Line upon Line

Theodore (Ted) Parsons III was preparing for Sunday services when the sirens went off. It was late 2006 at the Balad Air Base in Iraq, and another round of rocket and mortar attacks from Iraqi insurgents had begun on the base. Instinctively, Parsons secured his medical gear and hunkered down inside the air base’s secure bunker. This attack, one of more than 200 that Parsons endured during his time in the field, had hit just before their designated worship hour, forcing them to take cover rather than gather together to worship the Savior.

Parsons had been stationed at the Balad Air Base since August of 2006, and during his time there had worked hard to ensure that the troops he and his team cared for would recover from their injuries. Despite Parsons’ anxiety at the nearby explosions, Parsons was never in fear for his life. “My time in Iraq in the combat hospital was made palatable and manageable because of my faith in Jesus Christ.”

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Parsons’ faith in the Savior sustained him throughout his military career.  Parsons was accepted into the Air Force Academy in 1975, determined to serve his country. He had not yet served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but he felt at the time that he was being a good influence to those around him without needing to serve as a full-time missionary.

During his sophomore year at the Academy, Parsons listened to President Spencer W. Kimball as he spoke at General Conference. In his talk, President Kimball emphasized the importance of serving a mission. Following President Kimball’s talk, Parsons recalled thinking, “Oh man, I wonder if this really applies to me to serve as a missionary?”

Dr. Theodore Parsons III, who courageously served as a combat medic and later as a bishop and stake president, credits his faith in Jesus Christ for guiding both his military and spiritual missions.

The question gnawed at Parsons as he considered his duty to the Savior and his duty to the Military. If he left the Air Force Academy, he would need to resign from his position, with no guarantee that he would be allowed to return. If he stayed, he would have the chance to attend medical school, a dream he had since he was a teenager.

On the other hand, Parsons said that Christ had been the foundation of his life for as long as he could remember. He knew that he needed to serve a mission, and so he made the difficult decision to resign from the Air Force Academy. “Regardless of what happens afterwards,” Parsons said, “I’m going to do what the Lord asked me to do and it’ll sort itself out.”

Following his missionary service, Parsons attended Brigham Young University rather than return immediately to the Academy. While there was a program with the Air Force Academy that allowed cadets to take a single year off between their sophomore and junior years, Parsons had been gone for more than two, and believed that he would not be allowed to return. However, he began to have thoughts of reapplying, just to see what would happen. Parsons reapplied to the Air Force Academy, becoming the first ever cadet to return following resignation. “The Lord’s hand was clearly in it, and I really feel like He was inspiring me to go back.”

Parsons resigned from the Air Force Academy to serve a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—later becoming the first cadet ever reinstated after resignation.

Due to Parsons’ successful return to service, other cadets began to apply to serve Church missions from the Air Force Academy. Upon returning from their missionary service, the Academy noticed that these young cadets were “much more mature and much more focused and much more capable than when they left.” Therefore, the Air Force Academy began to allow members of the Church to officially extend their break to let missionaries serve the Lord before they returned to serve their country.

In 2016, Parsons was invited to attend the first Baccalaureate exercise held for members of the Church at the Air Force Academy. Elder David A. Bednar addressed the approximately 1200 cadets and guests at the Academy, inviting Parsons to join him at the pulpit. Parsons recalled, “Elder Bednar said, ‘Will everyone that has served a mission or is planning to serve a mission that is a cadet stand up?’” Parsons said he broke down in tears as at least 200 cadets stood from the crowd, demonstrating the lasting impact that his courage and faith had on future servicemen and women.

“It was just an incredibly humbling and special experience,” Parsons said.

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As the rocket and mortar attack concluded that Sunday evening in 2006, Parsons checked the clock. The designated time for worship had come and gone, and as the Military Group Leader, he was in charge of worship services for members of the Church in the field. He had been unable to get to the tent designated for worship before the shelling had started, and imagined that no one would be waiting for him.

“I thought, ‘There’s no way that people are going to be there,’” Parsons said, preparing to assume his evening duties. “But then I got this very strong prompting that ‘You need to go.’” Parsons followed the prompting and hurried to the tent. Between 15 and 20 servicemen were waiting for Parsons.

“Oh, Brother Parsons,” one serviceman said, still wearing his flak jacket and personal protective equipment. “We knew you knew how important the sacrament was. We need to take of the sacrament today before we go out on patrol tomorrow, we just need that strength.”

Parsons said that the serviceman’s faith moved him to tears. “Here’s this probably 18 or 19-year-old kid who is instructing this old man on the importance of the sacrament and what it means to him.” Following Parsons deployment, he was called to serve as a bishop, and later to serve as a stake president. This and many other experiences while serving in Iraq helped prepare him to serve the Savior in these callings.

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Parsons served at Wilford Hall Medical Center and in combat zones, bringing healing to both wounded soldiers and souls—“People come to the military to serve; I came to serve the Savior too.”

The rigid discipline and obedience that exists within the military also provide parallels to the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ. “Serving in the military is demanding and rigorous, and requires a lot of you,” Parsons said. “People who go into the service should have their eyes wide open. But the fact of the matter is, that’s a reflection of life.”

Military members need to be willing to follow the commands of their senior officers, who often have a larger view of the situation they are in. In a similar vein, members of the Church need to be willing to listen to the teachings of the Savior, who has perfect knowledge of all things that will happen to God’s children.

“These are all things that the military teaches you,” Parsons said. “If you take advantage of it and apply it in a gospel context, it all makes sense and it all works out.”

As people travel through life, they develop friendship and brotherhood with those around them, just as they did in the military. As Parsons and his team worked frantically to save the lives of the soldiers who were under their care, uninjured soldiers would often enter the tent, requesting information about their friends. “They wanted to know if their buddies were OK or not, if their buddies were going to make it,” Parsons said.

In honoring the fallen this Memorial Day, we can also remember those who kept others from falling. The doctors serving alongside their comrades do their part to bring their brothers home safely. The Savior was also known as the Great Physician, the One who could ensure that all of us would be able to return home following our trials here on earth.

Today, as people reflect on the sacrifices made by the soldiers and remember their examples, take time to also reflect on the sacrifice and example left by the Savior. Let us comfort the grieving, lift the broken, and heal the wounded, as the brave doctors do, and as the Great Physician does, and unite faith and sacrifice in a life of purposeful service.