Dear Salvation Army – What Do You Know About Unpopular Holiness?

Dear Salvation Army,
It might feel good to hear the acclaims of the public, to receive accolades for the work that we do…these are certainly affirming to us…but we aren’t in the business of helping people for the purpose of accolades are we?

We didn’t sign up to wear uncomfortable uniforms for the purpose of basking in the limelight did we?
No, the purpose for our movement is MORE than just helping people!
We ARE STILL a Holiness movement! Let us never forget this truth, may it never get muddied in our various pursuits to “do the most good” in our communities.

Holiness is not an easy road for followers of Christ.

It is not the popular route. Why? Because it actually demands more from Christ’s followers. It requires each of us to ACTUALLY face our sins, our hidden sins, our indiscretions, those things which embarrass us and cause us great shame. It demands that we not only look at them but we allow the Holy Spirit to cast his glorious light upon them. When we have given up fighting the Holy Spirit and have finally surrendered to His pleas, (perhaps there are those of you who relinquished right away, and of that I am envious) He then can begin this new work, this revitalizing-restoring creation within us. Entire Sanctification is very real – but it will undoubtedly be the most unpopular thing an Officer or Soldier could ever preach.

Why so unpopular?
Because it is not simple. It is hard. There is sacrifice, and in the Western Church, sacrifice is not something many are willing to really fully commit to in a long-term capacity. We live in a hedonistic culture, even in Church, and dare I say that Holiness will always be in conflict with such a lifestyle.

Samuel Logan Brengle in his book “Helps to Holiness” puts it this way – “Dear brother, do not think you can make holiness popular. It cannot be done. There is no such thing as holiness separate from ‘Christ in you,’ and it is an impossibility to make Christ Jesus popular in this world. To sinners and carnal professors, the real Christ Jesus has always been and always will be ‘as a root out of a dry ground, despised and rejected of men.’ ‘Christ in you’ is the ‘same yesterday, to-day, and forever’ – hated, reviled, persecuted, crucified…He (Christ) will pronounce the most terrible, yet tearful, maledictions against the hypocritical formalist and the lukewarm professor who are the friends of the world and, consequently, the enemies of God…Do you not see the impossibility of making such a radical Gospel as this popular? This spirit and the spirit of the world are as fully opposed to each other as two locomotives on the same track running toward each at the same rate of sixty miles an hour. Fire and water will consort together as quickly as the ‘Christ in you’ and the spirit of the world.” (pg. 92, 93, 96)

Questions to Ponder today:
Can we accept such an Unpopular Holiness?
Are we up to the challenge?
Are we afraid of this world’s ridicule and shame?
Which “spirit” will we select tomorrow, and the next day, and the one after that?

Dear Salvation Army – We cannot separate the need for entire sanctification from what we do in our soup kitchens, social services offices or on the gym floor. There should never be a distinction between what we do on Sundays from what we do the rest of the week. The entire thrust of what “we do” is to bring people to Christ for the purpose of entire sanctification – through and through.

This will be unpopular.
Many people, even soldiers will reject such a call…it’s too radical, it’s too much work, it requires too much study, patience and sacrifice…but isn’t that the purpose of becoming a true disciple of Christ – so that we become like Him in every way?! Some are far too comfortable just coming to church on Sundays. Some are happy with this familiar routine in life. They don’t want to be shaken to the core. They don’t want to be disrupted. Some have stopped learning about Christ all together – internally they have become lazy in their studies of the Bible, they have thought in their minds “no one can teach me any more, because I already know everything there is to know about God and the Bible.” -This is entirely far from the truth…I am ashamed to have even considered this phrase to be true in my own heart sometimes, yet God brings this spirit of conviction in me. Dear soldiers, we need to humble ourselves once again. We need to fall on our faces and repent. We need to allow His Holy Spirit to renew us once more…and to allow Him to complete His work in us.

Some may cast this pondering aside today, because it will certainly be unpopular.
But I want to call us back to the Altar. I want us to recognize the work we have left unfinished in our hearts. We cannot go any further in our mission if we do not first stop here and ensure our hearts, our lives are completely His once more. I know there is still work to be done in me…how about you?

Something more for our Army world to ponder today, to God be the glory!

To read more on this week’s topic of Holiness click the links below:
Sin and Holiness
Cheap Grace

Disclaimer: The writings, and opinions of Pastorsponders are the writers expressed opinions and do not always reflect the opinions and views of The Salvation Army.

October 22, 2015 3

Dear Salvation Army, Cheap Grace…

“Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession…Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
-Dietrich Bonhoeffer

I believe that one of the major failings of the “Seeker Sensitive” movement is that many times it became a numbers game with very little by way of discipleship after repentance. Do we do this still in our Corps, dear Army? We are “over the moon” about seekers coming to the altar, but then we don’t really know what to do with them once they come. BUT…Is that it?

I don’t wish to point fingers because I realize that I am also pointing at me.
I am not always very good at the “what happens next phase”.
In the old Army, there are numerous stories of drunkards becoming gloriously saved. The amazing thing was that the old Army soldiers and officers knew what to do next. These drunkards had a perpetual problem of the habitual kind. Once such story recounts how this drunkard, now saved knew he had to change his old patterns of life, so each day after work this man was met at the doors of his place of employment by fellow members of The Salvation Army. They literally walked him to and from work each day for the purpose of helping him overcome his addiction at the local bar. That is truly determination. That is truly going the extra mile.

How are we going the extra mile?

I don’t say this to guilt us into something.
I am quite serious about asking this very question in my own present ministry.
BECAUSE…
-It won’t matter how good you preach on a Sunday…
-It won’t matter how good the band sounds…
-It won’t matter how immaculate your chapel may be…
-It won’t matter how friendly your soldiers are to visitors…
IF
There isn’t accountability and discipleship taking place throughout the week.
This one stipulation is a major time requirement!
It involves all of us being completely invested in one another’s lives.
We aren’t simply playing church on Sunday and then we have nothing to do with one another throughout the week. There MUST be something more to our corps than just worship services.

Cheap Grace:
-It is apathy and the lack of concern for the “continuance in a state of salvation…” of ourselves and others. (Doctrine #9)
-It is forced fellowship without love.
-It is the Monopoly game “get out of jail” card type of repentance where the rationale “I can always come back and ask for forgiveness next Sunday at the altar” is uttered in our hearts but sincerity and true repentance is lacking.
-It is more concern for the preservation of program than the preservation and salvation of souls.

-It is found in our surfaced, shallow calls for forgiveness but never the reconciliation of believers.
-It is acceptance of sin and a lack of conviction to call out sin within the body of Christ.
-It is ignore the Holy Spirit’s promptings to relinquish control over those deeply hidden strongholds of the heart.

Cheap Grace still exists, but many times we’ve become so blind to it.
It is almost common place.
We cry out sins in the street and lifestyles in our culture and yet we don’t talk about unmarried soldiers living together without the bonds of marriage. We decry the plight of people “over there” yet we don’t really take the time to look into the eyes of people in our buildings and around our neighborhoods.

We don’t need to look outside our walls to find Cheap Grace, because it still exists in the church…it still exists even in the Army.

Again, I don’t say this to point fingers that I am not willing to first point at me.
I have blindly accepted cheap grace from time to time.
I am still in need of forgiveness and to give that forgiveness to others.
I have at times ignored the Holy Spirit’s plea in my own life to tear down remaining strongholds of my heart.
I too confess that I have not always discipled as I should.
I have not always taken the time to truly fellowship with other believers that helps to sharpen iron and forge holy communion with one another…

Doctrine #7 says this:
“We believe that repentance toward God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and regeneration by the Holy Spirit are necessary to salvation.”

Yes, cheap grace still exists.
I am still working to eradicate it from my life, how about you?
Something more for our Army world to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

Yesterday’s Blog – Dear Salvation Army, Let’s Talk About Sin and Holiness!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in Pastorsponderings are the writer’s view and opinions and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of The Salvation Army.

October 20, 2015 2

Dear Salvation Army – Let’s Talk About Sin & Holiness…

I do not wish to meddle in your life, my life has its own problems, but I wanted to touch upon an important topic that I believe we pass on all too often –

It’s not easy to truly confront this head on…and mean it.
We all talk a good game, but when it comes to the follow-through, I think most of us fail.
I’m really not here to beat you up today, I just want to peel back the veneer that we have erected around this topic. I want to expose this wound and bring it out into the light. It won’t be comfortable, but it is necessary.
I believe that we as an Army aren’t progressing forward as we once were because we are too invested in our communities to confront sin as we once did.

If we don’t hold the standard high (with grace infused) we become more than bystanders, we become accessories to sin. I don’t say this lightly, because I have work to be done in my life with this as well. I merely want to poke at this festering wound so that perhaps it might heal if we expose it to the right kind of healing.

For the devoted Soldier:
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:1-4)

Jesus has given us victory over sin, so why is it that sometimes we act like we’re still stuck in it? Could it be that we don’t truly believe Christ has delivered us, or that we can be truly delivered? I don’t mean to say that we won’t still struggled with temptation, but it doesn’t mean we have to act upon that temptation. We have been delivered, shouldn’t we act and live like those who have been given a second chance? We have been granted this new life, isn’t that something to be joyous about? Why is it then that we still struggle with this doubt? Why is it then that we still feed the old, sinful ways?

“For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin.” (Romans 6:5-6)

I will be the first to confess that I do not have it all together yet.
I know that I have my many flaws as a Soldier of this Army as well as a Child of God…but I do know that Christ’s death and resurrection has transformed my life! Do I still struggle? Yes, but I also know that I have this new creation – and because of it, I deeply long to resemble Christ…but it MUST become more than that. I should want others to see Christ and not me. I should want this life to be Christ and not me. If we do not have this deep desire to see lives transformed by His Holy power that once transformed us, then I do not know why we are still engaged in this Army. That may be a bold statement, but this ought not be an army of mediocrity and wishy-washy doctrines that incorporate tolerance of sin within its ranks. We are born of something far bigger than ourselves in this “New Creation”! We are an Army of Salvation hell bent of fighting against sin – not embracing it.

Dear Soldier, this does not mean that we discourage and forcibly condemn those still struggling with sin in their lives, but it does mean that we stop placating to the culture of habitual sin. If we ignore these chains will they still be chains? Of course! We can’t simply ignore the metal bars that hold in the prisoner, we must fight with all of our strength to open the prison doors – and this is only possible with the power of the Holy Spirit!

Get On With It!
Dear Solider,
Please don’t use the phrase – “Well I’m only human” – this, I feel attempts to excuse our behaviors and indiscretions. We were made for so much more – if we have accepted this amazing gift of salvation. If we have allowed His transforming power into our lives through the workings of the Holy Spirit then we are indeed a new creation. He might still have work to be done in us, but we must be patient and continually pray for deliverance from sin as we avoid temptation.

These are bold words today, but I believe that we as an Army are up for this challenge!
Either we believe the Holy Spirit can transform from the inside out or He can’t…which is it?

Doctrine # 10 says this, “We believe that it is the privilege of all believers to be wholly sanctified, and that their whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
So where are you today?
This is both a personal and corporate question.
Are there still strongholds in your life?
Are you willing to allow the Holy Spirit access to those strongholds?
He longs to sanctify you completely…but it requires your willingness to sacrifice every aspect of your former self.

My prayer is that we might all be challenged to live out this new creation as Soldiers of Salvation!
Something more for our Army world to ponder today!

To God be the glory!

Disclaimer: “The Views and Opinions shared in Pastorsponderings are strictly the writer’s views and opinions and do not necessarily ALWAYS reflect the views and opinions of The Salvation Army.”

October 19, 2015 2

THIS should be our ONE aim and desire!

“Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.” Psalm 103:1

Conversational Statement:

There is no such thing as a “spiritual life”.
You might ask yourself; “What, no spiritual life? How can that be? Why would you say such a thing? Of course there is a spiritual life!”
Let me ask you this; is there a separation from what we do in Church to what we do at home?
How often do we compartmentalize what we do with God and what we do in our everyday life?

QUESTION: Was this life ever intended to be compartmentalized and separated? No.
In the Jewish culture there was no such thing as a spiritual life, because everything was considered spiritual. Everything they did; everything they discussed; everything they thought was considered spiritual.
Life, as a whole = IS SPIRITUAL!

Is it no wonder that David, a man after God’s own heart, says “ALL my inmost being” praises His holy name?! What does God require from us? What sort of relationship does He want from us? Is it a part-time relationship – where we come to Him once or twice a week while at church? Is this relationship that is just a friendship type of deal? We just sort of pick up where we left off after some time apart while we do our own thing? NO! This relationship is either all-in or nothing at all!

That might sound like such a committed thing…BECAUSE IT IS! I’m not saying I’m even there yet, but I’m saying that we need to get to the point where we either say “Lord I’m all-in” or “I’m out!”.

Which will it be for us?
Can we honestly say right now that ALL our inmost being praises His holy name?
Can we boldly say – “Lord come with me, I invite you to go wherever I go today…”?
Can we cast aside the “part-time” relationship deal that we have sort of conveniently worked out in our minds?

God wants all there is of us.
God desires a relationship that goes far beyond some sort of surfaced thing.
He wants to walk beside us.
-To commune with us.
-To journey along with us wherever we go.

Is your everyday life currently segmented and separated from your “spiritual” life?
Perhaps it’s time to realign them and put it all back together again.
Perhaps it’s time for us to declare (and mean it) ALL my inmost being – praise His holy name!

“You never go away from us, yet we have difficulty in returning to You. Come, Lord, stir us up and call us back. Kindle and seize us. Be our fire and our sweetness. Let us love. Let us run.” -Augustine of Hippo, Confessions

It’s either ALL or NOTHING.
Something more for us to ponder today.

October 14, 2015 1

Dear Salvation Army, Without Borders, Without Division…

“Hardship, unbelief, suffering and poverty have not stopped our soldiery from rendering their service to God and man. The Salvation Army is a great empire, an empire without a frontier made up of a tangle of races, tongues and colors such as never before in all history gathered together under one flag.” -General Evangeline Booth

I do not wish to pat ourselves on the back today, this is not my purpose.
The purpose for this pondering is to explore the structure and foundation of our Army today.
This week we have talked about our identity and that we are more than simply a “church”…this calling that we are answering is to the front lines, to places where the church often shies away from. It is my intention to judge the church, but rather to paint the necessity of our Army to remain in the front lines.

We cannot boast that this uniform or this mission is glamorous, because it is more often than not, a tiring, thankless duty. We must get our hands dirty in order to grasp the hand of the one needing rescue from the pit. We must be available to listen to the lonely soul who feels as if they are all alone. Yes, it is often a most unglamourous (If I may make up a word) duty we are called to perform.

A Stalwart Soldier:
Storms will come.
Doubt will occur.
Leaders will come that you might not see eye to eye with.
Clouds of disillusionment might appear on your horizon.
But we MUST remain firm. We cannot retreat, despite these imperfections within our ranks.
We are all imperfect people being cleansed by a Holy God. We must allot for grace and forgiveness so that we can continue to serve Christ in the many capacities that He has placed us in.
I too struggle with “the system” from time to time.
I too question certain policies and decision from time to time, BUT this will not deter me from serving Christ first and attempting to continue this mission to the world around me.

Your community needs you.
Your town, city, neighbor – they need you!
They need a functioning, loving, graceful Salvation Army to go where no one else dares to go.

We don’t have time to become divided upon anything.
The moment we become a divided Army, is the moment that we lose ground and lose our place within our communities and most importantly God’s mission for us. When we relinquish our prejudices and societal divisions and allow the grace of God and the love of Christ to permeate us entirely, we tear down all divisions and become united again. This road that we are on is not easy, it was never supposed to be easy. Christ’s path to the cross was not easy, and we are called to pick up our crosses and follow Him – no matter where that leads us.

Are you prepared to carry that cross?
There will be person sacrifices to be made.
It is not always glamorous.
There will be bumps and bruises along the way…but we need you!
This Army of Salvation needs viable, faithful, loving, holy, Salvationists to lead the way.
Now more than ever, we must remain united as one Army throughout our World.
One mission…One purpose. Yes, we will lose comrades along the way. Attrition is real.

BUT:
-If we are more concerned with being like Christ instead of looking the part of a soldier…
-If we are focused on Kingdom building instead of personal, selfish agendas…
-If we have a deep compassion for people and are grieved by the sickness of sin instead of settling for a compromised faith…
-If we careless about attaining certain positions and ranks and care more for others…
-If we spend more time on our knees before the throne of heaven intently listening instead of jabbering away and complaining about our gripes and wants…
-If we studied more about what Jesus said and did and why He did those things instead of studying what our founders did (I’m sorry, I deeply respect our founders, but they surrendered to Christ too)…

If we do these things, and strive for holiness in everything that we are and do…these borders and divisions that we face will decrease and Christ will increase in our vision and heart. We can’t allow our minds to become consumed with these impossible, insurmountable boarders any longer – because we serve a God who does the impossible and STILL performs miracles in our communities.

Dear Army, we are an Army of Salvation that is spurred on by the resurrection power of Christ Jesus! Each of us are a standing testimony to this power. He still longs to transform lives in your corps, in your communities. Despite the darkness, Christ can and will shine His light and expose sin and deliver souls from these chains. We, dear soldiers, have the deep privilege of bearing that light into those places…if we will only commit to it and stop wavering between our old lives and our new.

“I seemed to hear a voice sounding in my ears, ‘Where can you go and find such heathen as these, and where is there so great a need for your labors?…God shall have all there is of William Booth” -William Booth

Does He have all of you yet?
Something more for our Army world to ponder today, To God be the glory!
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in these ponderings on pastorspondrings.org are those of the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Salvation Army.

September 24, 2015 0

Dear Salvation Army, 3 Spiritual Lessons From Football (Soccer) That Matter!

I was watching my son play a football match the other day.
In the U.S. we call it soccer, for the rest of the world it’s called Football.
Just to give you a little history about who I am; I have played soccer since I was a young boy. It began in the playground as a little boy on the Island of St. Helena. My parents were missionaries there many years ago. I played soccer in South Africa as a boy – my parents were missionaries there too. I played soccer in the United States – my parents were missionaries there too.

I love the game.
As I have grown up, so has my knowledge of the game of football.
I finally see the strategy that my father once called “Chess-like”. -A player makes one move and then a counter move…and so on. The game is built upon team work, strategy, and determination. I admire the structure of this sport that I played so long ago. I equally enjoy watching my son compete in it as well.

This brings me to my point today, Dear Salvation Army.
Here’s my metaphor for the day – There are lessons we can acquire from the game of football. These lessons can have a deep impact on our ministries. These lessons can either shape us if applied, or break us if not applied. Allow me to share these 3 spiritual lessons with you today.

3 Spiritual Lessons From Football (Soccer) That Matter!

1. Flat-Footedness Produces A Flat-lined Passion:
I have watched professional games where you can almost tell which team will win just by how they compete. The players who stay focused and on their toes (literally) will be better equipped to create attacking plays and score goals.

When you play the game of football, you must constantly operate on the balls of your feet. Being “on your toes” helps you anticipate passes, gives you an edged, and allows you to move faster. If players play flat-footed, they lose a step. That player will not be quick to the ball, and they will become reactive instead of proactive.

Are we Flat-footed or are we on our toes?
Spiritually speaking, we cannot operated our ministries in a reactionary capacity. We must anticipate and move when the Holy Spirit prompts us to move. Sitting back on our heels doesn’t prepare us for active ministry, it opens us up for failure in ministry. We weren’t called to preserve we were called to persevere!

When we go out and engage our communities…
When we get up out of the pews and help others in our communities…
When we seek to be a resource of solutions to problems and situations in society…
When we practice what we preach on Monday – Saturday…
We will cease to be flat-footed and on our toes in ministry.

2. We Can’t All Be Ronaldo and Messi!
No offense to these phenomenally talented footballers, but the game is usually never won because of one player among 12. The whole team has to contribute. The Goalie has to know his/her role. The full backs need to know their role. The midfielders and the forwards – theirs as well. It’s a team sport.

I love to watch teams like the Netherlands national team play. They pass with precision. The operate as a group. Sure, there are some stand-out talent on the team, but without players who can move the ball, pass and defend – that talent is useless.

We are members of one body (Romans 12:5, 1 Corinthians 12:12).
Each part of the body has to work with the other. This doesn’t mean that we lord over other parts and brag about our accomplishments, rather, it means we help each other along- we work together for the same purposes. Do we not have the same mission, Dear Army? Are we all equally important? Sometimes I think (and it happens in almost all Churches) we have “Stars” who tend to get all of the notoriety and credit…just like Ronaldo and Messi. Most of these “Stars” are actually very humble about their role within the Army. We must never lose focus on what is MOST important.

It’s not about who gets the credit (God should actually get this praise…right?!).
It’s not about who looks better in the uniform.
It’s not about ranks and roles and positions…although some would disagree with me.
-We need more team work and less ball hogs.
-We need more sharing of vital tools for ministry and less hoarding of these resources.
-We need to stop comparing ourselves and instead compare our lives with Christ – who ought to be the one we long to emulate and imitate.

3. Conditioning & Discipline Lead To A Successful Football Club (Spiritual Flabbiness is Shabbiness)
Okay, let’s get the cynics out of the way first – yes, of course some of the major football clubs also have MILLIONS of pounds, dollars, euros (and everything in between) to work with.

Without physical conditioning a team will fall flat on its face.
Without being disciplined in the sport, a team will fall apart when pressure mounts.
Physical strength requires sweat, toil, tears, and even pain. One cannot expect to compete at a professional level without first sacrificing time, laziness, and other luxuries. Practice is required, not optional. Determination to practice and perform at the peak of excellence is desired for all players on the pitch. If a player begins to decline or under-performs, that player may be sent down to a subordinate minor league team, or kicked off the team all together.

Dear Salvation Army, we cannot afford to have spiritually flabby soldiers.
I mean this with the sincerest amount of grace. We need to hold each other accountable. We need to press for spiritual discipline and spiritual conditioning. We cannot settle for mediocrity IF there is even a hint that we can be more and do more. God doesn’t want our leftovers on the mission fields we are called to, He wants our best efforts, or complete faithfulness, and our whole hearts. If we are to be a better Army, we have to strive for spiritual excellence and holiness. We cannot remain static if the Holy Spirit is calling us to move forward.

I love football, and I apologize to some of you that really don’t care for sports at all.
It’s an analogy that works for me.
Perhaps it will click for some of you as well.

Recap:
-Flat-Footedness Produces A Flat-lined Passion
-We Can’t All Be Ronaldo and Messi in Uniform – Be Who God Called You To Be!
-Conditioning & Discipline Lead To A Successful Football Club (Spiritual Flabbiness is Shabbiness)

There is so much more I could write on this topic, and perhaps I will in the future…but for now, this is enough fodder for one day.

Something more to Ponder today…(oh and by the way Go Manchester United!)
To God be the glory!

August 21, 2015 2

Dear Salvation Army, You’re Not Worthy…

You’re not worthy of the world’s acclaim.
You’re not worthy of the world’s standards in regards to human perfections.
You’re not worthy of worldly successes.
Nor are you worthy of all of the riches the world offers.

Why do I say these things today?
What is the point? – To offend?
– To make one feel inferior?
– To hurt one’s feelings?

No, the point is that the world’s standards; the way the world looks at you and me, and judges us is unfortunate but real. We will never live up to the expectations and judgments of the world, dear soldier. We have chosen to be set apart for God. We have decided, no matter how hard it might be, to follow His lead and not the world’s. We are not worthy in the world’s eyes. We will never be as successful or rich or beautiful…it is pointless pursuit…and yet we constantly compare ourselves by the world’s standards. Girls become objects to manipulate and judge; boys become judged and prodded at…the world wants our youth to grow up too quickly. And despite all of these conditions, none of us is worthy, none of us truly “make the cut”.

Dear Soldier, Dear Christian, Dear follower of Christ…we were never worthy in the world’s eyes, but God in his unconditional love and grace makes us worthy in His eyes.

Let me share with you a writing by Henri J.M. Nouwen to better illustration what I mean today. It is from his book “The return of the prodigal son”, in it he writes this:

“To whom do I belong? To God or to the world?” Many of my daily preoccupations suggest that I belong more to the world than to God. A little criticism makes me angry, and a little rejection makes me depress. A little praise raises my spirits, and a little success excites me. It takes very little to raise me up or thrust me down. Often I am like a small boat on the ocean, completely at the mercy of its waves. All the time and energy I spend in keeping some kind of balance and preventing myself from being tipped over and drowning shows that my life is mostly a struggle for survival: not a holy struggle, but an anxious struggle resulting from the mistaken idea that it is the world that defines me.

As Long as I keep running about asking: “Do you love me? Do you really love me?” I give all power to the voices of the world and put myself in bondage because the world is filled with “ifs.” The world says” “yes, I love you if you are good-looking, intelligent, and wealthy. I love you if you have a good education, a good job, and good connections. I love you if produce much, sell much, and buy much.” There are endless “ifs” hidden in the world’s love. These “ifs” enslave me, since it is impossible to respond adequately to all of them. The world’s love is and always will be conditional. As long as I keep looking for my true self in the world of conditional love, I will remain “hooked” to the world – trying, failing, and trying again. It is a world that fosters addictions because what it offers cannot satisfy the deepest craving of my heart.” (p.42, The Return of the Prodigal Son”, Nouwen)

Questions to consider today:
How many times have we run back to the world for approval?
How many times have we forgotten that God already loves us unconditionally?
Why do we constantly run back seeking acceptance?
Are we addicted to the glory that the world offers to us?

In all honesty the words of Nouwen ring true in my heart as well…does it ring true in yours?
I need to run back to the Father daily.
I need to confess my wayward desires.
I am hopelessly lost in a world that does not truly love me…but God does.
I pray that we run back to Him; that we remain in His presence.
May we pursue righteousness instead of worldly fame, holiness instead of riches and success, salvation instead of the lusts of the heart.

Something more for all of us to ponder today.
To God be the glory!

August 6, 2015 0

Dear Salvation Army, Holiness Of The Heart…

“I have pledged myself until I find the holiness of the heart” -Catherine Booth.

Let us delve once more into the most important aspect of our personal salvation – personal holiness.
We are all equipped for spiritual growth. For some, it might take a lifetime, while others days or years.
We are made for so much more than we are right now. The Holy Spirit isn’t done with us yet. We are a work in progress, an unfinished masterpiece – as we are being transformed into the image of the Might High.

To me, a holiness of the heart begins with self denial.
We must have the fortitude and willingness to want to change from the inside out.
This transformation is dependent upon how reluctant or willing we are to the pleading of the Holy Spirit.
If we are “all in”, and we allow these personal sacrifices to become reality in our every day life, the holiness of the heart becomes all that more attainable. If we say we are “all in”, and yet we resist the proddings of the Holy Spirit as He speaks to our need for surrender in very specific and private spaces, we (sometimes unknowingly) hamper this holiness of the heart. Either we are fully committed to His work in us, or we resist and stunt the potential growth we could have.

Confession Time:
I cannot tell you how often I have resisted His pleadings, for they far outweigh my moments of obedience.
I hope I am not alone in this. I only say this to you so that we might understand how uncommon and unnatural this holiness of the heart can be. I am not saying it is wrong, or something we shouldn’t strive for in our personal relationship to Christ. I am just saying that the longer we resist, the more unnatural it may feel because the old unsurrendered self still takes up residence where the transformed new life should be. I confess that I am still a work in progress. I pray daily that the Lord would do His working within me, and yet this living sacrifice still slides and moves off of the altar. I do long to more like Him in every way. I do cling to the Holy Spirit. I want so desperately to be “all in” every day, every moment, and every second…I am not there yet…but I want to be.

How about you?
How is your Holiness of the heart going?
Are you struggling as well?
You aren’t alone dear Soldier, fight the good fight, do not quit, keep waging this war against sin!
Listen intently to the Holy Spirit.
We too possess this holiness of the heart, yet He is not finished with us yet!

“All there is of me Lord, All there is of me
Time and talents, day by day,
All I bring to thee;
All there is of me, Lord,
All there is of me,
On thine altar here I lay
All there is of me.”

May we delve deeply within our hearts as we listen intently to the Holy Spirit.
May we be Soldiers of this Army hell bent on pulling people back from the flames through His power.
May we be the kinds of Soldiers of God that reflect Christ’s love in every way so that others may see Him too.

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

July 28, 2015 0

Dear Salvation Army, 150 Years!!!

Since its inception, The Salvation Army has been a beacon of hope to those in need.
It is hard to believe that 150 years has gone by since its start. I am proud to be an Officer within its ranks while at the same time I know that we still have room to grow, adapt and improve. Like any form of ministry, time passes, culture and customs evolve, and with it so should the delivery of the same message of Christ.

The Past
I recognize the innovators in our army who were bold and unabashed in their proclamations of faith and salvation for all. We need this fervor today. Sometimes we still need to be civilly disobedient and unafraid of being arrested. We need to be reminded of where we came from and why we are still an army. We STILL have a mission as soldiers of this army.

We STILL fight for those without voices. We STILL ought to be the safe harbor for people to go. We STILL should “do something” for those who find themselves in hopeless situations and cannot find their way out.

The Present
There are many social platforms within which we can fight for those in need.
There are many single mothers and fathers out there struggling to do “right by their kids” and have hardly enough food to put on the table for them. There are countless drug addicts in our communities who need to get clean and who need someone in uniform who cares for them despite their current behaviors. There are so many outliers in our communities, those who have been ostracized, marginalized, brutalized and victimized…they need us! Where ever we look we can find poor souls who need our help. Where ever we look we can find poverty, rejection, dejection, panic, sadness and grief…and we can still help bring relief to the many with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Questions:
Are we still a sanctified Army or is there still further cleansing to be done?
Have we given ourselves entirely to the will of the Father or are we still holding on to remnants and identities?
Are we lacking passion and zeal for His purposes within we as soldiers of this army?
Are we asking for His direction and guidance through these turbulent and often volatile times?

Today I celebrate the 150th Anniversary of this Army…and yet I know that we have much work to be done. I do not wish to downplay all that we HAVE done already, but rather I recognize the work that STILL needs to be done. We can only do so much in our own strength, but when we allow God’s holy presence to take up the fight within our faithfulness, we can do anything…I truly believe this!

To my comrades who are in London today, and have gathered with 18,000 other soldiers for Boundless 2015, I say please spur us onward! Let us run and not grow weary! (Isaiah 40:31) May we be on our knees earnestly praying for the many souls we can reach in His name. May we begin to witness the miracles again for an Army filled with His Holy Spirit…renew us, reignite us, cleanse us, and spur us onward Dear Lord!

To God be the glory!

July 2, 2015 0

“The Exchange”

“The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.” -Proverbs 18:10

I used to run track when I was in high school.
I was a sprinter. I would train with my team every day after school even when it was hard. I would run the 100 meter, 200 meter and the 4×100 meter relay. The relay was where team work would come in. Each runner had their own part to play in the race. Each ran their respective portion…but it would be all for naught if the exchange of the baton was mishandled. Sometimes failure in the exchange came by way of holding on too tightly to the baton as one attempted to pass it on. Sometimes failure in the exchange came by way of holding on too loosely as one attempted to pass it on. That’s why we practiced day after day. We needed to be a synced group. We needed to have a simple, nondramatic hand-off each time in order to even consider winning the race. The relay’s success of failure hinged upon “the exchange”.

Have you ever felt weak?
I imagine we all have from time to time…some of us probably just thought to themselves “I feel weak all the time”. I want to encourage you today. There is strength in knowing the Lord. There is joy in this “knowing” as well. What happens within this fragment of time (when we allow God’s strength to become our strength and when we “know” whose strength it is coursing through us) is an exchange of lordship. The success and failure of the Christian walk sometimes hinges on this pivotal exchange! Within this exchange of lordship, what we are saying is “Lord I abdicate my human authority that is frail and weak and I exchange it for your Lordship in my life!” When we allow this lordship exchange to take place within us, we knock down pride and selfishness and erect a stronger, more firmer foundation found only within complete humility and selflessness.

The Apostle Paul puts it like this – “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:10)
Despite Paul’s sufferings, despite his weaknesses, despite everything kind of persecution he faced, he recognized that even in weakness Christ would be strong!

I wonder if any of you are kind of like me. I am stubborn. I am often prideful. I am sometimes insecure. I am quick to repay wrongs done to me in similar reciprocating responses. I am still far from the prize of holiness. BUT… there is something within this confession of mine. I have to recognize that in all of these shortcomings I cannot attain the strength that I need on my own. I require this exchange of authority in my life. I require the Holy Spirit’s presence within me. I cannot afford to run aimlessly, full of myself and on my own. My own efforts will, and frequently have, failed.

Oh that we run to the Lord!
Oh that we allow His presence to transform us.
Oh that we are filled with His strength by emptying our weaknesses out at His feet.
This is where the exchange of lordship begins…and the prize of holiness (the very reflection of Christ) is seen.
May we allow this exchange of lordship to occur within us.
It is a very private matter for most of us. It isn’t something that often happens overnight, but instead His presence begins to urge us to relinquish things. His presence begins to remind us of what could be. His presence prompts us to run to Him and lay down our pride and self-assurances at His feet.

How’s your “Exchange of lordship” going?
Something more to ponder today, to God be the glory!

June 25, 2015 0

Category: Holiness