Remember Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman?

I know on one level it’s a love story, but on another level it’s a heart wrenching story of a man full of insecurities. Insecurities that resulted from growing up with an alcoholic father and being tagged as “just like your dad.” He covered his deep anxieties with an "I don't-give-a-damn” game-face supplemented by arrogance and attitude. How many times do we cover up that way?

Anyway, the story begins as Gere’ character (Mayo) arrives at the Navy's Officer Candidate School, a hurdle he must overcome to earn the right to serve as a Naval Officer and possibly "get jets," that is, attend the prestigious Naval flight school.

Lou Gossett played the role of the drill sergeant (“don’t call me sir, I work for a livin’”) who had the job of molding new recruits into a conformed unit. He had to break them down by destroying their independence and confidence, and then, rebuild them with more of a "group think" confidence (not necessarily a philosophy I agree with by the way). His special emphasis was guys like Gere who resisted rules and regimentation (the type who will debate the issue or suggest a better idea when the sergeant orders the unit to “take that hill” –know anyone like that?).

Gossett pushed and pushed Gere like only a drill sergeant can. He rode him, antagonized him, berated him (like he did all the other recruits), all to expose Gere’s weaknesses and either eliminate them, or weed them out of the program.

Gossett ultimately determined Gere was a misfit, unlikely to conform to the mold. Of course, his job at that point was to drive him out by working him so hard he would quit.

The climax of the part of the story I want you to consider happened over a punishment weekend when the other recruits had passes to leave the base. Gossett told Gere he intended to work him day and night to make him quit, and that engaged a battle of the wills. Gossett had the power and the intention to force Gere to run miles and miles on the obstacle course with a full pack in the rain, to do push-ups and chin-ups until he could do no more, to stand guard all night, to scrub the floor with a toothbrush and to perform KP with little sleep or even a chance to rest. He told him mistreatment would stop only when Gere asked to resign, but that when he did, there would be no hard feelings, he could just pack up and leave.

Over that very long weekend, and out of sheer pride (sort of a "you can't make me" attitude) Gere did everything Gossett demanded, demeaning though some of it was.

Enduring the mistreatment ultimately weakened Gere physically, and he lost his smirking game face and attitude. All he had left was the strength of his quickly diminishing will as he collapsed on the cement while doing a set of push-ups with a 100 pound pack on his back.

At that point, with Gossett towering him demanding more, he asked Gere, “Why don’t you just quit?”

“No.”

“I want your DOR!” (drop on request, voluntary resignation).

“I want your DOR!”

“No, Sargent.” “Never.” “I won’t.”

“You don’t belong here, and if you won’t quit, then I’ll just boot you out.”

“Don’t do it!” Don’t ... you ... do it”

“Alright, Mayo, Just give me one good reason why I shouldn’t send you packin’”

After a pregnant pause, Gere looked up with his sweaty and exhausted face and answered in a very desperate sounding tone, “because . . . , I got nowhere else to go.”

Gossett recognized he had finally gotten through to him and had broken through his arrogance. The misfit’s attitude was actually a cover for a very positive character trait. Gere's strong will was an asset to bend in the right direction rather than break, and you know the rest of the story. He learns to follow so he can later lead. And he gets the girl. Happy ending.

The "I got nowhere else to go" attitude is the attitude I think we need before we are willing to even think about approaching God. Until we can acknowledge that God is God and we are not; until we can acknowledge that we aren’t in control (and that we shouldn’t be); until we can acknowledge we “got nowhere else to go,” we don’t really get it. Anything less is game.

It seems to me that with respect to God, life is a process to teach us that “I got nowhere else to go.” It takes more for some than others, and then, some never get there. But, if life seems hard, God is working.

“I have been driven to my knees many times by the realization that I had nowhere else to go.” -Abraham Lincoln