Better Chaplain Series - Book and Media Recommendations

Leadership / Men's Growth:

Mohler, R. Albert, Jr. The Conviction to Lead: 25 Principles for Leadership That Matters. Bloomington, MN: Bethany House, 2012.

Hughes, R. Kent. Disciplines of a Godly Man. Wheaton: Crossway, 1991.

Grief:

White, James. Grieving: Your Path Back to Peace. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1997.

MacArthur, John. Safe in the Arms of God: Truth From Heaven About the Death of a Child. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2003.

Shearer, Canyon. "Hope in the Loss of a Baby." Trust and Obey. April 4, 2020. https://trustobey.blogspot.com/2020/04/hope-in-loss-of-baby.html

Evangelism:

Comfort, Ray. The Way of the Master. Alachua, FL: Bridge-Logos, 2006.

van der Bijl, Andrew and Al Janssen. Light Force. London: Open Doors International, 2004.

Deeper Faith:

Phillips, Dan. The World-Tilting Gospel: Embracing a Biblical Worldview and Hanging on Tight. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 2011.

Bunyan, John. The Pilgrim's Progress. 1678. Reprint, London: Penguin Classics, 2008.

Redemption:

Rose, Darlene Deibler. Evidence Not Seen: A Woman's Miraculous Faith in the Jungles of World War II. New York: HarperOne, 1988.

Kastler, Shane E. Nathan Bedford Forrest's Redemption. New York: Pelican Publishing, 2010.

Productivity:

Perman, Matt. What's Best Next: How the Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done. Wheaton: Crossway, 2014.

Wilson, Doug. Ploductivity: A Practical Guide to Consistent Productivity. Moscow, ID: Canon Press, 2018.

Pornography and Sexual Abuse:

Lambert, Heath. Finally Free: Fighting for Purity with the Power of Grace. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013.

Jones, Dawn Scott. When a Woman You Love is Abused: A Husband's Guide to Helping Her. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2008.

Counseling:

Scott, Stuart, and Heath Lambert. Counseling the Hard Cases: An 8-Point Model for Effective Therapy. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012.

Welch, Edward T. Blame It on the Brain? Neuroscience and the Nature of Sin. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2024.

Ellen, Nicolas. "How to Quiet a Noisy Soul." YouTube. July 22, 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0dwHcj6Tec

Chaplaincy:

Taylor, Robert Preston. Days of Anguish, Days of Hope. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1992.

Cash, Carey. A Table in the Presence: A Personal Story of God's Faithfulness in the Midst of Tragedy. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2006.

Linzey, Paul and Keith Travis. Military Ministry: Chaplains in the Twenty-First Century. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2022.

Better Chaplain Series - Work for the King and the Saints

 At a very difficult time in Israel’s history the prophet Elijah had promised a drought, angering the king and queen, and was in exile for 3 years. The queen had ordered the killing of the prophets of God to establish her religion.

One of the most trusted advisors of the wicked king Ahab was a man named Obadiah (1 Kings 18:3ff), who had served the LORD from his youth, and who in recent days had cared for a hundred prophets out of his own pocket.

Obadiah was a servant of God and of the king, though the two did not always agree. While he certainly was not perfect, scripture says nothing negative of Obadiah, so while it would be tempting to say that he should have opposed Ahab to his face, we see that Obadiah was in a place to bless both the nation and the people of God.

Chaplain, do you always agree with the decisions of your leadership? If you’re a chaplain of the United States, your professed king is the Constitution, and while a wonderful document, it can be interpreted and invoked to accomplish atrocities which God certainly is not happy with. You must choose if your role is that of Obadiah or Elijah, and to fulfill your calling in whichever role God has placed you in. Elijah was not in a position to care for 100 prophets, and Obadiah was not in a place to raise a child from the dead, nor to stop the blessings of Heaven from falling on Israel, but together God was accomplishing great things through both to bring the nation to repentance.

It could be argued that Obadiah’s influence led to great reforms under future leaders and the cutting off of Baal and Asherah worship in Israel. It would have been simple for scripture to leave him out of the story all together, but he’s there, and he’s important, and he teaches us that we can serve both the king of our nation and the King of heaven. Go, and do likewise.

More:

1. Peter and John answered the leaders in their time with, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19) If faced with a law that contradicts the law of God, who will you obey? Which nation will last longer? (cf Hebrews 13:14)

2. Obadiah was paying for ministry out of his own pocket, some chaplains have called this the “Obadiah Fund”, what can you fund that will further the kingdom of God?

3. William Wilberforce, who spent three decades abolishing slavery in the United Kingdom, wanted to quit Parliament for the wickedness he observed there. His mentor, John Newton encouraged him to stay to call England to repentance and abolish the slave trade. Is there something or someone you can reach because of your position that an outsider could not?

4. Further Resources:

Benge, Janet, and Geoff Benge. William Wilberforce: Take Up the Fight. Seattle: YWAM Publishing, 2002.

Astor, David, producer. Amazing Grace. Directed by Michael Apted. Walden Media, 2006. DVD.

Better Chaplain Series - Equip Others

 Is the chaplain:

    1. an apostle (one sent by God)

    2. a prophet (one who speaks for God)

    3. an evangelist (one who tells the good news of salvation)

    4. a pastor (one who seeks and tends the sheep of his master)

    5. a teacher (one who illuminates and helps others to understand God’s word and creation)

Regardless which you choose (or all of the above), Ephesians 4:11-16 tells us that the chaplain is given to equip the saints for the work of the ministry for building up the body of Christ. His calling and gifting is not for personal use in building himself up or making himself a self-sufficient maverick, but are given for investing in others, calling out their gifting, identifying where saints (all who are sanctified, set-apart, made holy in Christ) are strong and employing them, and identifying where they are weak and exhorting them.

Is your chaplaincy a competition? Are you withholding information or hoarding ministry for your own benefit? What are your efforts doing for the body of Christ?

I have been blessed to see three men become chaplains under my ministry, ordain two others, and commission many to minister in their sphere of influence. Though only a shadow of the glory of Christ’s rewards, I often like to say, “My favorite medals are medals that others’ are wearing, my favorite awards are sitting on others’ shelves, and my favorite stripes are sewn on others’ uniforms.”

I once had a job assigned to me that I’d done before. After accepting the job, I realized that I should give it to a young man who had never done the job. He spent a long night prepping for the massive job the next day, with my direction, and he did a phenomenal job despite a lot of stress and personal growth. Then he was awarded a medal for that job, and was later promoted for his many accomplishments with that medal being the crowing achievement. I was originally embittered because he was recognized for a job I could have done, but I’ve learned to rejoice for all of the good he’s done since–by the grace of God–I gave him one opportunity.

Rejoice in fruit growing on others’ trees. ~ John Piper

More:

1. What do you think Paul wanted us to do with Jesus’ quote, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

2. Is it lazy to delegate tasks to others when you’re more than capable of accomplishing the job by yourself? What if they’re incapable of accomplishing the tasks? Read Ezekiel 34:4-6 and consider if you’ve fulfilled your ministry.

3. Did anyone equip you early in your ministry? Where would you be without them?

4. Further Resources:

Scott, Stuart. One Another: A Guide for Strengthening and Serving Others in Christ. Bemidji, MN: Focus Publishing, 2006.

Laniak, Timothy S. Shepherds After My Own Heart: Pastoral Traditions and Leadership in the Bible. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2006.