Indivisible Read online

  ACCLAIM FOR INDIVISIBLE, THE MOVIE

  “INDIVISIBLE, an intensely powerful portrayal of the emotional stressors of combat and military separation impacting faith and family. It depicts the struggle of a young chaplain and his family as they confront the realities of war with an idealistic perspective of faith. INDIVISIBLE views their journey coping with various losses which challenged the very foundation of their faith. Yet, through a greater spiritual awareness and understanding, provided by seasoned chaplains and mentors, they were able to overcome these challenges of faith and continue their ministry to the military.”

  —James E. Agnew, Chaplain (Colonel), US Army Retired

  “A masterful movie bringing to life God’s ability to restore war-damaged marriages and families. A great story of hope and restoration.”

  —Clair Hoover, National Coalition of Ministries to Men

  “Service, mission, sacrifice, brotherhood, loyalty, family, and God all wrestle for a man’s top priority in the action-packed movie INDIVISIBLE! Terrific!”

  —Brian Doyle, president, Iron Sharpens Iron

  “As a retired army chaplain, watching INDIVISIBLE was like experiencing reality for me, because I lived through much of what it portrayed. I cried at numerous points while viewing INDIVISIBLE, because the movie tapped into my emotions, experiences, and the tragedies I have experienced and personally helped many soldiers work through. INDIVISIBLE was indeed true to life, reflecting the experiences of tens of thousands of soldiers. I highly recommend INDIVISIBLE to all military personnel, and to every family, church, synagogue, mosque, or organization—secular or religious.”

  —Chaplain (MAJ) James F. Linzey, USA (Ret.), founding president, Military Bible Association

  “INDIVISIBLE is gripping and poignant in its open portrayal of real-life challenges. Learn how community, asking for and accepting help from others, and the gift of faith can help you face your own trials with courage. A brilliant reminder that we are never alone.”

  —Lisa M. Hendey, founder of CatholicMom.com and author of The Grace of Yes

  “As America’s longest war carries on and couples face struggles in an ever-changing world, this film points to how we can remain Indivisible in our marriages and in our walk with God.”

  —Justin D. Roberts, director of No Greater Love, former army chaplain

  “INDIVISIBLE is an authentic story of God’s enormous power to heal marriages, elevate faith, and strengthen families. A must-see movie!”

  —GJ Reynolds, CEO, Women of Faith

  “Military couples have an uphill battle to maintain healthy marriages, whether in deployment or stateside. INDIVISIBLE is one of the best films on marriage I have ever seen. It is an honest look inside the homes and hearts of our heroes bringing hope and encouragement that they can win the battle!”

  —Dr. Gary Rosberg, America’s Family Coaches, author of 6 Secrets to a Lasting Love

  Indivisible

  © 2018 by Graceworks Pictures, LLC

  All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

  Published in association with the literary agency of WTA Services, LLC, Franklin, Tennessee.

  Images in photo section are courtesy of © 2018 Provident Films LLC and The WTA Group, LLC. All rights reserved.

  Quotes taken from Wild at Heart by John Eldredge Copyright © 2001 by John Eldredge. Used by permission of Thomas Nelson. www.thomasnelson.com.

  Thomas Nelson titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fund-raising, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail [email protected].

  Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

  Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation. © 1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. Scripture on pages 38–39 is from Psalm 18:2-3 NLT. Scripture on pages 84–86 is from Psalm 55:1-7, 16-17 NLT. Scripture on page 219 is from Psalm 39:7 NLT. Scripture on page 289 is from Psalm 51:10 NLT.

  Lewis, C. S. A Grief Observed. New York: HarperOne, 2015. First published 1946 by Geoffrey Bles.

  Publisher’s Note: The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. All characters are fictional, and any similarity to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

  Epub Edition September 2018 9780785224068

  ISBN: 978-0-7852-2405-1 (trade paper)

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  CIP data is available upon request.

  Printed in the United States of America

  18 19 20 21 22 LSC 5 4 3 2 1

  This book is dedicated to the chaplains of the

  United States Armed Forces and the soldiers who

  valiantly serve to protect our freedom.

  A wound that goes unacknowledged and unwept is a

  wound that cannot heal.

  —JOHN ELDREDGE, WILD AT HEART

  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.

  Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your

  stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not

  against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against

  the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and

  against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

  —EPHESIANS 6:10–12

  CONTENTS

  Acclaim for Indivisible, the Movie

  Foreword

  Prologue

  Part 1: Predeployment 2007 Winter and Spring 2007

  Part 2: Deployment The First Month

  The Second Month

  The Third Month

  The Fourth Month

  The Fifth Month

  The Sixth Month

  The Seventh Month

  The Eighth Month

  The Ninth & Tenth Months

  The Eleventh Month

  The Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Months

  The Final Month

  Part 3: Reintegration July 2008

  August 2008

  Fall 2008

  January 2009

  February 2009

  March and April 2009

  May 2009

  One Year Later

  Five Years Later

  A Personal Message from the Producers

  Acknowledgments

  Discussion Questions

  Indivisible Photos

  About the Author

  FOREWORD

  BY DARREN AND HEATHER TURNER

  In January 2008, a reporter from the Atlanta Journal shadowed our battalion for a few weeks during my (Darren) deployment. She wanted to focus on the chaplain’s role in combat, since there was plenty of war coverage in other articles during that time. She thought it would be unique to see things through a chaplain’s angle. So she shadowed me and got an eye full (we had mortars come into our camp often, casualties from missions outside the camp, I traveled a lot to
remote locations, I conducted Easter services and baptized guys, etc.). She then returned and published eight different articles in a row that told the story of her trip. When she contacted us a couple of years later and heard about our marriage problems and how we patched things up, she added that last part to what became an e-book called Chaplain Turner’s War.

  In the summer of 2011, filmmaker David Evans contacted us after seeing our story on a news website. His idea of making a movie about our story sounded interesting but unrealistic. We didn’t think it would really happen.

  After David contacted us, we wanted to meet him and hear his pitch. So he and his wife, Esther, drove to Fort Campbell and we had a long lunch. After that meeting, Heather and I felt very comfortable with David and Esther. They were sincere, cared way more about our story than we did, and had a passion to share this on film. Most importantly, they saw this as a way to glorify the grace of Jesus Christ. After that lunch meeting, we waited a few days before responding. We wanted to pray about it and not make an emotional decision in the moment. I talked with our army folks to get their opinions, and once everything looked right, we said yes to David’s offer and also shared our personal journal from the deployment to use for development of the screenplay.

  For David and the rest of the filmmakers, their passion and persistence ended up resulting in the film and book for Indivisible. We could never have conceived and developed this, especially since we simply don’t have the time or space to do something on such a scale like this. We simply agreed for them to use our story and names, and David and his team did all the rest. We have watched everything unfold in amazement, and we are proud of the results.

  Having seen the movie, it’s still very strange to see and hear our names and watch our lives unfold onscreen. Of course there were artistic licenses taken, but for the most part it’s pretty accurate. Some of the scenes brought back a lot of unexpected emotions. We were surprised by that. It was good to recall some things that we needed to remember again, especially God’s wonderful gift of redemption.

  We have many hopes with Indivisible. First, we hope those watching the film and reading this book can be honest with themselves, others, and the Lord. Second, we hope that nonmilitary Americans will understand our vets better and maybe even get involved in their lives.

  Ultimately, we pray our story blesses folks and frees people to be real and honest about where they are in life. Our desire is for people to consider the solution to our fatal condition of sin and selfishness.

  It’s the summer of 2018, and we’re spending some of our days and evenings relaxing on or near the lake we live by. We’re looking forward to a busy fall when the film and book are released. It’s going to be a lot of fun to see people’s reactions to the incredible film David and his team have made. We remain honored and humbled to be part of this amazing journey.

  God still has big plans for our family as He does for you, too. We thank Him for His many blessings, including continuing to help tell His story throughout our lives.

  PROLOGUE

  She carries the memories and always will. She doesn’t need to think long when the chaplain asks her to pick a moment from the past.

  So many special times to choose from. I have hundreds of good memories. But we’ve stopped making new ones.

  She glances over at her husband, sitting in a chair only inches away from her, yet miles removed from her life. Heather forces a smile as she turns to the chaplain.

  “The day we met,” she begins, “I was taking photos on campus when he drove by, looking at me, just as he ran his motorcycle into my shot of the chrysanthemums. And ruining both the photo and the flowers! He just kept going too, and I thought, Who is this hotshot? But later that day I saw him again. It turned out he was the guest speaker for Campus Ministries, and as he shared his mission work, I saw a man with a heart for God. And he was hot, so—“

  “What do you mean, was hot?” Darren shoots back, the first sign of any amusement from him during this counseling session.

  “Hey, don’t push it,” she says.

  Chaplain Rodgers gives her a steady nod and grin. “Okay, time—Darren? Whaddaya got?”

  Her husband’s silence feels like nails pounding into her, one second after another. She looks at him, waiting, willing him to say anything, watching him trying to find an answer but unable to say a single, simple thing.

  “And this is where we are,” she finally says. “Anything that truly matters—he shuts down.”

  Darren tries. “Memories have just been . . . I mean, every time I try to think back, what I don’t want to remember takes over. Like there’s a wall in my timeline, or . . .” He doesn’t finish.

  Heather closes her eyes, swimming in the familiar emotions she wakes up to and falls asleep with. A lonely and drifting sensation, bobbing up and down in the middle of the ocean, with no land in sight and nobody around to hear her cries for help.

  “That’s very normal, Darren,” the chaplain says. “And Heather, post-traumatic stress is a mind inhibitor that requires time and intentional rebuilding of the muscles and tools we use to control our thoughts.”

  “But I’m pretty much outta time,” Darren says.

  Heather never could have imagined such words of defeat coming from her husband, much less hearing the tone in his voice. But he’s right. They have run out of time.

  She hopes—no, she desperately needs—the Darren she fell in love with and knew so well to come back home.

  PART 1

  PREDEPLOYMENT 2007

  WINTER AND SPRING 2007

  1

  Twenty-one days before signing into Fort Stewart, Darren Turner listened to the president addressing the nation on television, not to hear what America was doing abroad, but to learn where he might possibly be headed in a few months.

  “Good evening.” President George W. Bush spoke from the Oval Office in the White House. “Tonight in Iraq, the armed forces of the United States are engaged in a struggle that will determine the direction of the global war on terror and our safety here at home. The new strategy I outline tonight will change America’s course in Iraq and help us succeed in the fight against terror.”

  The children were asleep, Elie and Sam in their beds, infant Meribeth snug in Heather’s arms. Darren turned up the volume and shifted on the couch, his focus solely on the president as he spoke about the historic elections in Iraq two years earlier and the hope that they might bring the people together—resulting in a need for fewer American troops.

  “But in 2006, the opposite happened. The violence in Iraq, particularly in Baghdad, overwhelmed the political gains the Iraqis had made. Al-Qaeda terrorists and Sunni insurgents recognized the mortal danger that Iraq’s elections posed for their cause. And they responded with outrageous acts of murder aimed at innocent Iraqis.”

  Darren glanced over at his wife as President Bush continued. He could see the concern in her expression.

  “The situation in Iraq is unacceptable to the American people, and it is unacceptable to me. Our troops in Iraq have fought bravely. They have done everything we have asked them to do. Where mistakes have been made, the responsibility rests with me. It is clear that we need to change our strategy in Iraq.”

  Darren knew there was a big reason for the president to be talking to the American public on this Wednesday night in January. He was leading up to an announcement.

  Only a year ago, he and Heather would have been watching like the rest of the country, listening to hear what was happening to other men in foreign countries. Now, however, he watched and waited to hear what might be happening to him.

  “Our past efforts to secure Baghdad failed for two principal reasons: there were not enough Iraqi and American troops to secure neighborhoods that had been cleared of terrorists and insurgents, and there were too many restrictions on the troops we did have.”

  The president spoke about a new plan that could work, how the Iraqi army and national police brigades and local police would be engaged i
n operating locally to conduct patrols, set up checkpoints, and go door-to-door to gain the trust of Baghdad residents.

  “This is a strong commitment,” President Bush stated. “But for it to succeed, our commanders say the Iraqis will need our help.”

  This time Darren didn’t look at Heather. He stared at the screen, anticipating what was coming next.

  “So America will change our strategy to help the Iraqis carry out their campaign to put down sectarian violence and bring security to the people of Baghdad. This will require increasing American force levels. So I have committed more than twenty thousand additional American troops to Iraq. The vast majority of them—five brigades—will be deployed to Baghdad. These troops will work alongside Iraqi units and be embedded in their formations. Our troops will have a well-defined mission: to help Iraqis clear and secure neighborhoods, to help them protect the local population, and to help ensure that the Iraqi forces left behind are capable of providing the security that Baghdad needs.”

  Darren moved over and reached for Heather’s arm that held the sleeping baby. He smiled, letting her know that things were going to be okay, that God had this taken care of and they shouldn’t worry. He knew she was thinking the same thing, yet both of them felt the gravity of this moment sink over them.

  Twenty thousand additional troops.

  Will I be one of them? Darren wondered. He pictured their children and what it would be like to say goodbye to them.

  This is the choice I made. The choice we made.

  President Bush was still speaking. “Will America withdraw and yield the future of that country to the extremists, or will we stand with the Iraqis who have made the choice for freedom? Let me be clear: The terrorists and insurgents in Iraq are without conscience, and they will make the year ahead bloody and violent. Even if our new strategy works exactly as planned, deadly acts of violence will continue. And we must expect more Iraqi and American casualties.”