Bible Way Chaplaincy

10/06/2026

SERVANT LEADERSHIP
“Whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.” Matthew 20:27 KJV
True leadership is not about having a title, being recognized, or having people follow you. True leadership is about serving others.
Jesus gave us the greatest example of servant leadership. He could have demanded to be served, yet He chose to serve. He washed the feet of His disciples, ministered to the hurting, encouraged the discouraged, and ultimately gave His life for others.
As Bibleway Chaplains, we are called to follow that example.
We serve those who serve others. We stand beside law enforcement officers, firefighters, corrections officers, EMS personnel, dispatchers, military members, and their families not because we are better than them, but because we have been called to walk alongside them.
Sometimes servant leadership means praying.
Sometimes it means listening.
Sometimes it means showing up in the middle of the night.
Sometimes it means simply sitting beside someone who is hurting.
The greatest leaders are not those who ask, “Who will serve me?” but those who ask, “Who can I serve?”
May every Bibleway Chaplain remember that our title is not a position of privilege it is a calling to serve.
“By love serve one another.” Galatians 5:13 KJV
Serve faithfully. Lead humbly. Represent Christ well.

09/23/2026

America did not appear out of nowhere.
Our history goes back to people like the Pilgrims, who wrote the Mayflower Compact in 1620. They openly spoke about God and the Christian faith and agreed to establish laws for their community.
Christian beliefs and biblical values were a major part of early American culture and influenced the people who built this country.
But America was also founded on the idea that our government must be governed by its own laws and Constitution.
That raises an important question about Sharia law:
Can Americans freely practice Islam? Absolutely. Religious freedom applies to everyone.
But should any religious legal system replace or override the U.S. Constitution?
No.
The Constitution is the supreme law of the United States. No religious law, Christian, Islamic, or otherwise, stands above it.
We can recognize America's Christian heritage while also defending the constitutional system that protects everyone's freedom of religion.
Faith is protected. The Constitution is supreme.

09/18/2026

“But a certain Samaritan… had compassion on him.” Luke 10:33
The story of the Good Samaritan reminds us that ministry is not always found in a church building, behind a pulpit, or in a scheduled appointment. Sometimes ministry happens on the side of the road, in a hospital room, at the scene of an accident, in a patrol car, or beside someone who simply needs someone to listen.
The Samaritan saw someone who was hurting, and he did not walk away. He stopped. He came near. He showed compassion. He gave of his time and resources to help someone in need.
That is part of the calling of a chaplain.
As Bibleway Chaplains, “Serving those that serve others,” we are often called to walk into difficult moments. We may not have all the answers, but we can offer a listening ear, a caring heart, a word of encouragement, and most importantly, the hope we have through Jesus Christ.
There will be times when the greatest ministry we can offer is simply to stop and be present.
Someone around us may be wounded in ways that cannot be seen. Someone may be carrying a burden they have never shared. Someone may be questioning whether anyone cares.
Be the neighbor.
Stop. Listen. Encourage. Pray. Show compassion.
Jesus ended this lesson with a simple command:
“Go, and do thou likewise.” Luke 10:37
May we never become so busy serving others that we fail to see the person who needs us along the way.

09/17/2026

09/11/2026

He spent his final moments praying beside firefighters who were walking toward death. Then the tower came down.
Father Mychal Judge was 68 years old on September 11, 2001. He was the chaplain of the FDNY. He was not there to fight fire. He was not there to command an evacuation. He was there because the men rushing into the World Trade Center were his people. And he refused to let them face the unimaginable alone. As firefighters entered the North Tower, Father Judge stayed beside them. He prayed. He comforted the injured. He spoke to frightened responders. He offered the one thing he could give when the world around them was collapsing. Presence. Imagine that morning. Sirens everywhere. Smoke filling the streets.
Firefighters tightening their gear and moving toward stairwells while thousands of people were desperately trying to escape. Every instinct would have told an ordinary person to get away. Father Judge went closer. Because somewhere inside those uniforms were husbands, fathers, sons and friends who knew they might not come back. And Father Judge believed they should not walk into that darkness without someone beside them reminding them that they were not alone.
Then, at 9:59 that morning, the South Tower collapsed. The force sent debris violently through the lobby of the North Tower. Father Mychal Judge was mortally wounded. Firefighters carried his body from the devastation. The image of them carrying their chaplain became one of the most haunting photographs of September 11. A priest who had entered the towers to comfort firefighters was now being carried by the very men he had come to comfort.
He never made it home.
But perhaps the most powerful part of Father Judge’s story is that he did not have to be there. He could have remained outside. He could have prayed from a safer place. He could have told himself that his work was spiritual, not physical. Instead, he went where his firefighters went. Into the smoke. Into the fear. Into the building. He understood something simple. Sometimes people do not need someone to save them. Sometimes they simply need someone willing to stand beside them while they are afraid.
Father Judge spent much of his life serving people who felt forgotten. The homeless. People struggling with addiction. People living with illness.
Firefighters carrying burdens they rarely spoke about. He had a gift for walking toward people others might walk past. And on September 11, he did it one final time.
Today, many remember him as “The Saint of 9/11.”
There is also an effort seeking formal recognition of his sainthood within the Roman Catholic Church. But whatever the Church may ultimately decide, the people who remember him already understand why that name followed him. He was there when people were afraid.
He stayed when leaving would have been easier. He prayed when there were no words large enough for what was happening. And when firefighters climbed toward the burning floors, their chaplain climbed into the nightmare with them.
Father Mychal Judge could not stop the towers from falling. He could not guarantee that the firefighters around him would survive.
He could do only one thing. Make sure they were not alone. And sometimes, that is the greatest form of love a human being can offer another.
Rest peacefully, Father Mychal Judge. On September 11, thousands ran from the towers.
You walked inside because the people you loved were still there. Twenty five years later, America still remembers the priest who stayed beside its firefighters until the very end.

08/31/2026

Nehemiah 8:13–18 tells us about a powerful moment in Israel’s history. The people gathered to hear the Word of God, and as they read it, they discovered something they had neglected, the Feast of Booths. They didn’t simply learn what God had said; they responded by doing what God had commanded.
There is something powerful about rediscovering God’s Word. Sometimes we become so busy with life, ministry, work, and responsibility that we forget to stop and listen. But when we open Scripture with a willing heart, God reminds us who He is, where we have come from, and how we are to live.
The people in Nehemiah didn't respond with reluctance. They responded with obedience, unity, and joy. Verse 17 says, “And there was very great gladness.”
That is a reminder for every chaplain and every person we serve: God’s Word is not merely something to read, it is something to live.
As chaplains, we have the privilege of bringing God's Word into some of life's most difficult moments. We may walk into hospital rooms, jails, homes, accident scenes, or places of grief and uncertainty. We cannot always change the circumstances, but we can point people to the One who remains faithful in the midst of them.
Read the Word. Hear the Word. Obey the Word. And rejoice in the God of the Word.
May we never become so familiar with Scripture that we fail to be changed by it.
“And there was very great gladness.” Nehemiah 8:17

08/17/2026

A chaplain may not be a doctor, but God can use a chaplain to bring healing into places where medicine cannot reach.
Sometimes healing begins with a conversation. Sometimes it begins with a prayer.
Sometimes it begins with simply sitting beside someone in their darkest hour and saying, "You're not alone."
A chaplain walks into hospitals, jails, emergency scenes, crisis situations, death notifications, family tragedies, and moments of deep uncertainty. We may not be able to change the circumstances, but we can bring something greater into those circumstances:
The presence, hope, and love of God.
Isaiah 53:5 tells us: "By His stripes we are healed."
The ultimate healer is Jesus Christ. A chaplain doesn't heal people the Holy Spirit does. But God allows His servants to become instruments through which His comfort, grace, truth, and healing can flow.
Peter reminds us in 1 Peter 2:24: "By whose stripes you were healed."
What an incredible privilege.
A chaplain can be the person who walks into a broken situation carrying a message of hope.
We can pray with the hurting. We can listen to the grieving. We can encourage the discouraged.
We can stand with families when they don't know what to say.
We can remind people that their circumstances do not determine God's presence.
And sometimes, the greatest healing doesn't happen in the body.
It happens in the heart. A hardened heart softens. A broken spirit finds hope. A guilty soul discovers forgiveness.
A frightened person finds peace. A grieving family discovers that God has not abandoned them.
That is why chaplaincy matters.
We are not merely responding to emergencies. We are carrying the light of Christ into dark places. We are not merely offering words. We are pointing people toward the One who can restore what is broken.
The Bibleway Chaplaincy believes that ministry happens wherever people hurt and there are hurting people everywhere.
So, Chaplain, remember:
You are not the healer. But you can be the vessel.
You can be the voice. You can be the listening ear. You can be the hand extended. You can be the prayer offered.
You can be the reminder that God is still present.
And when God chooses to use you as an instrument of His grace, step into that moment with humility and courage.
Because sometimes God sends a chaplain into the room because someone needs to experience the healing presence of Jesus.
Bibleway Chaplaincy
Serving. Comforting. Ministering. Pointing People to Christ.

"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." Galatians 6:2

07/24/2026

In Matthew 10:6–11. Jesus sends His disciples out with clear instruction, but also with a deep purpose: to bring His care to real people in real places.
“Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Jesus begins by emphasizing direction. Chaplaincy work is not random, it is guided. We are called to seek those who are “near to God’s heart” but may feel far from help, hope, and healing. Even when people are searching, sometimes they don’t know where to turn. That’s where we step in.
“As you go, proclaim…”
This message is not only about information, it’s about proclamation. Our calling in chaplaincy is to speak the hope of Christ with compassion: prayer, presence, encouragement, and practical ministry that lifts burdens.
“Freely you have received; freely give.”
Our service is rooted in grace. We don’t give to earn approval. We serve because God has already given. Chaplaincy is an overflow of what we’ve been given, mercy on purpose, love in action, and faith in motion.
Then Jesus gives expectations that shape how we show up:
• Don’t be distracted by what you lack (no extra baggage for the journey).
• Stay attentive to the people you’re sent to, accept support with gratitude.
• Let peace be our first ministry tool. When we enter a space, we carry God’s peace, not confusion.
• If we’re welcomed, rest in the assignment. If people don’t receive us, we still leave with humility and continue the mission.
Bibleway Chaplaincy, this passage teaches us that ministry is both spiritual and practical. We are sent to bring peace. We are called to proclaim hope. We are urged to serve faithfully, without fear, distraction, or delay.
So today, let’s go with hearts ready to help. Let’s listen well, pray earnestly, and serve courageously, trusting that God will meet us where He sends us.
I found in Matthew 10:6–11. Jesus sends His disciples out with clear instruction, but also with a deep purpose: to bring His care to real people in real places.
“Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Jesus begins by emphasizing direction. Chaplaincy work is not random, it is guided. We are called to seek those who are “near to God’s heart” but may feel far from help, hope, and healing. Even when people are searching, sometimes they don’t know where to turn. That’s where we step in.
“As you go, proclaim…”
This message is not only about information, it’s about proclamation. Our calling in chaplaincy is to speak the hope of Christ with compassion: prayer, presence, encouragement, and practical ministry that lifts burdens.
“Freely you have received; freely give.”
Our service is rooted in grace. We don’t give to earn approval. We serve because God has already given. Chaplaincy is an overflow of what we’ve been given, mercy on purpose, love in action, and faith in motion.
Then Jesus gives expectations that shape how we show up:
Don’t be distracted by what you lack (no extra baggage for the journey).
Stay attentive to the people you’re sent to, accept support with gratitude.
Let peace be our first ministry tool. When we enter a space, we carry God’s peace, not confusion.
If we’re welcomed, rest in the assignment. If people don’t receive us, we still leave with humility and continue the mission.
Bibleway Chaplaincy, this passage teaches us that ministry is both spiritual and practical. We are sent to bring peace. We are called to proclaim hope. We are urged to serve faithfully, without fear, distraction, or delay.
So today, let’s go with hearts ready to help. Let’s listen well, pray earnestly, and serve courageously, trusting that God will meet us where He sends us.
I found in Matthew 10:6–11. Jesus sends His disciples out with clear instruction, but also with a deep purpose: to bring His care to real people in real places.
“Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Jesus begins by emphasizing direction. Chaplaincy work is not random, it is guided. We are called to seek those who are “near to God’s heart” but may feel far from help, hope, and healing. Even when people are searching, sometimes they don’t know where to turn. That’s where we step in.
“As you go, proclaim…”
This message is not only about information, it’s about proclamation. Our calling in chaplaincy is to speak the hope of Christ with compassion: prayer, presence, encouragement, and practical ministry that lifts burdens.
“Freely you have received; freely give.”
Our service is rooted in grace. We don’t give to earn approval. We serve because God has already given. Chaplaincy is an overflow of what we’ve been given, mercy on purpose, love in action, and faith in motion.
Then Jesus gives expectations that shape how we show up:
Don’t be distracted by what you lack (no extra baggage for the journey).
Stay attentive to the people you’re sent to, accept support with gratitude.
Let peace be our first ministry tool. When we enter a space, we carry God’s peace, not confusion.
If we’re welcomed, rest in the assignment. If people don’t receive us, we still leave with humility and continue the mission.
Bibleway Chaplaincy, this passage teaches us that ministry is both spiritual and practical. We are sent to bring peace. We are called to proclaim hope. We are urged to serve faithfully, without fear, distraction, or delay.
So today, let’s go with hearts ready to help. Let’s listen well, pray earnestly, and serve courageously, trusting that God will meet us where He sends us.

07/16/2026

Service is rarely convenient. It often comes at unexpected times, in difficult places, and during life's most painful moments. A chaplain may be called to comfort a grieving family at midnight, stand beside first responders in the aftermath of tragedy, or simply sit in silence with someone who needs to know they are not alone.
At Bibleway Chaplaincy, we believe service is more than an assignment it is a calling. It requires a compassionate heart, a listening ear, unwavering integrity, and a faith that remains steady when others are struggling to find hope.
Every challenge we face is an opportunity to demonstrate Christ's love in practical ways. We don't always have all the answers, but we can always offer our presence, our prayers, and the hope found in Jesus Christ.
As Paul reminds us:
"Be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." 1 Corinthians 15:58
To every chaplain serving in hospitals, law enforcement, fire service, EMS, corrections, military, schools, and communities across our nation: thank you for faithfully answering the call. Your ministry matters. Your service makes a difference. Keep meeting the challenge one person, one family, one conversation at a time.

06/26/2026

2026 Missouri First Responders Health and Wellness Conference, taking place September 28-30, 2026, at the Margaritaville Lake Resort in Lake Ozark, MO.
Registration is available for members of the fire service, law enforcement, EMS, dispatchers, corrections officers, and first responder agency chaplains. The conference is free to attend. Breakfast and Lunch are provided on the 29th and 30th. Lodging is provided if your agency is more than 30 miles from the hotel.

Event Details
• Date: September 28-30, 2026
• Location: Margaritaville Lake Resort, Lake Ozark, MO
• Capacity: Open to 350 Missouri First Responders and their Spouse/Significant Other

Registration
Registration is open. First year attendees will get priority placement.
https://moexperience.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_87DDG7PBfhQHNfE

Exhibitor Opportunities
Exhibitor Registration will open July 1.

Join us in supporting the health and wellness of Missouri's First Responders. We look forward to welcoming you to the conference!

If you have any questions:
Attendee Contact: Kelsey Saunders at [email protected]
Exhibitor Contact: Les Martin at [email protected]