If your church sits near a military installation, there is a good chance a military chaplain will eventually walk through your doors. At first glance, it is easy to focus entirely on what he brings to the table: theological education, ministry experience, crisis-care training, and years of organizational leadership.
Before asking what this chaplain can do for your church, ask a different question: How can we pastor him well?
Depending on his assignment and the season he is in, a chaplain might navigate more tragedy in a single month than many local pastors see in a year. He responds to suicides, sudden deaths, broken marriages, traumatic deployments, and crises most people never witness. He spends his career carrying the heavy burdens of service members and their families.
Even so, a shepherd is still a sheep.
When a chaplain joins your church, he still desperately needs the ordinary means of grace. He needs the Word preached to him, genuine fellowship, prayer, encouragement, friendship, and pastors who actually care about his soul. Peter urges elders to “shepherd the flock of God that is among you” (1 Peter 5:2). If God has placed a chaplain among your people, part of your calling is to shepherd the shepherd.
A great place to start is simple: know your chaplain personally and know him professionally.
1. Know Your Chaplain Personally
There are many reasons a military chaplain might join your church, and you shouldn’t assume you know what he needs before you take time to hear his story.
He might be coming off a grueling deployment or a brutal season and simply needs a place to rest. After spending months pouring out care for others, he may just need to sit in a pew and listen to the Word preached without feeling responsible for delivering it. His wife might need a break from expectations to lead, and his children might just need a normal church where they can be kids.
In that season, give him explicit permission to be served.
On the other hand, another chaplain might be in an entirely different place. He might be healthy, settled, and eager to dive straight into ministry. He could be hungry to teach, disciple, preach, or roll up his sleeves alongside everyone else.
You won’t know which season he is in until you actually get to know him.
- Ask about his family and his current assignment.
- Ask what the last few years of ministry have been like for him.
- Ask whether he needs a quiet place to rest or an outlet to serve.
- Ask if his chaplaincy experience has turned out how he expected.
Most importantly, build enough trust so he feels safe enough to answer you honestly.
When I was in pastoral ministry, a military chaplain became one of my closest friends and confidants. That friendship was uniquely life-giving because we shared the weight of similar pressures—caring for people in crisis, leading organizations, writing sermons, and carrying secrets we could never talk about publicly. Because neither of us was the other’s supervisor, we had the rare freedom to be entirely honest with each other.
I am deeply grateful for that bond because chaplaincy can be surprisingly lonely. Rank, leadership roles, and strict confidentiality complicate relationships. A chaplain often spends his entire week surrounded by people who need something from him, with almost no one in his corner who simply knows him.
Sometimes, the absolute best way to pastor a chaplain is just to be his friend.
2. Know Your Chaplain Professionally
Getting to know your chaplain personally doesn’t mean ignoring the incredible experience and gifting God has developed in him professionally.
Most military chaplains have extensive specialized training beyond seminary. Over years of service, they develop sharp instincts in crisis response, counseling, suicide intervention, organizational leadership, strategic planning, and advising senior leaders.
That background can be an incredible asset to your church.
Ironically, as chaplains climb in rank, they often have fewer opportunities to do the hands-on ministry that originally called them into the chaplaincy. Their days get swallowed up by supervisory responsibilities, administrative duties, ministry planning, and advising commanders on the unit’s religious climate. A chaplain might spend decades sharpening his skills as a preacher, only to reach a point in his career where he rarely gets behind a pulpit.
Consider inviting him to preach occasionally or teach a small group. Let him disciple younger believers. Find healthy ways to employ his spiritual gifts to strengthen the body. This isn’t about exploiting free labor from someone with an impressive resume; it is about faithfully stewarding the gifts Christ has placed in his church. As Peter reminds us, we should use our gifts “to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10).
And don’t just offer him a platform to serve—ask for his wisdom or counsel, especially in times requiring crisis intervention or conflict resolution.
Many chaplains have spent years building ministry plans, leading diverse teams, and thinking strategically about how to reach military communities. If your church is near a base, ask him what blind spots you might have. Ask how your church can better love military families. Ask him to look at your ministry calendar or strategic plan and offer honest feedback.
Sometimes, a great way to pastor a chaplain is to draw on his professional experience.
Shepherding the Shepherd
1 Corinthians 12 reminds us that God designed the body so its members mutually need one another. You can pastor a chaplain’s soul while simultaneously receiving the wisdom and experience God has equipped him to share.
The man who spends his entire week shepherding service members still desperately needs a shepherd of his own.
In summary, here are three ways you can pastor a chaplain well:
- Knowing your chaplain personally
- Knowing your chaplain professionally
- Shepherding the shepherd
Visit Send Network Military to find more stories and resources to help churches reach, serve, and care for military members and their families.