. We are part of a company of people who have a task here on earth. There is great freedom and liberty in knowing it’s not all about you. Jesus lived this type of life, displaying how His identity and wellbeing was more about His Father than Himself.
Paradigm Shift 2: We have a new leader.
In the military, we had to accept the fact that somebody had authority over us all the time. We had a new leader. He had the power to keep us up all night, assigning us tasks which ended only at his discretion. He decided what time we got up in the morning, what we would wear, where we would go, when we would eat, 24/7. Yes, we could choose to leave but while we were in the military these were the conditions.
There were three ways to do things our sergeant told us: the right way, the wrong way and the army way. No prizes for guessing which way things were done. I knew we were in for a tough time when our sergeant declared he “wasn’t here to win a popularity contest”. They didn’t mind if you didn’t like them. They were not interested in your feelings. Their abiding focus was to obey the commanding officer. The CO ensured that all recruits were treated with dignity and respect. He was the one who was ultimately responsible for the transformation from civilian to soldier.
As Christians, we also have a commanding officer - the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who has authority over us and ultimately wants to guide us through our transformation.
Paradigm Shift 3: We don’t always get answers to ‘Why?’.
The third area I needed my mind transformed was in accepting that I would not always get the answer to why things happen. In fact, I found out very quickly that our Sergeant had no intention of explaining why we were doing various tasks. For example, we would sweep leaves up every afternoon in early autumn right under the trees that would shed leaves later that night. We would be tasked with polishing our army boots right before training in the mud. What I didn’t know at the time was that the commanding officer knew why things were being done. The purpose of specific tasks and challenges was to see how we would react and respond. We were learning to trust our CO, regardless.
I had the privilege of being a commanding officer later in my career and saw things then from a totally different perspective. My goal was to transform civilians into soldiers who would follow commands while trusting their leaders.
“As Christians, we have a great commanding officer who is good and cares deeply about our welfare.”
As Christians, we have a great commanding officer who is good and cares deeply about our welfare. As a result, when our ‘Why?’ questions are not answered we should endeavour to accept this as we trust our commanding officer. It can be a real challenge when we encounter suffering and unanswered questions. But the military has taught me that if our CO is good I can strive to accept what is going on without understanding why.
Let me just leave you with a few additional concepts regarding the way the military transform civilians to soldiers.
There is a 100% commitment by the military to the transformation process. They use the best trainers and resources. It is prioritised over all other training activities.
They are confident that they can make effective capable soldiers out of any civilian who signs up.
Obedience, service and humility are emphasised at the beginning of the transformation process much more than theory, understanding and knowledge.
There is no such thing as a 50% civilian and a 50% soldier. You are a 100% one or the other.
The transformation process always begins the moment a civilian signs up. Ultimately, if there is no transformation there is no soldier.
Brendan Healy is a retired Lieutenant Colonel who served in the Irish Defence Forces for nearly 40 years. After retiring, he did a Masters in Christian Missional Leadership. He now serves in leadership roles in his church in Mullingar and teaches on Leadership and Communications in the Irish Bible Institute in Dublin.
