Exclusive Interview with Chaplain Brian Purvis

Chaplain Brian Purvis (2005), U.S. Marine Corps, received an M.Div. from Asbury Seminary, Kentucky campus.

Marine life: An Alumni Office interview with Chaplain Brian Purvis

 Q1: Brian, you were recently busy with work-ups for an upcoming deployment in February. Are you or your troops currently deployed?

 A1: Work-ups always happen before a deployment. Essentially, they are a training schedule the battalion or ship uses to make sure that everyone is qualified and prepared to be deployed. I will deploy with my battalion sometime very early in 2011.

  Q2: Which came first for you, the military or the chaplaincy? Did you join the military and then heed a call to ministry, or did your call to chaplaincy lead you to military life?

 A2: The call into ministry came first, during my final years of college. I did not go to Indiana Wesleyan University because it was a Christian school, but to play baseball! It was during my junior year when I found Christ — after my dad was diagnosed with cancer. I had always wanted to be a state trooper and graduated IWU with a degree in criminal justice. After college, I came to Asbury Theological Seminary, where I knew I wanted to be involved in military service. I talked with a recruiter, trained to become a chaplain, and here I am, a few years later. I love college and young adult ministry, and I have the biggest college ministry in the country! Most of the Marines I serve are between the ages of 18 and 25.

  Q3: How do you think chaplaincy compares to pastoring a local church?

 A3: They are similar in that, whether you are in a church or dealing with military personnel, you are an ambassador for God. People need to know that God cares about them. People in both institutions deal with life challenges (i.e. relationship issues, financial issues, finding God’s will for their lives, etc). They are different in that I have a door of opportunity to minister to many who know nothing about God. Right now in my battalion, more than 50% have no religious preference at all. In the military, a chaplain’s actions speak much louder than his or her words (at least as you get to know the Marines or sailors). My job is to live among the Marines. If they go into the field for an exercise, I go with them. If they go to the shooting range, I go with them. When they deploy all over the world, I go with them. I could not think of anything else I would want to do.

  Q4: How did Asbury Seminary prepare you for the experiences you face daily as a chaplain?

 A4: What Asbury Seminary gave me, I cannot adequately put into words. While I do not talk a whole lot of systematic theology on a daily basis, or discuss pneumatology in detail, I was given the gift of a solid Christian foundation. It is from here that I can build up my ministry in the military. Just like a house without a solid foundation, my ministry without a solid academic and spiritual foundation would collapse. Asbury Seminary gave me this solid foundation to build upon.

  Q5:What do you find are the most recurring spiritual needs of the people you work with?

 A5:One of the questions I get asked a lot is, “Chaps, do you think God cares about someone like me?” What a door of opportunity to walk through and share about God and His love!

Q6:What has been your greatest challenge as a chaplain?

 A6: The most challenging is, without a doubt, delivering a CACO (Casualty Assistance Calls Officer) message. This happens when one of our brave men or women dies. A CACO officer and a chaplain deliver the message to the family, and 99% of the time we are the first ones to tell them their son or daughter has been killed. I have had to do this on a number of occasions, and it never gets easier. Also, of course, deployments — which can be anywhere from seven months to a year — are difficult.

  Q7: What advice would you give someone considering military chaplaincy?

 Q8: Be sure military chaplaincy is where God is calling you. While church might be willing to go easy with someone right out of seminary, chances are your commanding officer will not be so endearing! If chaplaincy might be for you, contact me and I will put you into contact with the right people!

  Q8: What are some of the most pressing prayer needs of men and women in the military?

 A8: Pray for God’s presence; for safety; for the families and friends who stay behind when we deploy. These folks deal with so much back home while we are gone and need strength, courage and resilience. In particular, those with children can have a very difficult time, as they go from two parents to one, or those who are single parents and must deploy. And pray for our ability to deal with the death of a fellow Marine or sailor, yet continue with the mission at hand.

  Q9: What’s the biggest misconception you encounter about military chaplaincy?

 A9: That all chaplains are old and out of shape! Many times when the Marines encounter chaplains my age, they are not sure what to say!

  Q10: Can you share a memory of a ministry encounter?

 A10: I remember ministering to one of my troops who had lost his three-month-old baby to SIDS. Essentially, we as a collective group took care of this family and the expenses involved with the funeral. God really allowed me to show this family His grace and love during that period of their lives. From that point on, their relationship with Christ grew. God always shows Himself in the deepest valleys — it was no different in this case.

  Q11: What are the most rewarding moments of being a chaplain?

 A11: The most rewarding moments are twofold. First, when people come to know God, it is rewarding. Second, seeing someone struggle with an issue and helping them through it so that they can continue the mission at hand is rewarding. Often they know the direction they need to go, but need someone to help navigate with them. It is also rewarding when people who have no faith at all are willing to come talk with a chaplain about their lives. Often, this shows that there is something different about the chaplain, and this person has comes to him or her for guidance. It is here that the doors of ministry open wide to share the greatest story ever told.