‘Jesus Means Everything to Me’: These US Marines Acknowledge the Importance of Faith for the Fight By Mark Martin for Faith Wire
To become a United States Marine, you must abide by the core values of honor, courage, and commitment. And for some Marines, faith in God underlies those values, propelling them to accomplish their mission. CBN News traveled to South Carolina to learn about the role of faith in this elite fighting force.
“It just feels super honorable to have that title, ‘United States Marine’,” Jacob Watson told us a couple of days before graduating from U.S. Marine Corps boot camp.
He’s following in the footsteps of both his parents.
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“It’s like something I will never forget or take for granted,” Watson shared. “Plus, some of the stuff that I’ve learned was like stuff I never thought I could do.”
“So, it was really a blessing to be able to conquer most of these things that I was afraid about at first, but thanks to the Marine Corps, I was able to do,” he continued.
FAITH FOR THE FIGHT
Watson points to his Christian faith for helping him stay the course.
“Without a doubt, the only, the only way I believe at least I got through this was faith in Christ ’cause a bunch of the stuff, like I said, mentally, was kind of scary and intimidating, but faith, I’ll tell you what, it gets you a long ways,” he emphasized.
It’s the same story for others at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, South Carolina.
“Throughout boot camp, I read my Bible; and praying, that seemed to help me a lot,” said Taylor Warden, a new U.S. Marine.
“I remember thinking, ‘Maybe I can’t go through this?’ But I remember just thinking, ‘Well, if I have come this far, then God can definitely get me through the rest of it,’” LCPL Bernadette Pacheco shared.
“Through forming week, I was really just in my head really, and I needed some help,” explained Tyler Crawford, another new U.S. Marine. “We went to church, and I was praying to the Lord at night, and I was asking for some words of encouragement, and that next day, three songs back to back just, ‘You’re an overcomer; you’re in the fight ’til the final round’.”
