Salvationist 24 October 2020

SALVATIONIST For everyone linked to The Salvation Army

No.1779 Price 70p

www.salvationarmy.org.uk/salvationist 24 October 2020

Ten out of ten Coronavirus response in Latin America North

PLUS

INTRODUCING CORE RECOVERY CHURCH

SEE PAGES 10 AND 11

QUOTES FROM THE MEDIA

CHURCH OF IRELAND BEGINS THREE-YEAR MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMME

GOSPEL ARTISTS AND OTHER CHRISTIANS RECOGNISED IN QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY HONOUR LIST

CHRISTIAN CHARITY WARNS NEW SIGN-UPS FOR FREE SCHOOL MEALS WILL CARRY ON INCREASING

Gospel singer Muyiwa Olarewaju and Christian PR consultant Marcia Dixon were among the Christians to be included in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

Muyiwa... an award-winning gospel artist... was awarded an OBE for services to music...

Other British gospel artists on the list this year are Lurine Cato (MBE), Kingdom Choir director Karen Gibson (MBE) and John Fisher (BEM).

Marcia Dixon has been a fixture of Christian PR for over a decade, running her own company, MD Public Relations, which specialises in communications for the black community and BAME organisations.

Historian Dr Colin Podmore received an MBE for services to the Church of England...

Other Christians were recognised for their services to the community during Covid-19, including Rev Canon Paul Hoey, of Eglinton, Londonderry, and Rev Matthew James Price in Gorleston, Norfolk.

Walls and foundations next to an Essex roundabout that are believed to be the oldest surviving fragments of a church in Britain have been awarded new protection.

The remains in Colchester date to about AD320, not long after the Edict of Milan, when Constantine the Great granted freedom of worship to Christians.

The stone structure... stood next to a burial ground of over 600 bodies aligned east to west, indicating their Christian status.

New research has revealed that the number of children signing up for this term’s free school meals has seen an acute surge.

The Food Foundation think tank estimates that one million children have signed up for the first time – with 64 per cent of them belonging to former higherincome households.

There are currently 1.4 million children already benefiting from free school meals.

Coronavirus has seen families lose their jobs during lockdown, with many of those impacted previously holding highpay administrative roles, according to the report...

Chris Blackham, director of strategy for Transform Lives for Good (TLG), a Christian charity that works with vulnerable children... thinks that the free school meals scheme is only a shortterm fix.

‘The current free school meal provision only really scratches the surface of the reality that families are facing across this nation. And that’s only been exacerbated

by Covid over the last six [to] nine months’...

The report proposes three measures for the government to act on, one of which is broadening the eligibility of the scheme to children aged 16 or below whose families claim universal credit.

Chris Blackham from TLG agrees with those proposals but thinks that isolation is also a problem and more needs to be done in terms of providing guidance to people.

The Times

Premier

The Church of Ireland has launched a mental health promotion programme to mark World Mental Health Day. It has been described as a source of ‘practical help and of hope’ by the Irish primate, the Most Rev John McDowell.

The programme will begin with a three-year study of attitudes towards mental health among members of the Church of Ireland, tracking changes that occur during this period.

The research findings will form the basis of a series of mental health training and support resources produced by the Church of Ireland, to be disseminated among government bodies and mental health charities...

The research is being funded by the Allchurches Trust, the charitable arm of the Ecclesiastical Insurance Group.

Archbishop McDowell said... ‘My hope and prayer for this initiative is that as a serving church we will be able to be more effective in our ministry of comfort, of practical help and of hope, and in doing so to benefit those most in need within our communities and beyond.’

Church Times

Christian Today

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Salvationist 24 2020 00 October Month 2020

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CONTENTS

LEARNING TO VALUE SUPPORT EVERY one of my appointments as a Salvation Army officer has been a learning experience, but none more so than my four years in the Europe Department at International Headquarters. My horizons were broadened as a result of travelling in the Europe Zone, interacting with IHQ personnel from around the world and being part of boards and councils covering a range of issues.

One board that taught me a lot was the International Projects Board, which oversees all kinds of Army projects, including healthcare, water provision, education, antitrafficking and emergency relief. And one of the most important things I learnt is the value of supporting each other. It’s a key part of project work, as Ricardo Gomez emphasises on pages 12 and 13. He is projects officer in Latin America North, and with the territory covering ten countries he works in a complex environment, which the pandemic has made even more challenging. But they are not alone. ‘We receive a lot of help and support from the international Salvation Army,’ he says.

During International Development Week (26 October to 1 November) you can learn more about Army projects by listening to a daily podcast from THQ’s International Projects Office. Page 22 has the details, and you can support this work in prayer using the themes outlined on page 6.

Something else I Iearnt at IHQ was how well integrated the international Army is, with territories, commands and regions working together and supporting each other in various ways. One example of that is on pages 8 and 9, which shows how our THQ has been in touch with 25 other territories to support British nationals stranded overseas during the pandemic. This has also involved co-operating with British embassies around the world, and one embassy official was so impressed by the Army’s international network of support that he called it ‘the most amazing and uplifting experience of this entire lockdown’.

Closer to home, we discover an initiative to support people in recovery from addiction on pages 10 and 11. It’s called Core Recovery Church, and is running in a number of Lifehouses, corps and fresh expressions. Core Recovery Development Officer Major Lynden Gibbs identifies what’s at the heart of it: ‘It’s about supporting each other as we seek to connect with God.’ Supporting each other seems to be a key feature of the Army’s work – not just those things described in this week’s Salvationist but also the activities of our corps and centres. And it’s particularly important at this time. In his book, God And The Pandemic, Tom Wright says that when famine struck the 1st-century Roman world, Christians did not claim it was God’s judgment, as some seem to be saying about the coronavirus pandemic; instead, their instinctive response was to give practical support.

So, the prosperous Church in Antioch sent funds to help their poorer brothers and sisters 300 miles away in Jerusalem (see Acts 11:27–30).

Practical and prayerful support for one another and for the wider community is a hallmark of authentic Christianity, so should be part of our day-to-day lives within our families, corps and communities. If it is, then we will have learnt something vital about being the body of Christ, which ‘joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work’ (Ephesians 4:16).

Quotes from the media

2

Message from the Territorial Commander

4

News

5 and 6

Prayer matters

6

Letters

7

News feature 8 and 9 Army aids stranded Brits overseas Feature Spirituality at the core

10 and 11

by Shanelle Manderson

Interview 12 and 13 Supporting projects in a complex setting with Ricardo Gomez

Reflection The also-rans

14

by Major Peter Mylechreest

Reflection The best will in the world

15

by Major Jim Bryden

Bible study 16 and 17 Lifted from the pit of despair

by Major Graham Mizon

Through the week with Salvationist 16 and 17

by Major Melvyn Knott

Testimony In the palm of his hand

18

by Janet Thornally

Reflection Chapter and verse

19

by Ron Thomlinson and the Rev James Macfarlane

Viewpoint A bigger and better plan?

20

by Major Howard Webber

Preview To The Fourth Generation

21

by Chick Yuill

Poets’ corner

21

Announcements

22

Adverts

23

The Salvation Army and me

24

featuring CSM Andrea Hopkins

From the Editor Lieut-Colonel Jonathan Roberts

SCRIPTURE QUOTATIONS Scripture quotations in Salvationist are from the New International Version (2011), unless otherwise stated

Salvationist Salvationist2400October Month 2020

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A MESSAGE FROM THE TERRITORIAL COMMANDER

Don’t worry

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DON’T know whether you’ve come across any songs by Bobby McFerrin.

The one that is probably his most famous says: ‘Here’s a little song I wrote,/ You might want to sing it note for note:/ Don’t worry, be happy.’ That’s much easier to sing and say than for it to be a reality in our lives. It’s natural to be concerned about many things: our families, our health, our work, our corps, the restrictions that seem to be changing almost day-by-day. And Bobby McFerrin has the audacity to say, ‘Don’t worry.’

Of course, he wasn’t the first person to give such advice. Jesus said, ‘Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear… But seek first his Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself’ (Matthew 6:25, 33 and 34). But in these days it’s understandable that many of us might be struggling with the reality of life that is marked by worry, tension and stress.

I recently heard an unusual rendition of ‘Dear Lord And Father Of Mankind’ (SASB 456). The song was written around 1872 by John Greenleaf Whittier, an American Quaker. Our songbook has five verses, which are from the very end of a long poem entitled ‘The Brewing Of Soma’. The poem has 17 verses and there are good reasons why we don’t sing the first 12. Soma was an intoxicating drink, brewed in the Indus Valley around 2,000 years before Christ and drunk in an effort to create ecstatic worship of the Vedic god Indra. In the opening verses, Whittier outlines the frenzied consequences of drinking this potent brew, then goes on to parallel the behaviour of these drunken worshippers with the behaviour of Christian worshippers in the 1870s – those who had music, organs and the like, as opposed to the silent meditation of the Quakers. Goodness knows what he would have made of the drums and tambourines of the infant Salvation Army that was soon to invade the USA! The final verses of his poem are words that speak into our lives today.

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

Dear Lord and Father of mankind, Forgive our foolish ways; Reclothe us in our rightful mind; In purer lives thy service find, In deeper reverence, praise.

In simple trust like theirs who heard, Beside the Syrian sea, The gracious calling of the Lord, Let us, like them, without a word Rise up and follow thee.

O Sabbath rest by Galilee!

O calm of hills above, Where Jesus knelt to share with thee The silence of eternity, Interpreted by love!

Drop thy still dews of quietness Till all our strivings cease; Take from our souls the strain and stress, And let our ordered lives confess The beauty of thy peace.

Breathe through the heats of our desire Thy coolness and thy balm; Let sense be dumb, let flesh retire; Speak through the earthquake, wind and fire, O still small voice of calm!

There is a verse of the original poem missed out between our verses 3 and 4.

With that deep hush subduing all Our words and works that drown The tender whisper of thy call, As noiseless let thy blessing fall As fell thy manna down.

This missing verse is key to helping us understand and experience a release from worry, strain and stress. Just as the children of Israel were miraculously fed with manna, so it is possible for us to be recipients of what Whittier describes as a gift coming down from Heaven: quietness and beautiful peace, relieving us of strain and stress.

We shouldn’t be surprised because, whatever we are worried about, Jesus holds our hand to guide and lift us.

He said, ‘The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of

everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.

I do not give to you as the world gives.

Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid’ (John 14:26 and 27).

God in Christ saying to us, ‘Don’t worry.’ It’s why Paul was able to say, ‘We have great endurance in hardships and in persecutions. We don’t lose courage in a time of stress and calamity’ (2 Corinthians 6:4 The Passion Translation). And Peter could say, ‘Pour out all your worries and stress upon him and leave them there, for he always tenderly cares for you’ (1 Peter 5:7 TPT).

I’m still learning to give my anxious thoughts to him: to breathe them out and to breathe in the Spirit of God, who brings peace like manna from Heaven.

That makes me very happy, and I hope you’ll have that experience too – knowing that Jesus by his Spirit walks with us, whatever we have to face.

May God bless you and may the joy of his presence in your life overspill to your family, your neighbours and those with whom you interact. Be a blessing, share the joy, don’t worry!

ANTHONY COTTERILL COMMISSIONER TERRITORIAL COMMANDER O This

message is based on a video that can be viewed at facebook.com/ SalvationistOnline or youtube.com/ user/salvationarmyvideo

NEWS

FUNDRAISING

COMMUNITY ROCK FERRY Over the summer holidays the corps produced online craft videos in partnership with Wirral council and Edisential. Weekly snack packs and craft materials were included to help support children and families through the summer break.

More than 20 families engaged with the project. For many this was their first connection with the Army. – SW Aubrey, Lieutenant Lee and Bill

Three amigos cycle to success ST ALBANS THREE corps stalwarts got on their bikes to raise more than £2,500 for people in need.

Corps officer Lieutenant Wan Gi Lee joined former BBC News correspondent Bill Hamilton and long-time charity supporter Aubrey Foddering for a 77-mile ride from London to Brighton.

Dubbed the ‘three amigos’, they set off from Buckingham Palace and ended the ride two days later at Brighton Pier – coincidentally on Bill’s 77th birthday. A number of passers-by recognised the Salvation Army logo on their T-shirts and stopped for a chat and donated to the fund. These included the mayor of Wandsworth, Councillor Jane Cooper, who expressed admiration

Is your corps adapting to the coronavirus crisis through innovative ministry opportunities? Salvationist wants to hear from you. Send your news to salvationist@ salvationarmy.org.uk. Good quality pictures will be included.

for the organisation’s work. A senior staff member at Brighton Palace Pier also surprised the trio by presenting a trophy to mark their success.

With job losses, an increase in homelessness, mental health problems and the arrival of migrants desperate for food and shelter, St Albans is experiencing challenging times, and many hostels have had to turn people away.

‘Working with social services, we responded to the desperate needs of more than 70 families last Christmas with food parcels for the parents and toys for the children,’ said Lieutenant Wan Gi Lee. ‘We anticipate many more calls this year and are indebted to those whose support and encouragement helped us pedal our way to the coast. They may never know just how valuable their contributions have been or the joy they are bringing to so many in need.’ – BH

DROITWICH SPA Community Support Worker Carolyn Gomersall was invited by Councillor Richard Morris to meet Worcestershire high sheriff Mark Jackson and the town mayor, Councillor Bill Moy, in recognition of the Army’s work in the community. Throughout the pandemic the preschool remained open, initially for keyworker families but then to all who wished to return. Food hampers were taken to families in need and people who were self-isolating, and shopping and prescriptions were collected for those unable to go outside. Weekly phone calls have also been made to all members of the luncheon clubs and friendship groups to reduce feelings of isolation. – CG

OUTREACH

CLOWNE Following the coronavirus guidelines in place at the time, a quartet from the corps played outside the home of Violet Green, who is No 1 on the roll. Violet has been shielding since March. She and her neighbours were blessed by favourite and familiar hymn tunes. – GH Salvationist 24 October 2020

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Prayer

NEWS

NEWS

ARMY NEWS

Army warns of long-term homelessness crisis THQ THE Salvation Army is warning that if the government takes a short-term approach to spending on homelessness services in its upcoming Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) it will cause a long-term crisis.

As well as the personal impact on those who are made homeless, the costs to local authorities of placing thousands of families in temporary accommodation will run into billions of pounds every year.

The Army recently published its Future-Proof The Roof report, which outlines how the government can invest now to reduce homelessness and rough sleeping permanently while saving money in the long term.

The Army is warning that this winter could see the worst levels of rough sleeping in a number of years. Social distancing has meant many traditional winter night shelters face being unable to operate because they rely on shared facilities and cannot be made Covid-19 safe. – AR

Like our page at SalvationistOnline to keep up to date

Follow Salvationist on Twitter @SalvationistUK

‘LIGHT, LIFE, LOVE’ FOCUS

by Stephanie Chagas-Bijl (Resource Hub, THQ)

SATURDAY 24 OCTOBER As the disciples gathered with Jesus to hear what would be his final teachings, he spoke of a new commandment: ‘As I have loved you, so you must love one another’ ( John 13:34). While to love God and others was not something new (see Leviticus 19:18), loving the way Jesus loved was. Lord, it’s not always easy to love as you love. Teach us how to do this better each day. Amen.

SUNDAY 25 OCTOBER Lord, in a world so desperate for light, help us to resist the darkness of our own sinful nature and allow Jesus to shine his light into our hearts. In a world so desperate for life, help us to be open to receive the abundance of life that Jesus offers through the choices that we make. In a world so desperate for love, help us leave aside our selfish desires and pour out to others the same measure of this new love we have received. Amen.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOCUS

by Ben Gilbert (International Development Team Leader, THQ)

MONDAY 26 OCTOBER – MISSION PARTNERS As part of the international Salvation Army, we have mission partner countries: Greenland, Estonia, Ghana and Togo, Pakistan, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina. Pray for the work in these countries and for our officers and staff who support families through the many social programmes, corps ministries and community projects in these regions.

TUESDAY 27 OCTOBER – WATER Salvation Army International Development UK (Said UK) supports many water projects around the world, including rainwater harvesting tanks, latrines and handwashing units in schools and communities. Water is essential for life and is a way to reach some of the most marginalised communities. Pray that our water projects will be more than simply providing a basic need, but will lead people to Jesus who gives water that whoever drinks will never be thirsty again (see John 4:13–15).

WEDNESDAY 28 OCTOBER – FOOD SECURITY Imagine going to bed hungry every night. This is the reality for many families that Said UK is supporting through food security projects around the world.

Not only are these projects essential in overcoming malnutrition, but they also help people to adapt to changing environments due to climate change. Pray for those who are hungry and for families that struggle with the worry and stress of not knowing where their next meal is coming from.

Territorial Congress 2020 Saturday 24 October – 3 pm Sunday 25 October – 9 am This online event can be viewed at youtube.com/salvationarmyvideo With Chief of the Staff Commissioner Lyndon Buckingham and Commissioner Bronwyn Buckingham supported by Commissioners Anthony and Gill Cotterill and including people from across the United Kingdom Territory with the Republic of Ireland salvationarmy.org.uk/events

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

THURSDAY 29 OCTOBER – INCOME GENERATION Being in debt or long-term unemployment is no way to experience fullness of life. Around the world Said UK runs initiatives such as self-help groups in Kenya and village savings and loans groups in Tanzania. These help to raise the income of some of the poorest people so they can pay for basic needs such as food, education and medicines. Pray that the new skills people learn through Said UK programmes around the world will enable them to break out of the cycle of poverty.

FRIDAY 30 OCTOBER – ANTI-TRAFFICKING As a global church we are in a unique position to disrupt traffickers and stop people getting trafficked. As well as an extensive programme in this country, Said UK is supporting a number of anti-trafficking projects around the world, including skills training for vulnerable young people in Ukraine, children’s recovery centres in Malawi and Tanzania and awareness raising in Russia. Pray that those who are trafficked will be able to experience freedom and life in all its fullness.

O A PDF of the Prayer Matters booklet is also available to download from salvationarmy.org.uk/resources

LETTERS

A MOST INFORMATIVE BOOK

A LOUDER VOICE OF HOPE I AM sure that we are all increasingly concerned about those people in our communities who are socially isolated, experiencing mental health problems and/or experiencing material poverty. We are now hearing about a huge increase in anxiety, which will lead to further mental health issues and have a devastating impact on our society as a whole.

People in our community who I have listened to recently have said things like: ‘There’s no hope any more,’ ‘I can’t face another lockdown,’ ‘I haven’t seen anyone for ages,’ and ‘Everything is getting darker.’

I feel that The Salvation Army needs to be a louder voice of hope in these times.

I know that we are all doing what we can locally, but this would seem to be the time for The Salvation Army to get something on national TV and radio as people sit in their homes wondering if anybody really does care. The Army often advertises when requesting funds, but we really need a message of light, and a reassurance that there are still people who care and can offer support.

Will The Salvation Army reach out?

Louise Brown Captain Liverpool

CELEBRATING HUMANITARIAN AID WORKERS AID workers are helping people in humanitarian crises in 54 countries as well as in a further 9 countries that have been catapulted into humanitarian need by the coronavirus pandemic. These real-life heroes are doing extraordinary things in extraordinary times to help women, men and children whose lives are upended.

Some humanitarian workers are killed or injured in the course of their work.

Being a humanitarian means helping people who are suffering and saving lives any time, any place in the world. Humanitarian work requires being responsible, conscious of the circumstances of other people’s lives, and helping them without discrimination.

Let us all celebrate and appreciate aid workers who are doing extraordinary work, particularly during these tough times.

Handsen Chikowore London

BETWEEN 1962 and ’65, my husband and I were stationed in Karachi, Pakistan. An article in 19 September Salvationist and the Army’s new book In Darkest England: 130 Years On led me to remember an incident in Karachi.

We had become involved in a small way with Karachi’s art institute and once attended a lecture titled Modern Art: For and Against. This was held in the Russian culture centre. Afterwards, an American teacher at the institute introduced us to a staff member, saying, ‘I guess you wouldn’t know what these two do.’ After they guessed the diplomatic corps and the culture centre, the American said, ‘No, they work for The Salvation Army.’ I said, ‘You probably haven’t heard of it, son.’

‘On the contrary,’ he replied, ‘come inside.’

He led us to their library and pulled out from a shelf – yes, you’ve guessed it – William Booth’s In Darkest England.

‘A most informative book,’ he exclaimed, with a twinkle in his eye!

Grace Bevan Colonel Brentwood

THE ROOT CAUSE REPORTS appearing in Salvationist rightly give credit to the many members distributing food parcels to those especially in need. However, I strongly feel that the ‘root cause’ should also be addressed by a Christian newspaper.

God, who is ultimately in control of world affairs, must be sickened by the sin, evil, greed and selfishness of today. His commands and principles are completely and totally ignored.

God’s message to us is no surprise: it is the theme of the Old Testament, and can be found in 2 Chronicles 7:13 and 14.

As a Christian I believe that repentance from sin and a total commitment to Christ are the only answer to this dreadful epidemic as God continues to shake the world at this present time.

Rodney Dawson Major Taunton Salvationist 24 October 2020

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NEWS FEATURE

Army aids stranded Brits overseas THQ DESTITUTE British adults stranded for weeks overseas due to coronavirus travel restrictions have received emergency food, shelter and medical supplies from The Salvation Army.

The UK government’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is partnering The Salvation Army to provide essential support to British nationals waiting to be repatriated around the world. Since May the International Projects Office (IPO) at THQ has worked with embassies and high commissions from as far afield as New Zealand and Barbados to provide relief to the stranded Brits who are experiencing homelessness or in dire need of emergency support. The IPO has carried out this work in addition to its ongoing work supporting marginalised and vulnerable communities in these countries.

Using the Army’s global presence, IPO Team Leader Benjamin Gilbert and International Projects Support Officer Captain Ben Cotterill* have reached out to more than 25 territories across the Army world to co-ordinate food, accommodation and other relief. They have been supported

by Assistant Chief Secretary Major Howard Russell, who is responsible for reporting back to the FCDO. The first case in this new partnership demonstrated the Army’s ability as an international organisation to use internal networks to react to emergencies all over the world.

The IPO team were informed of a British man who had contracted Covid-19 in India-administered Kashmir and was quarantined until he tested negative 42 days later. With no money and after missing all the UK government’s repatriation arrangements, the man became homeless.

He was camped outside the British High Commission in New Delhi and was at risk of being arrested due to the local curfew in place.

Within an hour of being alerted, a team from India Northern THQ took care of the man, found him a place to stay and paid his bills for a month until he could be repatriated.

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

Ben Gilbert (left) and Captain Ben Cotterill (right) liaise with Major Howard Russell The High Commission consul in New Delhi described this as ‘the most amazing and uplifting experience of this entire lockdown’. He said: ‘I’m delighted that a team of Salvation Army officers, perfectly turned out in their white uniforms, arrived at the High Commission. As they talked with the man you could see the tears of relief in his eyes as it dawned on him these guys really were the cavalry.’

It took a month to get the man home to the UK, but in that time the Army arranged accommodation and food, and visited him regularly. Chief Secretary Lieut-Colonel Daniel Raj said, ‘We had wonderful conversations about life and faith.’

On his arrival back in the UK, a nearby corps officer checked if any further support was needed and maintained the contact with the Army. Back in India the consul said the first thing he looked forward to doing was meeting up with the Salvation Army team to thank them personally for all their work and to see how the relationship could be built upon.

Captain Ben said: ‘Each person we help represents a significant amount of co-ordination, administration, love and care.

We are incredibly thankful for the support from territories across the world, going the extra mile to help people in dire need and stranded far away from home.

‘Supporting British citizens stranded abroad has created a really positive working relationship with the FCDO and cases are

popping up all over the world that the Army has been able to support.’

In June the British embassy in Portugal contacted The Salvation Army in the Algarve about a British man who had lost his job and had been sleeping in his car for two months with no money, no food and with several health issues. Corps officer Captain Luis Viriato (São Bras) travelled 30 miles to provide him with temporary accommodation and to make preparations for transport to the airport.

The embassy made arrangements for the man’s return to the UK via Lisbon, where he was assisted by corps officer Captain Gildo Governo and stayed in a Salvation Army house for a few days.

Captain Viriato said, ‘All the people involved in the process have a tremendous feeling of accomplishment in the midst of everything that could have gone wrong in this situation.’

Once in the UK the man was assisted by The Salvation Army in Eastbourne, which also helped to find him permanent accommodation.

In the Latin America North Territory, staff in the the Colombia Division took care of a 78-year-old man who was imprisoned while travelling and was without a home on his release until his repatriation. Divisional Commander Major Alexander Diaz waited four hours outside the prison gates to receive him and took him to the Army’s Chapinero residence in the capital, Bogota. Major Diaz

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, London

said, ‘The embassy officials were very grateful for the work done and we return the same gratitude to the British embassy for the opportunity to serve and for our new partnership.’

Due to the connections made, the Army in Peru is already working directly with an embassy on a new idea for a project to support British prisoners.

A British national in the Philippines, who had been seriously unwell for a few months, ran out of money and was not fit enough to fly. The Army provided food and assistance with procuring medicine as they waited to be repatriated.

A mother and her baby in Nigeria have also been cared for while they await repatriation to the UK. A woman escaping domestic violence in Denver, USA, became homeless when her partner was arrested. The same day her situation was reported to the IPO team, and the Army’s Lambuth Family Centre provided shelter and emotional support until she could be repatriated three weeks later.

The centre manager said the woman left for the UK feeling empowered and hopeful that her future would be brighter.

A man in Barbados became destitute and was unable to get back to the UK due to

coronavirus travel restrictions. Food was provided for a month until his circumstances changed.

British embassies have also been reaching out to local Salvation Army projects such as homelessness work in Dublin.

‘This partnership with the FCDO shows how the Army is almost uniquely placed to react in crisis situations due to its internal networks and tradition of reacting in an emergency all over the world,’ said Major Howard Russell. ‘We are thankful for the opportunity to build relationships with other THQs and with British embassies.

‘Now that the Foreign Office has merged with the Department for International Development we expect the local relationships established around the world through this partnership will become even more important in the months going forward.’

Benjamin adds: ‘For a number of those territories, coronavirus has had a far greater impact than we have experienced here, yet even set against such difficulties they have gone the extra mile and put themselves at considerable risk to support others.

‘In some cases working relationships already existed with British embassies but these have been strengthened by working together. We hope this will lead to future collaboration to support our work in international development.’ – AR *Captain Cotterill is now corps officer, Clapton with Dalston and Stoke Newington plants

The Salvation Army’s international coronavirus response

Salvationist 24 October 2020

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FEATURE I Core Recovery Church

Spirituality at the core Shanelle Manderson explores the new recovery church model being introduced across the territory

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ECOVERY means different things to different people.

Personal recovery is about working towards something that is important to you and having hope for the future. While each individual’s journey is different, spirituality can play an important role. That’s why the Core Recovery Church model is being introduced in different settings across the Army.

Recovery church is not a new concept. It has been used successfully by the Army in New Zealand and Australia, as well as within the wider church in the UK and USA. When considering a model suitable for the UK Territory with the Republic of Ireland a focus group looked at a wide range of materials, spoke to church leaders and visited recovery congregations. The group identified hospitality and the establishment of deep relationships as positive aspects of existing models.

However, there was a lack of material that would easily fit the territory’s TIDE principles (Transformation, Integration, Discipleship and Effectiveness) and that would also work across all expressions 10

Salvationist 24 October 2020

of The Salvation Army in engaging the intended group. And so, Core Recovery Church was born.

The model sets out to embrace people in recovery and help them along their spiritual journey. Its vision statement – an open community of honesty and hope, journeying with Jesus – embodies the characteristics considered to be vital for success and transformation. Ten principles have also been identified to ensure the model will work, with a focus on acceptance and belonging, equality, belief in transformation, the power of storytelling and the creation of a space where a community can grow together.

‘It is important to recognise that, to some degree, there are lots of things we’re all recovering from – whether it be from broken relationships, mental health issues, health issues, low self-esteem, grief and loss, understanding sexuality, personal hurt or something else,’ explains Core Recovery Development Officer Major Lynden Gibbs (THQ).

‘What we’re saying is that the centre of recovery is a spiritual journey. It’s about supporting each other as we seek to connect with God.’

More than just adding recovery programmes to existing meetings, Core Recovery Church groups are seen as worshipping communities in their own right. There are three main types: a daughter church from a Lifehouse, a daughter church from a corps and a fresh expression, which would be something completely new. A fourth type, an ecumenical community, is yet to be explored fully.

A number of people within corps settings who are in recovery from unseen issues have shown interest in being a part of this style of church.

Service users in Lifehouses have particularly benefited from the model’s structure.

It is important to recognise that, to some degree, there are lots of things we’re all recovering from

Captain Brian Ward

Booth House Lifehouse in Swindon began running Core Recovery Church last year, merging it with an existing meeting based on the 12 Steps programme and its spiritual principles.

‘The distinctive thing about our church is that it is interactive,’ explains chaplain Captain Brian Ward. ‘Most of the congregation who come to Core Recovery Church are people who are in recovery from addictions. I deliver Christianity in a way the congregation can hear and understand so that church can be accessible. It’s person-centred.’

This is important as traditional corps fellowship and worship can be challenging for many Lifehouse service users. The language used within a typical Army meeting isn’t always appropriate.

Core Recovery Church meetings typically include a warm welcome and introduction, an opportunity to reflect on the week, creative and open worship,

sharing, prayer, a Bible focus that can be applied to everyday life and Bible readings that encourage recovery-based actions and outcomes for the fellowship to work towards.

Before every meeting Brian reads a preamble to set expectations. The group share an opening prayer and usually sing – although now, because of coronavirus restrictions, they listen to a song instead.

During group prayers people recovering from addictions and in need of support are remembered. A Scripture reading, reflection and discussion follow.

‘The two Core Recovery Church principles we try to emphasise are that we’re not going to judge anyone, regardless of where they’ve been and what they’ve done, and that we’re going to journey with them,’ explains Brian.

‘It’s natural for people to seek God because it’s part of their spiritual DNA. If we were created by God, it’s natural that we will feel a bit odd without him. So it’s about recognising that and helping people to unpack what that means for their personal journey.’

Charter Row Lifehouse runs an ecumenical service with the Methodist Church and Church of England, referred to as the Oasis community. Meetings are held at Victoria Hall Methodist Church.

Although the partnership started before the Army began exploring Core Recovery Church, they work from its principles.

‘Oasis has been going for just under two years,’ says chaplain Paul Huggins.

‘One of the reasons we decided to do something out of house was that some of the lads at the time felt like they were being watched in a fish bowl. So when I found the Oasis community, the idea was to take them out of the Lifehouse. It’s also good to get them out of the building and into the community again.’

The Oasis community focuses on belonging to God’s Kingdom rather than church membership. There is also a daily devotion at the Lifehouse called Iron Men and an addiction support group soon to be launched based on the Celebrate Recovery programme.

Pastoral support for members and leaders is a central pillar of the Core Recovery Church model. Developing a whole-life community is the goal. As well as discipleship meetings, there is also interaction with the wider corps fellowship to expand the type of support and relationships available to the group.

The next step will be to take the Core Recovery Church concept into mission development groups in each division across the territory.

‘I think this has the potential to take off,’ enthuses Assistant Secretary for Mission Mitch Menagh (THQ). ‘For people who live in recovery, life’s pretty hard. Here’s an opportunity to say, “Come in and be part of us and belong to us. We will love and accept you for who you are and work with you. We can journey together.”’

Salvationist 24 October 2020

11

INTERVIEW

SUPPORTING PROJECTS IN A COMPLEX SETTING Community Projects Director Ricardo Gomez talks to International Projects Team Leader Ben Gilbert (THQ) about the Latin America North Territory’s work during the pandemic

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VERY territory or command in The Salvation Army has a project officer. These officers form a global network that helps co-ordinate internationally funded projects tackling poverty and injustice – including anti-trafficking, water and sanitation, education, health and emergency relief.

In Latin America North (LAN), which consists of ten separate countries, Community Projects Director Ricardo Gomez has to co-ordinate projects across an extremely diverse political and cultural landscape. Add to this the coronavirus pandemic with varying restrictions imposed by ten different governments, and the complexity and challenge are greatly increased.

LAN’s headquarters are in Costa Rica, in the capital city San José, and Ricardo lives and works in the Santa Ana canton (municipality). In response to the pandemic, each canton has been given colour-coded divisions from green to red, with the degree of restriction determined by the number of coronavirus infections in that area.

Santa Ana has had an orange (high) code alert since July.

HOW DO YOU FIND THE CURRENT SITUATION IN THE TERRITORY, PERSONALLY? We receive a lot of support from The Salvation Army. I’m still receiving my salary, I’m working from home, I have all the tools I need to work, so we are in a good position right now. I thank God and the Army for that.

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

Ricardo Gomez YOU HAVE A HUGE TASK ORGANISING PROJECTS ACROSS THE TERRITORY. WHICH COUNTRIES DOES IT ENCOMPASS? The countries, each of which is a division in the territory, are Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Venezuela. It’s important to understand that these countries are in a really bad situation politically, economically and socially. Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua are particularly challenging to work in because of their social circumstances.

IN NORMAL TIMES, BEFORE THE PANDEMIC, HOW DID YOU ORGANISE YOUR WORK ACROSS THE DIFFERENT POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC SITUATIONS? I have to work very closely with the divisions. It’s a learning process. My first task was to understand what was happening in each of the countries.

With that understanding I could develop projects according to the needs of each nation. We work with schools, people experiencing homelessness, children’s centres, emergency responses and many community and mission support projects across the territory. We have an incredible team at our headquarters.

The work of the officers in each country is also very important.

I think the key is good co-ordination and good communication between the officers in the countries and myself. It’s a challenging task, but an honour for me to work on this.

HOW IS THE PANDEMIC AFFECTING YOUR WORK AND THE WORK OF THE SALVATION ARMY? Our government in Costa Rica uses the ‘hammer and dance’ system – in Spanish they call it martillo y el baile – where they take care of people’s health first, after which they will look at the economy. It’s complicated, as many Guatemala

Costa Rica

people have no income because they can’t work, while the government’s priority is to control the increase of coronavirus cases. There is social tension around this, but in recent months we have seen a significant increase in the number of cases. That’s why, up until mid-September, only supermarkets, pharmacies and some essential services, such as hospitals, were open.

Honduras Corps also had to close, which has affected the Army’s work. There were no contributions from the people to the officers and there were no Army activities in communities.

I have to work at home. Obviously, I have my laptop and all the information I need, but it’s not the same because communication with other departments is sometimes difficult. We are doing our best in the circumstances.

Through our work we are trying to support people. We know that many have lost their jobs, that many are hungry right now. We understand the government’s position – that it wants to take care of the nation’s health first – but we also understand it when people say, ‘Please, I need to work because I need to feed my children.’

It’s hard. I know that it’s the same around the world. The cases increase and increase and increase, and we’re seeing that it’s going to take many

months of restrictions to try to stop the spread of the virus.

WHAT IS IT LIKE TRYING TO KEEP UNITY ACROSS THE DIFFERENT COUNTRIES IN THE TERRITORY? It’s a real challenge to integrate the ten countries into one strategy!

Communication is very important.

We’re trying to understand what is happening in each country, and what the new restrictions are each week.

This makes it difficult to find a cohesive strategy for the corps in all these nations. We talk every day with each of the Army’s leaders in the different countries to try to understand what is the best strategy for that nation.

WHAT WORK HAS THE ARMY BEEN ABLE TO DO, DESPITE ALL THESE CHALLENGES? We receive a lot of help and support from the international Salvation Army.

We may have ten different contexts, but the virus affects all ten countries in a similar way. We have implemented three different types of project in each nation. The first is providing food support to people who have lost their

jobs and those who are experiencing homelessness.

The second is preventing the spread of the virus by providing information about personal hygiene, about how social distancing works, the benefit of face masks and the importance and process of hand washing.

The third is about mission support and helping to pay the salaries of Salvation Army officers and staff. Most of the territory’s income-generating projects are now closed and the Army is missing that income. For example, in Guatemala, we need to pay the salaries of teachers working in the Army school, even though the school has had to close and parents are no longer paying the usual school fees.

Colombia

We know that this work, along with the challenges, is not going to finish tomorrow or next week; it’s going to be a long process. We will also have to face a recovery process with maybe different strategies, but at this time we are working in these three areas: food support, providing personal protective equipment and paying the wages of staff.

t You can listen to the full interview on the Develop podcast on Spotify, Google Podcasts and Listen Notes

Costa Rica

Salvationist 24 October 2020

13

REFL RE FLEC FL ECTI EC TION TI ON REFLECTION

THE ALSO-RANS

Major Peter Mylechreest speaks up for ‘the unknown ones’

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ATCHING the tic-tac operators with their coded signals communicate the changing odds to the bookies at a racecourse is quite an experience. So is the disappointment and sometimes anger among people who tear up their old betting slips. By the end of the day the grass will be littered with evidence of money lost and yet more money lost.

As someone once said, you never see a bookie that isn’t well off.

At the end of each race the results are announced over the speaker. The first place horse is named, then the second and third and then the announcement: ‘Also ran…’

The also-rans are never paraded around the winners enclosure. No silver cup or prize money for the jockey or owner, no congratulations to the trainer, no thanks given for the stable-hands, just those words.

‘Also ran.’

At the end of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Colossae he listed people who had assisted him in his mission and ministry. Here’s my paraphrase of Colossians 4:7–17: ‘My good friend Tychicus – he’s a trusted minister and companion in the service of the Master. Onesimus has become such a trusted and dear brother!

Aristarchus is in jail with me. He sends greetings; also Mark and Justus.

‘Epaphras – what a trooper he has been! He’s been tireless in his prayers for you. I can report on how hard he

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

has worked. Luke, good friend and physician, and Demas both send greetings. Say hello to Nympha and the church that meets in her house.

And, oh yes, tell Archippus “Do your best in the job you received from the Master. Do your very best.”’

It is a letter of encouragement and gratitude for those individuals. But I wonder how the other Christians in Colossae felt when Paul didn’t mention them. Upset? Hurt? Annoyed? There is no way of knowing. However, I suspect they were content to do their particular part. No accolades, no impressive list of achievements, no being singled out as an excellent role model. Perhaps one could say, respectfully, they ‘also ran’.

I’ve met many also-ran Christians during my years as a Salvation Army officer. They have done the ‘donkey work’ behind the scenes. They are the ones who quietly pray for others.

They would never dream of speaking in public, yet their lives preach a marvellous sermon to those they work with day by day. They will never have their photo in a magazine with a caption praising them or have books written about them, no statues or plaques, but they are the salt of the earth. They are the unknown ones.

There are millions of such wonderful people. Perhaps you are one of them or, if not, you may know of someone who is. Why not tell them how much you appreciate them?

CS Lewis’s wonderful fantasy, The Great Divorce, is about a daytrip to Heaven. He describes a procession of ‘bright ones’ dancing with light in honour of a lady who was there to meet a disgruntled soul, her husband.

She had merriment in her eyes and from her whole being flowed joy and love and courtesy, and a great shining train followed her. Lewis asked who she was and was told that he will have never heard of her. Her name on Earth was Sarah Smith and she lived in Golder’s Green.

‘She seems to be a person of particular importance,’ Lewis observed. ‘She is one of the great ones,’ comes the reply. ‘Fame in this country and fame on Earth are two quite different things. Every young man or boy that met her became her son... Every girl that met her was her daughter... Those on whom [her motherhood] fell went back to their natural parents loving them more.’

To most of us Sarah Smith would have been an also-ran. But in Heaven her worth was recognised.

Thank the Lord for the also-rans.

MAJOR MYLECHREEST IS THQ CHAPLAIN

REFL RE FLEC FL ECTI EC TION TI ON REFLECTION

The best will in the world Major Jim Bryden concludes his three-part series exploring what it means to follow Jesus ‘Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You’re not in the driver’s seat; I am... Follow me and I’ll show you how’ (Matthew 16:24 and 25 The Message) UR jou ourn rney ey of di disc scov over eryy wi with th Christ becomes an inside-out exploration of our very selves.

What we find is not always welcome.

Our noblest intentions, however sincere or well-meaning, are not necessarily what please God. Only walking with Jesus – going where he leads and d ing what he de do emand nds – will bring us into to the he ple leas a urre and will of God and give e us deep peace.

Let’ Le t s lo look ok at th the e co cost st of fo follllow owin ing g Jesus, but als lso o the fact that, no matter the pric i e we may have to pay, we can rest in the kn know owle ledge thatt God od’ss mig ight htyy hand d wililll hold ld us secure and d guid ide us throug gh the valleys of diversions and devi de villish vi lish tempttations. t Jesus knew he mu must st go fo forw rwar ard d to face ce immeasurable suff ffer e ing an nd death, h an a nd to told ld his disciples so. Peter protested: ‘N Nev ever, Lord!... Thi hiss sh sha all ne all neve verr ha happen to you!’ !’ (Ma M tthe hew 16:22). The biting retort is not what hat we w expect: ‘Peter, get et out of my way. Sat a an,, get get lost. stt You Yo have no idea ea how God d work orks’ (v23 MSG).

Pete er wa wass hig highly gh commended one m me mo ent, se eve v rely y rep eprrimand ded the next ne xt.. He got it rightt abou ab bou ut th the pe pers rso rs on on and id iden enti t ty of Je esu s s, the hen n go g t it wro rong ng about hiss miss ssio ion. Wit ith the best s will in st t e wo th world, he em me eant wellllll. Bu B t he o errst ov s ep ppe ped the mark ma ark and was s use s d by Sata tan n to tem mpt Jesus nott to go g throu ugh h with wi th God od’s wilill.

Life e is like that: ha at: som o etimes e we ge gett it

rightt, som righ omet etim imes es we do don’ n t. We in insi sist st on seeing things from our perspective.

When our hearts are open to God, he will guide us to see what is hidden.

When we fall back on our own ideas, painted by our own desires – however unselfish or sophisticated – we reach conclusions that are simply human.

But when n we open en lives es to the beautiful, deepening work of God’s Spiirit, heavenly wisdom is imparted.

‘A All the bes est! t!’ We lov ove e to be on the receiving g end of such a gr gree eeti ting ng, bu butt who wh o wo woul uld d ev ever err imagi agine e ‘th the e be best st’ could have anything to do with side delilini ning ng g oursellves? ? It It’’s time to stop asking what’s in it for us and ask: ‘What must I be prepared ed to gi give ve up as a mar ark of myy devotion to Christ, who wh o ga gave ve up ev ever eryt ything g for or me? ?’

We don’t want to hear that following Jesus willll tak Je ake e us to va valllley eyss off suff f fering i g or steep ascents that must be climbed.

The Th e di disc scip iples could not have been comfortabl ble e wi with th the prosp rosp ro spec ectt off say ec ayin ing in g no to themselves and yes to a cross-like life to follow the Master, but all who follllow Christt mustt car fo arry ry a cross.

This does not sit comfforr ta t blly with today’s ‘give me’ culture – insid ide and outside the Church. One hyymn, ha hard rdly rd ly sung now, holds a jewel of faith in these su e word rds: rd s ‘“T Tak ake up thy cross and nd fol olllow me m e,” ,”// I he h ar the h blessèd Savio avio ou urr call;/ Ho ow ca can n I make ke e a lessserr sacrifice,/ When Wh n Jes esus us gav ve hi hiss al a l?’’

Th he tr t uth is tha h t th hose e wh who o follow J su Je s s ar are e no n lon onge ger in n ch ha arg rge. e Only

Christ Chri st may sit in th the e dr driv iver er’s s sea eatt.

He will take us into bandit country.

We never know when the enemy will strike. We must nott set ourselves up as those who promote a ‘name it, claim it’ approach or expect a God-insurance that gives protection from every storm.

He will not take a shortcut through peaceful valleys to reach the goal that calls fo for ab bso solu lute te sac acri rifi fice ce. We’ll reach our desttination, but on God’s terms. His willl, his wa wi ay, his power will be meat and drin dr inkk to our sou ouls ls.

If we have peace and lov ove e, it is because we follow Jesus. In these times of rapid d and dis istu turb rbin ing g ch chan ange gess we must be b rea eady dy to ma make ke tha hatt fu furt rthe herr jour jo urne neyy in into to Chr hris istt – fo follllow owin ing g hi hiss example by the power of his Spirit to g ve and not count gi nt the cost. Jes esus us sai aid: d: ‘If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take k up your cross, and follow me’ (Matthew 16:2 16 :24 4 Ne New w Li Living Translatiion on). ).

Fift Fi ftyy-t wo years ago I stood ft t d wi witth oth her cadets, ready to embark upon an incredible journey, armed with faith in Go od and equipped with his power,, rea ead dy dy to go ou outt in into to o the wor orld ld. We ld We sang: ‘W Whe ere e he le lea ad me I will follow,/ I’ll go ads ad with ith him, with him, all the way’ (SASB S 69 93) 3). Do tha hatt, and we have have tru ruly ly lau la unch ched ed upo p n life liife fe’s s gre reat ates estt jo jour urne neyy of discove ve ery ry. It sta t rt r s and finishes witth kn now owiing g th the e Ch Christ of th he cr cros oss. That way, we fathom our deepest sel elve ves, s, feel Christ’s compa passio on fo or ot oth hers and hers nd, at the end, bring g glo ory r y to God.

MAJOR BRYDEN LIVES IN RETIREMENT IN BELLSHILL

Salvationist 24 October 2020

15

BIBLE STUDY

Lifted from the pit of despair Major Graham Mizon reminds us that faith offers a firm footing

JEREMIAH 38:1–28

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E don’t always welcome advice from others even if they are qualified to give it.

The same can be true even when God speaks to us.

QUESTION O Can you recall times when God gave you ‘a word’ that was not welcomed or an answer to a situation that you didn’t like?

Around 597 BC, Babylon’s king, Nebuchadnezzar, appointed Zedekiah king of Judah. Zedekiah served as a puppet king. His reign ended in 586 BC when the Jews were exiled to Babylon.

God continually warned his people that, if they did not honour him in the land he had provided for them, he would take it away from them, and that

Through the week with Salvationist – a devotional thought for each day

by Major Melvyn Knott

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

Jerusalem – its Temple and its walls – would be razed to the ground. The northern kingdom of Israel had been scattered 135 years earlier by the Assyrians. Its ten tribes were lost for ever. Now it was Judah’s turn.

God called Jeremiah to be his prophet at a time of national crisis to deliver his ‘word’ regarding the destruction of Jerusalem. This caused Jeremiah much sorrow as he shared with anyone who was willing to listen. Zedekiah secretly met Jeremiah and asked: ‘Is there any word from the Lord?’ Jeremiah replied: ‘Yes, you will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon’ (Jeremiah 37:17). It was not the answer the king had expected.

QUESTION O What is the word from the Lord for our time? Is it what we want to hear?

The king was unresponsive to God’s message and the court officials decided that action against Jeremiah was needed. They urged Zedekiah to kill Jeremiah becasue his message was discouraging the people: ‘This man is not seeking the good of these people but their ruin’ (v4). Zedekiah’s response was not dissimilar to that of Pontius Pilate – both leaders washed their hands of the situation and the men brought before them.

Not wanting blood on their hands, the officials had Jeremiah put into a cistern to slowly die. Most houses in Jerusalem had their own cisterns (see 2 Kings 18:31; Proverbs 5:15). Cisterns were pearshaped and impossible to climb out of.

‘They lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the cistern; it had no water in it, only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud’ (v6). It is a depressing scene and it

SUNDAY

MONDAY

TUESDAY

Have thine own way, Lord, have thine own way;/ Thou art the potter, I am the clay;/ Mould me and make me after thy will,/ While I am waiting yielded and still.

(SASB 705)

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

(Psalm 51:10 and 11)

Beautiful Lord, wonderful Saviour,/ I know for sure all of my days are/ Held in your hand,/ Crafted into your perfect plan./ You gently call me into your presence,/ Guiding me by your Holy Spirit./ Teach me, dear Lord, to live all of my life/ Through your eyes.

(SASB 355)

must have been a frightening experience for the prophet. If Jeremiah knew the words of the psalmist, he could not have found a more appropriate prayer: ‘I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength… You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths… I am confined and cannot escape’ (Psalm 88:3, 4, 6 and 8).

QUESTION O Can you relate to this sinking feeling, perhaps when you have experienced a crisis or grief?

Jeremiah was rescued. He may have been physically sinking in mud, but the prophet experienced God’s strength and his feet were on the solid ground of his faith.

As Christians, we have the same hope and faith. For us, too, ‘God’s solid foundation stands firm’ (2 Timothy 2:19).

We testify to that reality in our lives every time we sing: ‘On Christ, the solid rock, I stand,/ All other ground is sinking sand’ (SASB 662).

QUESTION O When you have felt helpless or frightened, where do your help and strength come from?

Jeremiah’s rescue came from a most unlikely source – an African, by the name of Ebed-Melek. He pleaded with Zedekiah, who agreed to release the prophet. With some old rags and worn-out clothes padding his armpits, the prophet was hauled out of the miry pit (see vv12 and 13).

Ebed-Melek means ‘servant of the

king’ perhaps so named due to his role in the royal palace. Jeremiah’s life was saved through the godly acts of an unbelieving non-Jew who would have not been allowed entry to the Temple.

This is in stark contrast to the ungodly acts of Jewish leaders who urged the king to kill the prophet. Ebed-Melek was not to know that his most influential and effective service would be in serving a very different King.

Interestingly, Ebed-Melek would receive the same reward as Jeremiah and be delivered from the onslaught of the Babylonians (see Jeremiah 39:15–17).

MAJOR MIZON LIVES IN RETIREMENT NEAR LICHFIELD

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Yet you, Lord, are our Father.

We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand.

(Isaiah 64:8)

Change my heart, O God,/ Make it ever true;/ Change my heart, O God,/ May I be like you./ You are the potter,/ I am the clay;/ Mould me and make me,/ This is what I pray.

(SASB 409)

How the precious children of Zion, once worth their weight in gold, are now considered as pots of clay, the work of a potter’s hands!

(Lamentations 4:2)

Not in my own strength can I accomplish/ All thou art planning for me, day by day;/ Owning the limit of human endeavour,/ Humbly I seek, Lord, the grace to obey./ Into thy hands, Lord, take me and mould me,/ E’en as the potter handles the clay;/ Make me a vessel fit for thy service;/ Cleanse me and fill me, and use me today.

(SASB 599)

Prayer Father God, we thank you that you hold us in your hands and continue to mould and shape us into your character. As you work on us, may we become the attractive vessels you intend us to be.

Salvationist 24 October 2020

17

TESTIMONY

In the palm of his hand Janet Thornally (Grimsby) shares how God helped her through a recent time of serious illness

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AST Christmas a friend bought me a book of poems by a local author, Kate Brumby, called In The Palm Of His Hand. Little did I know it, but the truth that Jesus holds me in the palm of his hand would become more real to me in the months that followed.

On New Year’s Eve I went to the doctor’s with a problem, but nothing was found. Early in January I went back to talk to the nurse because I knew something was not right. She fetched the doctor and, following another examination, he said I needed to see a gynaecologist.

The appointment came a few days later. I asked the gynaecologist if he knew what it was. He looked me in the eye and said it was cancer. ‘Right, Lord,’ I prayed, ‘you and I are going to have to deal with this.’

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

The biopsy was booked for Monday 20 January and I was thinking I would need to go to the mercy seat for prayer during the meeting the day before.

When my husband, Trev, and I got to the hall on Sunday 12 January I told quite a few people about my diagnosis. The first song we sang was ‘Be Still, For The Presence Of The Lord’ (SASB 353).

I felt a stirring. ‘Do I need to go out?’ I asked myself. ‘No,’ I thought, ‘it’s next week!’

The next song was number 30: ‘He giveth more grace as our burdens grow greater,/ He sendeth more strength as our labours increase,/ To added afflictions he addeth his mercy,/ To multiplied trials he multiplies peace.’

Well, that was the trigger: I felt a sense of peace come over me and I knew I had to go. I looked towards my friend, Hazel, who I knew would pray with me, but she was already out of her seat and on her way. So too was my Trev. The rest of the song continued with Trev on one side and Hazel and Jackie on the other. We knelt in front of the Lord and prayed.

Our officer, Major Kenny Gardner, also prayed. Then I was aware of someone behind me praying. Then someone else. Then others. I heard dear Val behind me and she touched me. She is confined to a wheelchair but she’d got someone to push her to the front. The hall was filled with the Holy Spirit. I felt so blessed.

I haven’t a clue how long we were all

there for but we felt the presence of the Spirit. Some of the congregation said they’d never witnessed anything like it.

It amazed me that had I not gone out to the mercy seat none of that would have happened. More amazing was that my plan was to go out the following week – but God also had a plan. The next day I got a phone call to say there was a cancellation and my biopsy was now the next day. I was in awe of our amazing God who knew that the next Sunday would be too late!

My operation was booked for 9 March.

Trev asked me if I was apprehensive.

‘Not at all,’ I said. ‘The Lord has me in the palm of his hand.’

The operation went well. I was in Castle Hill Hospital, Hull, at the start of the coronavirus outbreak and should have been there four days, but was sent home after three.

Ten days after my operation I rang my GP, as I knew something wasn’t right.

Sure enough, when the dressings came off I had an infection and the staples couldn’t be taken out. I was given antibiotics. Again, I called my Christian family for prayer. Three days later the right side staples were removed and I had more antibiotics. After another three days the left side staples came out.

My gynaecologist rang with the news that one of the lymph nodes had tested positive and I would have to have a CT scan on my stomach. If that proved OK, I would not need further treatment.

On 4 May a letter came to tell me I was cancer-free. There was a lot of praising and thanksgiving!

All this happened during lockdown.

There are so many things to thank God for. I had my operation just as the pandemic took hold and I was well looked after by my GP and the gynaecology clinics. The lovely weather meant I could recuperate in the garden among the flowers and birds.

There is so much going on in the world – a world that will never be the same again. But God’s love never changes. He has me in the palm of his hand and all the glory goes to him.

REFL RE FLEC FL ECTI EC TION TI ON REFLECTION

Chapter and verse

by Ron Thomlinson with the Rev James Macfarlane

H

IDDEN away on a back inside page of the War Cry dated 6 April 1968, where no one would ever dream of looking for something to read, my first article was published. It was obviously used as filler: it had been decomposing in a sub-editor’s drawer for eight months before being used. Even so, I felt I had won a Pulitzer prize.

I still have the cutting and also a carbon copy of what I submitted. The difference between the two is so great that whoever put my name on the byline was less than truthful. That was my first encounter with the maxim ‘every writer needs an editor’.

There are editors and there are writers, two quite distinct disciplines. Writers are not necessarily good editors and good editors do not need to be writers. The most toxic relationship is when a good writer meets a bad editor. In the bronze age before computers, I once worked for an editor-in-chief who continually edited her own editing. It was a nightmare.

Any aspiring contributor must first make peace with the fact that to get anything published, it has to be written so as to get past the editor, with all of his or her foibles and prejudices: editors do have the last word.

Like many readers of Salvationist I was taught that God wrote the Bible, but no one ever told me who had edited it. The phrase ‘chapter and verse’ frequently has a nasty connotation to it, but at some time somebody did decide what would be a chapter and what would be a verse.

I was told once that the chapters and verses had been edited by a drunk while riding a donkey. Editing as we understand it in the 21st century is not how the Bible was edited. All those chapters and verses actually hinder our reading: the right word might even be ‘illogical’.

So, I wrote to my old mate, Jim, about it. Here’s his reply: ‘Dear Ron, I have good news about your theory of the drunk, the donkey and

the New Testament.

It is almost correct.

There are only two minor discrepancies – he was not drunk and he was not on a donkey. But you were very close!

‘The origin of this story is about Robert Stephanus who put the verse divisions and numbers into the Bible. The story is told by Professor B Metzger thus: According to Stephanus’s son, his father made the verse divisions for the New Testament on a journey by horse from Paris to Lyon. Some explained inappropriate verse divisions as originating when the horse bumped his pen into the wrong place! But the most natural explanation is that the task was accomplished while resting at inns along the road.

‘Robert Stephanus was a scholar and even more importantly a printer. He was like a Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg of his time, wielding power through technology. He wanted his printed edition of the Greek New Testament, and later the Hebrew Old Testament, to have verse divisions and numbers. Chapter divisions had all been done in the days of handwritten manuscripts.

‘The Jewish Rabbis had also set “verse” divisions for the Old Testament by adding punctuation. Robert added the numbers. The New Testament verses were his own work (between horseback journeys). All subsequent printed Bibles, including the Authorised Version, have followed his chapter and verse numbering.

‘Verse numbers were a brilliant innovation. They made it very easy to find and compare passages. But, brilliant though it was, your own word of caution, Ron, needs to be heeded. To get the full sense of a verse it has to be read in context. The need to include context and

give interpretation has no better example than The Armoury Commentary edited

by General Frederick Coutts. The commentary used a superb variety of translations to show different shades of meaning and how the text flows as literature. This contemporary style for today’s readers of the Bible nudges us away from the old chapter and verse approach. I hope that helps, Jim.’ Billy Graham once suggested that we are the Bibles the world is reading.

When we do not put the words of Scripture into practice, we are in fact editing them out. As Jim later wrote to me: ‘God inspired the Bible, but the editing he entrusted to us.’

Perhaps, after all, we editors do have the last word.

RON LIVES IN THE NETHERLANDS JIM LIVES LIVE ES IN IN RETIREMENT RETIR REM EMEN ENT T IN N DUNOON ON

Salvationist 24 October 2020

19

VIEW POINT

A bigger and better plan?

Major Howard Webber asks what the experience of the early Church can teach us today

I

MAGINE that you are a harvested seed of corn in a bag with a host of other seeds. The bag is strapped to the belt of a man and, although you can’t see him, you sense the warmth of his closeness. In addition you are loving the company of your fellow seeds – bliss.

Then, without warning, a hand enters the bag and scoops a handful of you up and scatters you all across a cold, muddy field. Suddenly you feel alone, uncertain of where you are or what you are to do, yearning to be back in the bag with the others and to have that sense of warmth and security you once knew. With this unexpected turn of events you feel confused and abandoned, unable to make sense of what has happened.

Following Pentecost the Church grew rapidly, with God adding daily to their number ‘those who were being saved’ (Acts 2:47). Though faced with opposition, the infant Church was such a loving, sharing, joyful place to be. All were aware of the opposition, targeted particularly at the apostles, and how the religious authorities wished them dead (see Acts 5:33), but the Church grew nonetheless; it seemed that God was protecting it from any real harm.

They could never have imagined the change that was about to take place.

No one was prepared for what was in store for Stephen, ‘a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit’ (Acts 6:5) and of ‘God’s grace and power’ (v8) – how he was to be the innocent victim of a kangaroo court that would concoct 20

Salvationist 24 October 2020

charges, present false witnesses and have him executed in the most horrendous manner.

On the very day he was murdered an organised persecution of the whole Church began, led by a young Pharisee named Saul, who had witnessed and been supportive of Stephen’s cruel fate.

The result was that ‘all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria’ (Acts 8:1). It was the last thing the people dreamt would happen. It must have felt like a total, irrevocable disaster. Everything that the Lord had built in Jerusalem was now being actively destroyed (see Acts 8:3).

Scattered and separated from one another, there must have been much grief among the believers. Grief at the demise of dear Stephen. Grief at the loss of so much else that was precious to them all, such as the close fellowship they had shared in each other’s homes and the regular gathering together of everyone in Solomon’s Colonnade (see Acts 5:12).

How they must have longed and hoped for the day when things would return to what they had been, much like the Jews centuries earlier after they had been exiled. Looking back at how things used to be in Jerusalem, those exiles wept ‘by the rivers of Babylon’ (Psalm 137:1). False prophets assured the people that their stay in exile would be short-lived, whereas Jeremiah warned them that it would be a long stay of 70 years (see Jeremiah 29:10). Most of the people who had known those days would never return.

For the scattered Church in Acts things would never return to the way they were. But a promise that God made to those exiles in Babylon was surely as applicable to the early Church as it had been to the exiles: ‘“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future”’ (Jeremiah 29:11).

Those early believers, undoubtedly confused and questioning the sudden turn of events, may not have realised that what was happening to them was part of God’s bigger and better plan for his Church.

How might that relate to us and the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the Church today? Scattered and separated as we may well feel, we may never return to what once we knew.

Could it be that this is the only way God is able to dismantle and reassemble what he wishes his Church to be?

Whatever they may have lost, the majority of those early believers didn’t lose the thing of most importance or their desire to share it. Filled with the Holy Spirit and on fire for God, they wanted to win the world for Jesus. The situation may have seemed bleak, but the Holy Spirit inspired and used those scattered seeds to produce harvests beyond their wildest dreams.

MAJOR WEBBER LIVES IN RETIREMENT IN BOURNEMOUTH

PREVIEW

To The Fourth Generation A new novel by Chick Yuill

Z

ANDER Bennings’ writing has brought him a lifestyle his parents and grandparents could never have imagined. But when he is confronted with the cold reality that his success is built upon a lie, he is plunged into a desperate search for truth and forgiveness.

Delving into his family’s past, through the battlefields of the First World War and down the three generations before his own, he discovers that the men in his family have each been forced to embark upon this same unsettling quest.

Tracing their lives, and those of the women who held the family together,

Zander discovers the search is not in vain, and that while family ties can be broken, they can never be truly severed – even to the fourth generation.

Chick’s previous novels – Rooks At Dusk (2017), The Man Who Broke Into St Peter’s (2018) and The Mystery Of Matthew Gold (2019) – have been warmly received and widely read. To The Fourth Generation continues his aim ‘to bring matters of faith out of the narrow confines of a religious ghetto and into the wider arena of public life and discourse’ and is written out of a conviction that ‘nothing reaches truth or touches people’s hearts better than a well-told story’.

O To The Fourth Generation is available from the publisher’s website, instantapostle.com, and is priced £9.99 (paperback) and £5.99 (Kindle). All author royalties will be donated to charities working in the aftermath of the Covid-19 crisis

Poets’ corner Lockdown In the quietness of what can only be described as an uneasy silence, our minds embark on a marathon, remembering what life was like before lockdown.

Memories run amok in our heads, like quality time with family and friends, shopping where there were no queues or food shortages, schools and businesses open and functioning normally, along with our hospitals and care homes, noisy roads and busy thoroughfares, freedom to meet and participate in worship.

So many thoughts to reflect and ponder on.

Now our lives are turned upside down with fear, bewilderment and confusion, anxious as we contemplate a new way of living.

We must be resolute in turning to the one who understands and who is able to calm our racing hearts and minds.

Our Lord reassures and gently reminds us in whom we must trust.

We find ourselves questioning more, stunned by a new quietness that has gripped not only our lives, but also our world over.

There seems to be a void that asks, ‘What do we do now to silence the fears, the mixed emotions, the questions, the uncertainties of what the future will look like?’

We must draw encouragement during these days that our God is omnipresent, omniscient, and will walk with us in and through lockdown.

MAJOR STEPHEN NAYLOR (HULL ICEHOUSE)

Salvationist 24 October 2020

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

ARMY PEOPLE QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY HONOURS O Community Development Manager Christine Bown (Keighley) awarded the BEM O Captain Caroline Brophy-Parkin (Hawick) awarded the MBE O BM Alex Campbell (Chelmsford) awarded the OBE MARRIAGE O Michael Scannell to Sandra Jutestal, Hendon, at Hammersmith and Fulham Register Office WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES Emerald (55th) O Keith and Margaret Topping, West Cornforth (6 November) Golden O Evie and Keith Knight, Hastings Citadel (5 September) Ruby O Diane and Ian Bartle, Stockton (25 October) PROMOTED TO GLORY O Walter Jones, Coedpoeth O Shirley Newman, Romford O Melvin Nicholls, Gloucester, on 22 September O B/Reservist Raymond Ayre, Plymouth Congress Hall, on 30 September O Jean Oliver, Plymouth Congress Hall, on 9 October O Rtd SL Alf Knightley, Edmonton, on 9 October O Colonel Joy Cooper from Lewisham Hospital on 13 October BEREAVED O Susan Nicholls, Gloucester, of her husband Melvin O Mair Chubb, Penarth, of her brother Walter Jones O Jenny Barclay, Romford, of her mother Shirley Newman O Colonel Robert Cooper of his wife Colonel Joy Cooper O Major Richard Oliver, Margate, and Nicholas Oliver of their mother Jean Oliver O Ruth Hellen and John Knightley, both Edmonton, of their father Rtd SL Alf Knightley

26 October to 1 November, and each day there will be a podcast focused on the theme of the day, social media posts and ‘At Home With...’ resources for corps and groups to get involved. Wednesday sees the launch of the 2020 helping-hand campaign, Feeding Hope, which focuses on food security. On Sunday 1 November there will be a ten-minute video that can be included as part of a Sunday meeting.

The themes for each day are: Monday – Mission Partners Tuesday – Clean Water Wednesday – Food Security Thursday – Income Generation Friday – Anti-Trafficking Saturday – Gender Justice Sunday – Emergency Response O For more information and resources go to salvationarmy.org.uk/ international-development-week

TRIBUTES HELEN BOWMAN, RINGWOOD HELEN was 106 when she was promoted to Glory. She was a Salvationist all her life.

One of ten children, she was sent to Sunday school at Kilburn 1 Corps in London and became a junior soldier, corps cadet, songster and candidate.

After her marriage to Bob they soldiered at Notting Hill for many years, then at Harlesden, Ealing and finally at Ringwood, where she enjoyed the fellowship of the home league.

Helen loved the Army and her family and was a great-great grandmother. She is greatly missed by all who loved her and her caring way. – RB

ERIC MITCHELL, BRIGHOUSE ERIC became a soldier as a teenager at Sowerby Bridge. After national service he moved to Brighouse where he met Brenda.

They married in 1954 and had two children, David and Catherine.

Eric loved teaching young people to play brass instruments and was YP band leader at Brighouse for many years. He loved to hear of former YP band members INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT WEEK who are still involved in Army banding International Development Week runs from today. Eric also assisted neighbouring

WHAT’S ON

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Salvationist 24 October 2020

corps in teaching learners to play. In 2015 he again formed a small band at Brighouse and was blessed by the enthusiasm of the band members and corps for this ministry.

In recent months Eric’s health deteriorated but he still enjoyed fellowship at the corps as often as possible. He was a humble man who served His Lord quietly and faithfully. His family miss him dearly but are comforted to know he is at rest with his Saviour. – CC MARY HARVEY, BURTON-ON-TRENT MARY was brought up in a village close to Burton-on-Trent, where she remained for the rest of her life. She married Peter and they had two children, Janet and David.

They were introduced to the Army through the daughter of a family member who was being enrolled. Then, mainly due to visits from the corps officer, they became attendees, sought Christ and were enrolled as soldiers themselves. They both served as welcome sergeants, a position in which Mary excelled, as she did when helping with the parent-and-toddler club. She is remembered as a Christian lady who made an impact on the corps. – KA VERNON ROBERTS, WEYMOUTH VERNON, known as Len, was born in Weymouth in 1924 into a family of Salvationists and Methodists. He attended Sunday school and became a junior band member and then a bandsman, and was active for 80 years. During the Second World War he was stationed near Andover, where he married Peggy. They had three daughters.

Peggy died in 1981.

Len served as corps sergeant-major at Andover for many years. On retirement, he returned to Weymouth to care for his elderly parents and was active in the corps, serving as corps sergeant-major and band sergeant.

An upright Christian gentleman, Len lived by the truths of the Bible and encouraged others in their Christian walk throughout his life.

He had a long white beard and excellent speaking voice, so was often called on to play the part of William Booth. He is missed by comrades and family. – SG

ADVERTISEMENTS

Salvationist

24 October 2020

23

‘‘‘

We have no other argument, We want no other plea; It is enough that Jesus died And that he died for me..

(SASB B 84)

All kinds of people attend, join, volunteer with or work for The Salvation Army.

We’ve asked some to tell us about themselves.

This week…

CSM ANDREA HOPKINS Hednesford How did you first come into contact with the Army?

My family were all in the Army. My great-grandad carried one of the flags at William Booth’s funeral.

What made you want to become a soldier?

I knew that was where God wanted me to be.

What is your day job?

I work part-time in the local post office as a counter clerk.

What is the most interesting thing about your job – and the most frustrating?

The most interesting is the variety of people that come into the post office every day. They talk to us and tell us all about their families and their lives.

The most frustrating is when the money doesn’t add up at the end of a shift.

What is your favourite kind of holiday?

We live next to the canal and have a share in a canal boat, so a slow holiday where we travel at about four miles per hour.

If you could be in a film, which would it be and what character would you play?

Little Women. I would like to be Jo March, but I guess I am nearer Marmee’s age now.

If you were to create a slogan for your life, what would it be?

I like Julian of Norwich’s writing, so it would be: ‘All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well… for there is a force of love moving through the universe that holds us fast and will never let us go.’

What sport would you compete in if you were in the Olympics?

Cycling or swimming, but I’m far more likely to be a spectator.

If you could have an unlimited supply of one thing, what would it be?

Patience.

What do you do in your spare time?

Read, walk the dog and play with glass.

Apart from English, what languages do you know?

A little British Sign Language.

’’

Did you have a nickname growing up?

Andy.

If you had to be handcuffed to one person for a day, who would it be?

My friend, Jennifer.

If you could invent a gadget, what would it be?

Something to clean the house so I’d have more time.

Do you have any hidden talents?

I can make stained and fused glass.

What was the first record, tape or CD that you ever owned?

The Little Black Sheep by the Cowboy Church Sunday School.

What is your favourite Bible verse?

‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose’ (Romans 8:28). It’s the first verse I remember being given to me by a cadet as she knelt with me at the mercy seat at Aberystwyth while the cadets were there on an Easter campaign.

Which Bible figure would you like to meet and what would you ask them?

Esther. I’d ask if she knew she’d save the Jews.

Apart from the Bible, which book would you want on a desert island?

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.

What is your favourite hymn or worship song?

‘Jesus, The Name High Over All’ (SASB 84). I remember my aunt teaching me to sing it when I was eight or nine.

If you had a ‘theme song’ that played whenever you walked into a room, what would it be?

‘Father’s Eyes’ by Amy Grant.

Is there something about life or the world you’ve never understood?

Why people hurt one another.

What is the most valuable thing you possess?

Family.

If you could rid the world of one thing, what would it be?

War.

Something interesting people might want to know about you is…

I am a Waterways chaplain.