LibertyGrad Chaplains Help Change LivesinthePersianGulf

By Kim Davis

TheGulfWar resultedin recognitionfor Gen. Norman Schwarzkoff, Gen. Colin Powell and thousands ofmilitarymen. Chaplains, however, often got lost in the crowd Theirstories werenot toldin newspapersor magazines, buttheywill be toldin abook - the book of life.

"Whatanopportunityto sharethe Lord," Chaplain (Capt.)Terry McBride said after returning from thePersian Gulf. "The soldierswere away from friends,family,booze, drugs - there was nothingto helpthem out butthe Lord."

It has been reported that thousands of U.S. militarymen and women trustedChrist as Savior during the GulfWar. Beforereturningto the U.S., McBridewasableto baptize28 of the 65 soldiershe had personallyledto the Lord.

"I baptizedthem in a baptismpool we madeout ofthe woodenflooringthatwas in the bunkers," he said. "It wasa realblessing. I'll probablynever see thatkindof ministryunlessIgo backintocombat."

McBride graduated from Liberty BaptistSeminary in May 1990. While he was in school,he servedin theArmy reservesandpastoreda church in Roanoke.

McBridereceivedordersto leavefor SaudiArabia only two weeks after he had been placed on active duty and stationedat FortBragg, NC.

The news came as a shock to his family. "We weren'tprepared for it," McBridesaid. "Myfamily wasreallyhit hard, andIdidn'tknow whenIwould come back. They told us that we could be gone anywhere from 12to 18 months."

McBrideinstantlybegandebatingwhetheror not he had made the right decision in becoming an Army chaplain.

"Ibegan wondering ifIhad made thebiggest mistake of my life,"he said. "Ifeltreallyoverwhelmed andscared,becauseIdidn'tknow what to expect."

On Sept 27 McBrideleft for the Persian Gulfand wasassignedto the 18th Airborne Corps.Hebegan holdingfive Bible studies a week, Monday through Friday.

"The guys were very responsive to the gospel, especially when we first gotthere,"McBride said. "Thechapelservices werepacked."

He held five church serviceson Sunday. During this time the soldiers received Bibles,sang from hymnals and took communion

"We had touse Kool-Aid and Saltine crackers," McBride said. "It was all we had out there."

McBridealso helpedwiththe work that hadto be done. He filledsand bags, built bunks, and set up tents, barbed wireand camouflage netting.

"Ipulled my weight,and Iwas accepted very well," he said.

FromSeptemberto December,McBride'sunitwas stationed 35 miles southwest of Dhahran,Saudi Arabia.

Theythen moved to KingKhalidMilitaryCityon Jan. 2. After the air war started on Jan. 16, they moved again, travelingapproximately 450 miles to a locationsix kilometersfrom theIraqi border.

The 18th Airborne Corps,along with the24th Infantry Division, engaged the enemy forthe first timeonFeb. 24, daytwoof the groundwar. The unit thenmoved on to Al-Basara, where theycame into combat with the Republican Guard,an elite Iraqi force.

After the cease-fire came into effect, McBride and his unit were given orders to return to Log Base Charlie, their previous location, six kilometers from the Iraqi border.

The ground war had been short,but intense. During this time McBride saw some of the most grueling outcomes ofwar. Tanks and cities were destroyed, and thousands ofIraqi soldierswerekilled.

"Itwas the mostunbelievablethingI'veever experienced inmy life," hesaid.

One of the most difficult things for McBride was being away from his family for seven and one-half months. "Ihad a two-year-old son and nine-monthold twins," he said. "When Icame home,my twins didn'teven recognizeme."

Thiswas alsohard onhiswifeBecky. "Shehad some real struggles tryingto takecare of the kidsand do the things Inormally do," McBride said. "She got very little sleep."

Chaplain (Capt.) David Druckenmiller graduated from LBSinMay 1989.He was alsoatFortBragg when thewar began,butunlikeMcBride,henevermade itto SaudiArabia.

The troops started deploying during his two-week trainingwiththeNationalGuard. He was thenplaced on activeduty and stationed atFortBragg.

On August 19, hewent to theGreenRamp wherethe troopswereloadingtheirequipmentand gettingready to deploy. Each morning, he was able to hold 15minute chapel servicesand talkwith 400-800soldiers as they were boarding the planes for Saudi Arabia. During his time at Fort Bragg,221 soldiers accepted Christ,84 of which were saved and baptized during theirtwo-week trainingwith theNational Guard.

Druckenmiller then transferred to Fort Sill, Oklahoma,on Sept. 30, where he became thefirst chaplain ever assigned to the l-78th,the largest fieldartillery battalion intheworld.

By thetimehearrived,mostofthetroopshadalready deployed. Druckenmillerworked withhisbattalionas well as the Marines,infantry and inactive ready reserveswho were coming totrainfordeployment.

Theseaddedtroopstripledthesizeofhis battalion. He went out to talk and share Christ daily withthe soldiers astheywere leavingfor Saudi Arabia. He also heldamemorialservice for the Marines who were killed attheBattleof Kafji, and he shipped Biblestothe soldiers.

"At thebeginning ofthewar,theSaudiArabian government would not let us send religious materials into their country," Druckenmiller said. "They would open personalboxes and confiscate it, so we stuffed as much as we could in the equipment that was being shippedover."

AlthoughDruckenmillerwasnotabletominister in the Persian Gulf,his commitment remained the same -to share Christ. Approximately 117 soldiers have accepted Christ as Saviorduring hisfirst year atFort Sill.

Tohim, theopportunityofwitnessingto such a responsive group ofsoldierswas a blessing.

"There was a lotoffearabout thisbeing the lastwar of the world," he said. "The soldiers weretalkingaboutBibleprophecy,soitgave me theopportunitytosharewhattheBibledoessay willhappen intheMiddleEast."

These two chaplainsmade aworld of differenceinthelives ofthosesoldiers who accepted Christ. They had a differentfight. They had a different weapon. They had a different goal. And they had a differentoutcome - victory, an eternalvictoryinthekingdom of God.

"For we wrestle not against fleshand blood, but against principalities, against powers, againsttherulers ofthedarknessofthis world, against spiritual wickedness in high places."

Ephesians6:12