Chaplains Commission Weekly Update – 3/12/2010
Thursday, March 11, 2010 at 2:33 pm
Choice Christian Greetings!
We are celebrating some 50 years of volunteer chaplaincy ministries, which we call Community Service Chaplaincy. We removed the word “volunteer” from this outstanding group of chaplains because many of them are anything but part-time or simply “volunteers.” Our Community Service Chaplains range from those who give a few hours to those that literally work at their post full-time to, in a few cases, Community Service Chaplains who have established large organizations of hundreds of volunteer chaplains. They work in every area of chaplaincy; colleges and universities, jails, prisons, hospitals, rape crisis intervention centers, therapy centers, doctors’ offices, juvenile courts, low-income housing areas, with gangs, and the list goes on and on. We have identified some 40 different areas of ministry where our Community Service Chaplains serve.
Three very important requirements undergird their ministry: (1) Training, (2) Endorsement, and (3) Accountability. To train this vast army of volunteers, now numbering close to 5,000, in 73 different countries, we have established a basic Community Service Chaplains course and 12 specialized courses for continuing education. The basic course is developed on a 27 and 40-hour format; this is dependent on whether the course is taught onsite, through our state offices and other agencies of the church, or within our educational institutions. These courses are now offered for academic credit, on-line format, and you will find them in most of our bible colleges and universities, both in the United States and overseas. Additionally, our specialized courses are becoming very popular for those who, after taking the CSC basic course, want to continue to dig deeper into chaplaincy concepts and practices.
A Sampling of Community Service Chaplains Ministries
· Law Enforcement Chaplain Douglas Hardy, Carrolton, Georgia, spends some 20 hours per week in this specialized ministry. He is requesting prayer for the family of one of his deputies, who was killed in the line of duty.
· Scouting Chaplain Kenneth Golden, Leonard, Michigan, covers several districts of scouting; leading an all-faith service recently with 170 scouts and workers.
· Native American and Law Enforcement Chaplain Ronald Countryman, Big Timber, Montana, works with a vast Native American population. He reports that unemployment is at 82% on the Fort Belknap Reservation.
· Community Service Chaplain Keith Honeycutt, Penrose, North Carolina, Director of the Blue Ridge Prison and Jail Ministries, reports of bible study groups, hundreds of bibles and devotional materials distributed, and a number who came to the Lord.
· Community Service Chaplain Rodney Inscoe, Henderson, North Carolina, was recognized by his local Civitan Club for his outstanding “volunteer ministries” throughout the community.
· Campus Chaplain Alejandro Ramirez, Fall River, Massachusetts, is a chaplain at the Bristol Community College, providing both English and Hispanic chaplaincy programs.
· Community Service Chaplain Ernest Pennington, former overseer and pastor, Beaver, West Virginia, is a long-term Community Service Chaplain. Even in his so-called “retirement” years, he continues to minister to individuals and institutions within his surrounding areas.
· Chaplain Linda Gray, Oak Lawn, Illinois, is a chaplain to a local nursing home; and on Valentine’s Day, made gifts and provided worship services for residents. During one of the worship services, two came to the Lord.
· Scouting Chaplain James Brinkley, Zionsville, Indiana, reports that he headed up a celebration day in honor of the Hundredth Anniversary of scouting in America. Worship and other chaplaincy activities were provided for scouts of all ages.
· Jail and Prison Chaplain Russell Terrell, Middletown, Ohio, is one of several chaplains endorsed through his local church, the Stratford Heights Church of God, with Reverend Ray Phillips, Senior Pastor, who is also a Board Member of the Chaplains Commission. Chaplain Terrell reports that just this past month, 15 male and four female inmates came to the altar to receive Christ as Lord and Savior.
Our Community Service Chaplain of the Week; C.L. Brasfield, Jr.
Law Enforcement Chaplain, C.L. Brasfield, Jr., came to the seminary and completed a Master of Divinity degree after a career as a school teacher. At 87, as far as we know, he is our most senior CSC chaplain, and he has served the most consecutive years. Some years ago, when we honored Chaplain Brasfield for his many years of law enforcement chaplaincy, law enforcement personnel were present from several districts, counties and law enforcement departments. Again and again, sheriffs, law enforcement officers, and others who had been touched by the dynamic ministries of Chaplain Brasfield stood up to honor this “hero of the faith.” With untiring love and devotion to law enforcement personnel and their families, Chaplain Brasfield has elevated the word “volunteer” to an unbelievable level.
Full-Time Chaplains Reports
· Our congratulations to Chaplain (CPT-P) David Hall, Fort Lee, Virginia, who was recently selected to be advanced from the rank of Captain to Major.
· Long-term Race Track Chaplain, Rick Mann, recently moved from Arkansas to Willmar, Minnesota, to take an assignment with a treatment facility. He reports: “In addition to my work in the areas of addictions, I also have a burden for Hispanics, with some 10,000 living in this area. While I was a race track chaplain, a young Aztec Indian gave his life to Christ. He was responsible in helping us bring 55 persons to the Lord. He took care of our Hispanics; feeding them and providing them places to stay. I am looking forward, in addition to my new job, to setting up new Hispanic ministries in this area.”
· Correctional Chaplain Carol Johnson, Longview, Washington, reports: “Continue to pray for my granddaughter; she and her kids need a special touch of the Lord. Her kids are Noah, 5, and Bella, 3. Also, pray for our jail ministries; they are having to put-up with many false teachings. We want to keep our inmates in the Word of God; the real truth of the real Jesus.”
· Hospital Chaplain Tim Corley, Bradford, Arkansas, sent this touching testimony. “I have had the privilege of developing a ‘naming ceremony’ for infants that are still-born. In this ceremony, the child receives a “proper name;” something for the parents to remember as they process their grief. Many of these parents are not attending church; but, this is a means to reach them with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
· Air Force Chaplain, Captain, Chris Underwood, Colorado Springs, Colorado, recently conducted a singles retreat that gave focus to “developing healthy relationships.” He states that 26 airmen attended the retreat. During the retreat, eight airmen made a new commitment to the Lord. Incidentally, we are happy to report that recently, Chaplain Underwood was awarded the “Chaplain of the Year for Air Force Space Command, 2009.” Send your notes of congratulations to Chaplain Underwood at: Christopher.underwood@schriever.af.mil
· Army Chaplain (CPT) Ismael Serrano, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, who recently returned from deployment to Iraq, was awarded the Bronze Star, in recognition of his outstanding ministry while deployed. You can send your notes of “Congratulations” and “Welcome Home” to ish.serrano@us.army.mil
· Retired Air Force Chaplain John Secret, and now pastor of the Community Chapel, Melbourne Beach, Florida, sent this report: “In response to the need you emphasized regarding relief efforts for Haiti, I am glad to report that our local church Sunday school sponsored a pancake breakfast, with a love offering of $2,035 to be sent for Operation Compassion Haitian care ministries. May the Lord continue to greatly use your efforts as His hands extended in bringing comfort and hope to the people of Haiti.”
Finally
Chaplains are those that are given moral authority and not ultimate authority. As most of you who read these updates regularly know, chaplains conduct their ministry under the supervision of military commanders, hospital administrators, wardens, and all those others who are in charge of our institutions and agencies. Chaplains, seldom ever, get to be “totally in charge.” What a great lesson chaplains provide in this regard for all of us; pastors, executives within the church, and others who fill our pulpits and carry out our ministries. If we follow biblical guidelines, this is the model for all of us. Romans 13:1 states that “Everyone must submit to governing authorities, for all authority comes from God, and those in position of authority have been placed there by God.” Ministerial leaders get in trouble primarily when they begin to think that this is “my church,” and not “our church.” I am not sure if there is any place in God’s work for being a “maverick.” That is, to consider that under most circumstances, “I am in charge.” For chaplains, to think that way leads towards a dead-end street. God gives chaplains, in law enforcement agencies, hospitals, military, prisons, and all the other agencies, industries and institutions where they serve, the holy privilege of conducting a dynamic Pentecostal ministry while under the authority of “someone else.” The reason why this comes close to being a pure, more biblical ministry is the fact that it has to be “real,” or it will not fly. In the marketplace, “outside the gates,” our exaggerated claims and lofty speech, carries neither moral nor ultimate authority. A tough hospital administrator, a prison warden or military commander, brings us back to earth in a hurry. Our real authority comes first from God then from those who sit on our pews. Let us have your comments concerning the difference between moral and ultimate authority.
Sincerely,
Robert D. Crick
Weekly Bible Verse
But this precious treasure – this light and power that now shines within us – is held in perishable containers, that is, in our weak bodies. So everyone can see that our glorious power is from God and not our own.
2 Corinthians 4:7 (NLT)
Contacts
Director, Dr. Robert D. Crick, cricksot@att.net
Full-time Chaplaincy, Dr. Jerry McNabb, jmcnabb@cogchaplains.com
Community Service Chaplaincy and Training, Dr. Jake Popejoy, jakepopejoy@aol.com
Public Relations and Recruitment, wroberson@cogchaplains.com
Special Projects, Reverend Tom Offutt, tomoffutt@att.net
Prayer and Family Care, Elaine Offutt, elaineoffutt@att.net
General Information, chapcm@cogchaplains.com
Web Site/Page: www.cogchaplains.com
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