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“Everyone’s Out of Step But Jim”.  If you haven’t heard of this old song, I’m not surprised.  My soon-to-be 92 year old mother told me about it, and I was amazed when I found the original sheet music one day quite by accident in an antique store.  It ‘s a World War I “ditty” that tells the story of a young soldier, a doughboy, whose proud mother could see only what she wanted to – that her uniformed son was marching in step and that the entire military parade around him was not. (Certainly a mother’s perspective.)

Why is marching such a big deal anyway and why does the military place such emphasis on it?  Marching is not for the benefit of the brass in the reviewing stand.  Marching is for the soldier’s benefit.  It is an aid to discipline.  The soldier must learn to listen and obey.  One man calls cadence and the entire company marches, turns, or halts upon his command.  Soldiers are even instructed which direction to look while marching.  Marching involves setting aside your sense of self to become conscious of unity.  An unruly bunch of recruits soon learn that if they ever want to make it out of basic training, they have to march, to listen, and be ready to obey.     
 
Some struggle more than others with marching. Some young men don’t even know their left from right when they first enter the military.   I’m told  in some cases they may have a rock plunged into their left hand and told, “The foot that’s on the same side as the rock, put that foot down first.”  You would think that knowing left from right is elementary, but evidently for some it’s not.

Some marches require full battle gear.  It’s heavy and it’s hard.  I can’t even imagine walking around the block with that kind of load, much less walking for miles.  Yet, this kind of training is essential in preparing soldiers for conditions they may face in wartime.  If the sun shines, they march.  If it rains, they march.  If mud is ankle deep, they march.  If the wind is fierce and cold, they march. They march until their commander says it’s enough. 

We have all seen the characterization of the stern-looking old gentleman dressed in red, white and blue. His finger is pointed in our face as he indicates that “Uncle Sam” wants us.  I can’t pass that sign without feeling a little intimidated.  I guess that’s the whole idea.

Friends, we have an enemy.  I Peter 5:8 admonishes us to “Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.”  Although the Holy Spirit bids us to come join the Lord’s army, we are not drafted, but must enlist.   It is our choice.   Those who “enlist” are issued a uniform, a garment of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10, 2 Corinthians 5:21).

We begin our “march” in the Lord’s army new recruits ill-prepared for the battles that lie ahead.  That’s why God commands us to put on the whole armor of God, and although “full battle gear” may seem burdensome to some, it is for our preservation (Ephesian 6:11). 

Just as the soldier must keep in step, our Lord commands us to walk in unity.  Can you imagine the chaos if each soldier marched to his own beat and did whatever he chose?  There is no room for petty argument or division in the ranks and the Lord commands that everything be done “decently and in order”.  We are not to break rank, for the soldier straggling behind is easy prey for the enemy.

Our Commander directs our eyes to “Look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2).   Our eyes need to be fixed on Christ and our ears open to His every command.  We must listen for the voice of one, our Leader, for we are accountable to Him and unless He directs, we are not to turn to the left or to the right. (Deu. 5-32).

There may be times when we don’t understand and we struggle with doubt and confusion, but it is at those times that we need to hold on to our “Rock”, Christ Jesus, for he has promised to guide our feet.

We are to march whether life seems good or whether the storms of life have us bogged in the mire of circumstance.  We are to march even when life’s burdens seem too heavy.  We are to march when friends turn a cold shoulder and when this world’s winds of hatred blow hard against us.  We must march  until Our Commander says it’s enough and we take our permanent “leave” of this old world to stand before God’s great reviewing stand. 

Until then, let’s MARCH!!!

Janice Crow

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