Chaplaincy professor helps military couples heal marriages during summer retreats in Alaska

Through his work with Samaritan’s Purse and its Operation Heal Our Patriots project, Liberty University Professor of Chaplaincy Dr. Steven Keith has been making a positive impact in the lives of wounded service members and their families for 10 years.

Started in 2012, Operation Heal Our Patriots serves current and former military couples who have been impacted by moral, physical, or psychological injuries as a result of their service. The program provides an all-expenses-paid weeklong retreat on Lake Clark in Port Alsworth, Alaska, where they can reestablish their marriage and grow in their personal relationships with Jesus.

For the past 12 years (except for 2020-21 because of the COVID-19 pandemic), Keith and his wife, Delta, have dedicated several weeks out of their summer to serve alongside Samaritan’s Purse staff and fellow chaplains in ministering to these couples. The couples participate in marriage classes, daily devotionals, and personalized counseling sessions, as well as opportunities to experience God’s beautiful creation through fishing, hikes, bear watching, float plane tours, and other outdoor excursions. At the end of each week, the couples can choose to complete a marriage renewal, and many choose to be baptized.

“(There’s) nothing better than a couple that now knows they have Christ in their souls,” Keith said. “They can start to share the love of God and the forgiveness of God with each other and weave their souls together. The ultimate goal of the marriage retreat is trying to help people know Christ as Savior and have a marriage that puts Christ at the center.”

According to Samaritan’s Purse, over 900 individuals have given their lives to Christ as a result of Operation Heal Our Patriots, with over 1,100 total baptisms. More than 1,000 couples have also recommitted their marriages to God through the ministry.

Noting the incredible stress wounded service members often experience, Keith emphasized the importance of ensuring that their marriages are grounded in Scripture. Chaplains serving with Operation Heal Our Patriots offer tools and techniques to ensure the marital bond remains strong through any trials and situations.

“(Samaritan’s Purse) is looking for people who could use something like this,” he said, noting the organization serves 170 couples each year. “For a lot of them, their marriages are in really bad shape when they end up there. It’s humbling to see what God can do with two individuals in a marriage in a week.”

After the retreat, the couples are connected with a local resident chaplain and a local church, and they are invited to regular Operation Heal our Patriots reunions for a weekend of fellowship and worship.

Keith served 30 years as an Air Force chaplain, and he often traveled overseas into warzones to minister and pray with wounded veterans. He said his past military service has proved instrumental in breaking down barriers with the couples he serves at the retreats. On several occasions, he has reunited with service members with whom he has previously prayed with in the field.

“My war experiences — both in praying over a lot of (service members) that didn’t make it (at military ramp ceremonies) and praying over the over 600 (injured) in the medical tents (in Baghdad, Iraq) — gave me such a heart for our wounded veterans. I was praying over them and didn’t know how it would turn out, but then they get to be part of a ministry that is caring for them and their spouse and their marriage.”

“I love these guys and gals,” he added. “I love them for raising their hand to serve our country and being willing to die for our country. I love the opportunity to tell them about Jesus, who died for us. There’s no greater friend than one who lays down his life for you. I get to tell them about Jesus who laid down His life for them and get to see many of them come to Christ.”

Keith formerly served as commandant of the U.S. Air Force Chaplain Corps College and as director of the Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center at Fort Jackson, S.C. He served in 14 assignments worldwide and deployed several times to the Middle East, most notably to Iraq where he received the Bronze Star for exceptional ministry while under fire.

Following retirement, Keith helped establish Liberty’s Center for Chaplaincy and accepted a position as director in 2014. He has worked in consultation with senior chaplain officials at the Pentagon to ensure Liberty’s educational programs meet the highest standards and best equip chaplains for ministry in the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

This fall, Keith stepped down as director but will continue to serve at Liberty as the Executive Ambassador of Chaplaincy. Through this new ministry effort, the university seeks to expand its chaplain reach around the globe to bear the presence and message of Christ.