Parents of soldier proud of their son
by John Syratt

In 1997 when Warrant Officer John Mills retired from the Canadian Armed Forces after 22 years of service which took him on peacekeeping tours to hotspots such as Croatia and Cyprus, he probably didn’t imagine that his son would one day be following in his footsteps.

Mills, a father of three, (Nicole 30, Nathan 26, Chelsea 25) who, with his wife Donna, lives in Langdon and attends Rocky Mountain Calvary Chapel (RMCC) in SE Calgary, gave his life to Christ a year after his wife and kids did.

Donna’s boss asked her if she and John would like to go to a Christmas dinner at his church (RMCC). The family went and enjoyed it. Donna, who’d given her heart to the Lord after praying with an Armed Forces padré in Borden, ON, hadn’t followed Christ for years but after attending the church was later baptized with her son and youngest daughter.

"It took John about a year before his heart was softened," Donna said.

Their son, Nathan, had a deep and growing faith and got involved, along with his dad, in the sound ministry of the church.

"Even when Nathan was little he’d say, ‘I’m either going to be a policeman or a minister,’" Donna smiled.

Nathan joined the military when he was 18. One year after his dad had retired.

"He told us what he was thinking and we said absolutely not," Donna noted. "He wanted to be a cop and he thought this (being in the armed forces) would be good for his resumé and a good way to keep active and he could take courses on the side."

Nathan met up with Kim Beck, his Jr. High sweetheart, just before his high school grad and told his parents he was seeing her. His mom told him to pray about it and he said to her, "I have been praying about it and I’m going to marry her."

Kim, didn’t have the same mindset at the time, but Nathan said to her, "I’m going to marry you but I can’t marry you if you’re not of the same faith. My wife needs to be a Christian; will you at least come to church?"

"You picked the wrong person, I’m so far from that," Kim responded.

Nathan, full of faith, asked her, "Will you at least come to church? Just come once."

Kim went to church with him and kept going and eventually gave her life to Christ and was baptized there as well.

Nathan and Kim were married in May of 2001, moved to the Edmonton area where Nathan was stationed and had a five year plan for their family. God had another plan as terrorists unleashed attacks on North American soil on September 11 of that same year.

In January of 2002, at the age of 20, Nathan was posted to his first tour of duty in Afghanistan as a member of the Edmonton-based Lord Strathconas Horse (Royal Canadians). He drove a Coyote, a light armored vehicle, in patrolling the area around the Kandahar airport.

"I knew God’s hand was on Nathan from day one," Donna noted. "In my head the Canadians were there just for peacekeeping, like John had been. So I wasn’t too worried."

One Sunday morning before church, Kim called Nathan’s mom and asked them to pray because the Canadian troops were going in to hunt the Taliban. That’s when it really hit Donna. She went up for prayer at church that morning.

"Because it was their first tour, we were hearing these horror stories that they didn’t have anything, not even the right water to drink," Donna reported. "They had nowhere to sleep. They slept in the desert lean-to with the camel spiders and scorpions crawling around. They had no base yet. They were just out there in the middle of the desert."

"I prayed every time we left the base," Nathan told a writer from his former home church in Calgary. "I know we drove over mines. One time a camel blew up when it walked down the same track we had taken only two days earlier."

Nathan is now on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan but is looking forward to celebrating Christmas with his wife, two children with their third due to be born on Christmas Day.

Nathan’s strong faith is known among his fellow soldiers. His commanding officer asked him to stand in as a padré when needed. Nathan’s pastor at the Sturgeon Alliance Church in Gibbons, AB put some Scriptures together that he used at funerals so Nathan would be prepared for whatever happened.

Nathan ministered at the Remembrance Day service for his group in Afghanistan and he is excited that God is using him as he has more and more soldiers coming up to him asking for prayer.

John and Donna are very proud of their son and the fact that he’s willing to serve his country and the people of Afghanistan. Nathan’s already received a service medal and been awarded a campaign star for his service to the Afghan people.

"I’m very proud of him and how’s he’s grown spiritually," said Nathan’s mom. "He’s allowing God to use him over there."

When asked how they felt when people criticize the Canadian troops for being there, John simply replied, "It doesn’t matter what party you’re with, our troops are there – support them."