Pray for Ourselves
General Patton asked his chaplain a startling question:
“How much praying is being done in the Third Army?” The chaplain admitted that there were probably few prayers being said, other than by the unit chaplains themselves. The general leaned back in his swivel chair, looked at the other man intently, and declared:
Chaplain, I am a strong believer in prayer. There are three ways that men get what they want; by planning, by working, and by praying… But between the plan and the operation there is always an unknown. That unknown spells defeat or victory, success or failure. It is the reaction of the actors to the ordeal when it actually comes. Some people call that getting the breaks; I call it God. God has His part, or margin in everything. That’s where prayer comes in. Up to now, in the Third Army, God has been very good to us. We have never retreated; we have suffered no defeats, no famine, no epidemics. This is because a lot of people back home are praying for us. We were lucky in Africa, in Sicily, and in Italy, simply because people prayed. But we have to pray for ourselves, too.467
There is plenty of room to question General Patton’s theology. To consider praying one of three ways for men to “get what they want” is a very limited view of God and prayer. However, there is not much room to question his sincerity. He was genuinely thankful for the success of his army and mindful that it was not all due to his own military brilliance. General Patton provides a great example of a leader who is able to look beyond himself and to give credit to prayer and to God for his success. While times were good, he looked forward to the trials ahead and urged his men to stay close to God, reminding them and himself that, “We have to pray for ourselves.”
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.
—Isaiah 55:6