CHARLIE’S ANGELS
BY BRAD ROWLAND AND JOSHUA MUIR
In 2010, Charlie Borowczak’s parents adopted an angel from The Salvation Army Angel Tree program, and his life has simply never been the same. Borowczak explains that his parents were attempting to “model the spirit of giving” for the then-six-year-old, and that aim was clearly fulfilled.
“My mom explained to me that there are some families that can’t afford Christmas gifts for their kids,” Borowczak says. “As a sixyear-old, it didn’t fully sink in right away. But at Christmas, I was standing there holding my little slip of paper of the angel I adopted, and we were talking about it. I glanced under the tree at my own presents, then back at the angel, and I paused, and a light bulb goes off in my brain that this is a real need. Because of what we did, there is another kid that gets presents tomorrow morning, and that, growing up, it was never something I had to worry about. That’s when it sunk in how important this type of project is in so many communities across America.”
After that seminal moment, Borowczak says he found clear inspiration that spurred immediate action. “I remember what that moment felt like, and I was like, ‘I want to do this again, and I want to make this tradition.’”
The following year, Borowczak raised money–as an elementary school student–to adopt two angels on his own. “I made a video for family and friends asking them to hire me for odd jobs, and so on,” he explains. Then, the next year, he did the same. Eventually, his self-described “angel project” outgrew his own individual capabilities, and he launched “Charlie’s Angels,” a team of volunteers who continue to aid Charlie in shopping for the gifts to present to children using the money he raised to adopt them.
By the time Borowczak was a senior in high school, he had raised approximately $70,000 and adopted 700 angels in a single Christmas season. “I’m so thankful to the donors, and we wouldn’t be where we are without them,” he says.
After beginning his undergraduate studies at Texas A&M University, Charlie took his freshman year off from the project, making sure to “get his feet under him” in a new
Angels...” continued on page 2
Viral Views Bring in Angel Tree Toys
BY MAJOR FRANK DURACHER
Normally on social media, when a post goes “viral” it’s an ultimate accomplishment, like hitting a game-winning home run. But when that post results in blessing hundreds of deserving children at Christmastime, that’s even better!
That is what happened when Kathaleen
Mallard posted a series of videos about the Army’s Angel Tree program on her TikTok account. She initially didn’t expect so many “likes” from across the country and even around the world, resulting in donations to the Angel Tree program promoted by the corps in Henderson, North Carolina.
The result is evidence of the influence of young adults through social media.
“I actually began doing this last year, when my mom was stationed in Winston-Salem,” Kathaleen says. During Christmas 2023 she produced videos from that area command’s Angel Tree program, which obviously set the stage for an unprecedented response to this year’s effort—now in Henderson with her mom’s transfer last June.
“Kathaleen was posting behind the scenes videos about the Angel Tree online,” says Major Beth Mallard, Kathaleen’s mom and Henderson Corps officer. “One video I clicked on had 123,000 likes and more than one million views. We started getting presents from all over the country.”
The bubbly 22-year-old isn’t keeping up with vital statistics about her followers, but she figures that “likes” and “comments” have come from most, if not all, of the nation’s 50 states.
“I do know that toy donations have come from generous people in Washington State and California, which would probably be the farthest donation origin,” she says.
Her nationwide donors typically purchase and ship the toys for their adopted angels through Amazon. Kathaleen’s grandfa -
“Viral Views...” continued on page 2
“Charlie’s
Photos provided by Charlie Borowczak
Kathaleen Mallard’s Angel Tree posts brought some two million views and over 100,000 likes from around the world.
The packages are brought inside to be properly sorted and readied for parents/guardians to receive them just before Christmas.
“Charlie’s Angels...” continued from page 1
environment. He wasn’t exactly sure how things would restart, but a group of friends in his unit within the institution’s Corps of Cadets encouraged him to keep things going.
“They didn’t know me in high school, and I didn’t know them before I got here,” Borowczak says. “They’re my best friends now, but I didn’t know any of them. And they were the ones who put the calling into me to restart it. I asked, ‘What if I fail?’ and they said, ‘We’re not going to let you fail, because we want to see this work just as badly as you do.’”
That investment from his inner circle made Charlie both emotional and focused. His spirit was rekindled, and Borowczak credits his “amazing network” at Texas A&M and within the Corps of Cadets for that renewed energy. He also indicates that there is now a leadership structure in place within Charlie’s Angels that includes the help of eight cadets on a day-to-day basis, beginning each spring and persisting through the planning and execution during the year.
By 2024, Borowczak was a junior in Company E-2 of Texas A&M’s Corps of Cadets, and he was adopting angels again—14 years after his initial encounter with The Salvation Army. His project adopted approximately 850 angels from the Bryan College Station Corps after raising more than $80,000.
“Charlie came to us very excited and wanting to adopt as many angels as he possibly could,” says Captain Marianne Villanueva, corps officer. “We want to say thank you so much to Charlie and Charlie’s Angels and the entire community of Bryan College Station for providing hope to these kids this Christmas.”
In addition to the goal of helping others, Charlie is also practical in realizing the great benefit of this leadership and organizational experience for his future as he nears entry into the workforce.
“Aside from just the good that it’s doing in the community, I’ve learned so much as a leader on how to communicate with people, on how to market things, on how to speak in front of groups, on just overall self-confidence and presence in a group setting,” says Charlie. “I’m excited to see where I can take it several years down the line, because when I’m hopefully successful in a business setting, I can use that power to help others.”
SERVE
Borowczak’s story and overall output may not be fully replicable in every community, but it is a reminder of both the small-scale and largescale impact of The Salvation Army Angel Tree program to bring Christmas to as many children as possible.
“I didn’t realize how broad The Salvation Army was when I first started,” Borowczak says. “I’ve kind of learned over the years about the amount of generosity. I met with The Salvation Army advisory board in Bryan College Station back in October, and the amount of talent and heart I saw in that one room was breathtaking. You’ve got so many people from different back-
grounds all working toward the same goal of doing the most good. That’s something I can definitely take with me as I get older as well—to bring more good to the world.”
He also finds solace and inspiration to continue this project from his faith, widely proclaiming himself as a young Christian man who believes this is part of God’s leading in his life.
“I’ve always told everyone that God will continue to protect this project,” Charlie shares. “He’ll protect this project because this is us doing His work… Because without the grace of God, without the amazing community around me, it wouldn’t happen.”
Commissioner Kelly Igleheart, Territorial Commander Colonel Deborah Sedlar, Chief Secretary
Lt. Colonel Mark Israel, Publisher
Bernie Dake, Communications Director
Kristin Mudge, Editor
Brad Rowland, Staff Writer
Stewart Art & Design, Layout and Design
Wallace Graphics, Printing and Shipping
Published by The Salvation Army USA Southern Territory 1424 Northeast Expressway Atlanta, GA 30329 USA Phone: (404) 728-1300
Email: kristin.mudge@uss.salvationarmy.org http://southernspiritonline.org
All materials are copyright of The Salvation Army USA Southern Territory and cannot be reproduced without permission.
For further information or to donate, please visit: www.uss.salvationarmy.org
“Viral Views...” continued from page 1
ther, Major Butch Mallard, makes a morning run each day to collect the toys and deliver them to the Army’s distribution center, located in the former family store in downtown Henderson.
Kathaleen is a senior this year at the prestigious Stanford University in California. From high school she applied to several universities, although she admits her application to Stanford was done on a lark, not believing she had a legitimate chance of acceptance. When Stanford’s letter came, she recalls her shock to discover her four-year education at Stanford would be on a tuition-free scholarship!
“It was a no-brainer for me!” she says, with a measure of glee.
Kathaleen will graduate in June with a double-major in biology and English with an emphasis in creative writing.
She was well into her biology major when COVID hit the planet. Secluded in quarantine, she discovered a love for creative writing and even completed a novel, which she released on TikTok, chapter by chapter. She describes her fictional “Queen of Ash” as a “young adult fantasy,” which amassed a following of 150,000 readers. She reasons that many of those followers are part of the hundreds of thousands interested now in her “behind the scenes” updates on the Army’s Angel Tree process.
Her newfound love of writing and editing led her to refocus on the second major. She plans to go on to graduate school for her master’s degree, looking to a future career in publishing. Two other novels, completely unrelated to her first work, are already in her repertoire. Kathaleen’s exceptional writing and production skills have contributed to the success of the Angel Tree video presentations.
The six Angel Tree podcasts she created for the 2024 Christmas season drew about two mil-
lion views. They can still be viewed by logging onto the Henderson Corps website.
Each of the six installments present phases of the Angel Tree process—application, adoption, gift purchasing, processing, and distribution. The final episode even follows a parent who agreed to be interviewed and filmed by Kathaleen on the actual distribution day just before Christmas.
Aside from the obvious bonus of receiving toy donations from across the country, by far the greater benefit goes to countless Salvation Army units in all four USA territories. Kathaleen’s legion of followers who now have a more complete understanding of the Army’s Angel Tree ministry are thus more likely to take part locally.
There are too many comments for Kathaleen to answer each one, but she tries.
One follower wrote: “This is amazing! We’ve done Angel Tree for 20 years and always wondered what happened next.”
Another grateful comment says: “As a single mom who gets help for Christmas, thank you for doing this.”
And from across the world Down Under: “This is wonderful. We need this in Australia!”
Her creative mind enables Kathaleen Mallard to share an understanding of the beauty and efficiency of the Army’s Angel Tree program with some two million TikTok followers.
Strong Southern Showing for National Commander’s Red Kettle Challenge
FROM NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
The results from the 2024 National Commander’s Red Kettle Challenge are in!
This year’s campaign was marked by incredible milestones. Participation from 20 elected officials, enthusiastic engagement from local and national advisory board members, and the involvement of Miss Volunteer
Top 10 Highest Dollars Raised:
Corps Location
Total Dollar Raised
Bryan/College Station, Texas . .
New Albany, Indiana
Gainesville, Georgia .
St Louis, Missouri (Temple Corps)
Greenville, South Carolina
Knoxville, Tennessee
Porter County, Indiana
Amarillo, Texas
Texarkana, Texas
Paris, Texas
America titleholders brought new energy and excitement to the initiative, opening doors to further strengthen these valuable partnerships.
Thank you to all participants for being an integral part of this challenge and for your continued commitment to our mission.
Total dollars raised nationally by locations who reported: $379,426.81 Total locations that submitted results: 57 (East: 5, West: 2, Central:14, South: 34)
Top 10 Highest Percentage of Kettle Goal Raised:
.98
$62,951 91
$50,345 .04
$21,717 16
$14,070 62
$13,855 43
$13,729 59
$12,612 88
$11,396 62
$11,319 45
Greensboro, NC Receives $5 Million Grant for Work With Homelessness
The Salvation Army of Greensboro, North Carolina has received a generous $5 million grant from Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez through the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund. Grants from the fund are annually awarded to organizations doing compassionate, needle-moving work to help families experiencing homelessness secure housing and achieve stability.
The Salvation Army has been faithfully serving the Greensboro community since 1904 and already knows how they will utilize these funds to make their services even more robust for those in need of a helping hand.
“What a way to end our 120th year of service to the Greensboro community with this incredible gift,” Corps Officer Captain Chris Raymer says. “We are thrilled to be entrusted with these funds to be able to make an even greater impact on those we serve over the next five years. We know that with this gift we will be able to see more families off the streets and into stable housing.”
Captain Raymer says the plan is to use the funds to help 30 families in need per year over the next five years, using $1 million a year to expand the Pathway to Success program, a pro -
gram which houses families experiencing homelessness with a larger goal of getting them to self-sufficiency through supportive services.
Through this grant, Leroy Wilson, Greensboro director of social services says, “we will be able to enhance our ability to serve homeless families in the Greensboro area and provide wraparound services to impact the sustainability of the family unit.”
Several Salvation Army corps and area commands have been recipients of this compassionate grant since its creation in 2018. Additional Southern Territorial recipients include:
2023: Greater Charlotte Charlotte, NC ($3 75m)
2023: Fort Myers Area Command Fort Myers, FL ($2 5m)
2020: Austin Area Command Austin, TX ($2 5m)
2018: Center of Hope Charlotte, NC ($5m)
2018: Greater Houston Houston, TX ($5m)
This grant is part of a larger $110.5 million initiative by the Day 1 Families Fund, which awarded grants to 40 organizations for 2024. In a joint statement, Bezos and Sánchez expressed their admiration for The Salvation Army’s work in addressing critical community needs. “We are inspired by The Salvation Army’s dedication to lifting up those in need and providing a pathway to stability and hope. It is our honor to support their mission.”
Photo Credit: Jon Avery
Angel Tree in Romania Successful Thanks to Generous International and Local Partnerships
BY KRISTIN MUDGE
The Angel Tree program in Romania had a successful and generous 2024 Christmas season. A mixture of villages, schools, churches, and families in Bucharest were among those gifted with an exciting Christmas morning thanks to the Angel Tree program. This portion of the division’s efforts was supported by American troops who volunteered and sponsored angels, along with international and local community businesses and individual sponsors.
Romania Divisional Commander Major Ionel Sandu tells us, “Angel Tree started with 100 angels six years ago with the help of the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base with American soldiers and now has grown to over 1500 angels annually around all Romania.”
From the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base Religious Affairs Office, Major Wade Shepard, Chaplain, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division says, “This is something bigger than us that we are giving back to. We have faith that we are joining others and people that we don’t even know to help put a smile on their face.” With this ongoing partnership, the positive morale
for the troops stationed abroad and the cultural bridging between both countries makes this partnership so unique and valuable.
The dramatic increase in distribution, not only in Constanta County where the Air Base partners with The Salvation Army for regular community projects, but all over Romania, is largely in thanks to local donors and both private and public partners of The Salvation Army who have seen the need and have stepped in to make a difference in the lives of children all over Romania.
“From season to season, donors want to get involved locally too in each community we serve,” Major Sandu continues. The Angel Tree program “has grown the visibility of The Salvation Army’s work here in Romania to local communities,” blessing thousands of families along the way.
The Salvation Army Serves First Responders After Mass Casualty Incident in New Orleans
BY MICHELLE HARTFIELD
New Years celebrations in the city of New Orleans turned tragic early in the morning of January 1, when a truck drove through the crowds of revelers, killing and injuring many.
In response, the city of New Orleans, as well as federal law enforcement, homeland security, and members of the National Guard began round-the-clock operations throughout the French Quarter and the blockaded investigation area.
At the request of Homeland Security, The Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services stationed a mobile feeding unit on each end of Canal Street and ran 24-hour service with coffee, hot chocolate, cold drinks, and snacks. Throughout the cold night and into the next morning, crews drove ATVs up and down Canal Street serving grateful first responders.
Representatives from the New Orleans Department of Homeland Security thanked The Salvation Army for the speed and efficacy of the response. Major Ed Binnix, incident commander for this event and area commander for the New Orleans Salvation Army, said, “While we very much regret the circumstances, we are honored to be able to serve. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the witnesses, survivors, and loved ones whose lives have been upended.”
U.S. Soldiers prepare gifts for distribution to families in need in Romania.
Divisional Commander Major Ionel Sandu gifts a bicycle to a kindergarten student.
Salvation Army Community Development Manager Dave Haas unloads gifts to handout at a school.
U.S. Soldiers pose for a group photo along with staff and administration from Secondary School Nr. 1 Targusor after the donation of gifts for The Angel Tree program.
Photo Credit: Michelle Hartfield
Southern Territory Achieves Better Business Bureau Accreditation, Welcomes Inaugural Territorial Advisory Council
BY KRISTIN MUDGE
In 2024, the Southern Territory made great strides towards transparency and accountability for all existing and potential donors. On November 7, The Salvation Army USA Southern Territory became an accredited charity through the Better Business Bureau (BBB), a process that required rigorous evaluation but will in turn show our credibility and trustworthiness as a charity.
Southern Territorial Commander Commissioner Kelly Igleheart explains that the idea of pursuing this accreditation, which will communicate to the public The Salvation Army’s commitment to transparent stewardship, stemmed from a conversation he had with a National Advisory Board member. “Mr. Art Taylor, who serves as the chief executive officer, shared with me that the BBB Wise Giving Alliance specifically evaluates charities and churches. He advised that this is the best category for The Salvation Army to apply.”
“The BBB has 20 standards that must be met” to receive this accreditation, Major Todd Hawks, territorial community relations and development secretary, and the one selected to steer this enormous project, explains. “Each standard requires providing backup to show we met those standards.”
For these standards, the BBB assesses the charity’s governance and oversight, measures the charity’s effectiveness, delves into their finances and financial systems in place, and reviews all solicitations and informational materials distributed through direct mail and online.
“The process of application involved the collaboration of departments at Territorial Headquarters such as Community Relations and Development, Communications, Audit, and Finance, who worked together to meet every requirement,” Commissioner Igleheart says. “This resulted in the Southern Territory becoming the first territory to successfully be approved by this prestigious organization.”
Following this strict evaluation, Major Hawks says, “as a BBB accredited charity, we are provided a seal indicating we have met the 20 standards. This seal is placed on all local websites and can be used in several ways to inform local donors.” This accreditation and seal encompass the entire territory. Every Southern Territorial Salvation Army unit is also now BBB accredited through this process.
Major Hawks explains that the territory will have this accreditation for two years, at which time we will be able to renew, keeping us ac -
countable in the eyes of outside businesses, fellow charities, and donors.
During the review process it was discovered that The Salvation Army governance model is similar to other charities in many ways but has several significant differences. To address this, the BBB determined that the Southern Territory would be allowed to utilize a church model alongside our traditional model of governance already in place. This led to the creation of a Territorial Advisory Council (TAC).
The members chosen for the inaugural TAC were carefully and prayerfully selected by leadership. “We chose volunteers with an affinity for The Salvation Army and expertise in finance, community service, or are leaders,” Major Hawks explains.
The eminent members of the first Southern Territorial Advisory Council are Nick Harrell, Frederick Johnson, Kathy Serrano, Wanda Ziembinski, and Joey Zumaya
These esteemed members met for their first meeting in December 2024 and will continue to meet annually with the territorial commander, the chief secretary, the business administrator, and the community relations and development secretary. Their responsibilities will include the three key duties required by BBB standards —
reviewing the annual territorial audit, reviewing the incoming budget, and giving advice related to any conflicts of interest — as well as providing expert advice according to their knowledge and expertise.
Major Hawks tells us, “The first meeting went very well. The territorial commander inducted the new members and provided an overview of expectations. Then, the business of reviewing the financial year for 2025 budget and past audit was completed.”
“Being an accredited charity [through the BBB] adds depth to our credibility among prospective donors who are unsure about which charity they want to support,” Major Hawks says. “Officers and development team members from our territory have emailed or called and thanked us for taking this important step. We hope that the other three territories will do the same.”
Commissioner Igleheart says, “In an era when donors are becoming more educated and expect accountability, The Salvation Army in the South is also accredited by ECFA (Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability). Both the BBB and ECFA are gold standards that demonstrate an organization’s transparency and accountability.”
The new BBB seal of approval can be seen at the bottom of territorial and corps websites, along with our ECFA seal. The new accreditation can also be viewed on the BBB website, bbb. org, along with more details on the rigorous standards the territory has successfully met and will continue to maintain.
Southern Territorial leadership welcomes members of the inaugural Territorial Advisory Council. New members include (from left to right): Kathy Serrano, Nick Harrell, and Wanda Ziembinski. Not pictured: Frederick Johnson and Joey Zumaya.
What is Love?
BY DR IAN MUDGE
As we approach Valentines Day, I reflect on the question of love. There are many dynamics that contribute to healthy relationships, but few are so important as love. Growing up in The Salvation Army, I heard dozens if not hundreds of sermons on love, and as I have matured, I find that I disagree with most of them. It is not necessarily that the content is bad, but I believe many miss what I think is the main point.
As we start our exploration of love, the obvious starting point is 1 Corinthians 13, widely referred to as the “love chapter.” Here Paul lays out a comprehensive definition of love — the things that love does and doesn’t do. To briefly summarize, love is patient, kind, does not envy, does not boast, is not proud, does not dishonor others, is not self-seeking, is not easily angered, keeps no record of wrong, does not delight in evil, rejoices in the truth, and never fails. We have all heard many sermons on this passage, many focusing on how love is an action. As I mentioned before, this is true but, in many ways, misses the point.
I believe 1 Corinthians 13 is the most depressing chapter in the entire Bible. It always surprises people when they first hear me say that, but please allow me to continue. This passage is a staple at many weddings, and many aspire to live the chapter out in their lives. The entire mission of The Salvation Army is motivated by the love of God. Why would I find 1 Corinthians 13 so depressing? The simple answer is that so few of us can live up to its shining standard.
Look back at that summary of 1 Corinthians 13. How many of us can say that we have been loved by another human being where that person checks off most, if not all, those boxes all the time? The reality for most of us is that we have never been loved like this. How many of us have loved someone else where we meet most of those criteria? Most of us have never loved another human being this way. Most importantly, can you truly say that you love yourself to that standard? I personally fall at “keeping no record of wrong.” I remember every mistake I have ever made and dwell on them far too frequently. Now you can see why 1 Corinthians 13 is so depressing; according to the chapter’s definition, most of us have never been loved, loved someone else, or are even capable of loving ourselves.
If you’ve stuck with me this far you are probably thoroughly depressed. The good news is that there is hope! Paul provides an excellent description of love in 1 Corinthians 13, but there is another definition of love later in the Bible that I think helps us figure out how to love more effectively. In 1 John 4:8b, John tells us that “God is love.” God and love are the same thing Interestingly, if you go back to 1 Corinthians 13 and replace the word “love” with “God,” we can see that Paul is actually describing God’s character as he explains love. God being love raises a strange question: if God is love, how do we love God?
John knew we would ask this question and is quick to provide an answer. In 1 John 5:3, John tells us that “This is love for God, to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” If we read Leviticus, it seems pretty clear that God’s commands actually are rather burdensome, but I don’t think this is what John is talking about. John is referring to Matthew 22 when the Pharisees asked Jesus “What is the greatest commandment?” Jesus tells them the entire law can be fulfilled in two things: love the Lord your God (we are trying to figure out how to do this, so I will skip it for the moment), and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Jesus
gives us a clear roadmap: to love God, we need to love our neighbor, and to love our neighbor we need to love ourselves. It all starts with loving myself . You can’t give away what you don’t have. If you don’t love yourself, you will not be able to love your neighbor. If you can’t love your neighbor, then you cannot show love for God. As a counselor, I find that self-love is the key to restoring spiritual intimacy. We must get the selflove piece right if we ever hope to show love to another human being. Going back to 1 Corinthians 13 for a minute, we already established that I barely love my wife, let alone some stranger I meet on the street. If we can master healthy self-love, loving our neighbor comes naturally, and God’s love becomes evident in our lives. So, we arrive at the main question: how do we love ourselves?
The secret to loving yourself is this: you can’t. I know that is a terrible anticlimax. John doesn’t tell us that Ian is love, he tells us that God is love. The key to loving yourself is not generating some sort of feel-good feeling inside yourself or even treating yourself right. The key is accepting the love God has for you. God loves you unconditionally because it is who He is.
If you read Psalm 139, God only has good things to say about you. He tells you that you are fearfully and wonderfully made. He tells you that while you were in your mother’s womb, God was there guiding the process. All your works were written down in His book before one of them came to be. He knew all the mistakes you would make, all the terrible things you would do, and still decided to make you. The reality is God doesn’t care what you look like, what you have done, or who you associate with; He loves you anyway. He wants you to repent and turn from your past ways and accept the love that He has for you. Your only job is to accept it.
When I worked in the Dallas Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center (ARC), this concept was the hardest to communicate. I was working with people who have done some of the worst things imaginable. Explaining that God loved them despite their sins was simply incomprehensible for most of them. Early on, I would encourage them to learn to forgive themselves so that they could more easily accept God’s love, until one day I was politely corrected by our chaplain.
Dan Norwood had been the chaplain at the ARC for more than 10 years when I started working there and had been a pastor twice as long as I had been alive. Thinking highly of myself, I decided to enter into a theological debate with him. You can see where this is going; I did not win. Dan told me that I needed to stop telling my beneficiaries that they need to forgive themselves. Nowhere in the Bible does it say we are to forgive ourselves. In 1 John 1:9 we are told that “If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Self-forgiveness has nothing to do with anything. God is the only one with the power to forgive As I was slow to admit at the time, Dan is right. That still leaves the question: If God has forgiven me, why do I keep beating myself up?
The secret to forgiving yourself is the same secret as loving yourself: you can’t. Selfforgiveness is about accepting the forgiveness that God has given to us It is important to remember that God’s grace isn’t free. He sent His son Jesus to die for our sins. When we choose to keep beating ourselves up, we are effectively telling God that His sacrifice wasn’t good enough for us. Failing to forgive ourselves is fundamentally a pride issue. We are choosing to abuse ourselves for something that God has already forgiven us for, disrespecting Jesus’s sacrifice for our sins. When you are beating
yourself up about something from the past, remind yourself you are forgiven, not because you deserve it but because of God’s grace Learning to love ourselves is much the same process. We do not deserve God’s love. It is something that He has freely given to us, and our job is to humble ourselves enough to accept it. We do that by modifying our self-talk. This is a very simple technique that hundreds of my clients have found effective over the years.
Whenever your self-esteem takes a hit, first admit your failing. We need to be honest with ourselves and acknowledge when we make a mistake, sin, or hurt someone else. Then we add God’s truth to the mix: we acknowledge that God loves us anyway, He has forgiven us, He has shown us grace. Here’s what this looks like practically:
Even though I did [insert failure here], God loves me anyway.
Even though I [insert failure here], God gives me value.
Even though I [insert failure here], God has forgiven me.
By adding God’s truth into our self-talk, we can begin to shift our self-esteem out of the things that previously enslaved us and into God’s control We can learn to love ourselves. As someone who has practiced this for more than 15 years now, it has made an enormous difference in my life. Loving others becomes easy. It is second nature to me. I don’t have to try to love people because it comes out of me naturally all because I love myself. The cool part is that it has helped me grow closer to God as I have shown love to others. Give yourself the best valentine’s gift possible–God’s love–and be amazed as it positively impacts every one of your relationships.
CREATIVE CORNER
O, Humble
Me
BY EDWIN PATRICK MCCAIN
O, humble
O Thou, humble me
O, how sweet Thy soul until Thine goings are gone goings gone beyond from whence Thou cometh along a lonely path on beyond Thy going O, humble me
O, humble me
O, how sweetly Thou humble me
O, how Thy go along Thy goings
O, humble me
O, humble me
from depths of the seas of deep reflections of our great God reflecting upon me
visions within the views before me
that of past, present, and things to be beyond thy eyelids
must travel Thee for Thou to see before the words the God that was and is whom forever will be
O, humble me
Colonel John Bate Ordinary People in Extraordinary Places
BY MAJOR FRANK DURACHER
By his own admission, Colonel John Bate believes he and his wife, Colonel Valda Bate (Promoted to Glory in August 2024), are “pretty ordinary people.” But that is an extraordinary statement given that Colonel John served as Aide-de-Camp to two Salvation Army Generals (Brown, Wahlström), and in several appointments in far-flung territories around the world.
Colonel John served as chief secretary in several territories and was even commander of South America East. He retired “on the last day of the last year of the past millennium,” December 31, 1999, as USA National chief secretary. The colonel is fluent in Spanish as well as in his native tongue, English. And like the two Generals with whom he worked alongside, he is an excellent communicator (Brown) and possesses a pastor’s heart for the individual (Wahlström).
His father was English and his mother, Scottish—both Salvationists. Dad immigrated to New Zealand and later sent for Mum. She disembarked on March 25, 1924, and within hours of her stepping on the dock they were married. Two daughters came before John was born in Napier, New Zealand in 1934. His two great loves growing up were music and dancing.
“I always knew I wanted to be a Salvation Army officer, but that was the problem—every testimony I heard included ‘I never wanted to be an officer,’ but here I was, actually wanting to be one,” Colonel John recalls. Consequently, he felt that this “cheapened” his calling, making him wonder if it was really from God.
That changed after he moved to Wellington to attend Victoria University for an accounting degree, reasoning that should he become an officer someday, he would then have something of value to offer to God through his life-service.
He envisioned his entire career in New Zealand, as a corps officer or something in finance,
given his degree.
“One Sunday, at Wellington Citadel, I knelt at the Holiness Table,” giving everything to God. “I felt so happy as I prayed there. Now, I’m not one to hear voices, but I did sense the Holy Spirit saying to me that my life’s work would, indeed, be as an officer, but that it wouldn’t be in New Zealand,” he says, tearing up even after all these years.
“Serving overseas was not the problem, but we are a close-knit family,” he adds. “My oldest sister is ten years older, already married. Her daughters were like little sisters to me.”
Nevertheless, John and Valda (by then married) entered the Training College in April 1958 as members of the Courageous session of cadets. They were commissioned in January 1959 and given their only corps appointment in New Zealand, which was all too brief. Years later they again served briefly in their home territory, while the colonel recovered from a temporary illness. Contrary to his original desire, those were the only two appointments in which they served “at home.” The Holy Spirit’s message to him at that Holiness Table proved correct.
A lifetime of service overseas began as cashier for the South America West Territory. While working in Santiago, Chile, he witnessed a remarkable example of God’s care.
Fernando was a fellow trombone player in the Santiago Central Corps. His daughter, Martita, was ill and required powdered milk as part of her diet. But it was quite expensive.
“One day, an envelope came from New Zealand and in it I found a bank draft sent from a friend in Wellington City,” Colonel John relates.
“He told me he had been in the bank one day recently and was irritated at having to stand so long in line. As he stood, his eyes wandered, and he noticed the overseas exchange counter. He said how an inner voice spoke to him, saying, ‘Send John Bate whatever you have in your pocket.’
the Caribbean.
One appointment that gave him much satisfaction was to the United Kingdom Territory and International Headquarters as information officer. There he worked in conjunction with the BBC to expand the Army’s radio program, “Banners & Bonnets,” as well as other public relations projects.
During his time there, he also established a cherished association with Commissioner Catherine Bramwell-Booth, the eldest daughter of General Bramwell and Mrs. Florence Booth. A series of “interview presentations” with the Commissioner were broadcast throughout Great Britain, simply entitled “Catherine Bramwell-Booth.” Her answer to the project at the start was simply: “Will it be good for the Army?” It was an instant hit!
“So, he recalled, he left the line, went over to the overseas exchange counter and asked for a bank draft [payable to] John Bate.”
Once Captain Bate received the draft in Chile, he found that it totaled 15,000 pesos—enough to pay for two prescriptions that Fernando had kept in his pocket for several days with no money to buy his child’s medicine.
That miracle, and many other stories of God’s faithfulness, are included in the Colonel’s book, “Destination Unknown—Memoirs of a Private Secretary to the General of The Salvation Army” (published by Frontier Press in 2012).
Colonel John went on to serve in several territorial and national leadership positions, including South America West (chief secretary), South America East (territorial commander), Canada & Bermuda (program secretary), USA West (chief secretary), and USA National Headquarters (national chief—from which he retired in 2012). He and Val also served faithfully in Central America, Spain, Africa, and
Of equal interest to Salvationists who meet the colonel might be his time as private secretary and Aide-de-Camp to two Generals. Asked to compare the two leaders, he gives an interesting response: “General Brown was a public relations man par excellence! His most significant contribution as General is probably the 1980 Salvation Army Act which was put into law by the House of Lords. His charisma and speaking skills endeared him around the world.
“General Wahlström, on the other hand, was more introverted. He had a pastor’s heart, which was evident to me at a Congress, where after he preached and someone else was conducting the invitation [to the Mercy Seat], I looked up at his chair and it was vacant. Where had the General gone? I feared. Then I saw him below at the altar praying with a young man. I slipped off the platform and when the opportunity came, I whispered, ‘General, we must get you back [onstage] for the meeting to conclude.’”
Another fascinating response from Colonel John about his two Generals was the fact that, for him, he was glad Brown came before Wahlström, and not the other way around. “I think my time with [Brown] prepared me to serve as an aide to Wahlström,” he observes.
If Colonel John’s service in a number of territories around the globe weren’t enough for any one man, accompanying these two General giants further allowed him to see just about all of the Army world.
Today, in retirement, Colonel John Bate is a faithful soldier of the Clearwater Citadel Corps in Florida.
His chosen scripture verse sums up his service: “By an act of faith Abraham said yes to God to travel to an unknown place that would become his home” (Hebrews 11:8 The Message).
Colonel John Bate’s service in The Salvation Army took him around the world.
Colonel John Bate displays a remembrance from his time in the USA Western Territory.
Camlin
When Faith Triumphs Over Fear
BY JAMES MCMECHAN
Life can change in the blink of an eye. For Camlin, a sudden rough divorce turned her world upside down, forcing her to leave her home in the Pacific Northwest. Seeking a fresh start, she moved to Monroe, Louisiana. But even as she clung to hope, life continued to test her. Her savings quickly dwindled, leaving her without a place to stay, and a health crisis landed her in the hospital. Alone and out of options, she faced an uncertain future.
After being discharged from the hospital, Camlin found herself on the front steps of The Salvation Army’s Center of Hope shelter with only a small bag of belongings. “I was dropped off at the front steps of the shelter with literally the clothes on my back,” she recalls. “Without any family or friends, this was the only place the hospital staff knew to bring me, where I could find any help.”
At the Center of Hope, Camlin was greeted by Captain Jerome Casey, the local Salvation Army officer. Captain Casey’s warm welcome provided not just a hot meal and a safe place to sleep, but also something Camlin had been missing for a long time—spiritual guidance. The kindness and support she found there planted the seeds of hope, and little by little Camlin began to rebuild her life and faith.
“What impacted me the most was the spiritual aspect of The Salvation Army,” Camlin shares. “I loved attending their church. I have learned so much and grown in my faith.”
Now, Camlin is working full-time at a local hospital, regaining her independence, and rebuilding her future. As she prepares to move into her apartment, she feels more hopeful than ever. “I love working for a faithbased hospital where I can openly express my faith and live a spiritual life,” she says. “I couldn’t do that before, and now I can. The Salvation Army gave me my life back, and I am so grateful for their help.”
Camlin’s story is a powerful reminder that no matter how dark life may seem, hope can still be found. Through the support and spiritual guidance she received, she not only found a path to recovery, but the experience also rekindled her faith—proving that when faith triumphs over fear, transformation is truly possible.
WORTH A LOOK: BOOK REVIEW
“Embracing
Shiloh”
by Captain Wayne Meads
BY LT COLONEL ALLEN SATTERLEE
Captain Wayne Meads brings us a useful and meaningful daily devotional book entitled “Embracing Shiloh.” Named for the meeting place the Israelites used before the Temple was established, the book invites believers to find their own meeting place with God each day. Southern Territorial Commander Commissioner Kelly Igleheart says in his foreword, “Captain Wayne Meads invites you as the reader to make a similar daily trek just as the early Hebrew people did. As they sought the Lord at times of dedication, forgiveness, cleansing, for answers, and for a word from the Lord, these devotions are written to help you hear from the Lord in whatever He has to say to you in a symbolic Shiloh.”
Captain Meads uses an easily accessible conversational style that fully engages the reader. Each devotion has a primary scripture verse, a short thought, and closes with an impactful prayer. Although written primarily for people in the many phases of recovery such as those in The Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Centers, this book is equally useful to new believers as well as those who have been on their Christian journey for some time. This is a great book to gift a friend or loved one, or to add to your own personal library. It is available through mytradesouth.com for $15.99.
Captain Wayne Meads serves with his wife, Captain Claudia, as administrator of The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center in Hampton Roads, Virginia. Together they have three children: Melody-Grace, Micah, and Lilah. The Meads were commissioned as Salvation Army officers in 2017 as members of the Joyful Intercessors session. They previously served as the corps officers of the Rocky Mount, North Carolina Corps. Captain Meads has a bachelor’s degree in Christian ministries from Trevecca University.
NEWS BRIEFS
• On December 18, The Salvation Army of Hendersonville, North Carolina partnered with Walmart to bring hope, food, and a bit of holiday cheer through Christmas shopping to more than 100 local families. In the wake of Hurricane Helene, many in Hendersonville and the surrounding area dealt with–and are still dealing with–unimaginably challenging circumstances. “We get to be able to bless families,” Captain Phillip Stokes, corps officer, told the local media. “We have some here who would never think they were going to have Christmas because of the devastation with the hurricane.” The event featured a meal, and Walmart presented each family with a $500 gift card for groceries and Christmas shopping.
• In early January, devastating wildfires swept through Southern California, displacing tens of thousands and causing an unimaginable toll in both injury and property damage. The Salvation Army quickly sprang into action to support those affected, as well as the brave first responders who continue to fight the fires. As of mid-January, The Salvation Army served more than 3,000 meals and provided emotional and spiritual care to more than 500 individuals at American Red Cross emergency shelters and the Family Assistance Center in Pasadena. In addition, 43 Salvation Army corps gathered in a special time of prayer on Sunday, January 12. “It was somber, said Lt. Colonel Mike Dickinson, divisional commander for Southern California. “Today I sat with people who have lost everything but their hope. Their resolute faith was humbling. I hugged families that experienced total loss. They’re numb, but so grateful they are alive and giving thanks to God for their temporary shelter and a supportive church family.”
Camlin found hope and a renewed faith at The Salvation Army Center of Hope in Monroe, Louisiana.
A Cure for Hardening of the Hearteries
BY MAJOR A KENNETH WILSON
Heart disease remains the number one cause of death in the United States as plaque in the arteries clogging delicate blood vessels causes heart attack and stroke. In worst case scenarios, heart transplants may be required to fix the situation. Transplants, although becoming more common, are still risky as patients deal with organ rejection and complications from immunosuppressive drugs. Despite the risk, thousands desperately wait for donor hearts. However, to get a donor heart, the donor must die—usually by accident at an early age, providing a heart free from abuse for someone waiting desperately for a miracle.
But is there a cure for a hardened heart—a heart that no longer responds to the appeals of God, one that is no longer moved by grace and feels nothing? Medically the heart may be functioning within acceptable parameters but can still be malfunctioning in God’s terms. What is needed then is a new heart, not a cleansing or refurbishment.
The Bible speaks a great deal about hearts but not in reference to the blood-pumping organ. Over the years we have associated the center of will, decision-making, and choice with the brain, but it used to be the heart. The Lord used this reference even as He commissioned the prophet Isaiah to spread the news.
“The Lord said, ‘Go and tell this people, be ever hearing, but never understanding, be ever seeing, but never perceiving. Make the heart of this people calloused, make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise, they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed’” (Isaiah 6:9-1). After years of spiritual coronary disease caused
by idolatry and defiant rebellion, the Lord gave His people an attitude adjustment through years of forced exile in Babylon. Earlier, the Lord promised the good He would do for His people when they returned to Him with a change of heart, in repentance, with a godly sorrow for their sin. God includes a heart transplant through this process as recorded in Ezekiel 36:22–32:
1) I will take you out of the nations.
2) I will gather you and bring you back to your own land.
3) I will clean you and wash away the dirt of the idols.
4) I will give you a new heart and new spirit.
5) I will make it a new heart—one of flesh rather than stone.
6) You will follow me in willing obedience.
7) You will live in the land.
8) I will save you.
9) I will make you plentiful—no longer poor and in despair.
10) You will remember who you were, and where you came from.
All these good things are from God, for they had done nothing to merit any of these blessings. But the Lord reminds them, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone” (Ezekiel 36:22).
“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O My people … I will put My Spirit in you, and you will live, … then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it” (Ezekiel 37:11–14). The Almighty is going to create new hearts, replacing the ones diseased from the corrosion of sin purely for the sake of His name “that they have profaned” wherever they have gone.
To profane His name doesn’t mean bad language, but rather making God appear weak, ineffective, or worthless. That is why the Ten Commandments say not to take the Lord’s name in vain. It has nothing to do with curse words but how we worship the Lord, for His name is more than what we call Him. God’s name is not His label but rather the sum of who He is—His nature, character, holiness, mercy, love, grace, and goodness in all He is, does, and plans. But the people have disgraced that name, so God works to protect His Name before people who do not believe.
That is part of the uncomfortable lesson of Malachi, where God tells the priests and religious leaders they have profaned God’s name. They protest they had never used foul or inappropriate language, but God tells them they have profaned His nature and character, His very name, by the way they show their devotion. They were to offer sacrifices regularly for unintentional sin that required constant cleansing. The priests showed how little they valued God by their sacrifices, bringing half dead, flea-bitten animals thinking that God was not worth their best.
The promise of a heart transplant in Ezekiel is echoed in Ephesians: “God chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves (Jesus). In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that He lavished on us” (Ephesians 1:4–8).
I encourage you to choose a new heart and new health in Christ—and continue to watch your cholesterol too.
Church Journey ≠ Faith Journey
BY KRISTIN MUDGE
She grew up as a pastor’s kid, in church every Sunday as well as most nights for programs or while her father was working late. Hurried footfalls in hallowed halls accompanied by shouts of “Walk while you’re in church!” were the soundtrack of her young life, interspersed with the music of hymns and handbell choirs. This was home. This was comfort. Many nights she would lay on the floor in the sanctuary, gazing up at the stars through the small windows in the spire, knowing that this — the space she inhabited, inside and out — this was peace.
The years passed and she grew bigger and older, but not farther from that feeling of what home should be. When she left her family to strike out on her own, she knew what to look for. And for a while she found it. She found another special room that called to her heart during the week and breathed life into her soul on Sunday mornings. She found people there who welcomed her into their homes, sat with her in sorrow, and made her hot chocolate to warm her Texan hands and insides after a brisk walk in the cold Kentucky winter. Even far away from home, she found that peace. Even though she was no longer a child, she felt just as fulfilled and committed and involved.
And then she met a boy. A silly, vulnerable boy who enjoyed playing the pompous know-itall for the rest of the world but let his walls down for her. They puddle-jumped in the near-freezing cold. They sat outside watching storms draw near until the tornado sirens drove them indoors.
They stayed up late talking about faith and family and heartbreak and friendship. And that friendship became even more beautiful as they realized God was whispering that they could choose each other. She could choose whomever she wanted, and God would bless that future. And she decided to choose him.
Choosing him meant merging their lives, and for the most part it was easy. Whenever a decision would arise, they would just choose each other, and the details would fall into place. Then the issue of where to worship arose. He had to stay with his church to keep his scholarships for school, so it seemed obvious that she would join him there. She tried. She really did. But this was the first church she walked into where she didn’t feel welcome. She felt like a stranger in the hallway. She felt like an intruder in the chapel. She felt alone, awkward, and unloved. It was wrong. She went home crying every Sunday, dreading having to go back the next week. For the first time in her life, there was no peace.
For a while she just stopped going. She stayed home and instead began to find that same sense of peace in deep conversations with friends over dinner. They delved into theology and philosophy over pasta with a side salad. Their community grew and deepened, and she stopped missing having that separate place of worship. Getting to sleep in on a Sunday morning became a beautiful blessing, and she barely remembered why she used to feel a need to go to church. God used this time away from church to bring her a deeper faith and true, lifelong friendships.
Since that time, church has had a different meaning for her. She used to go to church to spend time with God, to grow deeper in her walk with Jesus, and to feel at home. But truly growing up included growing past the idea that God
THOUGHTS ON...
Church Growth or Corps Growth?
BY DR STEVE KELLNER
One of the core tenets of modern church growth theory is that the Sunday morning worship service is the centerpiece of the church, the “golden hour,” and the main attraction for newcomers. According to this theory, the best way to grow a church is to put on a great service featuring a gifted preacher, professional caliber worship music, and the technical production levels of a Broadway theater. Some of you may have experienced these kinds of services when attending conferences at well-known megachurches like Saddleback, Willow Creek, or North Point. Despite their numerical success, however, churches built on this model have struggled to get their attendees to take the next steps in their faith and service journeys. I witnessed this firsthand in the large churches I attended during my time away from the Army (1995-2010). Newcomers were attracted to the Sunday services, but attending was often the limit of their commitment. Recruiting Sunday school teachers, small group leaders, mission team members, or interesting anyone in going deeper spiritually was like pulling teeth because the churches had attracted them with one thing and were now asking them to do something else.
With this in mind, I don’t think trying to compete with large churches on Sunday morning is the smart way to grow our corps. For one thing, giant churches filled with “spectators” who don’t
even know their pastor isn’t something you’ll find in the New Testament Church, which was essentially a house church movement. Second, let’s be honest, we can’t compete with large churches when it comes to having Billy Graham in the pulpit, professional-level music, and high-end technical production (although we have many excellent preachers in the Army, and we punch way above our weight musically as well). Third, our worship style is, shall we say, distinctive because it’s aimed at those actively involved in the mission of the Army. For those on-mission it fits like a glove, but it’s not every newcomer’s cup of tea (to mix metaphors), especially if they don’t know anyone in the congregation. Finally, our Salvationist DNA is faith in action. The last thing we need is a Sunday service filled with folks who don’t want to help carry out our mission.
For all these reasons, plus the fact that a corps is more than just a church, I think we should turn the church growth model on its head. Rather than trying to attract people to our Sunday morning service and then asking them to serve, let’s first ask them to help us serve our communities through our programs and ministries, and then invite them to our Sunday worship. Think about all the volunteers, donors, building renters, clients, kids and their parents, and everyone else we come in contact with in the course of just being The Salvation Army. Many of these people are already serving in some way and so are self-selected excellent candidates for eventual soldiership.
After serving beside our corps congregations, our “recruits” will be more responsive to the invitation to join us on Sundays because they
was at church. Of course, God is at church, but He’s also at home. He’s with her as she drives, He’s with her at work. She can find peace and a sense of home anytime she spends time with Him, wherever that may be.
She grew and her faith deepened from this experience, but that isn’t the case for many young adults in this same situation. Studies show that nearly two-thirds of young adults stop attending church regularly for at least a year, and not all of them come back.
The scariest part of this story is the church that caused her to stop attending was a Salvation Army corps. A church that was created to welcome everyone should have been able to welcome a girl who had always loved church. But it didn’t. And that could have been detrimental to her faith and to the Church at large by losing a faithful daughter. She did end up coming back to the church, but it has never been the same for her as it was growing up. No church since then has ever felt like home for her, just a place for her to serve and worship, not a place of peace and community.
Church, we need to be better. We must be better, or we will continue to lose our young people. And not all of them will find their way back. And that is devastating.
This is my story, and it could have had a much worse ending. But God makes all things work together for good.
As we enter this season focusing on recruitment, we need to remember that doesn’t just mean finding new people to fill our pews, it means reaching out to the quiet couple that sits in the back of the sanctuary. It means making a connection with the young people running in the hallways. It means being the church to those around you and making your corps one that welcomes instead of alienates. Bring peace and create space for God to work in you and in everyone who walks through the doors of your church. Let’s create someone’s home.
already know us. And our worship will then be more meaningful to them because they are already on-mission in a sense. One of the advantages of our small congregations is that newcomers can know everyone, including the pastor. It’s a subtle but important difference in emphasis. Rather than thinking of ourselves as a worshipping community that serves, we should think of ourselves as a “community in mission” (Commissioner Phil Needham’s term) that worships together.
I’ve seen this sequence of events play out many times over the years in my little corner of Army ministry. We invite a brass musician from the community to play on Christmas kettles, or to sit in one of our weeknight band rehearsals, or to give a couple of kids a lesson each week, and the next thing you know they are attending on Sunday morning, playing in the band, and eventually becoming soldiers and local officers. One such new soldier is playing in my corps band right now. Another is now a corps officer in the Western Territory! The analogy I often use is that the first day of classes in a new school is a lot less daunting if you’ve already been practicing with the football team or the marching band for a month because you already have a group of friends before school starts. The same is true of the first Sunday morning in the corps for newcomers who have already served with us.
None of the above is to say the quality of our Sunday worship isn’t important, or that we shouldn’t welcome newcomers on Sunday morning. We should strive to do everything with excellence, especially when it comes to worshipping our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who deserves nothing less than our best. And we don’t have to choose between worship and ser“Thoughts On...” continued on page 11
Never Enough
BY LT COLONEL ALLEN SATTERLEE
Aesop tells the story of a dog, having received a bone from a butcher, happily taking it home. Crossing a footbridge, he spotted his reflection in the water. Thinking it was another dog with a larger bone, he dropped his bone and jumped into the water to go after it. Of course, he lost his bone in his greed to get the one he imagined the “other” dog had.
The “never enough” syndrome has plagued humankind from the beginning. Satan whispered it into Eve’s ear amid the lush surroundings of the Garden of Eden. David looked past his wives and children and decided they were not enough as he lusted for Bathsheba. Judas had cast out demons and helped in feeding thousands, but finding even that not enough, when silver was offered, he struck a deal.
It happens every day when spouses who have pledged lifelong loyalty one day look at each other and decide their partner is not enough. It is what the sales force banks on, that though they sell you a smart phone today, they can convince you in a couple of years that it is not enough anymore, you must have the newest. Or the car. Or the house. Or the job. Or the appointment. Or the honor.
This is so much woven into our culture that the average consumer debt per American is over $104,000. The highest debt load is carried by adults between 20-50 years old, which is double that carried by those over 50. Credit card debt is the most damaging because so many just feel what they have is never enough. They must have more, even if they don’t really need it and know they really can’t afford it.
To be sure, desire is often legitimate. Children legitimately need the affection of their parents. Spouses need the ongoing love and support of each other. A starving person needs to satisfy his hunger. Athletes and others should have a healthy sense of competition as they strive for excellence and achievement. It is when it is desire on steroids, when it is addictive, when it is an end in itself that it becomes dangerous and destructive.
The question should not be, why shouldn’t I have it? A better question might be, why do I deserve it over anyone else? What right do I have to it? Will my having this bring honor to the Lord or distract me from Him? If I hold this in my hand, will I be able to say with Paul, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through Him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11-13).
“Never enough” for the believer should be replaced by, “in Christ I always have enough.”
“Thoughts On...” continued from page 10
vice. We can do both well. But our strong point, and I think our main attraction to newcomers, is that our congregations are doers of the Word and not hearers only (or should be), as the Bible admonishes us to be. So, we won’t have to convince our newcomers to get out of the pew and serve because serving is how they came to us in the first place. That’s the difference between church growth and corps growth.
St. Hagop Armenian Church Pinellas Park, FL Salvation Army District Headquarters Lutz, FL
Salvation Army Family Store, San Antonio, TX
Camp Keystone Holiness Center Starke, FL
Camp Keystone Dining Hall, Starke, FL
Camp Keystone Cabins, Starke, FL
Camp Keystone Multipurpose, Starke, FL
Commissioning 2025 – ‘Serving Like Jesus’
BY BRAD ROWLAND
Salvationists from across the USA Southern Territory are encouraged to gather in Atlanta from Friday, June 6 through Sunday, June 8 for what promises to be an inspiring and memorable weekend of worship, fellowship, and service. The 2025 Commissioning Weekend will take place at the Atlanta Temple Corps, and, following a memorable time in 2024 under the banner of “Walking Like Jesus,” we will continue our journey through the Southern Territorial Priorities with a 2025 theme of “Serving Like Jesus.”
“We needed all of the emphasis of this event to be on Jesus,” says Roberta Simmons-Smith, territorial director of special events. “So, we were led to choose a scripture that reminded us that we must serve the way He served.”
The theme verse for the weekend is Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (NIV). The Territorial Priority for this year is SERVE, with an intentional focus on recruitment, youth, and mission integration and development.
During the weekend, the Champions of the Mission session of cadets will be ordained and commissioned. The first event will be the Commencement service, held on Friday morning, and the weekend will conclude with the Ordination service on Sunday, celebrating the newest Salvation Army officers in the Southern Territory.
The esteemed special guests for the weekend include Commissioners Edward and Shelley Hill. Commissioner Edward serves as the Chief of the Staff at International Headquarters, and Commissioner Shelley is the world secretary for
women’s ministries. We anticipate their international perspective on serving like Jesus around the Army world having an exciting impact on our territory.
In addition to the general sessions and programming, a full slate of youth offerings is in place for the weekend. “Once again, these programs promise to be unforgettable and life-changing for our young people as they, too, go deeper in their faith,” Simmons-Smith says. The ACCENT Childcare team will return and host children between six months and four years old. There will also be a dedicated Youth Conference for children between five years old and twelve years old.
The full schedule will be released at a later date, though Simmons-Smith encourages young adults especially to attend, revealing a Saturday night focus for that age group. “While the whole weekend will be filled with opportunities to go deeper in your faith, the Saturday night will be geared with YOU specifically in mind,” she says.
“Saturday night’s program will be filled with exciting worship experiences and encouragement in your faith journey. Both young and old alike will want to experience this dynamic night of worship!”
Registration officially opens in February, including sign-ups for both Childcare and the Youth Conference. An email will be distributed to all officers and employees when the registration link is available, and it will also be shared on all territorial platforms. Of note, Friday, May 30 will be the deadline for registration for all youth activities, though general attendees can register until the start of the Commissioning events.
“At this year’s Commissioning, we can guarantee that you will not only be given the tools and inspiration to serve but also a hands-on opportunity to serve the local community during the event,” Simmons-Smith shares. “There will be more exciting details coming soon, but we are all going to get the opportunity to bring the Church into the community on Saturday afternoon, putting into practice how we are to be Heart to God and Hand to Man.”
Join us for an exciting and unforgettable time learning to serve like Jesus!
Special guests for Commissioning 2025 include Commissioners Edward and Shelley Hill, Chief of the Staff at International Headquarters and the world secretary for women’s ministries, respectively.
Photo Credit: THQ Youth Department
Photo Credit: Kaitlyn Avery
Photo Credit: Noah Dake
Photo Credit: Noah Dake