Soldier of Jesus

By Joe Sullivan, MJ • Phoenix, AZ

At the beginning of April, I went to the graduation ceremony of a member of our Challenge Youth Program. After Army Basic Training in the Fall, followed by Special Infantry Training, Agustine graduated at Fort Benning, Georgia. At 19 years old, he became an active Private in the 198^th Regiment. Congratulations Agustine! 

“The training is quite tough,” he quipped. “One day we did calisthenics from 6 in the morning until 10 at night. That was the day 45 recruits left the program.” 

Agustine describes the training as more of a mission given to him by God to spread the Good News of God’s love. “The key is just to be open, transparent, and sincere with whomever I am with. People see it, pick it up, and sometimes have questions and want to talk. They open the door that Christ has knocked on.” 

A fellow soldier saw him praying the rosary one day and asked him about it. He even asked for one. “I’ll give one to you if you pray it with me.” “OK. Deal!” The next day his friend was wearing his new rosary and thought it was cool. And then Private Beltran (Agustine) said, “Drill Sergeant is giving us a break right now. Let’s say the rosary.” So, he taught it to him, and they prayed the whole rosary sitting on their bunks. 

This is a prayer that is not for wimps. It takes 20 minutes to pray, which is a big sacrifice of their limited and precious free time. 

Agustine keeps in good contact with the members of the Challenge Youth Program. He is a beautiful example and an inspiration. A true soldier of Jesus! Please pray for Agustine as he begins his next training and deployment.