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Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Spring Has Sprung

The signs of spring are all around me – warming weather (most days), green shoots appearing in the garden, and my beloved New York Yankees are only days away from their 2014 season opener. These signs give me pause to consider the miracle of rebirth that happens so visibly this time of year.

Before moving to New Jersey, I spent several years living in Southern California where I hardly noticed the arrival of spring, as winter in San Diego merely means you don’t get up to 70 degrees. Here, however, winter is evident in the cold days, gloomy skies and inches of snow. So, when I start to see signs of life in the garden, I get impatient for warmer weather and fresh air!

This rebirth of nature also prompts me to consider the rebirth that I have experienced through Christ. I am reminded of Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 5:17 – "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" (NLT)


What an incredible promise and transformation; all of my sin and decay has been replaced with new life and righteousness. To me, it is the single most important truth of the Bible, a real, personal relationship with Christ results in a new me!

I am given pause to think about the thousands of people I have encountered in my time with The Salvation Army who have experienced this same rebirth. Whether they are graduates of our Adult Rehabilitation programs, young people who have attended our camps, or volunteers who have packed food boxes, people see Jesus and accept His offer of a new life at the Army. We don’t force it on them; we just live by Biblical principles, and they are drawn to ask why we are different. I think that this is an incredible testimony to the life changing ministry that is and has been since 1865 - The Salvation Army.


Perhaps, today, you are in need of new life. Why not reach out and ask for it? We’re here to guide you to the source. Make this spring be about more than just flowers and baseball; make this spring one of rebirth in your life. When you do, things will never look the same.



Written by Richard Pease
Divisional Controller

Friday, March 21, 2014

City On A Hill

The Christian band Casting Crowns is a popular one in my home. Any song by them is known by heart, but there's one particular song that caught my attention one night during a drive home. It speaks about a city on a hill. A city that was said to have "once shined bright," but because of differences among the people, "they all started turning on each other." The song continues with the following lyrics:

"You see the poets thought the dancers were shallow
And the soldiers thought the poets were weak
And the elders saw the young ones as foolish
And the rich man never heard the poor man speak
But one by one, they ran away
With their made up minds to leave it all behind
And the light began to fade
In the City on the Hill, the City on the Hill"


My mind then went towards the churches. We find these roles from the songs in them. The poets being the members who bring the message, the dancers being the praise members or those whom bring us into worship, the soldiers I saw as the congregation itself, and I’ve seen all age ranges in our Corps in varying economic statuses.


Growing up as a PK (a pastor's kid in the Salvation Army) I have seen this scenario various times. The church increases by the number of members, and one small, close-knit group grows up and somehow along the way becomes divided. Within these separate groups, we judge one another and become prideful in a way to who we are and what group in our church we belong to. We believe that our role in the church is more important than the others. We believe that no one does more for the church than we do, so we leave the church thinking we can do better on our own or in another church, but the light we all burned together fades and is no longer as bright. The fire that was shared amongst the members of the city is lost because they don’t work together and appreciate one another.


"It is the rhythm of the dancers
That gives the poets life
It is the spirit of the poets
That gives the soldiers strength to fight
It is fire of the young ones
It is the wisdom of the old
It is the story of the poor man
That's needing to be told"


All our roles fall in together like a perfect masterpiece, and I thought to myself how beautiful this is. That God makes us "different by design," and that although we are all different, we are all created in the image of God. But the song is very true in its words - "Instead of standing strong together," we allow our "differences" to divide us. And just like the people of the city on the hill, we all need each other in our churches.


We need the poets to give us the word of God in a beautiful way. We need the dancers and the musicians to lead us in worship so that we are able to fight the daily fight and stay strong. We need the youth and their fire to continue the fight and grow a new generation of soldiers. We need the old who were once in our shoes and can tell us about how hard the battle really is. We need them for their wisdom and experience, because they know what we don't, and they prepare us for it. We need the poor to teach us what we have forgotten in our worldly world. We are so easy to forget what is really important in life, and we become so ungrateful and prideful and far from what God wants from us.

We see ourselves as rich or poor by the relationship we have with God, and we judge one another based on our relationships. We forget that we are all the same; we are all far from perfect, and we need the new members and the lost sheep to remind us what we fight for and why we fight for it. We forget that our purpose is to spread the love and word of God, not for our own praise and pride. We forget the words of the poet, the rhythm of the dancers, the strength of the soldiers and the fire of the young. We all run away from God and our churches, leaving the fire behind, but God is looking for us, and he is calling to us, "Come home (to the city on a hill)," and together maintain the burning flame.

Written by Elizabeth Ramirez
Newark Ironbound Corps

Monday, March 10, 2014

Volunteer Spotlight: Adam Braziel

"I needed something in my life that would make me feel I was making a difference. I enjoy helping people in need. I feel as though that is what I was put here on this earth to do, to help the hungry and make someone sad feel happy. If I can help someone in need every day when I come to the Salvation Army, I feel as I have done my job. This is what the Lord wants me to do with my life. I enjoy doing volunteer work!"

Adam Braziel has been a volunteer at Bridgeton Corps for 7 years. He can be seen at the Drop-In Center, weekly Bread & Soda event, and as a Maintenance Worker. Some of his responsibilities include preparing coffee and distributing donuts to local workers and those in need.

Follow Alex's lead! Apply to become a Salvation Army volunteer at salvationarmynj.org/volunteer

Thursday, March 6, 2014

You're All I Have

One of the little known services of The Salvation Army is our Community Care Ministries. Visits to shut-ins, regular visits and programs at local rehabilitation and long-term care facilities, teaching children how to render compassionate service to the elderly, etc.

I have been a member of the Community Care team at my Corps (Salvation Army church) since my retirement fourteen years ago. Along with another team member, I visit the same nursing home every month. We go just to say hello and distribute our magazine, "The War Cry" and a small gift. We greet, listen, and offer a word of encouragement. When invited to do so, we pray with the resident, asking God to make Himself known as the great burden-bearer and the God of all comfort. Over a period of fourteen years, one can develop a strong attachment and admiration for these residents. I have made many friends.

One of my special friends is Bobbie Morgan*. Bobbie is retired from the military, and a small veteran's pension provides for her stay at the nursing home. When I first met Bobbie a number of years ago, she told me that she was from Alabama (I still have not discovered how she ended up in a nursing home in central New Jersey). My son lives in Alabama, and I am more familiar with that state than most New Jerseyans, and so Bobbie and I began to share stories.


We've talked together, laughed together and prayed together. I've learned of some of the difficulties of military life and some of the loneliness of nursing home living. She has learned more about different towns in the deep South as my son, a United Methodist minister, has moved from church to church over the years. I have visited her on "good days" when she was full of enthusiasm and joy, and I have seen her on "bad days" when pain and physical disabilities seem to sap her joy along with her energy. But she always knows me and greets me with a smile.

Recently, I visited Bobbie on a "bad day." The pain she was experiencing was marked on her face. The supplemental oxygen she was breathing indicated to me that the medical staff also knew it was a "bad day" and were doing all they could to make her comfortable. I visited longer than usual, spoke words of comfort, shared some Scripture and prayed with Bobbie. Glancing at my watch, I realized I had been there far longer than usual, and my co-worker would be looking for me. Smiling at Bobbie, I said: "Oh my, it’s getting late, I have to go now." Grasping my hand tightly, with tears in her eyes, Bobbie replied, "Oh, don’t go yet – You're all I have!"

God gave me a glimpse, at that moment, of the limitless value of our Community Care ministry. For many in that nursing home, I am all they have.

As one enters a room, it is quickly evident that the resident is lucky enough to have family and friends who visit them and care about them. Cards and balloons celebrating birthdays and special occasions, the person who may be visiting as I come, all show that the resident is loved. But there are other rooms, like Bobbie Morgan's, where the only evidence of any visitor is the small gifts that the Salvation Army lady has left behind. These visible objects remind them daily that God loves them; they are not forgotten; they are not alone. Multiply the Bobbie Morgans of this world, and you will understand why I am glad to be a Community Care team member in The Salvation Army. Jesus said, "When you serve the least of my children, you are serving me." (Matthew 25:40)
 

*Name has been changed.

Written by Gloria B. Hohn
Asbury Park, NJ