Membership in TSA

"Then I asked, 'Who are you, Lord?' "'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,' the Lord replied. {16} 'Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. (Acts 26:15-17 NIV)

William Booth was passionate that if the Salvation Army was to be defined as a church it would merely be tied down to meeting the needs of people who sit in pews. His vision was far greater, extending past the boundaries of walls to the whole world. The community was the heart of the mission not the church building. William Booths vision was for everyone who signed up to be a soldier, to be an activist. Therefore, if you became a soldier you were meant to take that seriously. Williams Booths vision was that of Christ’s we must GO to the people, not wait for them to find us. We must fight sin and the call for battle is just as strong today as when Jesus called his disciples and when the Salvation Army as a vision was placed on William and Catherine Booths heart.

Membership in The Salvation Army is not for those who want to remain comfortable, it is not about joining an association of like people and trying to be good to each other, it is about “Be(ing) doers of the word, and not hearers only” (James 1:22), and being active in social change.

These truths have been given as a challenge to the worshipers of the Box Hill Corps who have attended the membership and information classes, over the past months, and we have responded. People have considered the cost of being a disciple and have chosen to be a soldier. The Salvation Army is marching along. Hallelujah!

So far during 2007 we have enrolled 11 people as soldiers of the Box Hill Corps, the majority of them youth. Here are some of the comments they made as they considered becoming an activist in TSA.

“I want to be a Salvo because I love God and want to serve Him with my life, and I believe in the radical call that the Salvos have responded too… that’s what I want to do with my life.”

“I want to be a Salvo because I could not be a member of a church that does not practice what it preaches. I believe that our Corps is on the verge of something awesome, and the Salvos are on the verge of something great worldwide, and I want to be apart of it.”

“I want to be apart a world changing movement, and I believe that is what TSA is at the moment.”

“I want to be a soldier because it is an outward expression of the faith that I have in God, and the acceptance of Jesus that I have in my life.”“

“Soldiership to me means standing apart from the rest of the world, it pretty much means following God’s way and not the worlds way. It is something that I can stake my life onto. It is canter-cultural which I love, I mean no body really commits to things any more, and I pretty ready to commit to God and stand up in this Army we have got going and to be apart of everything. To have God and His agenda at your very core and have the essence of who you are completely in love with God and devoted to Him and His cause, and I think that when you get that core right then everything else will fall into place.”

“Being a Soldier in TSA mean not just standing by and watching the activities that are going on and the work that is done in TSA, but actually committing myself and getting involved and getting in and getting my hands dirty in all the activities that go on.”

“It means to put God first in my life, and putting others ahead of myself.”

The dreams of the old men, are the visions of the youth.

Onward to victory

I have a dream for TSA

Commissioner James Knaggs released his vision for The Salvation Army today at ACC. It was well received with a half hour of dedication taking place under the leadership of Captain Danielle Strickland.

I Have a Dream…That one day…

The Salvation Army will in its entirety, be what God wants it to be…

…that every soldier, young and old would be sanctified through and through…and out of the passion of their love in Christ, would be an undeniable force for God’s love in the world.

…that this love would be seen between each soldier to demonstrate that God has sent His Son into the world not to condemn it, but that the world through Him might be saved…and by this would all people know that we are His followers and represent Him.

…that our love would be seen through intentional and overt acts of mercy and justice, all the while in humility before God, not needing to publish our works, only doing them to glorify God.

…that our mission would have such integrity that every expression of our ministry would be marked not so much by a red shield or even a crest, but by the love of God for people.

…that every corps would embrace the gospel for everyone in their community, not discriminating by culture, language, social status, or age…and that the helping ministries would be woven into the fabric so that even under a nuclear microscope we could not distinguish between spiritual and social.

…that every social programme would be inviting to any one in need to be helped towards eternal affect, still maintaining our resolve to dispense such love indiscriminately and unconditionally…and that their connections with the corps ministries become seamless to the point that they would become a type of corps in their own right.

…that we would have effective ministries to eradicate homelessness, human trafficking, prostitution and other indecencies currently common in our society.

…that our social programme strategy will be based upon the needs of people in the context of Biblical mandate, not necessarily the offerings of government contracts.

…that headquarters support units would be understood as such, not diminishing their purposes for accountability, but wholly in the context of authentic support and encouragement.

…that programmes such as Salvo Stores and Employment plus would also become saving stations for the lost and fully integrated into the mission of the territory.

…that Salvo Stores and the Trade become responsible outlets for Fair Trade goods.

…that our commercial department at THQ become a resource and focal point for facilitating our increasing efforts in Fair Trade.

…that the Family Tracing Service be expanded to find those souls who have been lost to the Army, assisting in bringing them home, where they belong.

…that we would never have another day in our existence where someone was not brought to Christ.

…that our soldiers roll would only be an increasing reality as would our worship and discipleship meetings.

…that the proliferation of new ministry openings would be so common and normal that we would have to appoint personnel just to keep track of it, most often after the fact.

…that those gifted with creative ministry gifts would have every opportunity to employ these very skills in the work of the Army.

…that our worship would be filled with creative means to celebrate God’s provisions and presence among us.

…that our 24/7 Prayer Initiatives will be adopted by individual corps throughout the territory all the time.

…that we would establish Lighthouses of Prayer to cover our neighbourhoods with grace.

…that we would have numerous prayer destinations where people could go for prayer retreats, learning opportunities and resources.

…that our systems would be less restrictive and more imaginative to accommodate the new things God wants to do among us.

…that as a movement, we would be marked by holiness in corporate and individual praxis.

…that there would be such an out pouring of the Spirit upon us that we would be courageous and effective witnesses in our families, communities, cities, Australia and the world.

…that our compassion would be large enough to be understood as authentically global throughout what we do at home and abroad.

…that our people would be quick to respond to the voice of God for whatever He calls them to.

…that our officer training programmes would be taxed by the unusual response of the called to serve as officers in TSA.

…that our local officers would be so empowered to understand their foundational role in the corps ministries and fully embrace the priesthood of all believers.

…that our women would have appointments and responsibilities commensurate with their gifts, abilities and experience.

…that our young people would be filled with the Spirit and recognised as contributors in the fight.

…that our children would be welcomed as authentic soldiers with proper opportunities to celebrate the presence of Christ in their lives and in their environments.

…that an extraordinary forgiveness and healing of past sins and hurts would prevail upon all people victimised by our practises or inattention.

…that God would see that we love Him supremely through Christ and that our reliance on the Holy Spirit completes His hope in us.

…that God would see that we love Him absolutely and are expressing our love for Him by our active love for others.

May it be so...