MISSION BEYOND COMMISSION: EMPOWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT—A STRATEGIC APPROACH FOR EFFECTIVE MINISTRY TO NAVY SEALS A MINISTRY FOCUS PAPER SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF THEOLOGY FULLER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE DOCTOR OF MILITARY MINISTRY BY WESLEY J. MODDER AUGUST 2013 ABSTRACT Mission beyond Commission: Empowered by the Spirit— A Strategic Approach for Effective Ministry to Navy SEALs Wesley J. Modder Doctor of Ministry School of Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary 2013 The focus of this study is to develop an unconventional strategic ministerial approach to effectively minister to Navy SEALs by being filled, led, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. The SEAL community is a closed community of elite warriors. It is one of the most difficult military training places in the world. A chaplain in this setting must be capable of holding his own, by being physically, spiritually, and intellectually proficient to effectively minister to God’s people. The chaplain for the Navy SEALs must first be a man of God—a man of character and integrity who is able to confront hard and difficult men with the only hope of the world, Jesus Christ. He must be physically and morally fit and demonstrate that Christian workers can use biblical themes and examples to be effectual witnesses and ministers of Christ. This project will examine the unique setting of military ministry with the U.S. Navy SEAL community and the “mission” as in Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and the ends of the earth.” This project will also examine the relevant theological data with the “beyond” portion of the Mission beyond Commission. The role of the of the Holy Spirit is critical for effective ministry in any setting and especially needed to fulfill the Great Commission in ministry with the U.S. Navy SEALs. The focus and content of this unique setting in ministry will require a power beyond formal education and a chaplain’s own abilities. God brought reconciliation to his people in the Old Testament through Moses. God reflects his desire to be in relationship in the New Testament through Jesus and the person of the Holy Spirit. Theological Mentor: Kurt Fredrickson, PhD Word Count: 299 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I have many debts which I cannot repay and for which these brief expressions of gratitude are largely inadequate. To my first love and Savior Jesus Christ, who has been my closest friend and who holds my hand in every season of life and leads me on this continued journey. Thank you, Father God, for I love you supremely. To my most lovely wife Beth, who has faithfully supported me these past twenty years; even when I did not believe in myself, she stood by me and is the foundation of my ministry and calling. I want to thank my children, who many times were put second due to the writing of this project and really do not like all the computer time I needed to have to complete this project. Thanks, Beth, James, Julia, Joy and Jana. I pray that my children may know me and the reawakening of a post-doctoral dad and husband and the fullness life can bring now that this research paper is complete. To them is owed so very much more. My wife Beth and children are my ministry. My family makes me into the man I am today. My wife makes me holy and allows me to have the nobility and character to be a man. To the Assemblies of God Church (USA) and Dr. George Wood, the General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God, for entrusting me with my ordination for the past fourteen years, thank you. A very special thanks to Rev. Mike Smith from the Minnesota District of the Assemblies of God at Redeeming Love Church in Maplewood, Minnesota, who saw the call of God in me to be a pastor and made a job for me at the beginning of this journey when many would not, to fulfill God’s calling on my life as a minister of the Gospel. Pastor Mike Smith was my presbyter and mentor and taught me the art in how to shepherd God’s people. Pastor Mike, thank you for believing in me. To the U.S. Navy for entrusting me with my commission as a Navy chaplain and to my current Command 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit 1st Marine Expeditionary Force for allowing me the time to complete this milestone in my Navy career. I want to thank Captain Chaplain Tim Eichler USN, who was my content reader and made me a better chaplain in many ways and in my writing; more importantly, he prayed for me and believed I would complete this project more than I did. As I write this, I understand that this is more than an academic exercise. This is my life of ministry to the U.S. Navy SEALs, who changed me into being a better Navy chaplain and minister. Thank you to the U.S. Navy SEAL/s warriors past and present who have called me into the brotherhood and call me brother. I want to thank and say I owe a very big debt of gratitude to my endorsing agents in the Assemblies of God Captain Chaplain Charles Marvin USN (ret.), who made it possible for me to come into iii the Navy and Chaplain Barry Black, the former Navy Chief of Chaplain’s and current chaplain for the U. S. Senate, who was personally responsible in hiring me into the Navy with all of my doubts and disqualifiers. To Chaplain Scott McChrystal my current endorsing agent for the special trust and confidence you have in me to represent the Assemblies of God in the Navy. Thank you to Julia Speck at Fuller Seminary, who has endured many years of phone calls and has been such a blessing to me and made me feel a part of the Fuller community. You are a true gift to Fuller and to me on this journey. Thanks to Kristie Savage, my editor, who brought this project into sharper focus with academic precision and forced me to re-work and rewrite many aspects of my project. I also want thank Jerry Bergler, who was my Royal Ranger commander and mentor, and who believed in me from my boyhood until I left into the Marine Corps in 1984. Thank you, Jerry, for allowing God to use you in my life. Last but not least, I would like to thank my family, who have walked this faith walk of ministry, my grandparents, James and Grace Modder, missionaries to India for thirty-six years, and my great-grandfather, Christian Schoonmaker, missionary to India. I give all my love and thanks to my parents, Paul and Jan Modder, for all you have provided. I miss you, Dad. iv INTRODUCTION It was Christmas time in 2010, and I was in Afghanistan with a SEAL team. I was their new chaplain, and I wondered how I was going to minister to those warriors on my tour, where chaplains come and go every three years. I wondered what I could possibly do to reach warriors for Christ that would outlast those short years I would be their chaplain. I wondered what I could do that would be long lasting. I also wondered whether this assignment was going to be anything like the other assignments I had experienced. Those had all been good, but I wanted to somehow plant eternal seeds in the hearts of God’s people. I also wondered whether I was prepared spiritually to be effectively used by the Holy Spirit to reach SEALs for Christ. In my private time of prayer, uncontrollable warm tears flowed down my cheeks as I spent time with the Lord and prayed about the tremendous responsibility the Lord had laid at my feet for ministry. I would spend time with the SEALs one on one in the gym and in the chow hall to hear their stories of sacrifice. Then, after listening they would ask me, “Why, chaplain, are you here in this hell hole [wherever that would be] with me?” This was the invitation that many times I would receive to share the hope of Jesus Christ. I am one of many Navy chaplains who have served in Naval Special Warfare (hereafter, NSW), but only the first chaplain to serve as far forward in classified areas as I did with particular SEAL teams. It would be a great tragedy if I were to neglect to write down these experiences that changed me forever as a minister and as a man and the understanding I now have to be effective in ministry to SEALs. This project provides an 1 opportunity to share about the great privilege I had to serve the SEALs in cooperation with the Holy Spirit. No amount of experience or educational degrees prepares a person for such a ministry; only the Holy Spirit and his empowerment can do so. This project was birthed out of ministry with serving with Naval Special Warfare Command (hereafter, NSWC), and specifically with an elite SEAL team known as the “Development Group” (hereafter, DEVGRU) at the forward edge of the battle area in Afghanistan. This project comes from the fact that I felt a sense of complete inadequacy in terms of my own strength and education for the task of ministering to SEALs, and other chaplains might have a similar experience.