Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Britney Hiatt | Service members and civilians walk down Signal Hill after attending the Mountain Top...... read more read more
CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - At 5 a.m., while groups of service members and civilians are just getting out of bed to go run along the roads of Victory Base Complex before the start of the day, another small group stands atop Signal Hill on Camp Liberty praying.
The group meets Tuesday and Thursday every week to fellowship and pray together, building their spiritual resiliency.
Spiritual resiliency is strengthening a set of beliefs, principles or values that sustain a person beyond family, institutional, and societal sources of strength.
"We've demanded so much of Soldiers," said Sgt. Michael Lee, a chaplain's assistant with United States Division-Central, "Between the separation from their families and the long hours, you need that spiritual resiliency."
"There are other people who are really hurting. We build resilience through teaching, training, and counseling," he said. "It doesn't have to be a person with post traumatic stress disorder; it could be combat stress or just homesickness."
Like physical resiliency, spiritual resiliency is a daily activity that needs to be built by developing positive relationships, being a part of a community, and having some sort of devotional center, said Col. Mike Lembke, the United States Forces-Iraq chaplain.
"Spiritual resiliency is the individual ability to exercise your faith on a daily basis so you are able to understand, or you are able integrate the joys and sorrows of each day into your life," Lembke said.
It's not waiting for something to happen, but preparing to be well-grounded when it does.
When a person has a solid, spiritual foundation, they understand that someone has everything under control and they can lean on that during the tough times instead of relying on themselves to make through, Lee said.
The USD-C chaplains started the Mountaintop Experience to further help service members strengthen their resiliency.
The group began meeting twice a week for morning prayer in January at the Liberty Chapel beside Signal Hill. Beginning in April, the group decided to walk to the top of the hill to pray to see over the area they were praying for, Lee said.
Those who come to the morning prayer meetings are excited to be there, Lee said. They are spending time laughing and learning from the bible with friends, building camaraderie, and building their spiritual resiliency.
While spiritual resiliency may seem like it is based around people of a certain religion, Lembke said that it is actually not faith based at all. Even those who do not claim a specific faith need some type of spiritual resiliency.
"This isn't a Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or Buddhist perspective on resiliency," said Lembke.
"A person could say, 'I don't believe in anything,' but if they explored it a little deeper, I think they would find they believe in something," Lembke said.
Spiritual resiliency gives a person something to hold onto when things back home get tough, Lee said.
It can play a large part in helping a person stand back up after getting knocked down, Lembke said.
"I would contend that everybody has a spiritual dimension and that's the way the Army is looking at it," Lembke said.
"I want to talk to a person and find out where they're at. What do they believe and how does it affect their life," he said.
Lembke said, "It's a process of discovery as an individual, but it bears on the whole force."
| Date Taken: | 05.10.2010 |
| Date Posted: | 05.10.2010 04:04 |
| Story ID: | 49385 |
| Location: | CAMP LIBERTY, IQ |
| Web Views: | 465 |
| Downloads: | 352 |
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