Discipline, a Compass

Battlefields & Blessings
- Jane Hampton Cook 

Discipline was George Washington’s compass throughout the war. As a result of his training at Valley Forge, his forces became “army strong.” Washington’s desire for discipline has become a perpetual inheritance of the U.S. military.

Discipline proved to be the hallmark of the four thousand members of the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team. Following an unexpected extension in 2006, they spent sixteen months in Iraq, one of the military’s longest deployments. When it was over, these “Artic Wolves” returned to Fairbanks, Alaska, where they uncased their unit’s colors and took time to mourn during a redeployment ceremony. Twenty-six members of the Artic Wolves had been killed and another three hundred and fifty had been injured during the deployment.

“You took on the mission, and you did what great American army units have done throughout our history. You accomplished that mission,” Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey said of their service, which took place in the face of growing violence in Iraq. Strength was a result of their discipline.

“You have been strong on the outside, but also strong in mind. You never broke under pressure. You have been strong in spirit, by never accepting defeat. You have been strong in heart by never forgetting those for whom you fight. You have been strong in character by maintaining the highest ethical conduct while fighting the enemy…[who has] no moral compass,” Harvey continued. “You are truly ‘Army Strong.’”

These Artic Wolves had hunted terrorists and insurgents in the desert, patrolling northern and western Iraq and Baghdad’s most dangerous places. “You are proven in combat and tested, ” Col. Michael Shields, the brigade commander, said. He talked about their professionalism, especially during the lowest points. One such moment took place when a unit carried a wounded soldier to a combat hospital only to return to their mission. They maintained “discipline despite the emotional load they were carrying.”

The high points were also characterized by discipline. “And those are your high points, when you watch these soldiers perform, watch how they treat people with dignity and respect under some of the most demanding conditions on this planet, up against the most demanding threat that rarely comes out of the shadows…It is an incredible, humbling experience to watch them perform.”

Then col. Michael Shields added, “the strength of the wolf is the pack, and the strength of the pack is the wolf. Arctic Wolves.”

Discipline is no stranger to the U.S. military, thanks to its Revolutionary War origins. Discipline is a compass in life, providing boundaries and giving direction. Discipline provides protection against laziness, glutton, infidelity, and other such destroyers. Discipline points to hope. It allows us to unfurl it colors in celebration.

Prayer:

Give me a heart for discipline and a willingness to follow it like a compass.