Dear Salvationist – 5 Reasons Your Corps Needs YOU!

I haven’t always been convinced of these, but as the Lord has convicted me in my own life of things I have needed to deal with, it has become more and more apparent that there are a slew of reasons your corps needs you!  (Phew, that was run on sentence!)

These are just 5 reasons that your corps needs YOU (Starting with #5):

#5) You are more than just a number in a roll book, your story matters!
I don’t just say this to be nice, I mean it!  If you are a soldier in good standing in your corps, you matter!  Your story might just be the one that leads someone else, who is similar to you, to Christ!  You might feel insignificant at times, or perhaps even unwanted sometimes, but please know that regardless of what others might say or how you might feel – You are loved by the Almighty and He can and will use you in your corps right now!  So don’t give up!

#4) Your corps needs mentors and disciplers!
Perhaps you are not called to become an officer, but you, dear soldier, play a vital role within your corps!  If you are mature in your faith, and you know of others who are young in their faith – YOU can help them develop into tomorrow’s leaders!  The corps officers can’t do it all, and we are so much stronger when soldiers are invested in the corps’ mission and we begin to work together instead of separately on our own “projects”.  You can help shape young lives.  You can help transform would be street thugs into kingdom people!  You can fill this role, dear soldier!

#3) Your Corps Desperately Needs Prayer Warriors & Sunday School Teachers!
What ever happened to prayer meetings?  Are we too busy to pray together any more? Are prayer meetings now considered old fashioned and unnecessary?  I sure hope not!
Never, ever discount the need for prayer warriors in your corps!  If you have devoted yourself to the spiritual discipline of prayer then use it to empower and protect the soldiers, adherents and leaders of your corps!  Pray earnestly for God to provide miracles in your neighborhoods.  Don’t just pray for corps members and what you already have in your corps, but take it out into the streets and pray for the new souls that God will lead into your midst!   We need faithful, devoted, godly Sunday School teachers to lead our Sunday Schools and Bible Studies!  Many of your corps already have faithful teachers who have taught for years – and if you are one of these beautiful souls, we say Thank you!  Many a child has been brought to Christ because of your faithfulness!  Do not for minute think you are not contributing to young people’s lives!  Keep offering those prayers of salvation in your classes!  Keep sharing the love and acceptance of Christ with those that you have the privilege to instruct.  This is serious business – Kingdom business, and you are needed in your corps!

#2) Your Corps Needs Hospitality and Welcome Sergeants! 
Do you know that the first persons a new comer sees will determine if they will stay or flee your building?  Some of you have this amazing gift to make people feel wanted and welcomed.  It’s a warming sense of belonging that people desire when they seek out a place of worship.  You can touch the hearts of many by serving your corps in this capacity!  Sometimes we take these roles for granted in our corps, and when we do, we run the risk of people experiencing a cold shoulder instead of a warm hug at the door (sorry to my Swedish friends who don’t hug).  There are many roles behind the scenes that matter – sometimes much more than even the elements of worship on Sunday mornings.  You can lead people to feel at home at your corps.  Hospitality is needed in every corps…and sometimes it’s a lost art.

#1) Your Corps Needs Workers In The Fields Who will Roll Up Their Sleeves! 
This should sum up all of our corps’ needs in soldiers (and even adherents).  We aren’t social clubs or socials services – we still have a mission!  We still have a purpose as an Army.  Some have forgotten this.  Others have neglected this.  Sometimes, if we’re honest, we (I) fall into one or both of these categories.  Kingdom building is hard work.  It is labor intensive!  I might mean you go out on late night calls to help someone in need.  It will mean that we don’t just leave people at the altar, check off another seeker on our stat sheet and never disciple them – only to have them figure it out for themselves or wander away still lost and hopeless.  True soldiers of Christ invest their lives in the lives of others.  True soldiers of Christ love unconditionally.  True soldiers of Christ must become mindful of the things which trap us apathetically into patterns of comfort and carelessness.

Dear Soldier, your corps needs you!
God has breathed into you at the moment of your conversion His presence.  The Holy Spirit is our guide.  He will provide us with His strength, discernment and perseverance along the way.  This commitment will be difficult sometimes.  There will be victories and heartaches.  Unlike many of our professional sports teams today – your corps needs a lifetime contract from you – thick or thin!  This is a mighty, mighty ask – I know.  Some of you have experienced some heartache through fall out in leadership, or faced hardships because not everyone sees eye to eye.  Some of you might be glancing at the exit doors right now…but I urge you to reconsider.  I know with all my heart that we are stronger together than we are apart.   I don’t presume to know your story today, but I know God understands.  I also recognize that we often carry wounds and burdens…He can and will help to lighten your load.  Your corps needs you…the question is will you faithfully serve?

Something more for our Army to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

*Disclaimer – The opinions of the author expressed here do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Salvation Army.