Craig Clouston

The OODA Loop

Therefore, prepare your minds for action…

1 Peter 1:13

With the brakes failing, Austin jumped from the Gator. With one hand he tried to keep the vehicle from running over the embankment, with the other he reached for one of three children in the bed of the recreational vehicle.

Austin’s Uncle Jeff saw what was happening and immediately took action. Running to catch the vehicle, he grabbed the tailgate and planted his feet to slow its downhill momentum. But in spite of their efforts the Gator slipped over the edge, plummeting eight feet into the shallow creek below.

Now wedged between the vehicle and the creek bank, Jeff hung on to keep it from flipping over. When the Gator came to rest, Jeff lifted the two remaining children to safety. They were shaken but uninjured. Austin was coping with the effects of shock and adrenaline but, he too, was unharmed. Jeff had cuts and bruises on both legs, and pulled muscles in one shoulder.

Ultimately, their quick action had spared the children serious injury…or worse.

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It took less than ten seconds for this event to unfold. In that time only Austin and Jeff were able to respond. Military experts call the phenomenon, ‘OODA loop’: Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act.

Our OODA loop is affected by previous experience. If we have been exposed to similar events in the past, regardless of how long ago, it shortens our OODA loop. Jeff had accidentally driven the family car over that very hill at the age of twelve. So he observed, oriented, made his decision, and acted quickly because of a shorter OODA loop.

We each have a spiritual OODA loop as well, and the enemy does his best to exploit it. Responding appropriately, in a timely manner, has everything to do with our past experiences. If we have no spiritual history our spiritual brakes will fail, and we will find ourselves plunging over the edge. But we can avoid, or at least minimize the damage by doing as Peter suggests in today’s text. We can prepare our minds ahead of time, and shorten our spiritual OODA loop. The choice is ours. Prepare now, or pay later.

Prayer

“Lord, help me to prepare for any eventuality so I can respond instantly, with the correct action, when difficult circumstances arise. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”