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West Point grad Cole White of Midland, Texas (left) stands with Marc Levitt in front of an Army Bradley as part of their Armor Corps training in Ft. Knox.
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Second Lieutenant Marc Levitt can fire a tank with ease. He’s come a long way since he first enrolled in the ROTC program at the University of Florida in fall 2004. Similarly, Levitt is more relaxed today about sharing the Gospel, since taking part his church’s outreach and evangelism training at Westside Baptist in Gainesville. His profile is being featured in a news article in the forthcoming issue of the Florida Baptist Witness, releasing on June 18, in the statewide newspaper's hard-copy edition and online.
While completing his political-science degree last fall, the 23-year-old native of Plantation, Florida enrolled in FAITH, the training class for those interested in reaching out to recent church visitors and guests led by Evangelism Minister Sheryl Bennett. “I realized I would be leaving soon for active duty, and I wanted to be able to express my spiritual beliefs to those I might be leading, especially during wartime,” says Levitt. “I didn’t want them to face a life-threatening situation without being able to hear the Gospel.”
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Recalling his motivation to improve his evangelism skills, Levitt remembers an anecdote he heard from the Army chaplain who had to deliver news of a young soldier’s death to a mother. “At first, she refused to answer the door, then when she did, she cried uncontrollably, not as much because her son had died for his county, but because he did so without knowing Christ, and she knew where he’d spend eternity. I’d never want that to happen to one of my men.”
Levitt describes the emotions he felt as his FAITH team led the first of two persons to Christ this spring as “one of the most powerful experiences I’ve ever had—even more powerful than being inside a tank the first time I fired it, “he says. “It’s extremely surreal to know that you have the ability to help lead people to God and play a part in saving them for eternity.”
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Jameson Lopez of Phoenix, Arizona, chats with Levitt about the camo devotional book Experiencing God Day-by-Day.
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"Not only was he a personal witness,” says Dr. Gary Crawford, Westside’s senior pastor, “but Marc encouraged and trained others as well. He made a real contribution to the evangelism ministry here, and has been a personal encouragement to me as his pastor."
Now at Ft. Knox, Kentucky, Levitt takes a personal approach to evangelizing amidst his daily routine of PT, classroom time, and shooting-range and armored-vehicle training. He and most of his 76 Armor Corps classmates will deploy in the next six to 12 months to Iraq or Afghanistan. “There’s not a lot of free time, but there is a lot of down time,” Levitt says, “when folks have time to think.” He takes advantage of conversation starters such as offering a free copy of the Experiencing God Day-by-Day camouflage devotional that Westside’s evangelism department sent him from the National Day of Prayer Task Force website.
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Levitt (left) and Lopez ‘gear up’ in front of Army armored vehicles, during their daily officer-training regime.
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Although Levitt says the Army’s core principles including loyalty, respect, and integrity align well with his Christian values, temptations abound for the young soldier on a daily basis. “Besides prayer and devotional time, I just try to watch my language, and I don’t go out to the bars and clubs when I get asked. It’s just a matter of setting an example of who you are and what you believe in.”
Self-described as ‘pretty patriotic all my life,’ Levitt’s interest in the military was heightened after 9/11. He enrolled in UF’s Army ROTC program “because it was a great opportunity to explore what the military would be like without obligation. It was a good fit, so I decided to make it a job.” In Levitt’s last year in college, he worked as an assistant enrollment officer, which gave Levitt an additional opportunity to role-model military service from a Christian perspective to younger collegians.
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In his ROTC work on campus, Levitt had the full support of his supervisor, Lt. Col. Bob Quint, director of the University of Florida Army ROTC’s program. “Marc’s outgoing, friendly nature, his honor, and his integrity were above reproach,” says Quint. “I selected him to be my gold-bar recruiter, because of his familiarity with the program. He was able to deal with university VIPs in a very professional manner. Because of Marc’s efforts, he probably recruited anywhere from 30 to 35 cadets and spread the word about Army ROTC and becoming an officer. I would not have picked anyone else for the job.”
Today, Levitt draws a parallel between the urgency he brings to witnessing and his experience when he accepted Christ just three years ago, after surviving a car accident that left another motorist dead. Within 48 hours, Levitt was introduced to BCM chaplain Eddie Galley, who led Marc to Christ that day. “People don’t often rely on God until something traumatic happens, such as what happened to me or a death in their family or one of their team members,” Levitt says. “I’d like to save others from the trauma I went through, by helping them find God before they find themselves in a crisis.”
"Marc is an inspiring young man," says Tom Price, Minister of Education at Westside Baptist Church, himself a veteran of the United States Air Force. "As a member of one of our FAITH outreach teams, he modeled selfless leadership to the students he mentored and equipped. We’re very proud of where he’s headed, and of all that he did while here at Westside. Wherever he goes, he’ll always have our support."
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“Life is about choices and I have no regrets,” says Levitt, as he looks beyond his stateside training to serving overseas. “Deployment creates uneasiness, as people are away from their families for long periods of time. As warfare become more dangerous, especially in Iraq and now even more so in Afghanistan, you realize you can’t always control your destiny. Both of these things create a vacuum that God should fill, to keep families strong and soldiers brave.”
Second Lieutenant Marc Levitt from Plantation, Fla. is 23 years old and proud to serve both God and Country, stationed in Ft. Knox, Kentucky. Until August 25, you can send him a card of encouragement at the following address: Second Lieutenant Marc Levitt, PO. Box 911. Ft. Knox, KY 40121. For more coverage of his spiritual and military outreach, visit DefiningMomentsWithGaryCrawford.com or msgfac.com.
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Levitt enjoys both the structure and inspiration of a career in the armed forces.
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Kay Quinn - Morgan & Quinn Public Relations - is a veteran public relations and marketing professional who also has a heart for ‘all things patriotic. She welcomed the opportunity to work alongside Marc through the FAITH program in 2008 and 2009, and loves sharing his story. Reach her via email.
Brian Sorli and Pam Handley are the owners and publishers of FloridaViewpoint.com - a community web portal designed to provide customized daily news to the consumers, businesses and to the local communities of' North Central Florida.
Through news and feature articles, how-to stories, videos, and interactive discussion forums, FloridaViewpoint.com provides readers and visitors with the updated information they most need and value. Additionally, Brian and Pam own Digital Circus, a website design and marketing firm. Pam Handley also is a musician, programmer and designer working on her MBA at St. Leo's University.
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