BENCHMARK thanks Chaplain Austin Bruton, U.S. Army, for taking the time to share his experiences with us. *The views presented are those of the speaker and do not represent the United States Army or the Department of War.*

What Makes BENCHMARK a Unique Ministry

There are a few things about BENCHMARK that I think make it a unique ministry. The first thing that BENCHMARK does that’s different than most everyone else out there is they create separation from the world. Going on a BENCHMARK adventure means leaving the safety of your comfort zone and stepping into the unknown. This isn’t just a faith statement; it’s also a physical one. Typically, whenever I take soldiers on a trip, we drive four or five hours away from the space we are used to, away from the comfort of the normalcy, and that’s a transformational thing for us. In the military, we are extremely stratified and hierarchical. There are roles and ranks, positions and titles, and they all matter. But when we leave this world behind, whenever we take the time to drive out to a place along the river or the side of the mountain, or camping somewhere on a trail, those things are left behind and we’re able to see people for people. Would it be cheaper, more convenient, more comfortable to host an event right next to the base? 100%. I would get to go home and sleep in my comfy bed every night. But, that’s not what we’re trying to do. That’s not how we’re trying to reach these Soldiers. Instead, BENCHMARK does this beautiful thing of creating separation; separating yourself from the world so that you have time to think.

Number two: it forms a community that lasts. On these adventures people begin to form relationships. And not just because who they are or where they are in the status of the military, but they begin to see each other. They begin to talk to each other. They begin to have actual conversations with each other. They aren’t distracted by the artificial aspects of the world. They can slow down and they can take a deep breath. They can take in the fresh air. They can experience nature. They can know that God is right there with them. For many of these Soldiers that go on these trips with BENCHMARK, they are forming core memories. Their lives were on one trajectory and now they are changed because of the community that they are now a part of. Being able to do something difficult and hard with a team forms bonds and that leads us to building relationships and community. We now have a clear pathway for ministry, to understand there’s more going on than what you can see. One of these young men that went on a trip with me, I’ll call him Jason, he had been struggling. Things in the Army were not going well for Him. He had lost his best friend to suicide and he had recently been hospitalized himself for trying to do the same thing. He had nowhere to turn and he signed up for one of our trips. So, Jason joined us and he had a great time. His life was changed. But it wasn’t until we got back home into our normal work routine that he walked into my office and said, “Do you have a minute to talk?” And it’s never just a minute, it’s usually an hour but, yes, I always have a minute for you, and he tells me all the things that I just told you that I had no clue about. I didn’t know that he had lost his best friend. I didn’t know that he had tried to do that himself, but I knew that he needed something. When he signed up to come, I started praying for him, “Lord, work on him, work on his life. Show yourself to him.” I can tell you that Jason is still alive. He is thriving. He is doing well. He sat down and he opened up about his struggles, his fears, his anxiety towards the future, and he said it was on this BENCHMARK trip that he turned the corner. His life wasn’t fully restored overnight, he still had struggles. Since going on the trip, he felt like there were people that he could call and that he wasn’t alone. He wasn’t alone because a simple trip to the mountains allowed him to disconnect from the world and allowed him to build a community that lifts him up in the hardest times. That’s the power of BENCHMARK on young men and women. 

Finally, and I think most importantly, BENCHMARK shows Jesus to many who’ve never experienced him in a real and tangible way. For Soldiers, brokenness is the norm. Some have a relationship with Christ, but most are seeking something meaningful out in the world. They’re trying to find out who they are and where they fit in. I love the fact that BENCHMARK doesn’t hide that it’s a Jesus-centered-ministry, apparently led by a hardheaded, imperfect follower of Jesus Christ. Those are his words, not mine. There is life-transforming power whenever we hear the words of the gospel. There’s power in our testimonies. Whenever we create the space and we form the community and we share the gospel, lives are changed. So, it’s powerful when we separate from the world. It’s powerful whenever we put people around each other to where you sprinkle in a few Christians and you give them enough comfort to proclaim their faith, and they share their faith with their peers. Not only do we have a five-hour van ride there, but we also now have a five-hour van ride back. And this community that we formed out on the river or out on the cliff or the snow slopes, now gets to incubate and form and grow closer together as we drive back and we go back into our world. There’s something different about each and every one of these people. The Lord has reached down and, in a moment of time, touched them. They might not even know what it is. They might not have a name for it yet. They might not understand church or Christ or Christianity, but a seed is planted and the joyous thing that I get to do as a Chaplain is to go alongside and water that seed and I get to pull the weeds away from it, and I get to make sure that there’s light shining on it, and for that I’m so thankful.