Fire/EMS Chaplain Training: Equipping First Responders to Bring Hope
Firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics often serve on the front lines of crisis. They arrive first at accidents, fires, medical emergencies, and tragedies—places where life can change in a matter of seconds. In those moments, physical rescue matters, but so does spiritual presence. That is where Fire/EMS Chaplain Training comes in.
At Christian Leaders Institute (CLI), we believe that first responders and ministry leaders alike can be equipped to bring Christ’s presence into high-stress, high-stakes environments. Our Fire/EMS Chaplain Training program provides free, donation-supported courses that prepare volunteer, part-time, and full-time chaplains to serve with credibility, compassion, and confidence.
🙏 Why Fire/EMS Chaplains Are Needed
First responders face trauma daily. From holding the hand of a dying patient to comforting a family at the scene of a fire, chaplains step in to provide emotional and spiritual support. They are a vital presence not just for victims and families, but also for the firefighters and EMS crews themselves.
Many responders carry hidden stress, moral injury, and spiritual questions. A trained chaplain can walk beside them, offering prayer, counsel, and hope.
📖 What You’ll Learn in CLI’s Fire/EMS Chaplain Training
This program covers essential topics designed to prepare you for this unique ministry role:
Our training is flexible, online, and accessible from anywhere in the world. Best of all, thanks to generous donors, this training is free to enroll. Students are invited to give as God leads, making this program sustainable and expanding access to more chaplains globally.
🚒 Fire/EMS Chaplain Training: The Story of Jesse Gullett
Jesse Gullett was born and raised in Tennessee, where he still works today as a licensed paramedic. His life has been shaped by service, struggle, and a steady walk with God that began when he was just ten years old.
“My walk with God began around the age of ten, when I was saved,” Jesse remembers. “I always hated war, but I wanted to help those in need—not only with my hands, but by allowing God to work through me to show His love.”
In 2008, Jesse enlisted in the U.S. Army as a Combat Medic. For a young man from a small town where nearly everyone attended church, the military was a culture shock.
“I met people from many different walks of life, both good and bad. The hardest challenge was learning how to be part of the group without becoming part of the world,” he says.
At times he faced ridicule for his faith, but he chose not to waver. He never pressured others to believe, but looked for quiet opportunities to plant seeds.
In 2009, Jesse deployed to Iraq. It was a season of danger—but also of deep faith.
“Our platoon never sustained any major injuries, even in dangerous situations. I truly believe this was because, before every patrol, we prayed together. Not everyone believed in Jesus, but many were willing to pray if it meant divine protection. I know God was with us and kept us safe.”
Jesse describes his military experience as carrying a yoke “heavy enough to keep me humble, but light enough that I never feared being crushed.”
After leaving active duty, Jesse pursued a degree in criminal justice and became a licensed paramedic. His work today places him in some of the most intense and vulnerable moments of people’s lives.
“Being a paramedic means encountering people in their darkest moments. I can’t openly preach about God at work, but I can provide compassion. When someone opens the door to talk about faith, I joyfully share Christ.”
He has also learned that many who profess Christ need encouragement to live consistently with their faith. This has given him a heart for discipleship among his coworkers.
EMS schedules make Sunday worship difficult. Jesse sometimes felt like an outsider in church life, but God shifted his perspective.
“Through prayer, God reminded me that the church is not just a building—it’s the body of Christ. That gave me the vision to create fellowship opportunities within EMS. Too many first responders miss church because of the job. I want to bring worship and discipleship into the workplace.”
This dream—to serve first responders as a chaplain—began to take shape.
Jesse knows his calling is not just to provide medical aid, but also spiritual care.
“One of my future goals is to become a chaplain for the EMS service where I work. I want my faith to shine so others see there is hope—that there is a God who truly loves and cares for us.”
But he also recognizes the need for equipping.
“My faith is strong, but my theological knowledge needs to grow. If I’m going to guide others, I need training to answer hard questions, comfort in suffering, and celebrate in joy.”
That’s what led Jesse to the Christian Leaders Institute.
“I’m here because I need help. I want to walk closer with God and raise up others who will become mentors and leaders in the future.”
Through CLI’s Fire/EMS Chaplaincy Training, Jesse is gaining the biblical grounding and practical skills he needs to turn his vision into reality. His story reflects the mission of CLI—to equip ordinary believers for extraordinary ministry.
For Jesse, the call is clear: to bring the presence of Christ into the firehouses, ambulances, and emergency rooms of Tennessee—offering both physical care and eternal hope.
👉 Get Started Today
If God is calling you to bring His presence to become a fire/EMS Chaplain, now is the time to prepare. Christian Leaders Institute makes this training available free of charge, supported by generous donors who believe in equipping volunteer and part-time chaplains for service.
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Fire/EMS Chaplain Training
Fire/EMS Chaplain Training: Equipping First Responders to Bring Hope Firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics often serve on the front lines of crisis. They arrive first at accidents, fires, medical emergencies, and tragedies—places where life can change in a matter of seconds. In those moments, physical rescue matters, but so does spiritual presence. That is where Fire/EMS […]
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Public School Chaplain Training
Public School Chaplain Training at Christian Leaders Institute 📚 A New Ministry Opportunity in America’s Schools Public schools are one of the largest gathering places in the United States, shaping the lives of over 50 million students every week. Recent legislation in Texas (SB 763), Florida (HB 931), and Louisiana (SB 152) has created new […]
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🌐 Explore Additional Resources
📚 Suggested Readings:
Free Chaplain Training – Christian Leaders Institute
Course: Ministry Chaplaincy Training – Explore foundational chaplaincy training modules.
Become a Ministry Chaplain – Christian Leaders Institute
⭐️ Christian Leaders Alliance Resources:
Public School Chaplain Program Overview – Christian Leaders Alliance
Ordination Pathways – Christian Leaders Alliance
Christian Leaders Alliance Home Page
🗞️ Additional External Resources:
AP News – Majority of U.S. adults support religious chaplains in public schools
Public School Chaplain Training at Christian Leaders Institute
📚 A New Ministry Opportunity in America’s Schools
Public schools are one of the largest gathering places in the United States, shaping the lives of over 50 million students every week. Recent legislation in Texas (SB 763), Florida (HB 931), and Louisiana (SB 152) has created new opportunities for chaplains—volunteer and part-time—to serve legally within public school settings.
Christian Leaders Institute (CLI) is responding by offering Public School Chaplain Training, a free, donor-supported program designed to prepare Christians for this vital and emerging ministry.
🎓 About the Course
This training equips Christian leaders—whether volunteer or part-time—to serve ethically and effectively as chaplains in public schools. With the unique school environment in mind, the training emphasizes:
Rooted in biblical values, Ministry Sciences, and legal clarity, this course prepares chaplains to bring comfort, listening, and presence into America’s classrooms and hallways.
📖 What You Will Learn
By the end of the Public School Chaplain Training course, you will be able to:
🏫 Course Structure
The course is divided into five learning units, each with video lectures, readings, and quizzes:
Unit 1: The Role and Opportunity for Public School Chaplains
Unit 2: Going Deeper into the Role
Unit 3: Specialized Training for Effectiveness
Unit 4: Functioning Well with Others
Unit 5: Human Resource Expectations
Each unit ends with an open-book quiz, and students complete the course within 180 days.
🩷 Ministry Training Beyond Public School Chaplaincy: The Story of Lydia Edwards
The Christian Leaders Institute (CLI) has become a premier provider of free, donation-supported ministry training, equipping everyday Christians for extraordinary impact. Stories like Lydia Edwards’ remind us why this mission matters.
Lydia lives in Meridian, Mississippi, where she serves as a care coordinator at a crisis pregnancy center. Her life is a testimony of how God calls ordinary people into ministry and then equips them through training opportunities like CLI.
“I started my ministry journey in 2024 with the Center For Pregnancy Choices (CPC) in Meridian. I didn’t arrive there by my own will—I believe it was by the will of God,” Lydia recalls.
Before joining CPC, Lydia worked at an insurance center. The work paid the bills, but her soul was restless.
“That job wasn’t fulfilling, and I felt myself drifting from God. One day, I felt the Lord tell me to quit. I had a one-year-old, and walking away made no sense. But after praying and talking with my husband, I turned in my notice. Soon after, I interviewed at CPC, and when they asked why I wanted to work there, all I could say was, ‘I don’t know that I do—I think God wants me to.’ That answer was enough. God was opening the door.”
At CPC, Lydia began to see why God had led her there. Her childhood had been filled with trauma—abuse, instability, and brokenness. But at 14, she found grace through her adoptive parents, the Smiths, who introduced her to Christ.
Later, she strayed into rebellion, but by her early twenties she returned to the Lord, rededicating her life to Him.
Her testimony, once a source of shame, became a bridge of connection.
“Because of my story and what God has done in my life, I’m relatable to so many clients who walk through our doors. I know what it’s like to be broken—but I also know what it’s like to be saved. Every woman, every family that comes in, I see as an opportunity to bring the hope of Jesus.”
At CPC, Lydia started teaching Parenting with Biblical Principles, a class rooted in Scripture, where each client hears the gospel and has the opportunity to be prayed for. Yet as her ministry expanded, she recognized her need for further training and credibility.
That’s when she discovered Christian Leaders Institute.
“I’m here in this journey with CLI to help minister to each mother, father, and child in a more effective and credible way. I want to see the people we minister multiply into ministers themselves.”
Lydia’s story mirrors the heart of CLI’s mission: equipping volunteer, part-time, and full-time leaders with biblical, affordable training. Just as Lydia found CLI to support her ministry at the pregnancy center, others across the country are finding CLI to prepare them for chaplaincy, pastoral care, and leadership roles.
This is especially true for the growing field of Public School Chaplaincy. In states like Texas, Florida, and Louisiana, laws now allow chaplains to serve in schools with parental consent. Like Lydia at the CPC, public school chaplains step into places of vulnerability—where young people face pressures, questions, and brokenness—and bring the steady presence of Christ through listening, care, and prayer.
Whether in a pregnancy center, a correctional facility, or a public school, CLI provides the same gift: credible, biblically grounded training that equips ordinary believers to step into extraordinary ministry opportunities.
🌟 Pathway to Recognition
The Public School Chaplain Training course is part of the Public School Chaplain Program (PSCP) at Christian Leaders Institute. Completion of this training contributes toward ordination recognition through the Christian Leaders Alliance, ensuring that chaplains serve with both competence and credibility.
👉 Get Started Today
If God is calling you to bring His presence into schools, now is the time to prepare. Christian Leaders Institute makes this training available free of charge, supported by generous donors who believe in equipping volunteer and part-time chaplains for service.
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Fire/EMS Chaplain Training
Fire/EMS Chaplain Training: Equipping First Responders to Bring Hope Firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics often serve on the front lines of crisis. They arrive first at accidents, fires, medical emergencies, and tragedies—places where life can change in a matter of seconds. In those moments, physical rescue matters, but so does spiritual presence. That is where Fire/EMS […]
-
Public School Chaplain Training
Public School Chaplain Training at Christian Leaders Institute 📚 A New Ministry Opportunity in America’s Schools Public schools are one of the largest gathering places in the United States, shaping the lives of over 50 million students every week. Recent legislation in Texas (SB 763), Florida (HB 931), and Louisiana (SB 152) has created new […]
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