"Privates! On your faces! I want to see those noses dirty every time you come up to count!", the drill sergeant croaked in a deep, southern drawl. "We will do the exercises together, because that is what we are - TOGETHER! We are now an army of one. We are in God's army! You have denied taking the required mark of the evil one and have chosen the way of truth. Unfortunately, that vow will cost you in ways you can't imagine, but in time, will reap benefits that far exceed these costs. That vow has also made you an enemy to the many who have submitted to the mark, as well as Satan himself. Rest assured, you are now in harm's way. There will be many attacks upon your person, as well as your family and friends. To only survive is to fail. We will survive TOGETHER! We will survive together successfully - with excellence, for God is watching. God is watching and He has still more work for us to do. But He will choose to use us only if we are clean before Him. Only if we are real men before Him, just like the image He created us in. Therefore, we will be in a training session unlike none ever before established. Not only will we be in strict training, you will still be living and working among the marked ones. This fact will make it doubly difficult to complete our missions. That is why we are stressing this: TOGETHER! Together we will beat our bodies into submission; together we will take over our minds and thoughts; together we will condition ourselves; together we will hold each other accountable. When one fails, we all fail, and will pay the penalty. There will be no "muddling" through this part of life. You will learn how to make a clear cut decision; you will learn what commitment means; you will no longer count on women to assume the roles you have abandoned as men."A fatigued recruit loudly sighed and fell into the dirt, face first, exhausted from so many push ups."It's all about response, men.", the drill sergeant calmly continued. "Who will choose to help this brother finish to his goal? Who will respond to his call for help in his time of need?"The two, more muscular privates in line next to him paused, looked at each other and moved to kneal by the fallen brother's side."Jesus died on the cross for all of mankind to accept. You have responded with thankfulness at this act of grace. You were encouraged to take the mark of loyalty to the beast, but you responded in defiance by choosing to live for God's truth. From now on, it's all about response. How you take this training; how you interact with your enemies; how you support your brothers; how you listen to God's voice. That's right. You will learn to listen to His voice jsut like Adam heard Him talking to him in the Garden of Eden. It is this voice that will revolutionize you, your families, your brothers, and your world. It is this voice that will maximize your potential as men to become men; to become God's men, Christlike, just as He intended. At ease men. Let us pray together for the journey we are about to embark upon."Weary, weakened twigs of arms and burning chests gave way to gravity, and quickly dropped their heavy bodies into the dirt below, as they slowly, almost methodically helped each other recover into a circle, with their arms on each other's shoulders as they bowed their heads in prayer.