Church in the Trenches
By Aaron Knapp
(written after 2003 Nazarene Chaplains’ Conference)

I attended a conference where a group of chaplains met.
Exploring effective ministry was the agenda that was set.
These ministers came from the four corners of our land
Each sharing how they were led by God’s gracious hand.

In Cook County hospital in South Side Chicago,
There shooting and stabbing victims, row upon row.
A chaplain assigned attending with great care;
Offering hope, through the Word and prayer.

On the streets of Las Vegas in the dark of night,
A homeless lady is looking for a safe place to light.
A chaplain couple intercepts this lost soul,
Who was released from prison with no place to go.

In Oklahoma City, a busy marketplace downtown,
A chaplain’s office is a refuge for folks who are down.
They drop by on lunch break for the Word and a Prayer,
They find hope and help because God’s servant is there.

In a trauma center in Portland, OR a chaplain stands by
As a helicopter appears in the distant night sky.
He supports a waiting family, shaken and afraid,
And they find God’s hope because a chaplain prayed.

In a tent in the desert just north of Baghdad
A chaplain is the only hopeful voice that they know.
He faithfully ministers God’s forgiveness and grace,
They know beyond this life there’s a much better place.

In a home in any town at a dying person’s bed
A family’s journey through death by a chaplain is led.
He shares the Word, gives comfort, often prays,
And reveals our Father, who in our darkness, stays.

The chaplaincy is an extension of the church’s outreach,
It’s a vital part of the network to disciple and teach.
In the ghetto, in the prison, or a distant battlefield,
The seed will be sown so that the harvest may yield.

The church is the chaplaincy, chaplaincy is the church.
We are one operation—rescue and search.
To give of ourselves until the lost have been told
That Jesus is the way to the Father’s eternal fold.

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