May I show courage to them by saying thank you with my voice, pocketbook, and voting.
“Be strong, take heart all you who hope in the Lord.” (Psalm 31:24)
March 17
FLY ON THE COMMANDING GENERAL’S WALL
A command chaplain enjoys a special relationship with his commanding general. Multinational Force-Iraq Command Chaplain, CH Colonel Mike Hoyt was one of a few colonels who attended meetings led by General George Casey and then, General David Petraeus.
“We have access that most other colonels don’t have because of that relationship,” Hoyt said. “I saw my role not as a religious expert, because we had a lot of Ph.D’s and political advisers, but I was the top credentialed clergyman on the staff. I was the only one who could interpret religion as a doer of religion,” said Hoyt, who didn’t talk statistics, comparing the percentages of Shi’i to Sunni. “Part of my role was to talk about the religious lifestyle decision-making that people would use to interpret coalition actions such as a curfew during Ramadan.”
These “fly on the wall” moments included daily briefings and the “meeting of the wizards” as Hoyt called the Effects Assessment Synchronization Board that met every six weeks. All general officers from the theater along with coalition commanders, the ambassador, and embassy staff attended this day-long meeting to review the strategic campaign plan the document approved by the president and implemented by MNFI and the ambassador.
Hoyt was one of three listening “flies on the wall.” They didn’t record the meetings but watched, listened, and offered “what if” questions. They analyzed who said what and to whom as well as the high points and off track moments.
It was Hoyt’s job to try to interpret the spiritual psyche as he saw it as a clergyman. And hopefully through a restatement of that, he could offer the leadership an approach to a solution that would make it more inclusive of the Iraqi civilian on the ground who was trying to practice his faith in the midst of a violent environment, fifty percent of which we were creating.
If Hoyt heard something he was apprehensive about in a meeting, he would write it on a 3 x 5 card and pass it to a nearby general. Sometimes Hoyt was asked to share his concern with the group or sometimes they would discuss it later. Either way, this listening method proved an effective leadership tool.
“When I presented myself as a leader who was willing to learn from everybody and anybody, then I was able to uncover ideas that people would never have brought up,” Hoyt stated.
Thank you, Father, for the gift of listening, for the gift of wise counsel. May I listen today, and if I speak, may I speak with wisdom.
“Men listened to me expectantly, waiting in silence for my counsel. After I had spoken, they spoke no more; my words fell gently on their ears.” (Job 29:21–22)
March 18
RISK
Courage doesn’t disappear with responsibility, it rises with rank. The soldier on the ground routinely reveals raw courage, while generals continually muster moral courage. As Multinational Force-Iraq Command Chaplain, Hoyt had the opportunity to observe such moral leadership first hand.
One of the things that’s always going around in the back of their minds (general officers) is “what is the appropriate level of risk?” It’s not risk to their careers as some people would like to say. For the four star billets, it’s the risk to the country. And they are obsessed with getting it right for the sake of America.
“My two MNF-I CGs are men of incredible intellect, valor, and purpose. It is an honor to pray for them” Hoyt said.
Generals must keep open the broadest number of options for America. A general officer is exercising the military might of the United States. That’s serious business. That’s life and death. If you make a strategic decision to clean up Ramadi, then that decision will get people killed. That’s all there is to it. It can’t be done nicely.
With 3,500 civilian deaths a month, Iraq was peaking in “Iraqi on Iraqi violence” in 2006. Violent Iraqis justified their crimes through the idea that someone had it coming to them because of their sense of loss. Revenge often stemmed from centuries-old conflicts. Hoyt saw similarities with his deployment to Bosnia.
The difference in Iraq was that it was being manipulated by Al Qaeda and covered with religious verbiage that created a mirage for the poor and disenfranchised that said, “If you really want to be religious, this is what you have to do.” So they took advantage of chaos and leveraged it to their side.
To respond, the generals had to weigh the right thing to do given the risk involved. They knew that extending tours of duty or increasing the number of troops through a surge would increase risk.
“The problem when you get up into the higher echelons of decision-making is that black and white is rarely available. You often have to choose between bad choices in an ambiguous environment. Then you choose as wisely as possible. War rarely presents a lot of good choices. Implementing national policy on foreign soil and conducting theater level war is volatile and unpredictable,” Hoyt said.
Rising in the ranks requires moral courage and risks for the right reasons.
God, thank you for the courage it takes to be a leader. I pray for those generals as they weigh the risk and costs to America. Give them wisdom.
“So the three mighty men… drew water from the well… and carried it back to David. But he refused to drink it; instead, he poured it out before the LORD. ‘Far be it from me, O LORD, to do this!’ he said. ‘Is it not the blood of men who went at the risk of their lives?’ And David would not drink it.” (2 Samuel 23:16–17)
March 19
LISTENING TO THE TROOPS
“Once you’re empowered by the four star, you’re empowered. ‘Poof’ you go out and execute. If you stay within the commander’s intent then you don’t have anything to worry about,” Multinational Force-Iraq Command Chaplain Hoyt, United States Army explained.
When a command chaplain comes into the theater, he has thirty days to figure out and present his plan to the commanding general in the “sit down.” It’s the one chance to tell the CG what you can do for his organization, and how you plan to do it. Then you listen to what he thinks.
In his sit down with General Casey, and later with General Petraeus, Hoyt presented his plan. They
