In the army, there’s this tough but cool idea: they gotta break you down before they build you up. Think of it like stripping away all the stuff about you that doesn’t fit for a soldier—your solo vibe, your ego, even your own game plan. Then they rebuild you with all the right stuff: discipline, strength, and being part of a team with a bigger goal. But hey, let’s flip this to talk about life and how it’s kinda like God’s boot camp for us.

So, imagine life as this intense training ground. You start off with your own map, thinking you know the best route to happiness and success. Then, boom, life throws curveballs—tough times, setbacks, stuff you didn’t see coming. It’s like those hardcore training sessions in boot camp that are meant to shake you up, making you drop that “I got this alone” attitude. Why? Because there’s something bigger at play, a higher call that sometimes means ditching your plans for something God’s got lined up.

There’s this line in the Bible, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death” (Proverbs 14:12), and man, does it hit home here. Going solo without checking in with God can take us down some sketchy paths. Just like a drill sergeant gets recruits to drop their old habits to become soldiers, God’s got this way of nudging us to let go of our solo missions and take on His mission instead—one that’s about real life, hope, and the kind of happiness that lasts.

Getting on board with God’s plan means kinda surrendering, like recruits in boot camp. It’s about getting into daily habits: praying to stay in sync with the big boss (God), reading the Bible to get the lowdown on life’s big battles, and hanging with other believers, kinda like teaming up with fellow recruits to keep each other strong.

Sure, this path isn’t a walk in the park. There’s gonna be tough spots, doubts, and sacrifices. But just like the tough stuff in boot camp is all about making a soldier the best they can be, the rough patches in life are often God’s way of bringing out the best in us. It’s through these times we learn it’s not about how strong we are alone, but how strong we are with God. Letting go of our plans for His doesn’t mean losing who we are; it’s about finding our true purpose and place in His big plan.

In the end, “breaking the man” isn’t about losing ourselves but transforming. It’s about shifting from being sure we know best to trusting God knows better. As we get through life’s boot camp, let’s see every challenge as a chance to drop our game plan and pick up God’s, knowing His plans are way bigger and better than anything we could dream up on our own.

—Josh Mullins—