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LIBERTY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY

Shadow Evaluation: First Observation Assignment

Submitted to <insert name>,

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of

<Insert Course prefix and Number-Section Number>

<Insert Course Title>

by

<insert Student Name>

<Month Date, Year Submitted>

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Contents
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Introduction

Both theory and practice will play a vital role in my journey to becoming a professional

chaplain with a biblical foundation grounded in the spiritual disciplines. Therefore, as I endeavor

to understand the theory part taught in class, I also need to practice to experience the real world

of chaplaincy. One way to engage in practice is by interacting with a person who is already

practicing as a professional chaplain and get to learn several things from their experience. In

respect to this course, I had an opportunity not only to interview a chaplain but also to

accompany her doing ministry. For this paper, I will write an interview and shadow report to

highlight my experience with the chaplain, including the lessons learned and how I will apply the

lessons in my current ministry.

Part One: The Interview

For this assignment, I interviewed a chaplain named Melissa Spark on August 20, 2021,

from 9-9:30 am. She is currently serving at the Victoria Air Force Base, where she has served for

two years now. Before joining the Victoria Air Force Base, Melissa served in the Air Force for

three years. She received her Masters of Divinity from Liberty University, School of Divinity.

Melissa’s ministerial experience includes serving as a healthcare chaplain in a local district

hospital for two years and as a youth pastor for one year.

While serving in the Air Force, she learned of a chaplaincy position at the Victoria Air

Force Base and applied for the post. Given that she had the relevant professional qualifications

and experience, she got the job. Having served in the Air Force, it was easier for her to adapt to

the environment and practice her chaplaincy there. Her tasks as the chaplain include providing

spiritual care for the airmen and families, advising military leaders on ethical and spiritual issues,

counseling, and leading protestant programs at the Air Base.

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Melissa stated that she could rate her ministry efforts as very effective given the daily

support requests from the airmen. She always has someone coming to seek assistance from her,

which means that the airmen have embraced her role as their chaplain. She also introduced

weekly bible study, which takes place every Wednesday, and the airmen responded positively.

Her chaplaincy ministry has had both positive and negative impacts on her family. Melissa is

married with two daughters. Serving as chaplain at the Airbase meant that she needed to settle

with her family at the airbase. This provided an opportunity for her daughters to have a whole

new experience of life. However, she says that the demanding nature of her ministry denies her

time with her family.

Part Two: The Shadow

I chose to shadow Melissa due to her long experience in chaplaincy and her commitment

to her ministry efforts. She demonstrates commitment in her ministerial efforts to support airmen

and their families. With her experience as a chaplain, I saw it as a great advantage to engage her

in her chaplaincy role and learn from her successes and challenges. She has initiated different

programs for the airmen to help them grow in their spiritual lives and ethically. These include the

weekly bible study and the protestant services. Having served as a youth pastor for one year, her

experience with youth would be essential in my current ministry as a university chaplain working

with young people.

One of the critical lessons that I learned from my chaplain shadow experience is to lead

by example. While engaging with Melissa for the three hours in her ministry, I realized that she

not only helps the airmen to grow spiritually, she has also committed herself to learn and live by

the Christian principles of life. People are more likely to follow what you practice than what you

teach them. Therefore, Melissa had resolved to teach spiritual disciplines and live by them,
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creating a good example for the people to follow. When Jesus was teaching his followers, he said

that "you are the salt and the light of the world….." (Matthew 5:13-16).1 Borrowing from this

teaching, it is through our actions that we can have a more significant influence on people

concerning them leading a spiritually fulfilling life.

I also learned that spiritual discipline is a vital aspect of every Christian's life and should

be at the core of a chaplain's ministry. Through this discipline, we can pursue holiness and live

according to God's will for our lives. In her ministry as a chaplain, Melissa focuses on teaching

the spiritual disciplines as a critical aspect to leading a life that pleases God. While God will

grant to us Christlikeness when Jesus returns, he does not intend for us to wait for that moment

merely, rather we ought to work towards holiness.2 While it is clear that no one will see God

without holiness, we must also realize that we do not gain holiness through our good works.

Therefore, it is vital to help people understand that it is not the disciplines that one gains

righteousness before God; instead, it is through faith in Jesus.

Lastly, I learned that it is vital to be a transformational chaplain rather than a

transactional one. While a transformational chaplain focuses on helping others become better, the

transactional chaplain does things for something in return. A transactional chaplain focuses more

on themselves than on those they ought to serve in ministry. Melissa is a good example of a

transformational leader who acknowledges that her ministry is a calling from God, and she

should think of herself less and more of others. As is written in (Philippians 2:3), “regard others

higher than yourself,” she looks out for the interests of others and does nothing out of selfish

ambitions. As a transformational chaplain, Melissa is quick to overlook the odds in others and

help them correct any mistake in the place of their improvement.

1
Unless stated otherwise, all Bible quotations are derived from the New International Version (NIV)
2
Donald S. Whitney. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. (Colorado Springs, Co: NavPress, 2014),
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I am currently serving as the university chaplain at the University of Lilley, where I work

with young people pursuing their studies at the university. For my position, I am tasked with

walking with the students in their walk of faith to enrich their spiritual growth and to offer

counseling services for those facing difficulties in their lives. I will apply the lessons learned in

my chaplain shadow experience in my current ministry by living as a good example to the

students. I will ensure that while I endeavor to instill the spiritual disciplines in them, I also live

by them in my day-to-day life. In 1 Corinthians 11:1, the apostle Paul calls upon the church of

Corinth to imitate him as he imitates Christ. Therefore, I will follow and imitate Christ as I set a

good example for the students to follow.

I will also endeavor to regard the students higher than I and seek to serve their interests

more than I do my own. I will apply Melissa's principle of being a transformational chaplain

rather than a transactional one. Loving others compassionately is key to serving them more than

one seeks to be served.3 Therefore, I will seek not to be the greatest but to serve the students with

love and compassion. As Mark records in (Mark 10:37), when the disciples were arguing about

who could occupy better and greater positions in the Kingdom, Jesus responded to them saying,

“….whoever wants to great among you must be your servant.” I will endeavor to be a servant to

the students and focus on helping them grow to become better persons in their lives. I will

carry these lessons with even to my future chaplaincy ministry since they are key in guiding

people to lead lives that please and glorify God. Even in my future ministry, I will keep in mind

that the ministry is a calling and will thus do my best in service to God and fellow humans. This

way, I will impact and transform more lives while helping people lead more fulfilling lives in

their walk of faith.

3
Kenneth Boa, Conformed to His Image: Biblical and Practical Approaches to Spiritual Formation. (Grand Rapids,
MI: Zondervan, 2001), 2.
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Conclusion

As a chaplaincy student, engaging with an already practicing professional chaplain plays

a vital role in preparing one for what to expect in the ministry. My chaplain shadow experience

and interview provided several lessons on what it is like to serve in the chaplaincy ministry and

guide people to leading spiritually enriched lives. These lessons will be instrumental in my

current and future chaplaincy ministry as I endeavor to transform lives.

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Bibliography

Boa, K. (2001). Conformed to His Image. Biblical and Practical Approaches to Spiritual

Formation. Zondervan, Grand Graphics.

Whitney, D.S. (2014). Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. Tyndale House Publishers,

Inc.