Church of God Chaplains Commission

Chaplains Commission Weekly Update

Monday, January 21, 2008 at 4:48 pm

Choice Christian greetings!

This past week, I had the personal joy of being part of a meeting with Dr. John Nichols, former Director of the Care Division, and now the CEO of The Lazarus Foundation. As most of you know, Dr. Nichols was recently diagnosed and is undergoing treatment for a very rare form of cancer. We have asked our chaplaincy family to be much in prayer for this father, husband, former Executive Committee member, ex-Marine and all the other titles which represent his life and ministry. More than that, he has been a friend to our chaplaincy ministries. He never lost his Marine’s heart; his love for chaplains showed in every position he has ever served in. God has used him mightily to open the eyes of the Church of God to the needs of destitute individuals and families. His name will always be identified with “care.”

As far as I know, this was Dr. Nichol’s first public appearance since his extensive cancer treatments at M. D. Anderson Hospital. His remarks were from a man who has gone into the depths and returned to give us all a “word from the Lord.” His battle with cancer, according to Brother Nichols, has left him with a few very important conclusions. Dr. Nichols stated the following: 1) “This bout with cancer has taught me the tremendous importance of things that really count: family and friends. 2. It has given me an unbelievable freedom from unnecessary things to those things that are really important…my relationship with the Lord and the Word of God. 3) This journey has brought me anew into a very deep and special presence of the Lord; it has given me a greater desire for His Word, just to be in fellowship with Him; to give praise and honor to who He is and what He is. 4) It has taught me that regardless of how difficult the struggle, God has a future for all of us.”

I share these remarks with you as this nation faces a very complex and confused future. I share it with you at a time when our Church, like all Churches in America, needs to get back to the basics; to hear afresh the most important things God is saying to us. I share it with you as our military chaplains face further deployments, and the war in Iraq and other combat areas become even more confusing and complex; knowing that the only answer that is going to come to us personally, and generally to this world, are answers from the Lord. As I listened to Brother Nichols, I thought to myself, “Are we really listening?” If God knows my heart, I want our chaplaincy ministry to be founded on the very truths of God. I do not want us to end up doing the “right things” for the “wrong reasons.” I pray God will cleanse all our ministries; and, while I want all of the chaplains to be successful in obtaining status and rank, I pray they will finish the journey with integrity. Thank you, Brother Nichols. Your journey is not finished by any means. God has a future for you, like He does for all of us. I cannot wait to see what God is going to do through Brother Nichols and others like him in these last days. If we ever needed a “word from the Lord” from those whose lives have been snatched from the fire, it is today! Continue to pray and stay close to the Lord; listening only to Him!

MARTIN LUTHER KING DAY

Our chaplains around the world today are conducting special worship and other events that highlight the tremendous sacrifices and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King. In the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, while doing my seminary training at Vanderbilt University, I had the privilege of meeting Dr. King and others deeply committed to the Civil Rights Movement. Our seminary actually closed down for several weeks in support of the early “sit in” activities; led in Nashville at that time by a student and dear friend at our seminary. My life has been enriched by this early movement; especially in light of the following years as a chaplain and chaplaincy leader. Chaplaincy as a ministry and theology is built on the principals of equality; for everyone, white or black, Hispanic, or other race or ethnic groups; male or female. One of the reasons why we, as chaplains, are so connected to this special “beyond the gates” ministries lies in it equality principals. Who would want to proclaim a gospel that was exclusive and only for the few? The Lord came and gave His life for All. May we as a Commission always remember this reality; and practice it in our daily life and ministry. .

ARE WE PRAYING FOR OUR DEPLOYED CHAPLAINS’ FAMILIES?

This week, the USA Today published an article concerning the stress and trauma being placed on our U.S. Soldiers’ families during these back-to-back deployments. Of course, that applies to our military chaplains’ families as well. When the service person deploys, the spouse left behind must take care of the children and volunteer on that station or base to take care of other dysfunctional and hurting families. In a sense, we are asking these families to do “double duty.” When I read the article, my payers went out to our chaplains’ families, and I had to call one of them. I called Kendra Kuhlman, wife of Army Chaplain (MAJ) Charles Kuhlman, who is in Iraq on a second deployment. During Charles’ first deployment, Kendra was always the first one at the door of the family who had just been notified that their father/mother/husband/son had been killed in battle. On one occasion, she escorted the wife and children to the funeral that was held in another state. This officer’s wife insisted that she needed Kendra to give her the spiritual support necessary to sustain this critical time. Chaplains’ wives and wives of other deployed Soldiers raise money for needy military families, provide babysitting for spouses to get relief from family responsibilities and run a number of support systems on military bases for deployed Soldiers’ families. The USA Today article lifted up the concern that some of these families doing “double duty” are themselves becoming casualties. Therefore, I am asking all our Update readers to pray for our deployed chaplains’ families; pray that God will continue to give them the strength to give spiritual support to other families; and to pray for all our military families, whose sacrifices go far beyond the normal call of duty. Also, pray for our chaplains and all the Soldiers they serve.

CHAPLAINCY NEWS:

1. Community Service Chaplain Judy Ramsey, Oxford, Ohio, tells us the importance of our volunteer chaplaincy ministries. She states: “It was my privilege to take 24 kids caroling at 3 nursing homes during the holidays, and to several other shut-ins at homes. They passed out candy and pillow cases made by women within our community; and these kids raised $600 to cover our monthly support of an orphanage in Mexico.”

2. Community Service Prison Chaplain Keith Honeycutt, Penrose, North Carolina, states: “During the holidays, we provided gift packages for all of our inmates; provided gifts for the inmates’ children; and provided goods for their families. We are praying this ministry will be expanded into several other institutions in our area.” The local newspaper ran an article concerning Chaplain Honeycutt’s special care for inmates. One ex-inmate stated in the article, “When I was in jail, Chaplain Honeycutt helped me reconnect with my family and opened doors for a better life for me. Since release from jail, I have been attending his church; here I am today handing out gifts and witnessing the joy of the spirit of Christmas on the faces of fellow inmates.”

3. Community Service Chaplain Hector Estrada, Tucson, Arizona, gives witness to the Holiday events. He states: “We took our chaplaincy team to Mexico where we handed out food, candy, blankets and other goods. In one service, the Holy Ghost came down and 127 persons gave their hearts to the Lord.”

4. Juvenile Detention Center Chaplain Carl Adams, North Hampton, Ohio, has developed a creative method for taking Christ to juveniles. He states: “I found that the picture Bible is an effective tool to reach juveniles, many who cannot read very well. One juvenile stated, Thanks, chaplain! I was able to read the entire book, and it has totally changed my life! I will never be the same again!”

SPECIAL PRAYER NEEDS:

1. Continue to pray for our chaplains who are deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq; and for their families. Also, lift up all our Soldiers who are deployed, and their families in your prayers. They, like our chaplains, need a special presence of the Lord.

2. Hospice Chaplain Dwight Wilson, Ringgold, Georgia, asked that we pray for healing of his chronic back problem.

3. England Prison Chaplain Donald Williams has requested prayer for one of their female officers who, over the Christmas Holidays, was diagnosed with a brain tumor and told she only has 6 months to live.

4. Army Chaplain (CPT) Neal Durham, Baumholder, Germany, has been told that he will be deployed to Iraq April, 2008. This will be Chaplain Durham’s second deployment. We are asking special prayer for Chaplain Durham, his family and all the Soldiers he will be serving in this critical area.

5. Racetrack Chaplain Rick Mann, Martinsburg, West Virginia, sent a number of prayer requests to include: those needing medical attention; the tremendous financial need among those that attend to areas on the “backside of the track;” those that participate in his alcohol and drug rehabilitation programs; and all their worship events, Bible studies and other means to make Christ real in this unique ministry.

FINALLY:

This week, I had the privilege of meeting with the entire staff of the World Missions Department to review our chaplaincy ministries in 69 countries outside the U.S. We celebrated together the way in which God is using chaplaincy around the world to teach us again the importance of giving unconditional love to those in need. With the World Missions’ staff, we gave special attention to our chaplaincy work in South America and Eastern Europe. In South America, towards the end of February, we will be part of the dedication of the $600,000 urban and chaplaincy ministries center. Our special thanks go to Chaplains Commission Board Member David Kemp, and his outstanding congregation at the Fort Mill, South Carolina Church of God for their initial donations that got this center started. In Romania, we will be dedicating an almost one million dollar medical/chaplaincy outreach center. Both these centers, in addition to providing training, will offer a number of benevolence, medical and chaplaincy services. We are thankful for this privilege of working with World Missions in spreading the chaplaincy Good News around the world. I know you will be in prayer with us for this and our other ministries. But, never forget to pray for our chaplains; and for their families.

Sincerely,

Dr. Robert Crick

Director, Chaplains Commission

Director’s e-mail: cricksot@worldnet.att.net

Office e-mail: chapcm@bellsouth.net

Web Site/Page: www.cogchaplains.com

RDC/vja

Categories: Weekly Update