By Ken Yates
Introduction
I am a guy who likes creature comforts. I like indoor plumbing, a nice hot meal for supper, and a comfortable bed. Two or three pillows are pretty much a necessity as well.
When I joined the Army, I had to make a few sacrifices regarding these comforts when I trained with soldiers in the field. My first time in the field was in chaplain school. Regarding my sleeping arrangements, I had a little pup tent with a cot. On the cot, I had a sleeping bag. These things would keep me warm and dry at night. To make myself more comfortable, I brought a nice pillow for the seven days we were in the field. Such a scenario was not optimal, but it kept my complaining to a minimum.
After chaplain school, I was assigned to my first real Army unit—a parachute battalion. I didn’t know what to expect. When I arrived, the unit was already in the field, and I was told I could visit and spend three days and nights with them. It would be a good opportunity to meet the soldiers and see what real Army life was like.
I was eager to do so but a little apprehensive. This wasn’t like chaplain school, where I had been with fifty other chaplains. Those guys were like me. Now, I would be with younger soldiers who were medics, infantrymen, radio operators, and the like. I was not sure how I would relate to them.
The only thing I knew was that at night, I could curl up in my sleeping bag, on my cot, in my tent, relax, and get a pretty good night’s sleep. It couldn’t be too bad. I could handle whatever the next three days would bring when I considered my little sanctuary in the field.
My world was about to fall apart.
Meeting the Guys
Three soldiers and I drove out to the field in a military Humvee. It was my first time in such a vehicle, and everything was strange to me. I learned you had to wear your military Kevlar helmet anytime you were in the Humvee. That was a little uncomfortable. The Humvee didn’t have any doors and thus had no heat. It was a little cold as the wind blew through the vehicle. I made a mental note to dress more warmly next time. Up to that point, my irritants were minor. Besides, not everything was bad. The hour-long drive gave me an opportunity to talk with the three infantrymen who were with me and get to know them better.
We arrived at our destination around 6 p.m. The unit commander, who would be my boss, was there. So were about fifty other soldiers. Even though I had no idea what was going on, I could walk around and introduce myself to the men. I tried to figure out their jobs and asked some of them what they were doing. They were very nice as they explained their responsibilities.
After a couple of hours, it began to get dark. I had done about all the talking I wanted to do for the day, so my thoughts turned to my little refuge. It would be great to lie down and rest. I had even brought a little transistor radio and some cheap headphones. I hoped to pick up a local station and listen to Country and Western music while I fell asleep.
My ignorance of the situation knew no bounds.
Where Are the Pup Tents?
I hadn’t noticed something while I was walking around talking to everybody. It was only when I thought about going to bed that I realized there weren’t any tents or cots out there. I didn’t see any sleeping bags either. I assumed our sleeping arrangements were a short distance away, perhaps on the other side of a nearby hill. Finding that place was my focus, so I asked a sergeant operating a radio a really important question.
“Excuse me, Sergeant, but where are you going to sleep?” He pointed to the ground at his feet and said, “Right here, sir.” Obviously, there was no tent, sleeping bag, cot, or pillow. I didn’t know if he was joking or if he was one of the guys I’d heard about. I had been told there were guys in the Army who thought they were Rambo and liked to tough it out to prove they were macho. That may have been what that sergeant wanted, but that wasn’t me. I went to look for my pup tent.
As I did, I ran into the commander. I was thrilled because I knew he would have the best sleeping accommodations in the field. Wherever he went to sleep, I would see if I could get in the tent next to his.
So, I asked him: “Sir, where are you going to sleep?” He pointed at an area about 10 feet away and said, “Right next to that bush.” I looked at that bush. You probably already know what I didn’t see. There wasn’t a tent, cot, sleeping bag, or pillow in sight.
At that point, I had a revelation: I was in trouble.
I’m Glad I Didn’t Know
I quickly learned that a parachute unit didn’t have all the things I was looking for. When they trained, they only took what they could parachute with. All my creature comforts were not allowed. As long as I was with that unit, when it trained, the ground would be my bed. That first night was brutal. I found a level place on the ground and slept there. My only comfort was that it didn’t rain.
Looking back, I’m glad I didn’t know what awaited me in the field. Had I known, there’s a high probability that I wouldn’t have entered the chaplaincy. I would have assumed that I couldn’t cut it. That would have been a tragedy because I was able to adjust pretty quickly to the difficulties of Army life, including spending many nights asleep on the ground. I stayed in for a long time and had a long and satisfying career.
Discipleship Is Like That
It has occurred to me that discipleship in the Christian life is like my experience in the Army. After a person believes in Jesus for eternal life, he has the privilege of following the Lord in discipleship. That is a process by which the believer becomes more like Him. Eternal life is absolutely free, given by faith in Him alone, and can never be lost. Discipleship involves costly sacrifices.
Like me on my first night in the field, the new believer cannot possibly know what those sacrifices involve or what difficulties he will face as he follows the Lord. In many respects, he is blissfully ignorant of what awaits him. The Lord tells us we will face these trials, but the details will differ for each believer who sets out on that path.
We see an example of this in Luke 9:57. A person who is a picture of a believer tells the Lord Jesus that he will follow Him wherever He goes. We all realize this person has no clue what he will encounter if he decides to follow through on this promise.
But I have to smile when I read what the Lord tells him. He says, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (Luke 9:58). This new believer might think that following Christ will not involve giving up any creature comforts. He probably hadn’t even considered the possibility.
The Lord tells him that foxes and birds have beds to sleep on. The Lord does not. He doesn’t even have a pillow. Christ gives this person more information than I had when I first joined the Army. There were many details this guy still didn’t know, but he knew a heavy price would be paid to spend time with the Lord.
We don’t know how he responded. I don’t know how I would have responded if the Lord had told me that. But as I draw an analogy to my experience in the Army, I’m glad I stuck it out that night so many years ago. I hope this young man responded wisely as well.
Conclusion
When I set out on my first adventure in the Army, I knew it would be different and that there would be some difficulties. Thankfully, I didn’t know all the details.
For the believer, following Jesus in discipleship is like that. He tells us that sacrifices will need to be made, but there is no way we can know exactly what that will involve. It will be different for each believer.
If you had told me I’d have to sleep on the ground for extended nights in order to be a chaplain, there’s a good chance I would have decided not to become part of that life. That would have been a mistake. I received a great many rewards for staying in the military. My ignorance wound up being a blessing.
The same thing is true of discipleship. We don’t know what we might encounter if we follow the Lord. But He tells us He will be with us and strengthen us so that we can do what He asks us to do. He also promises that if we are faithful and endure, He will reward us in His kingdom more than we can possibly imagine.
It is a good thing that we don’t know all the details. The Lord tells us to follow Him. It is enough for us to say that wherever He lays His head at night, we don’t mind laying our heads in the same place.
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Ken Yates is a retired Army chaplain (Lt. Col). He has many theological degrees, including a Ph.D. from D.T.S. in New Testament. He leads the GES international ministry, cohosts the daily podcast, and assists Bob in all aspects of the GES ministry. His new book, Elisabeth, is a powerful testimony to the power of God manifested in a Christ-centered family. He and his wife, Pam, live in Columbia, SC.
