I’m currently involved in a conversation on one of The Salvation Army groups on Facebook and realise just how different people’s views are about the Army. The discussion is over whether the Army is old-fashioned or not?
There have been a number of people who have tried to direct the conversation onto whether the reason the Army is not really attracting people could be a spiritual issue. However, for many it keeps coming back to two issues; a) alcohol and b) membership of bands/songsters.
Is it me or are we still getting caught up on the secondary issues instead of focussing on Christ? Surely if we put as much effort into our discipleship that we do on complaining about some of the Army’s practices the Army would be a much more spiritually effective force in today’s world!
Well the Latvia adventure is nearly over! In less than a week our stuff will be taken away by the removal company and we will be staying at Sarah’s for 3 nights. Which means in 9 days from now we will be on a plane flying back to England!
Friday was a strange day! We said goodbye to Evie of course and I basically finished up the last but one job that I have to do. Now all I have to do is finalise my ‘brief’ and meet with the Regional Commanders and I will be done here.
We are not the only English people leaving the country. The British Ambassador is also leaving and when I opened my e-mail on Friday I discovered an invite for Zoe & I to go to their residence for a dinner on Wednesday. Our Ambassador and his wife are really nice people, who we have had the privilege of meeting a number of times. They have also been very supportive since finding out about Patverums, so it will be nice to spend some time with them before we leave, even though we will be only 2 amongst quite a number of people.
So our 5 years, 10 months and 13 days are almost over and we’ll have so many memories, and of course will be taking two beautiful girls back to England with us! Not sure how much I’ll get to blog before we leave but I have a few things in the pipeline!
Gordon raises an important issue over at URBANarmy today!
I can proudly say that I will not bow to the institutionalisation that is inherent in the Army’s hand-clapping and I exert my right not to clap with the masses!
Commissioner Joe Noland has written a post on his new blog which he advises reading with “tongue-in-cheek”. I think that he has an incredibly valid point though!
Having a blog makes it very easy to jump on the band-wagon and start using the medium as an opportunity to complain about the issues you choose to cover. As I read back over my own posts I can see this tendency on more than one occasion, and so I take this chance to beg forgiveness from anyone I might have upset.
The Commissioner goes on and suggests that we should stop complaining and start a revolution. Is everything in the Church perfect? No of course it isn’t! Is everything in the Army perfect? Certainly not, but then it is led by humans! Humans who try to seek God’s will, but imperfect humans nonetheless.
The thing is though is that we are not called to follow humans, although this often seems to be what ends up happening. We are called to follow the one perfect example of what living in God’s Kingdom is like. We are called to follow Jesus. As we look as His teaching then we can’t fail to see the inherent revolutionary nature of it.
So here and now I pledge to stop complaining and I’ll try to use this blog to encourage a revolution in thinking so that I, and others, join the only Revolution that is truly going to change the world!
On Wednesday Zoe mentioned this to me and now I’ve had a chance to look into it a little I can’t help but feel excited by it. Is it possible that this group of people will step into the gap and make a real difference in the world?
We’re slowly getting through the packing as we have just over two weeks before the removal men arrive to take our stuff back to England. As part of this Zoe was going through a chest of drawers last week sometime and found a couple of old prayer journals. The one of mine she found was actually from 2000 and contained my journals from when we came out to Latvia for a two week ‘holiday’ so that I could see why she had fallen in love with the country.
As I read through it the memories came back and I remembered just how sure I was that coming to Latvia was God’s plan for our future. Now we face the end of this part of our ministry, and I look forward with anticipation for the next stage of my ministry in Godalming.
When I put this particular journal together I had received a prayer card from Jubilee Campaign, for what I can’t remember now, but as I read the words again this morning they sank home once more. Once again I find myself identifying with the illustration of human failure that is contained within these 6 short verses. Once again I find myself praying the words of the final 2 verses!
You asked for my hands
That I might use them for your purpose.
I gave them for a moment then withdrew them for
the work was hard.
You asked for my mouth
to speak out against injustice.
I gave you a whisper that I might not be accused.
You asked for my eyes
To see the pain of poverty.
I closed them for I did not want to see.
You asked for my life
That you might work through me.
I gave you a small part that I might not get too involved.
Lord forgive me my efforts to serve you
Only when it is convenient for me to do so
Only in places where it is safe to do so, and
Only with those who make it easy to do so.
Father, forgive me
Renew me
Send me out
As a usable instrument
That I might take seriously the meaning of your cross.
source unknown
How do we ensure that the next generation capture the mission of God?
I look at the early Army and see a group of passionate radicals who were pretty much sold out on the idea of following God. Yet this passion didn’t survive the test of being passed down through the generations. We became institutionalised and lost the very passion and thirst for the Lord which was the cause of our success.
So I look at the passion for mission that seems to be being raised up in today’s Army and have to ask the question! How are we going to avoid the mistakes of the past?
Any ideas?
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