28 January 2017 NZFT War Cry

FAITH IN ACTION  28 JANUARY 2017 | Issue 6659 | $1.50

Putting Our Faith in Social Media Just what is the modern-day Christian to make of the challenges and opportunities social media presents?

Q&A

New Territorial Leaders, Andy & Yvonne Westrupp Just Do It! Spending Time with God

What Do We Make of Samuel Marsden?

On the Spot with Tim Wilson

MAKING FRIENDS WITH CHAOS

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WAR CRY The Salvation Army

Te Ope Whakaora New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga Territory TERRITORIAL LEADERS Commissioners Andy & Yvonne Westrupp | GENERAL André Cox | FOUNDERS William

& Catherine Booth

The Salvation Army’s message is based on the Bible. Our ministry is motivated by love for God. Our mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and meet human need in his name without discrimination. War Cry exists to support and advance The Salvation Army’s message, ministry and mission.

EDITOR Major Christina Tyson | GRAPHIC DESIGN Tanesha Dahya, Amber Wilkinson | STAFF WRITERS Ingrid Barratt, Major Shar Davis, Robin Raymond | PROOF READING Major

Jill Gainsford

OFFICE Territorial Headquarters, 204 Cuba Street, PO Box

6015, Marion Square, Wellington 6141, Phone (04) 384 5649, Fax (04) 382 0716, Email warcry@nzf.salvationarmy.org, www.salvationarmy.org.nz/warcry SUBSCRIPTIONS Salvationist Resources Department, Phone

(04) 382 0768, Email mailorder@nzf.salvationarmy.org, $75 per year within NZ PRINT MANAGEMENT www.makeready.nz PAPER Sumo Offset is an environmentally responsible

paper produced using Elemental Chlorine Free (ECF) FSC® certified Mixed Source pulp from responsible sources and manufactured under the strict ISO14001 Environmental Management System.

Member of the Australasian Religious Press Association.

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Connect with your community The Salvation Army has just launched a year-long ‘The Whole World Mobilising’ campaign, calling Salvationists around the world to better connect with their communities. Jesus told his early followers to ‘go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone’ (Mark 16:15, NLT). He spoke to a community of believers, showing this is something we’re meant to do together. For this reason, the call to mobilise as an Army fits well with the Mission Plan of the New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga Territory, which sets the challenge of doing mission together.

As General André Cox said at the campaign’s launch: ‘We can’t sit and wait for people to come to us. We are called to go out and know and meet the needs of the people in our community. We are not called to hide away in our halls. We have a message, a testimony, life-changing experiences that we can share.’

In today’s digital age, many people connect through social media. Our feature story examines how Christians feel about sharing their faith online and offers some great tips on how to be more confident and intentional.

This edition is the last for War Cry graphic designer Amber Wilkinson, who has worked in the Communications Department for almost 11 years and made a wonderful contribution to the vibrancy and attractiveness of our magazine.

Amber is leaving us for the world of freelancing. We say a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to Amber and pray God’s blessing on her in future days. Next edition we welcome designer Sam Coates to the team. Sam comes to us from a busy Wellington advertising studio and we’re looking forward to welcoming him aboard.

Christina Tyson Editor

All Bible references from the Holy Bible, New International Version, unless otherwise stated.

Articles are copyrighted to The Salvation Army, except where indicated, and may be reprinted only with permission.

Publishing for 133 years | ISSN 0043-0242, Issue 6659 Please pass on or recycle this magazine Read online www.issuu.com/salvationarmynzftwarcry

www.salvationarmy.org.nz salvationarmynzftwarcry @salvationarmynz salvationarmynzft

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The more excellent way is: if you can’t be kind, be quiet.

Frederick Coutts Four Gospels

Proverbs 15:23 The Message Congenial conversation—what a pleasure! The right word at the right time—beautiful!

Ngā Whakatauki 15:23 Kei tā tōna māngai i whakahoki ai he koa mō te tangata: ko te kupu i te wā i tika ai, ānō te pai!

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used to see Facebook as a mindless space where people shared photos of their breakfast and other mundane moments. Eight years on, I experience withdrawal if I can’t scroll through my newsfeed many times a day to see who’s doing and saying what.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg describes his online ‘social networking service’ as a way to ‘connect the world’. That’s been my experience. Facebook has given me the chance to reconnect with old friends in Australia (where I spent 12 years) and to stay connected with new friends I’ve made while travelling overseas more recently.

To my surprise, Facebook has become a significant influence on my prayer life. I often find myself reading people’s status updates and praying that God will help them with the challenges they’re facing. Facebook has widened my horizons and perspectives on some complex issues. It’s also increased my empathy for those who don’t experience the same welcome as I do from the church, along with those struggling to make sense of Christianity.

But this is no blind love affair, because there’s too much unbridled meanness on Facebook.

This probably reflects Facebook’s origins.

Its predecessor was called ‘Facemash’, a website developed by Zuckerberg and three of his university mates as a ‘game’ where people could compare student pictures and decide who was hot and who was not.

A lot of great inventions have their beginnings in simplistic roots, so I’m not going to criticise Zuckerberg and friends for their early prototype. The problem lies in the immaturity of those who still utilise Facebook primarily for the purpose of judging others today.

The verse from 1 Corinthians 13 comes to mind: ‘When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways’ (NRSV). If we’re using Facebook primarily for its childish origins, to judge who is in and who is out, feeding a false sense of superiority about where we stand in some or other imagined pecking order, it’s time for a rethink.

Perhaps the solution is to return to the start of the real world, where we see God making man and woman in God’s image as the final act of creation, and then declaring all that had been made was ‘very good’.

Just imagine how powerful it would be to approach our social media interactions as a chance to encourage and affirm people all the time! And in those times when we may feel snubbed or put down online, to return to the voice we need to hear most clearly above all others … and to listen as God tells us we are loved (not just ‘liked’), and that we—all of us—are ‘very good’.

BY CHRISTINA TYSON

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GOODSTUFF

A group called Stop Funding Hate was launched last year in the UK, in response to the sharp rise in hate crime after Brexit. The group asked companies to stop advertising in newspapers that perpetuated hate narratives. One British man decided to write to Lego. He began with the words, ‘I love Lego’ … and went on to ask the company to stop advertising in the UK tabloid The Daily Mail— which regularly runs antiimmigration stories. In response, Lego announced it would stop running promotions in the newspaper. Ever wonder what you could do with a paper and pen? You have more power than you know.

Church Growth Lasting Impact Carey Nieuwhof If there’s a Christian debate that has become cringe-worthy, it’s the one about church growth. We’ve read the stats, tried the formulas, and it all seems completely … inauthentic.

What makes this book simply excellent is that the discussion is thoughtful, intelligent, and most of all, real. ‘I’m passionate about church growth because the world is at its best when the church is at its best,’ writes author Carey Nieuwhof, before laying out some challenges that run close to the bone. Why aren’t we growing? Perhaps because we’re ‘more in love with the past than the present’ or we ‘think culture is the enemy’. The chapter on why millennials are leaving the church is a hopeful and insightful contribution to the debate.

There are many lightbulb moments in this book that will challenge your spirit, and there is a genuine love for the church that will refresh your faith.

(The reThink Group)

It’s a Social World This time last year, 2.3 billion—nearly one-third of the earth’s population—were active social media users, a 10 per cent increase over the previous 12 months.

North America has the highest levels of social media penetration at 59%. Central and South Asia have low social media usage, 6% and 11% respectively.

Taiwan achieves the ‘most social’ award, with 77% of the total population using Facebook in a 30-day period. South Korea comes in at number two, with 38.4 million of its total 50.4 million population using KakaoTalk each month.

Filipinos spend the most time on social media, clocking in more than 3.5 hours per day. While the Japanese spend an average of less than 20 minutes per day on social media.

Animated Moana (PG, Some scary scenes) Ron Clements & John Musker From Walt Disney comes Moana, the story of a brave Polynesian teen prepared to sail beyond the boundaries of her island home if it means she can save her people. Set in our part of the world, it’s heart-warming to hear the voice talents of Temuera Morrison, Jemaine Clement and Oscar Kightley, along with some catchy Pasifika music. Moana (voiced by Hawaiian Auli‘i Cravalho) meets the once-mighty Maui (voiced by Samoa’s Dwayne Johnson). Along with an idiotic chicken sidekick stowaway, they battle the sea and its creatures as Maui teaches Moana to sail and navigate.

An energetic, family-friendly adventure, with lush colourscapes that capture the South Pacific’s island beauty. (Reviewed by Christina Tyson)

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Notable drops in Facebook use include the Central African Republic, where Facebook monthly active users are down 30%, Western Sahara (down 24%) and Zimbabwe (down 16%). Outside Africa, Monaco is down 15%, while Serbia had lost 10% of its Facebook audience.

Source: ‘Digital in 2016’, wearesocial.com

QUIKQUIZ 1 If you land at

Haneda Airport, where are you?

2 Ageusia is the loss of which sense?

3 How is the year

ONTHESPOT Tim Wilson The new year is a great time to catch up with friends, so we thought we’d catch up with our mate, TVNZ reporter Tim Wilson.

Celebrity crush: St. Thomas Aquinas—his contemporaries judged him as dumb as an ox, but our Lord singled him out to write ‘Summa Theologica’, which still defines Catholic theology.

What I’m reading: Can You Tolerate This? Essays by Ashleigh Young. The one on the emptiness of yoga is particularly excellent.

One thing I love: Reading to my son, Roman. At the moment he is very fond of the That’s Not My Frog/ Lion/Stoat ... (well, maybe not stoat) series.

One thing I hate: Exercise, bad posture (in myself), easy-going agnosticsm, laziness ... my unfailing ability to hate, when I should love.

What I love most about my job: For TV: the incredible variety: in one week I will do everything from Halloween scares on my colleague Mike Hosking (I got him, finally), to a young woman’s experience of having her laptop nicked, GPS tracking finding it, and the Police NOT picking it up. Shame!

For writing novels: The incredible freedom: You can go anywhere— post-Rapture in the US mid-West, a broken relationship in Auckland, a terror plot involving straight bananas that could bring America to its knees.

Something that would surprise us about your job: You only see one tenth of what we do. The visible part is the smallest. But that’s life, right?

2000 written in Roman numerals?

4 In the New Zealand

Wars, who were the kūpapa Māori?

5 What does the word ‘gospel’ mean?

Answers on page 22

Roast Pumpkin, Feta and Chickpea Salad A flavoursome take on a summery salad, from our friends at Countdown.

1.3kg butternut pumpkin, peeled, chopped

Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced).

Combine pumpkin and oil in a large baking dish and season. Roast for 15 mins or until tender.

1 Tbsp olive oil ¼ cup unsalted pistachios

Meanwhile, place pistachios on a baking tray and roast for about three mins or until golden. Remove immediately.

400g canned chickpeas rinsed, drained 1 red onion, sliced

To make lemon vinaigrette: combine garlic, lemon rind, olive oil and white wine vinegar in a screw-top jar and shake well.

150g baby spinach leaves 1 Tbsp chopped fresh chives 100g feta, crumbled Dressing

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.

Historian Will Durant

1 clove garlic, crushed

Place baby spinach leaves in a serving bowl. Add roasted pumpkin, chickpeas, red onion, feta and chives. Drizzle with vinaigrette and top with pistachios.

2 tsp lemon rind 2 Tbsp olive oil 1 ½ Tbsp white wine vinegar Find more great recipes at https://shop.countdown.co.nz/shop/recipes

The oldest known customer service complaint—which was about inferior copper ingots—was written on a clay tablet in Mesopotamia 4000 years ago.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 5

Putting Our Faith in Social Media David Giles, web manager at Salvation Army International Headquarters, monitoring social media during the Boundless congress to celebrate the 150th year of The Salvation Army. The event had an online reach of around 16.8 million people | Photography: Bruce Redman.

A study into Christian social media habits highlights a few speed bumps, but also plenty of exciting opportunities for creativity in online faith sharing.

BY CHRISTINA TYSON

A

lthough a regular user of social media—mainly Facebook and occasionally Twitter and Instagram—one area that remains something of a quandary for me is sharing my faith online.

Just how ‘Christian’ do I want to be online? If I post lots of preachy statuses, will my non-Christian friends be turned off?

If I don’t post any, will people think I don’t love Jesus enough? Can I be honest about my struggles, or will that look like God isn’t big enough to help me? But is God looking for spin doctors anyway?

Just what is the modern-day Christian to make of the challenges and opportunities social media presents? That’s something David Giles, who oversees The Salvation Army’s online presence at International Headquarters (IHQ) in London, wanted to find out. And so for his MA thesis in Media Communications, he explored what it means for people to ‘put their faith in social media’.

Four hundred and sixty-six people, most of them Christian, took part in a survey David ran from January to June last year. Almost 72 per cent were from the UK, with 8.7 per cent from the US, 6.6 per cent from New Zealand, 4.2 per cent from Australia, and 2.4 per cent from Canada. David combined his survey findings with other research to give a fascinating insight into today’s faithbased online interaction.

#ToShareOrNotToShare Just over three-quarters of the Christians who took part in David’s survey said social media was an appropriate vehicle for sharing their faith, with only 6.6 per cent saying it wasn’t. Comments included: • Social media is a platform for sharing the things that are important in your life … If faith is important to you, I can’t see how it’s not at least somewhat reflected in the content you share online.

• People share pictures of cats! I don’t like cats but love church … can I not share my passions?

But there were misgivings: • I’m scared I’ll get a lot of hate I don’t want to deal with.

• Social media tends to be too open a forum … It usually polarises people and inevitably it causes people to become entrenched in their view and then any ensuing debate becomes very closed and defensive.

Of those who thought it acceptable to talk about faith online, when they were asked whether they actually did this, the numbers reversed. This time, 75 per cent said they felt ‘somewhat uncomfortable’ or ‘very uncomfortable’, with fear of negative responses putting some off.

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David says the ‘most surprising’ result in the survey was that while 33 per cent of Christians said they ‘often’ or ‘sometimes’ received a negative reaction to their posts from non-Christian social media contacts, there was an almost equal likelihood (30 per cent) of receiving a negative response from another Christian. ‘I think that gives us much food for thought about our behaviour online,’ he says. ‘Are we demonstrating grace in the digital space?’

When it came to sharing faith-related content, there was a greater level of comfort in sharing quotes from Christian leaders (60.7 per cent), than in sharing quotes from the Bible (48.2 per cent). The most positive reaction was to posting content from Christian churches or charities, with over 70 per cent saying they did this ‘often’ or ‘sometimes’ on Facebook (and 87 per cent on Twitter).

‘Trusted faith-based organisations could and should capitalise on this to create shareable content that fellow believers will be comfortable using,’ says David. But since ‘diversity is the recommended order of the day’ on social media, this would ideally mean a mix of textual, image-based and audio/video content, he adds.

The Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) and the Pope (@Pontifex) were praised for ‘making an effort to make Christianity more accessible’. Of Archbishop Justin Welby’s tweets, one respondent said, ‘Speaks the truth sensitively.

Encourages. Praises good practice.’ The Archbishop’s use of Facebook Live to stream Bible studies was also applauded —something The Salvation Army has also started for its ‘One Army Live’ studies.

#BetterAccess Given the cheaper availability of video streaming services, along with free apps such as Periscope and Meerkat, it is easier than ever before to stream video. David describes this increased availability of video-based social media as ‘potentially a defining moment’—a development ‘professional practitioners in the realm of faith-based communication will be keen to explore’.

A benefit of live streaming events is supporting better access for disabled Christians. Dave Lucas, a UK visuallyimpaired advocate for the rights of people through his Disability and Jesus social media presence, says, ‘This is a big issue for disabled Christians—getting to conferences. Just the actual, physical getting there—the journey—is too difficult.

The venue might not be great, that sort of thing. But when an 8 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

ARE WE DEMONSTRATING GRACE IN THE DIGITAL SPACE? event is live-streamed, via Periscope or whatever else, then they’re able to take part in a way they couldn’t otherwise. Even a live Twitter feed where people are tweeting from the event … enables people to feel that they are part of something.’

He and others David spoke to highlighted the Anglican YouTube-based TGI Monday initiative (Thank God It’s Monday—tgimonday.show), a 10-minute online panel show where viewers can submit questions. One of the co-presenters, Ros Clarke (who is also Online Pastor for her local diocese), says the anonymity or pseudonymity offered by online discussions is helpful. ‘Online you can lurk, you can listen, you can ask a question but not feel put on the spot when someone answers it.’

#GetCreative Overall, David reports cause for ‘great optimism’ around the ‘enormous creativity exhibited by Christians keen to share their faith online’.

He gives the example of a UK Christian who shared a haiku for every day of Advent—telling the whole Christian story from creation to the resurrection, with Christmas the central focus. A keen haiku writer, she wrote them all one evening, paired them with pictures and was ready to post. ‘There were many, many more examples of such creativity,’ David says.

Humour can be a helpful. Jeff Piepho is a US pastor and co-creator of 'Church Meme Committee’, a satirical Facebook page. He says believers shouldn’t take themselves so seriously all the time. ‘The death of Christ, the resurrection, the spiritual matters, Creator of the Cosmos … too often we deal with these weighty things and forget that we can laugh, it is okay to be humorous, it is okay to poke fun at ourselves, and to not take ourselves so seriously all the time’.

#LetsPray Although The Salvation Army was not the main focus of his study, David says the Army’s social media engagement seems healthy, particularly in ‘closed’ Facebook groups devoted to prayer. ‘One very sad case study focused on a young UK Salvationist who was injured in an accident while on holiday away from family in Australia. A Facebook group was

David’s Top Social Tips 1. Make friends: Follow interesting people on Twitter—not just Christians. Comment on their updates, prefacing your message with the originator’s @-handle.

established to support her, her family and friends. Although, ultimately, the prayers were not answered in the way many had hoped with the young woman passing away, the group continued to provide mutual support as a place for people to mourn.

‘Many had never met each other, and may never do. But the unity, openness and commitment to each other was perhaps something that was achieved more fully online than could have been realised geographically. Also, despite the tragedy, at least one participant found the experience so touching that it nudged them back to a personal relationship with God.’

#WisdomAndGrace As an unexpected social media trailblazer, Pope Benedict XVI’s arrival on Twitter in December 2012 was heralded by the Vatican in advance, so his @pontifex account already had a quarter of a million followers by the time he issued his first tweet. David notes that after a first tweet of greeting, the Pope’s second and third tweets gave a clearer indication as to the potential he saw in this new means of communication: • How can we celebrate the Year of Faith in our daily lives?

• By speaking with Jesus in prayer, listening to what he tells you in the gospel and looking for him in those in need.

However, some who responded to David’s survey indicated that while their denominational leadership wasn’t actively discouraging social media, there was a lack of positive endorsement. This, David says, could be interpreted by some as ‘tacit disapproval of the medium and therefore act as a deterrent’. He suggests leaders could do better at encouraging and resourcing ministers and others within their churches.

Given the likelihood of negative reactions to faith-related social media posts, David suggests more could also be done to equip Christians for the theological debates that arise online.

But this needs to be done with grace and sensitivity, not just clever rhetoric. He points to the ninth most-tweeted Bible verse of 2015: For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline.

‘As social beings, can we interact with one another with gentleness and grace, even where there may be disagreement?

Can we demonstrate the vitality of our faith with clarity and creativity? And can people of faith behave as a community not just of believers, but of fellow humans engaging on an equal footing?’

2. Use hashtags: Many Twitter conversations include one or more hashtags (eg, #SalvationArmy). This makes it easier to search for particular themes. Facebook has got in on the hashtag act as well.

3. ‘Do’ God: If your faith shapes who you are, you’ll want to talk about it. Have you been to your corps (church) today? Tweet about it. Thinking about a Bible passage? Share it in a Facebook status. Praying about something? Tell people. Celebrating answered prayer? Tell even more people!

4. Avoid jargon: According to the vast majority, CO is ‘carbon monoxide’, not ‘corps officer’! Use straightforward language.

5. Share others’ content: Official social media channels are no substitute for personal relationships. Your voice and your network is important. Retweeting Salvation Army social media messages helps us reach a wider audience and at far less cost.

6. Be yourself: Don’t just rehash other people’s material —you’ve got something to say, too. Why are you a Christian?

Why do you belong to The Salvation Army? What are your interests and how can you speak into conversations of those sharing your passions?

7. Don’t leave it to someone else: See something unfairly critical of The Salvation Army? Make sure you’re certain of the facts, then put the record straight in a gentle, kind and truthful way (without making up Army policy).

8. Be salt and light: ‘Your tweets should always be pleasant and interesting, and you should know how to give the right answer to everyone’ (Colossians 4:6, my paraphrase). Social media can dispel misconceptions about the Church and Christians. Have integrity. Don’t brag. Be honest.

9. Include pictures, videos and links: Social media content works best when people can see what you’re talking about. Why not use Vine to create a six-second look at Sunday worship? Or Pinterest to curate your own view of the Salvation Army world?

10. Pick and choose wisely: Not all social-media content claiming to be Christian is edifying. Don’t feel railroaded into re-sharing dubious content, but also don’t be deterred from taking part in awareness campaigns, especially from bona fide organisations.

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Will this be the year?

If you’ve been single for a long time—and would like not to be—you’ll know that as each new year turns over, you can’t help but wonder whether this will be the one when you finally meet your match.

You may be wondering if you need to do anything different this year, or anything more, to meet someone.

Despite what some experts say, there is only so much you can do to change your single status. Yes, you can be more open to dating. You can put yourself out there more. You can attend events where you know there are other singles. You can get online.

There is some truth to this. You won’t meet someone sitting at home. But if you’re a Christian and active in your faith, you are probably already out there.

Part of being a Christian is using your gifts and abilities for God. You won’t simply be sitting at home—you’ll be out serving your community and connecting with others.

ADMIT THE TENSION OF LIVING BETWEEN SURRENDER AND EXPECTANCY.

But even if you’re getting out there, it can be helpful to simply accept you don’t have much control over whether you meet someone or not. This can seem shocking, because as a culture, we don’t do well with lack of control.

We often respond to the problem of singleness in one of two ways. We become very self-sufficient and live as if we don’t need a mate. (If this is you, it may be helpful to consider some more pro-active ways of meeting someone that will allow you to become vulnerable and more open to love). Or we become overly-focused on meeting someone … seeing every situation as a possibility. This puts a lot of pressure on us and can make an idol out of meeting someone.

Both of these coping mechanisms are ways to control our feelings about singleness. The more honest response is to admit the tension of living between surrender and expectancy. We admit to God and ourselves that we have an unmet need. We are honest that our singleness is a personal form of suffering.

Yet we are expectant and put our hope in God. The key here is that our hope is in God, not in marriage. Our hope is that God gives us a deeper, wider, greater, fuller life—on God’s terms. We don’t know why God has chosen this path for us, but we are willing to follow his path into the unknown. That is true surrender, and that is real hope.

RADICAL SINGLENESS The Christian gospel and hope of the future kingdom de-idolised marriage. There was no more radical act in that day and time than to live a life that did not produce heirs … Christians who remained single, then, were making the statement that our future is not guaranteed by the family but by God. Tim Keller The Meaning of Marriage

When Paul speaks of singleness as a gift, he isn’t speaking of a particular ability some people have to be contentedly single. Rather, he’s speaking of the state of being single. As long as you have it, it’s a gift from God, just as marriage will be God’s gift if you ever receive it. We should receive our situation in life, whether it is singleness or marriage, as a gift of God’s grace to us.

Vaughan Roberts Four Things God Says to Singles

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TESTIFY! Gary Eder became an alcoholic as a teenager, after his dad took him down to the pub and he got into a dangerous crowd. If it wasn’t for Jesus, says Gary, he wouldn’t be here today.

I was 14 when my parents separated.

My two sisters and younger brother went to live with my mum, and I chose to live with my dad. He was an alcoholic and started taking me to the pub. I thought I was pretty cool. I should have been studying for my School Certificate, but was getting into the drinking scene instead.

I left home at 16 and began flatting with people much older than me who were into the party scene. I got a job at a local supermarket, but lost it after four months, so I moved to Wellington and got a job at the docks. It was a hard scene, everyone was doing drugs all the time, and some of the guys were in gangs.

With some of the situations I got into over the years, I know I shouldn’t be here today—the drugs I have taken, the alcohol I’ve consumed and the gang pads I’ve been in. My mum has always stuck with me, but my sisters cut me off because they were tired of my attitude.

I’ve got a drunk driving record and have had my car taken off me.

all the tears, the fear, grief, depression, anger and loneliness, I was a shell of a man.

I ended up ill in hospital and knew that I had to get help. I sought counselling with The Salvation Army—where I heard about Recovery Church.

I moved to Woodville to get out of the temptations of the city, and lived across the road from the Sallies. It took me six months to get the courage to go across the road to Recovery Church.

As I got older, I became a very cold, angry person, heavily dependent on alcohol and drugs.

There, I heard about Jesus for the first time. I started to think that maybe this Jesus had been watching over me for a long time. I felt accepted and became part of a church family with wonderful, encouraging Christian people who helped me become closer to Jesus. My faith grew immensely.

I worked for 18 years, mainly doing aluminium joinery, then I lost that job.

I’ve been in many relationships, the last one was for eight years, but she kicked me out. I got myself a credit card and maxed it out in no time. Then I went bankrupt and hit rock bottom. With

I started talking to God all the time.

Gary Stringfellow, the Salvation Army leader at Woodville, took me through a book on discipleship. In one of the chapters was a prayer of commitment.

On 11 June 2016, I prayed that prayer and signed my name to it.

Acquaintances have died. My younger brother got into the drug scene, too, which contributed to his suicide. That’s something I have to live with every day.

I NEED TO HELP PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN BROKEN AND TORN BY THIS WORLD. Jesus is in my life, heart, soul—and he has changed me. With the help of the Holy Spirit, my life is now sober and clean. I’ve done a complete 180 and am learning God’s rules, laws and scripture.

I am trying to make amends and connect with family again.

I am passionate about helping others like me—that is my purpose now. I need to help people who have been broken and torn by this world.

I believe that turning my life over to God, by the blood of Jesus, is the only reason I am alive today. After all those years being ‘lost in space’, as I call it, I am at the apex of the mountain and about to start descending down the other side.

GET YOUR ALCOHOL USE UNDER CONTROL www.salvationarmy.org.nz/Bridge 28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 11

God and Me Time …

It’s really important to spend time with God, but when it comes down to how that happens, one size doesn’t fit all.

BY SHAR DAVIS

Just Do It! 12 firezone.co.nz 28 JANUARY 2017

If you’ve spent time going to church, you’ve probably heard at least one sermon on the importance of spending time with God. Maybe you felt guilty because the preacher said you should pray and read your Bible every day—and sometimes you’re not even sure where you put your Bible! Or that getting up super early in the morning to have ‘a quiet time with God’ is the best way to start the day—but you don’t do early and the word ‘quiet’ gives you the chills.

It’s said, ‘If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.’ So, let’s assume you’re keen as and want to spend time with God each day. You know it’s an important part of growing as a Jesus follower. You’ve nailed the ‘why’, but it’s the ‘how’ that you’re a little stuck on.

FIND WHAT WORKS FOR YOU The first thing to realise is this isn’t a one-size-fits-all thing. You need to find what works for you. And don’t be afraid to mix it up and try different things. Some people love the routine of doing the same thing at the same time every day. Others find it boring and restrictive.

In case you didn’t know, God doesn’t always do things the same way. Just because he responded to you a particular way last time doesn’t mean he will do exactly the same again. Moses learnt this the hard way.

In Exodus 17:6, God told Moses to hit a rock with a big stick and water would come out for the people to drink.

Moses did exactly what God told him to do, and wadda ya know, water flowed out of the rock!

A while later, God told Moses to speak to a rock and that water would flow (Numbers 20:8-12). Moses either wasn’t paying close enough attention to what God said, or he went into autopilot, because he struck the rock with a big stick just like last time, expecting the same result. But God wasn’t wanting an autoresponse. He wanted Moses to listen to God’s voice and respond accordingly.

READING THE BIBLE The Bible is made up of 66 books, 1189 chapters and 31,102 verses. So there’s a lot to read and learn from —but maybe you don’t know where to start or how to get the most out of it. After all, the Bible isn’t like a novel, where you start at the first page and read, page by page, to the end.

You might like to head to the New Testament, starting at Matthew, and read a chapter or so until you find yourself thinking about why Jesus did or said what he did or said. You can pray something along the lines of ‘Holy Spirit, help me be like Jesus. What did you do in Jesus that made him do that? Can you do it in me too?’ You may find yourself spending days or weeks in just one gospel because you are really working on being like Jesus and the Holy Spirit is teaching you lots.

There are some great Bible reading apps you could download if you want a more guided approach. These can be focused around reading the whole Bible in one year, or exploring a particular theme or season.

Youversion.com is a great place to start if you’re looking for an app that might suit you.

A PLACE TO CONNECT Location, location, location—important when buying a house, but what about when spending time with God? Well, yes … and no. God is never limited by our location. I know people who have built a routine of talking to God each day in the shower, on the bus, or even while driving to work (with eyes wide open).

And I know others who have set up a special ‘space’ in their room or house where they intentionally turn their attention to God. It doesn’t matter where, but somewhere that helps you focus your attention on God is best—so probably not in front of the telly! God wants our full attention.

He wants to talk with us and not just be talked at. God isn’t a genie, available to grant three wishes each day, but rather someone who loves you and wants your relationship to grow.

Prayer is an essential part of relating to God. Think of it as talking with your closest friend. How boring and short-lived a friendship would be if your BFF did all the talking and if the moment they finished saying what they wanted to say, they completely ignored you until they wanted to talk at you again. Thanks, but no thanks!

DON’T BE AFRAID TO MIX IT UP AND TRY DIFFERENT THINGS. IDEAS TO TRY There isn’t one correct way to pray. You don’t have to use a special phrase that unlocks a secret way to God’s presence. And you certainly don’t have to try to pray the same way others do. Here are some ideas: • Imagine Jesus is sitting in that empty chair near you, alongside you on your bed, or even sitting in the car with you. Talk to him as you would a friend.

• If your mind is all over the place and you’re suddenly thinking about food or what’s going to happen next on your favourite show, try praying out loud.

• Grab a notebook or journal and write down your prayers. This is a great way to stay focused. It’s also cool to read over past prayers and see how God answered them.

Some people find worship music an important part of connecting with God. It helps focus attention away from their crazy-busy day so they feel closer to God. If you don’t feel like hanging out with God, a few minutes of worship can turn you around. It helps shift the attention off us and our problems. It also helps us remember that ‘God is good and he’s in a good mood.’

It may seem odd to say that God is in a good mood.

But he is. Ever had a friend, teacher or parent whose moods were unpredictable? You’d have to guess their mood and decide if they needed space or if it was okay to talk about what was going on for you. Well, you never need to second guess God’s mood and adjust how you approach him. God is ALWAYS ready and waiting for you to come close without fear or dread.

Developing daily connections with God is the best thing you can do. You might be surprised at what God has to say and how he encourages you. Nike couldn’t have said it better: ‘Just do it!’

YOU Lord, help me be more laid back … and help me do that EXACTLY right!

God, help me keep my mind on one th-Look, a bird-ing at a time.

Lord, help me not be a perfectionist. (Did I spell that correctly?)

God, help me take responsibility for my own actions … even though they’re usually NOT my fault.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 13

An engraving reconstructing Samuel Marsden’s landing at the Bay of Islands, 19 December 1814 | Source: Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand, Ref: PUBL-0158-76

THE WORLD, THE FLESH AND THE DEVIL

BY IAN HUTSON

The Reverend Samuel Marsden had a significant role in the founding history of Australia and New Zealand. However, his influence and contribution has often been misunderstood, with two shorthand and contrasting vignettes providing a simplistic and misleading idea of what Marsden did and who he was.

In Australia, the title of ‘flogging parson’ has seemed to define him as a punitive, moralistic demagogue. As such, Marsden has frequently been cast in a negative role in the narrative of Australia’s history. A religious establishment figure who perhaps personifies everything the modern secular society loves to hate in its mythical identification with the 14 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

non-conformist, ‘larrikin’ and the ‘Aussie battler’.

In New Zealand, Marsden’s reputation has been considerably more positive. His Christmas Day sermon in 1814, seen as marking the arrival of the gospel to this country, became his defining image. Paintings depicting Marsden preaching this sermon have etched him into the New Zealand story in a positive way, certainly among Christians—although later secular historians have tended to highlight the more negative aspects of his life or to largely downplay the significance of his contribution.

Andrew Sharp’s new book, The World, The Flesh and The Devil: The Life and Opinions of Samuel Marsden in England and the Antipodes 1765-1838 (Auckland University Press) opens the lid on the life and times of this remarkable man, who did so much more than many Australians or New Zealanders have thus far been aware of. Sharp is Emeritus Professor of Political Studies at the University of Auckland, and his book gets into Marsden’s mind and life in a time when energetic, strong and innovative leadership was desperately needed.

This history has it all: Christian mission, theology, politics, farming, crime and punishment, frequent interpersonal conflict, cross-cultural relations, weapons trading, war, and yes, even sex. At nearly 800 pages, it’s not for people who like soundbite-sized information. However, those who persevere will be amply rewarded with a greater understanding of early antipodean Christian mission, politics, and the example of an energetic, capable and inspirational Christian leader.

Early life and background to ministry The author starts by describing Marsden’s formative years —from his birth, in 1765, to Thomas and Bathsheba Marsden in the tiny rural hamlet of Bagley, six miles west of Leeds in England. His parents were devout Wesleyan Methodists and their influence and that of evangelical leaders in the West Riding region had a profound impact on Marsden and his faith. Thomas and Bathsheba supported their son so that, having started out as a blacksmith’s apprentice, he rose above his station in life in a country where moving upwards in class was unusual.

Marsden was to rub shoulders with many Christian leaders who were influential in national church circles—and even some, such as John Newton and William Wilberforce, who are remembered widely to this day. Marsden was acutely aware of sin and saw Satan in his life and within the world as a definite reality. This was clearly evident in how he sought to carry out God’s mission in the antipodes in the context of a world on the edge of the civilisation as he understood it. Marsden’s theology is given a significant focus in the book as the foundation to what he thought and did—as encapsulated in the book’s title.

The founding of Australia When Marsden arrived in the fledgling penal colony of Australia in 1794, he found a series of penal encampments overseen by a Governor who had been granted absolute military and civil control by the King of England. Marsden picked up the demanding role of clergyman, farmer, magistrate and organiser of schools, and over time, either the Governor’s ally or antagonist.

The picture that emerges in Sharp’s book is of a man who by sheer force of personality develops the church in this new country, starts schools, carries out the role of magistrate, contributes to the development of farming and becomes a significant community leader.

Early Australia had high levels of drunkenness, prostitution, theft, violence and corruption, and Marsden’s theological views meant he felt compelled to address this at whatever level was appropriate—whether at an individual level or governmental level, with the poorest convict or the Governor himself. Sharp says this was where Marsden’s greatest strength and weakness lay. On one hand, he was a courageous fighter for what he believed was right. On the other, he and other leaders of that era had a tendency to regard any disagreements as a personal attack on their amour-propre (honour).

This led to incendiary attacks on one another throughout the colony, amplified by the media, with the subsequent lobbying of politicians and church leaders in England.

Marsden had many such battles, most notably with Governor Macquarie. Later in his life, Marsden was widely honoured for his part in the forming of the nation, with Sharp saying the emotive attacks made on Marsden have been given too much credence by later historians.

This history has it all: Christian mission, theology, politics, farming, crime and punishment, frequent interpersonal conflict, crosscultural relations, weapons trading, war, and yes, even sex.

Involvement in the New Zealand mission The author describes Marsden as having been very much attracted to the native Māori New Zealanders. He was noted as admiring their intelligence, sense of humour and vivacity, and it was this that appears to have motivated him to start a mission in New Zealand. For the next 20 to 30 years, Marsden worked to set up and then maintain a Christian mission there.

The prolific correspondence between the missionaries in New Zealand, Marsden and missionary societies in England are well mined to help explain exactly what was going on. If the early missionaries in New Zealand were looking for adventure, they certainly got more than they bargained for! Struggling to secure enough food to sustain their families, caught in the middle of the musket wars, the spectacle of cannibalistic feasts, fearing for their lives, struggling to get any response to the gospel, and living in extreme isolation made for a kind of pressure most would struggle to cope with.

Such a context was taxing on everyone. In the early years, the missionaries did not work well together. There were frequent conflicts around who had seniority, what tasks were beneath one’s station, inadequate resourcing, marriage problems, sexual immorality and, against strict Church Missionary Society rules, trading in weapons. The dialogue leading up to the development of the Treaty of Waitangi and Marsden’s thinking about it certainly helps fill in the picture of why the Treaty was necessary.

Sharp describes well how Marsden as a leader responded to these difficulties, and gives an insight to the man and his motives. One cannot but be impressed by the energy and courage Marsden displays over decades until the mission in New Zealand solidifies and begins to flourish. This mission remained an abiding passion up to his death in 1837.

The author explores all the dynamics of the New Zealand and Australian scenarios to examine the character and life of Samuel Marsden to great effect. What emerges is the picture of an energetic and committed man whose life is congruent with his belief in God. Marsden’s insecurities and deficiencies are identified, along with the incredible leadership he demonstrated in his founding of the church and wider society in both nations. A definitive piece of work.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 15

Spiritual Renewal the Focus for New Leaders War Cry’s editor sat down with Commissioners Andy and Yvonne Westrupp on their first day in the office as the new leaders of New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga Territory.

What were your formative Salvation Army experiences?

A: I met the Army in my home town of Nelson. There was some turmoil in my family, so the corps officer stepped in and did his ‘Salvation Army thing’, offering me a place to stay and giving me some direction. When I found the Army—or when the Army found me—it was like finding a glove that fit my hand. I just loved everything about the Army! I got saved when I was 17, became a soldier and went into uniform. Someone taught me to play a cornet, someone gave me a guitar … and I was away.

The corps officer was looking for a basketball player for a youth event in Christchurch. He asked if I’d make up the numbers—but didn’t tell me about the youth meetings on Sunday. That’s where I made my first decision for Christ.

There was a complete change of lifestyle for me from this, a change of environment, a change of friends.

At my first youth councils as a soldier, they made the appeal for officership, I thought it sounded fantastic. I was the first one up there. I just totally knew it was me! I saw officership as an opportunity to give my life to something that was meaningful—and that’s how it’s worked out.

Y: I grew up as the child of Salvation Army officers on Rotoroa Island, where the Army had an addiction centre.

It wasn’t a typical corps; there was a chapel service but no kid’s programme. I was never a junior soldier or anything like that, but I always knew God was real. We had family devotions and that’s where I learnt to read the Bible. So the Christian faith was foundational for me. I made my first decision for God at 11, and after that it was about taking further steps in my spiritual journey.

We moved to Auckland City Corps when I was 14, which was quite a culture shock. Then my family moved to Dunedin South Corps about a year before Andy did. Young people like us, in their late teens and early twenties, were local officers in the corps and it was a great place for discipleship. The older people really did believe in and invest in us. I’d love to see that happen more today.

What did you learn from your three years leading The Salvation Army in Papua New Guinea?

A: Papua New Guinea is a land of extremes. Extreme wonder, and extreme need and danger. Every week there was a crisis on a level we don’t encounter in New Zealand, so we needed to dig deep and find the resources to cope 16 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

with these extremes. It taught me how much you can rely on God and on prayer in really difficult situations. We were very aware of prayer support from home. There were situations where things could have gone very bad, but we would look at each other at the end of the day and say, ‘Well, we were looked after there. That was God.’ Y: Like Andy, I learnt about faith and trust in God. And I’m probably still going to learn that again, because I’m a person who prefers to know what is going to happen and to feel secure in that. But Papua New Guinea prides itself on being the land of the unexpected. And I’ve discovered that God is like that—the God of the unexpected. We never quite know what is going to happen next, but I know God is ahead of me and I can trust what he’s doing. I feel that as we come into this new appointment.

What has given you the most satisfaction as officers?

Y: For me, it’s seeing people discover who they are in God and where they fit in ministry and life. That excites me!

A: And for me, it’s the discovery of how to be relevant to unchurched people. That would be one of the highlights of my ministry journey. It started when we were at Spreydon Corps. With Bridge clients coming to Spreydon, we had to be relevant, preach relevantly and be authentic. It did not make sense to people who were battling drug and alcohol addiction to come into this Christianese environment. We were then given the opportunity to transfer some of the things we’d learnt to planting Johnsonville Corps.

How would you describe The Salvation Army to those who think we’re only a charity?

A: The charitable aspect is important. It’s part of who we are and what makes us unique. There is no getting away from the fact that we are God’s idea in terms of evangelism, Christianity in action, the gospel. It’s just who we are.

Y: The Salvation Army is the ‘salvation’ army. It’s about wholeness of life; your spiritual, mental, physical … everything about life. And that’s why the Army is involved in the spiritual and in helping—in restoration and renewal.

What challenges and opportunities are before us?

A: Our falling rolls in New Zealand. It’s the little red blinking light on the dashboard. If we continue to suffer falling numbers of people getting saved and becoming soldiers, this will change the ability of the Army to be what it is.

Y: And staying relevant to unchurched, non-Christian people. If we’re not speaking their language, understanding their world and communicating to them where they are at, we’re not being relevant.

A: We have a long history of innovation, and we can innovate again. We can! People say the Army can’t change, but it can. We’ve done it many times in our history. We’ve seen it several times in our own officership. If we want to enough, we can change to become more relevant.

Y: There are opportunities everywhere you look. For me, the thing is deciding: ‘What is God’s opportunity at this time?’, so we’re focused on that, rather than on trying to do too many things. I think because we naturally want to help people, everything that comes to us we want to do—because there’s a need or there’s a door open—but we need to focus on what is God’s opportunity. We have so many open doors to connect with people through what we’re already dong. We’re not always going through those doors, but we could choose to do that. We just need to make up our mind to do it.

WE BELIEVE IN THE ABSOLUTE IMPORTANCE OF SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION. What is your reaction to our new Mission Plan?

Y: We both love that phrase: ‘the Army that brings life’! I think that describes who we want to be, and who we are in many situations.

A: We’ve picked up that it is important to people in the territory to reinvigorate the join between corps and social.

And we agree. We like that it’s about putting Jesus first. If we get that right, everything else will follow.

What is key to us achieving God’s purposes at this time?

A: Spiritual temperature!

Y: Discerning the Holy Spirit’s direction and being outward focused. The default is always to us, but we need to overcome that default and keep looking to others.

A: It’s true of every organisation that there’s a natural tendency to look inward and look after each other. You know: My songs, my seat, my way of doing things. What we’ve got to do is sacrifice those things. And it is a real sacrifice to face outward. But outward is where we face the communities that we’re actually here for.

Are you aware of developments in our Māori work?

Y: It excites us to see how this is going forward. I have a long heritage in this area—my great-grandfather worked up the Whanganui River as an officer and was fluent in Te Reo Māori. My uncle worked up the East Coast for many years.

We also have family connections with Ngāti Kahungunu.

So we are excited to see the growth and it’s important to take further steps. That may challenge some of our ways of doing things, but we need to face that challenge if we truly want to walk forward together in mission.

In what ways are you looking forward to reconnecting with Salvationists in Fiji and Tonga?

A: We better understand the people of Fiji and Tonga after our experiences with the Melanesian cultures of Papua New Guinea—which is not one culture, but many. We are looking forward to engaging with our brothers and sisters in Fiji and Tonga, reigniting old friendships.

Y: We value and admire their vibrant spontaneous worship and passion for God’s Word. We’re excited by the start of the Army’s addictions work in Fiji, and it will be interesting to explore other options for the Army in both countries.

Yvonne, as Territorial President of Women’s Ministries, how will you approach our engagement with women?

Y: We have a great heritage already with valuing women, and I want to see that continue and be enhanced. I hope to hear from the women of the territory about what God is saying to us as women and where we go next, looking at what works and doesn’t work, and at what doors are opening for us. I don’t have any fixed plans. I just want to hear from people and hear from God. But I do strongly believe that women are important and that they are gifted.

What direction is God giving you as you commence your term as territorial leaders?

A: We see ourselves working through the leaders that we have, and through the prayer that is already going on in the territory. We want to build on the good work of Commissioners Robert and Janine Donaldson. We are so grateful for the foundation they established with our new Mission Plan and changes around governance.

Our emphasis will be in the area of spiritual renewal.

We believe in the absolute importance of spiritual transformation, without which we are not going to have people getting saved, we’re not going to be relevant to people, we’re not going to equip leaders. At their core, all these things are to do with people having empowered relationships with the Lord.

That’s what we bring from our most recent experience in Papua New Guinea. For all its brokenness, and all of its life and death tragedy, there was spiritual fervour—a deep spiritual dynamism focused on seeing people saved.

People were so committed to God and the gospel of Jesus Christ. In more developed countries, people are often fighting each other over little bits and pieces, but if we can be more fervent towards the things of God then these other things will fall away.

Y: Strategic, innovative leadership is something that captures us, because it’s just a natural part of who we are.

So we intend to be strategic. And to take a positive outlook on things, so that people have hope that together we can do this. We can bring life, we can make a difference!

Most of all, as Andy has said, our emphasis will be on spiritual renewal. We need to connect again with what the Holy Spirit is saying. We really need to see God so we can have that Holy Spirit energy and direction to go forward.

That’s what we would like to see happen—and that’s where we perceive God is leading us as territorial leaders.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 17

Bringing Together Faith and Māori Culture A discipleship course by Māori for Māori is providing new opportunities for Salvationists to strengthen their faith and cultural identity.

A group of 12 Salvationists are studying to become kaiārahi to teach the course, ‘Te Whare Io’. The group began their twoyear training last year on the course, which is designed as a way of helping Māori reconcile their culture and their Christian faith and is based on the model of a whare, with Christ as the central pole holding up the building The course was written by Joanne and Frane Rosandich and is the latest step in a 22-year journey for the pair working on ways to live out their faith without sidelining their culture.

‘We believe God is outside of culture, but he created man inside culture,’ Frane said.

Soon after being saved, in Napier in 1995, they began running a meeting of Māori Christians called Ngā Kaihiki, in their home, as well as seeking ways to express their culture in church. Recognising a need, they started turning that knowledge into a course in about 2008, Joanne said.

This included developing what they believe may be the only internationally-accredited model of assessment for a Māori training programme, based on 40 questions asked by Jesus in the gospel of Mark. The course is divided into 51 sections and designed to be studied at whatever speed suits the learners.

Flaxmere Corps Sergeant Major Mark Hawkins is one of the group studying to become a kaiārahi of the course. He said Te Whare Io helped marry faith and culture in a way that puts God first, without forcing people to give up part of their identity—something Kiwi churches have not been good at.

‘For many Māori—and I’ve been through it myself—you’re told you must give up your culture to be a Christian.’ Instead, Te Whare Io had helped him to recognise that he was created by God as someone who was Māori, he said. ‘When I realised that I thought, “So, who were we created to be?” and the answer, of course, is children of God, regardless of culture.’

Having the course was an exciting tool, Mark said, part of an increasing move in some places to recognising Māori culture

Tribute: Major Laurence Padman

18 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

and including Māori fully as a part of church. ‘It has been really nice to see more places making Māori feel more comfortable, not ashamed of who they are or trying to hide their identity, because no one can really engage with God if you are ashamed of who you are.’

Mark has been a member of Ngā Kaihiki since 1999 and was the Rosandich’s first link to Te Ope Whakaora, along with his wife Shona who joined Ngā Kaihiki soon after. Through Shona the couple met Major Annette Garrett, who arranged meetings with senior Salvation Army members where Joanne and Frane proposed training a series of leaders to help deliver the course.

They selected the group studying to become kaiārahi from 50 Salvationists who attended five wānanga from 2013-16, taking them through the introductions to Te Whare Io. Although it had taken years, Frane said the pair greatly appreciated the partnership they had developed with The Salvation Army’s Māori Ministry and were excited to share what they feel is a much-needed programme that God has brought about at the right time.

‘Within The Salvation Army, all the participants who have come to us have been dry and thirsty for what we’re offering.

Every one has said to their leaders, “We want Te Whare Io!” ’

Major Laurence Padman was promoted to Glory from Hamilton on 27 November 2016.

He was born in Dunedin on 8 June 1929 and entered the Salvation Army Training College in 1949 in the ‘Peacemakers’ Session from North Dunedin Corps. Laurence was commissioned on 16 January 1950 and appointed Corps Officer to Sumner, followed by appointments to Nightcaps, Miramar and Foxton Corps.

While at Foxton Corps, Laurie married 2nd Lieutenant Betty Bush on 5 July 1952.

Laurie and Betty served together as Corps Officers at Foxton, Tamaki, Dargaville, Avondale, Tawa and Greymouth Corps.

In 1966, Laurie was appointed Divisional Youth Secretary, Central North Division.

Further corps appointments followed at

Lower Hutt, Blenheim, Whangarei, Petone, Dunedin Fortress and Tauranga Corps.

In 1989, Laurie and Betty were appointed Managers of the Family Care Centre, Whangarei, then Assistant Managers of the Maureen Plowman Eventide Home, and finally Corps Officers, Kawerau Corps.

The Padmans retired from active service on 1 July 1994. Major Betty Padman was promoted to Glory in April 2013.

A service to celebrate Major Laurence Padman’s life was held at Hamilton City Corps on 2 December, led by son-in-law Major Elwyn Grigg, assisted by Major Anthony Stone.

Please uphold Major Raewyn Grigg, Kenneth Padman and other family members at this time.

Global Mission Campaign For the past few years, the international Salvation Army has used annual campaigns to strengthen the spiritual lives and mission of Salvationists. The Whole World Praying created a wave of prayer meetings around the world, while the Whole World Reading had Salvationists reading through the Bible over a year.

Building on this momentum, 2017 is to be The Whole World Mobilising. General André Cox is dreaming of an Army where every officer, soldier, adherent, employee, youth and child is actively mobilising: spreading the good news of the gospel, reaching out in practical ways, ministering to the needs of their communities and daily putting their faith into action.

This idea of mobilising everyone for mission ties in well with our new Mission Plan practice of Doing Mission Together. So over this year, we’ll be encouraging corps and centres to participate in simple mobilising efforts: 1. Prayer walks: go and pray in strategic locations around your community 2. Taking it to the Streets: do one thing extra as a corps/ centre to get out and engage with your local community 3. Be more visible: encourage Salvationists to wear witness wear. Attend events as a group, such as your local Anzac Day parade; Waitangi Day celebrations, etc.

4. Personal action: encourage Salvationists to do one thing extra to engage with someone in their community, such as meeting their neighbours or organising a street BBQ. 5. Youth and children’s day: resources are being sent to all corps to support a special youth and children’s day in March (May in Tonga).

6. Promote soldiership: an Army needs soldiers, and we would like more people to understand the mission and DNA of The Salvation Army, so we’ll be offering gift packs to anyone completing a Mission Matters or Next Step course during 2017.

Corps and centres will receive resource packs, and we hope you will choose to get involved as you are able. May God bless our efforts to bring life to the people with whom we engage, encourage us each in our faith as we serve him, and bring a sense of unity around the Salvation Army world!

BY ALASTAIR KENDREW GET INVOLVED | Visit https://mobilising.salvationarmy. org. Check out the blog to follow activities around the world. A mobile app is being launched in February.

Use #TheWholeWorldMobilising on social media.

GAZETTE International Appointments: Effective 1 Feb: Mjr Garth Stevenson, Senior Training Officer, College for Officer Training, Southern Africa Territory; Mjr Suzanne Stevenson, Extension Training Officer, College for Officer Training, Southern Africa Territory. Please pray for Majors Garth and Suzanne Stevenson as they prepare for their international service appointments in the Southern Africa Territory, based in Johannesburg.

Appointments: Effective 4 Jan: Mjr Edwina Herring, Community Ministries Team Leader, Linwood Corps (part-time appointment in retirement). Effective 12 Jan: Mjr Glenys Fairhurst, 12 Steps Facilitator, Centre for Leadership Development, Booth College of Mission (additional part-time appointment); Mjr Ivan Bezzant, Senior Denominational Defence Force Chaplain Salvation Army, Programme Department, Territorial Headquarters (additional parttime appointment); Mjr Michael Allwright, Property Support Officer, Property

Department, Territorial Headquarters; Mjr Phillippa Serevi, Divisional Leadership Development Secretary (additional), Fiji Division. Effective 30 Jan: Mjr Wendy Andrews, Assistant Divisional Secretary for Personnel, Southern Division. Effective 23 March: Mjrs Grace and Steven Lim, Corps Officer, Auckland City Korean Corps, Northern Division; Lts Dong-cheol (Daniel) In and Jeong-yune (Gabrielle) Choi, Corps Officer, North Shore Korean Corps Plant, Northern Division. We acknowledge the service of Major Kim, Byoung-sun and Major Park, Yoon-hee as Corps Officers, Auckland City Korean Corps since Feb 2011. They will returning to Korea for new appointments in March. Miramar Corps: Capts Brad and Fleur Carpenter, Corps Officers, Miramar Corps, Central Division, are on medical leave from 12 Jan. David Medland, a soldier at Miramar Corps, commences as Corps Leader from 24 Jan. Please pray for Brad and Fleur Carpenter, David Medland and the Miramar Corps as they prepare for these leadership changes.

Bereaved: Mjr Anthony Stone of his father, Brother Lester Stone, on 28 Dec 2016. The funeral was at Wellington South Corps on 4 Jan, conducted by Mjr Anthony Stone, assisted by Comm Alistair Herring. Please uphold the family in prayer.

Resignation: The Territorial Commander announces with regret the resignation from officership of Mjr Jeannine and Capt Josevata (Joe) Serevi, effective 7 February. Jeannine was commissioned on 9 Dec 1995 and Joe was commissioned on 13 Dec 2003. They have served in a number of appointments: as Corps Officers of Papakura Corps (Jeannine), Hawera Corps, Kilbirnie Corps, and Clendon Corps Plant. In addition, Jeannine held appointments as Assistant to the Territorial Candidates Secretary and Divisional Candidates Secretary, Central Division, and Joe was Chaplain of Employment Plus in Hawera. We thank Jeannine and Joe for their service and pray God’s blessing on them and their family in the days ahead.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 19

A BEAUTIFUL MESS An abridged excerpt from the book A Beautiful Mess: How God Re-Creates Our Lives, by Canadian Salvation Army officer and social justice champion Major Danielle Strickland. (Part 1 of 2)

BY DANIELLE STRICKLAND

We should start at the beginning. It’s how it all began. The world was created out of chaos. It’s familiar in every single creation account on the planet and, if we are honest, it’s also present in every one of our personal lives. Chaos. Chaos is an invitation to rearrange everything.

It’s the starting place for creation. It’s the bucket of paint the artist can make into something beautiful. It’s the possibility things can change—for the better.

For many people, chaos is a negative word. Something that has to be righted; to be sorted out or perhaps hidden to create the illusion of order. Common understanding tells us chaos is only ever a destructive force, quickly needing to be nailed down so order can be brought to situations personally and in our work scenarios.

But what if there was a different way to understand chaos?

What if chaos was a good thing? What if it was the root of all creativity? What if it was the beginning of growth, 20 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

PART 1: INEVITABLE CHAOS personally and amongst the people and organisations we lead? What if it was the seedbed of social change and transformation? What if it loosed the chains of injustice? What if it set captives free and began the process of repair in people’s lives? What if it did its thing and everyone saw that it was ‘good’?

Chaos first So here’s the deal. Growth, whether personal or within an organisational structure, can only happen as a result of embracing chaos. Too many people have bought the idea that life is better without chaos, that unknowns are undesirable and the unexplainable is unnecessary.

C.S. Lewis, in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, depicts Lucy standing at the wardrobe, with nowhere else to go. She is in the middle of an exciting game of hide-and-seek. There is literally just one place to hide and it is inside the wardrobe. Lucy thinks it is like any other wardrobe, stuffed full of old coats and easily measurable in terms of size, and therefore a place of safety. She will stay in that musty space for as long as it takes. With her heart bounding, waiting to be found, she extends her hand out in front of her expecting to find the full extent of the depth of the wardrobe and so know just how far in she can hide.

GROWTH CAN ONLY HAPPEN AS A RESULT OF EMBRACING CHAOS. BUT WHAT IF WE HAVE MADE A FRIEND OF COMFORT INSTEAD OF CHANGE? But instead of touching the ‘edge’, she finds more ‘space’, space she can neither understand nor fathom. It literally makes no sense to her. It isn’t how it is meant to be. But instead of running away from this void, Lucy moves towards it, embracing the potential and fear of what might be found there. And to her delight, so begins the story of a whole new world.

An old Hebraic story describes the creation of the world. It begins with Yahweh moving over the chaos and void.

Here’s my paraphrase: God created the heavens and the earth—all you see, all you

don’t see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness.

God’s Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.

The imagery is potent: God above the chaos, yet strongly present in it.

The story continues through a series of phases: first comes LIGHT, then EXPANSE, then LAND, then SEASONS, then LIFE, then REPRODUCTION, and finally REST. And this story gives us a divine pattern to the way of things. We call this ‘a beautiful mess’. It’s how God re-creates life.

Reordering what is important What God creates is very good. That’s how he put it. Like an artist who can’t wait to show you what has emerged— like a mum and dad as they hold up their little baby; like a gardener, stepping back with dirt under his fingernails to admire the sheer beauty of the created—very good indeed.

It all beings with chaos, but we live in a culture that seeks to hide chaos. To admit there is chaos in your life is a sign of weakness and failure. To not have it together or to not have life seemingly sorted, at least on the outside, is to have somehow dropped the Holy Grail.

For many people, this results in quite a significant cover-up job, where lives appear to have a serene veneer masking unanswered questions, swathes of selfdoubt and stunted personal growth.

The truth is that we are afraid of things we can’t control. Chaos is uncontrollable—by its definition you can’t predict what it will do or what effect it will have. This makes those of us who fear change and lack of control very uneasy. We like to know what we are facing and we like to control our environment.

But chaos doesn’t care about our fear.

Chaos enters and turns everything upside down. Perhaps this is the right treatment for those of us afraid of change and of circumstances outside our control. This ‘mess’ called chaos reorders things in our lives—shifting and changing our values and reminding us of what’s most important.

Making friends with chaos I’ve been intrigued by the current popularity of zombies. What is it about

zombies and the possibility of apocalypse that has captured the attention of a generation? Most of the people I’ve asked about this suggest that underneath the extreme controls of our modern world we wonder about deeper things and what really matters. If all the shiny controlled neatness of our lives were taken away, what would be left?

What would really matter?

What about the leading of programmes and initiatives? The same is true. To run a business that is efficient but strangely similar to what it has been for the past x years is hailed by many as a good place to work and a mark of success. But a closer look informs you that life has been drained out of the organisation. It could be merely going through the motions, and creativity has been successfully subdued in honour of predictable and controllable order.

What if the pursuit of order has created a love of the status quo and removed the passion for justice? What if we have made a friend of comfort instead of change, and as a result removed ourselves from the responsibility that demands we fight for change to happen?

Wasn’t it out of chaos that apartheid ended and the Iron Curtain fell?

Living is about functioning effectively with the unknown, about finding the path to the next landing point without necessarily knowing the destination or the route to take in advance. It is about being comfortable in what feels chaotic and recognising the huge creativity and beauty of that place.

Order your own copy of A Beautiful Mess from Amazon.com

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.

I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end.

Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.

But I believe that the desire to please you does, in fact, please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.

And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it.

Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.

Thomas Merton Thoughts in Solitude

PONDERTHIS What is my first response to the thought of chaos? What does this response tell me about myself?

How do I feel about unanswered questions and unresolved situation —personally and in the work context?

When did I last experience chaos? What came about as a result?

How do I as a friend help others understand situations of chaos?

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 21

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Across 7 Also-rans 8 Cut off 9 FIFA game 10 Vichyssoise ingredient 11 Instructors 12 Totalling 13 Need electrons to function 18 Little rock 20 Gifted 22 Exact copy 23 Got 24 Chief officials 25 Large linen pieces

Down 1 Senior military rank 2 Standing 3 What’s left behind 4 Moan 5 Tried 6 Taking a breather 8 Drawings 14 Red fruit 15 Bear in mind 16 Retells 17 Abandons 19 Providing no shelter 21 Up-to-the-minute

PRAY Saweni, Sigatoka, Suva Central, Sydenham, Talasiu and Taupo Corps, Māori Ministry and The Salvation Army in Spain and Portugal.

24/7 Prayer is an idea as ancient as the Church that has found new life and fresh voice. Will we let our voice be heard?

24/7 Prayer: • Is challenging, creative and mission-focused • unites age groups and people at all stages of faith—anyone can take part!

• calls us to set aside the familiar and safe ways, and open ourselves to new ways of being in God’s presence.

• imagine what will change within us and in our world as we dedicate quality time to prayer As we STOP // as we WAIT // as we PRAY

OFFICIAL ENGAGEMENTS Commissioners Andy (Territorial Commander) and Yvonne Westrupp (Territorial President of Women’s Ministries) 8 Feb: State of the Nation Launch (Wellington) (TC) 10 Feb: Officers Councils, Fiji 11–12 Feb: Welcome to Cadets, Fiji 14 Feb: Officers Councils and Regional Meeting, Tonga 20–22 Feb: Officers Councils, Midland Division 26–27 Feb: Officers Councils, Northern Division Colonels Willis Howell (Chief Secretary) and Barbara Howell (Territorial Secretary for Women’s Ministries) 8 Feb: State of the Nation Launch (Wellington) (CS) 11–12 Feb: Welcome to Cadets, Fiji

Want to Know More?

I would like:

A musical expression of worship by the youth of The Salvation Army

to learn about who Jesus is information about The Salvation Army The Salvation Army to contact me prayer for the following needs:

Christchurch City Corps Opening Christchurch City Corps’ new building, located on the corner of Colombo and Salisbury Streets, will be officially opening on Saturday 29 April.

Name Email Address

Shop online at

salvationarmy.or.nz/shop

Phone

22 WarCry 28 JANUARY 2017

Quiz Answers: 1 Tokyo, Japan, 2 Taste, 3 MM, 4 Māori who fought on the British side, 5 Good news.

Crossword Answers: (Across) 7 Losers, 8 Isolated, 9 Football, 10 Potato, 11 Teachers, 12 Adding, 13 Electronics, 18 Pebble, 20 Talented, 22 Mirror, 23 Obtained, 24 Referees, 25 Sheets. (Down) 1 Colonel, 2 Vertical, 3 Estate, 4 Complain, 5 Tasted, 6 Resting, 8 Illustrations, 14 Cherries, 15 Consider, 16 Recites, 17 Deserts, 19 Barren, 21 Latest.

Send to: warcry@nzf.salvationarmy.org or War Cry, PO Box 6015, Marion Square, Wellington 6141

Mad Libs

The holidays are almost over. Find a friend to play this missing words game. Start by asking your friend to fill in these missing words: 1. Friend’s name: ................................ ....................

2. A favourite superhero: .......................... .............

3. Adjective (describing word): .................................................................. .............

4. Number under 100: .......................... ..................

5. Holiday destination: .......................... .................

6. Day of the week: .................................. ...............

7. Party food: ........................................ ..................

8. A flavour: ................................................ .............

9. Your favourite drink: ........................ ..................

10. Your favourite food: ........................ ....................

11. Something alive: .................................. ...............

12. Verb (action word): .......................... ..................

13. Silly sound: ........................................ .................

14. Verb: .................................................. ..................

15. Piece of clothing: .................................. ..............

16. Part of the body: ................................ ................

17. School subject: .................................. .................

18. Adjective: .......................................... ..................

19. Plural noun (people, places or thing s): .................................................................. .............

20. Emotion: ................................................ .............

Matthew 16:15–16, GNT

Now read this letter back to them:

Dear [1]

2017. This year, your Welcome back to school for er. you’ll have a [3] time togeth teacher is [2] and we know that in your class this year. But You will have [4] students it [5] vis e half of you are going to won’t be a problem becaus every [6].

[8] [9]. hy lunch. Include [7] and a Don’t forget to pack a healt ing yone eating [10] food, it’s go But be warned! If we see an in the bin! ve a [11] that will [12] while This year, every class will ha it, s a [13] sound, don’t look at ke ma it If . ing dy stu are u yo one wants that! otherwise it will [14]—and no ng ol, make sure you are weari ho sc at ck ba y da st fir ur On yo you won’t be able to do [17].

[15] on your [16], otherwise hool on. And don’t forget our sc so u yo g ein se to rd wa for I look .’ is a school of [20] students motto: ‘A school of [18] [19]

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‘What about you?’

Jesus asked them.

‘Who do you say I am?’

Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’

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In the first few weeks of school, your teacher will ask you questions to find out what you know.

You’ll get some answers right, but it’s okay to get some wrong, because it means your teacher will know what you still need to learn.

Jesus taught lots of people, but he had a special group of friends that he spent a lot of time teaching —his disciples. One day he asked them a question: ‘Who do people say I am?’

Perhaps some of them weren’t sure and maybe they looked at the ground so Jesus wouldn’t ask them any more hard questions. One answered ‘John the Baptist’ and another said ‘Elijah’.

Then Jesus asked, ‘Who do YOU say I am?’

Peter got really excited and yelled out, ‘You are the Messiah (which means Saviour), the Son of God.’ Jesus was pleased. ‘You are right, Peter!’ he said. ‘And you know that because God told you.’

This year, some of your friends might ask you who Jesus is. Be ready to tell them Jesus is the saviour of the world who came here to show us the way to God.

Dear Jesus, when people ask questions about you, help me to be ready with a good answer. Teach me the right words to say. Amen.

28 JANUARY 2017 WarCry 23

Top view Answers: 1–8; 2–12; 3–10; 4–11; 5–9; 6–7.

Territorial Welcome to the New Leaders of The Salvation Army in New Zealand, Fiji & Tonga, Commissioners Andy and Yvonne Westrupp Sunday 5 February, Wellington City Corps, 92 Vivian Street 2.00 pm Installation of our new Territorial Leaders to be conducted by

Commissioner Brian Peddle (the Chief of the Staff) and Commissioner Rosalie Peddle (International Secretary for Women’s Ministries).

10.30 am The Chief of the Staff will preach at Wellington City Corps.

With musical support from SpiritSong and the National Youth Band.