Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. Lush, green, rolling hills. Jagged, blue ridge mountains outlining the sky. Flowing cool mountain streams and rivers. The sites of historic Civil War and Revolutionary War Battle sites. What are now peaceful farmlands also harbor stories of lives lost, brother against brother, freedom against bondage, and willingness to fight for what you believed in even if others disagreed with you.
From June 16-28, I attended the first residence phase of the Army War College. With nearly four hundred Lieutenant Colonels and Colonels, the last several days have been a combination of learning, seminars, dialogue and reflection. It was augmented with tours of historic battle sites and time in Washington, DC where we visited various US embassies and interagency organizations. My itinerary included a visit to the German Embassy as well as FEMA. The War College is just that. An accredited academic program that upon completion results in a Master of Arts in Strategic Military Studies. Although many officers can complete this as a one- year residence phase, many who are National Guard and Reserve are able to pursue as a two- year distance learning option. My nights and weekends are dedicated to reading, developing essays and engaging in online forums from everything from Strategic Leadership to national defense and global hotspots. Additionally, there are two, two- week resident phases and I just completed the first one. Next summer, we will have the second two- week resident phase and hopefully I will graduate. War College is necessary for those who might one day become a general officer. In Alabama, it is a screening criterion for being promoted to Colonel. So, here we are….
What I have enjoyed the most is the fifteen other Colonels and Lieutenant Colonels that make up Seminar 11. For the next year, with a seasoned Field Instructor (FI), we will learn and process together. This past two weeks was a lot of class time but also social events and gatherings. The War College leadership booked us all at the same hotel so we would also meet for breakfast and eat together. Through a unit mishap, I did not receive a rental car and had the additional relationship bonus of having to depend upon others for a ride to class and home each day.
I could spend each day telling you the seminars and what we learned but more, I’ll leave you with some key thoughts about how this experience shaped me from a discipleship perspective.
1) Learning is an attitude: Ever since I can remember, I valued learning. I tend to disengage from those who believe they have arrived and do not have a teachable spirit. Age is inconsequential. My colleagues, all seasoned officers, were willing to learn and improve. Certainly, we remember to “know thyself, and seek self-improvement”. Although it annoys my team at times, living with an evaluation eye towards improvement challenges status quo and complacency. Using a system we call RAD I learned in seminary, we “Reflect, Adjust, and Do”. The process is only as good as the willingness to learn and improve. Jesus admonished his disciples to learn (the very definition of a disciple) and to embrace a spirit of humility.
2) Eat together: There are volumes of books written on building community. One of the easiest and simplest ways is sitting at a table and eating together. Our leadership booked our cohort in the same hotel giving time to share at breakfast and intentional dinners. How many of Jesus’ parables center around meals and weddings? His last interaction with the disciples was in the upper room eating. Most of the tensions we find in scriptures are how we can be at the table and eat together. I love where missiologist, Alan Hirsch, says we could eat our way into the kingdom. These informal moments allowed for hearing more stories and building relationships. Which takes me to the next part.
3) Share stories: As much as the interest in learning an academic topic or theory, is the joy and connection we have learning another’s story. The informal moments of eating, rest after a jog or riding to class together created the space for hearing others. Asking simple questions like, “where do you live?”, “what do you do?”, and about their family, opens up a world and one which you might unearth common ground. In my cohort was another Lieutenant Colonel named Angela. Living in Jacksonville, she serves as a Judge Advocate Officer (JAG). I retorted I live in Auburn, AL. Finding common ground is the key. Her eyes lifted up and she revealed she was born and raised in Lee County near Smiths Station. Although her family dodged the recent tornadoes, she reflected on how she was following the recovery efforts. Then I was able to share our ministry work throughout Lee County and in Beauregard. Was it providential discovering her sister is a rural mail carrier in Beauregard? Sharing our stories unfold places of common ground and connection. It is the very essence of discipleship.
4) Depend upon each other: The cohort is designed for collaboration. Circling back to learning, our shared experiences, perspectives, and life circumstances allow us to work together to get better. Much of our work was designed for collaboration and coordination. The bedrock of collaboration and leaning from each other is trust. At the core of tactics is trusting the person in the foxhole next to you. This rarely changes even at the strategic level. Our learning was enjoyable as we worked together to produce excellent work. Our interns this summer have to rely heavily on each other. Working on a roof or building a wheelchair ramp requires a team effort. Paul’s teaching on being the body of Christ and our different parts indicate the importance we all play while working, creating, and serving together.
5) Laugh: Reverend Charles Fail shared with me as a green, college intern that in ministry, if what we are doing is not fun, it is not worth doing. Fun is marked by laughter. Whether we are in ministry, military strategy, or hosting volunteer groups, creating time to laugh is necessary. It helps us not take ourselves so seriously. It balances out when times get tough. It releases brain chemicals that make us feel good and empowers us for the challenging times. Our two weeks were filled with laughter, stories, jokes and creating new memories. It balanced us when the discussions were challenging and when the moment called for professionalism and seriousness. Working in the recovery efforts is heavy. The stories of lives lost, pain, and confusion are seared into our hearts and minds. Laughter means the God of joy is still with us. There is redemption in our suffering and finding times to laugh is a necessary therapy.
War College was a great experience especially this close to celebrating our independence. The principles I shared cross into other realms of my experience and contexts. I hope they can be reminders to all of us.
See you on the journey,
Lisa