Helping Hands Making a Difference

One day, a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a figure in the distance. As he got closer, he realized the figure was that of a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean.

Approaching the boy, he asked, "What are you doing?"

The youth replied, "Throwing the starfish into the ocean. Soon, the sun will be up and the tide is going out. If I do not throw them back, they will die."

"Son," the man said, "Don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You cannot possibly make a difference!"

After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the surf.

Then, smiling at the man, he said, "I made a difference for that one!"

A simple act of kindness can make a difference. Whoever you are. Wherever you are. You can make a difference. 

It's National Volunteer Week, and throughout the United States, numerous non-profits are using this special week to thank their volunteers. At The Salvation Army in New Jersey, we not only thank our volunteers during National Volunteer Week but also throughout the year as we recognize the vital role that they play to help support the programs and services that we provide throughout the state. The kindness, dedication and commitment of our volunteers to serve needy individuals and families throughout New Jersey is very much appreciated by The Salvation Army as well as the people that are served.

Everyone is welcome to volunteer with us! We have a wide range of volunteer opportunities available to suit all ages and skills. All we require is a desire to make a difference and a heart to serve those in need.  If you are interested in volunteering with us, please visit www.salvationarmynj.org/volunteer to view our volunteer opportunities and apply online.

Written by Judith Anderson

Volunteer Resources Manager

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A Lion in the Daniel’s Den

Trapped! You're locked in a pit. The only escape is plugged with a seemingly immovable obstacle. In the deep darkness, you pace back and forth throughout the day or night. You're not really sure of which because you've already lost track of time in your subterranean exile. Food is occasionally dropped in, but you shy away because the opening of your prison delivers an unusual brightness of the rarely seen sky, and it burns your eyes. Immediately after the door closes, you make a move toward the food before the others pounce on the scarce meal. The lack of food has made you irritable and overly aggressive. It's as if your captors wanted you to be hungry to maintain a ravenous edge.

You are a hungry, ferocious and proud lion that is trapped in a den, and things are about to get worse.

The sky reveals itself again, and the piercing light invades your space. Something is dropped into your den. It smells like meat, but something is different. As the entrance is sealed again, what you thought was food stands up and begins to walk toward you and the other lions. As you all huddle together and cower in fear, the undesirable truths grabs you by the lump in your throat as you realize you have come face to face with a Daniel.

Daniels and Davids and Jobs, oh my! I can say with bit of certainty that you have never heard that before, and there is a fair chance you may never hear it again. If my blatant "tagline" substitution isn’t a crime, then the lack of its usage should be.

"Fear not nor be afraid of them!"

Great words given to us by God through Moses. I have found that "them" isn't always people. Quite often, "them" is us, "them" is things, "them" is fear, and "them" is problems. It made me wonder, why are "them" not afraid of me?

The command God has given in Joshua 1:9 - "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you where ever you go."

Have I followed the order or believe the promise it ends with? My shameful answer is, if not no, perhaps not always. I think if the answer was a resounding yes for all of us, then we would approach life a lot differently.

From these thoughts, I've taken away three things:

1. We should live as if we have heavenly backup
2. Believe in the security that comes with the promises of God
3. Our problems should be afraid of us

I hope that these thoughts can in some way allow you to look into your own life as I have done mine and ask the tough questions. When the answer is no, decide what it will take to become a yes! We were fearfully and wonderfully made, not made to live in fear!

Written by Lt. Darell Houseton
Newark Ironbound

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A Vision of the Lost

Written by William Booth

 

On one of my recent journeys, as I gazed from the coach window, I was led into a train of thought concerning the condition of the multitudes around me. They were living carelessly in the most open and shameless rebellion against God, without a thought for their eternal welfare. As I looked out of the window, I seemed to see them all... millions of people all around me given up to their drink and their pleasure, their dancing and their music, their business and their anxieties, their politics and their troubles. Ignorant- willfully ignorant in many cases- and in other instances knowing all about the truth and not caring at all. But all of them, the whole mass of them, sweeping on and up in their blasphemies and devilries to the Throne of God. While my mind was thus engaged, I had a vision.

I saw a dark and stormy ocean. Over it the black clouds hung heavily; through them every now and then vivid lightening flashed and loud thunder rolled, while the winds moaned, and the waves rose and foamed, towered and broke, only to rise and foam, tower and break again.

In that ocean I thought I saw myriads of poor human beings plunging and floating, shouting and shrieking, cursing and struggling and drowning; and as they cursed and screamed they rose and shrieked again, and then some sank to rise no more.

And I saw out of this dark angry ocean, a mighty rock that rose up with it’s summit towering high above the black clouds that overhung the stormy sea. And all around the base of this great rock I saw a vast platform. Onto this platform, I saw with delight a number of the poor struggling, drowning wretches continually climbing out of the angry ocean. And I saw that a few of those who were already safe on the platform were helping the poor creatures still in the angry waters to reach the place of safety.

On looking more closely I found a number of those who had been rescued, industriously working and scheming by ladders, ropes, boats and other means more effective, to deliver the poor strugglers out of the sea. Here and there were some who actually jumped into the water, regardless of the consequences in their passion to "rescue the perishing." And I hardly know which gladdened me the most- the sight of the poor drowning people climbing onto the rocks reaching a place of safety, or the devotion and self-sacrifice of those whose whole being was wrapped up in the effort for their deliverance.

As I looked on, I saw that the occupants of that platform were quite a mixed company. That is, they were divided into different "sets" or classes, and they occupied themselves with different pleasures and employments. But only a very few of them seemed to make it their business to get the people out of the sea.

But what puzzled me most was the fact that though all of them had been rescued at one time or another from the ocean, nearly everyone seemed to have forgotten all about it. Anyway, it seemed the memory of its darkness and danger no longer troubled them at all. And what seemed equally strange and perplexing to me was that these people did not even seem to have any care- that is any agonizing care- about the poor perishing ones who were struggling and drowning right before their very eyes... many of whom were their own husbands and wives, brothers and sisters and even their own children.

Now this astonishing unconcern could not have been the result of ignorance or lack of knowledge, because they lived right there in full sight of it all and even talked about it sometimes. Many even went regularly to hear lectures and sermons in which the awful state of these poor drowning creatures was described.

I have always said that the occupants of this platform were engaged in different pursuits and pastimes. Some of them were absorbed day and night in trading and business in order to make gain, storing up their savings in boxes, safes and the like.

Many spent their time in amusing themselves with growing flowers on the side of the rock, others in painting pieces of cloth or in playing music, or in dressing themselves up in different styles and walking about to be admired. Some occupied themselves chiefly in eating and drinking, others were taken up with arguing about the poor drowning creatures that had already been rescued.

But the thing to me that seemed the most amazing was that those on the platform to whom He called, who heard His voice and felt that they ought to obey it- at least they said they did- those who confessed to love Him much were in full sympathy with Him in the task He had undertaken- who worshipped Him or who professed to do so- were so taken up with their trades and professions, their money saving and pleasures, their families and circles, their religions and arguments about it, and their preparation for going to the mainland, that they did not listen to the cry that came to them from this Wonderful Being who had Himself gone down into the sea. Anyway, if they heard it they did not heed it. They did not care. And so the multitude went on right before them struggling and shrieking and drowning in the darkness.

And then I saw something that seemed to me even more strange than anything that had gone on before in this strange vision. I saw that some of these people on the platform whom this Wonderful Being had called to, wanting them to come and help Him in His difficult task of saving these perishing creatures, were always praying and crying out to Him to come to them!

Some wanted Him to come and stay with them, and spend His time and strength in making them happier. Others wanted Him to come and take away various doubts and misgivings they had concerning the truth of some letters He had written them. Some wanted Him to come and make them feel more secure on the rock- so secure that they would be quite sure that they should never slip off again into the ocean. Numbers of others wanted Him to make them feel quite certain that they would really get off the rock and onto the mainland someday: because as a matter of fact, it was well known that some had walked so carelessly as to loose their footing, and had fallen back again into the stormy waters.

So these people used to meet and get up as high on the rock as they could, and looking towards the mainland (where they thought the Great Being was) they would cry out, "Come to us! Come and help us!" And all the while He was down (by His Spirit) among the poor struggling, drowning creatures in the angry deep, with His arms around them trying to drag them out, and looking up- oh! so longingly but all in vain- to those on the rock, crying to them with His voice all hoarse from calling, "Come to Me! Come, and help Me!

And then I understood it all. It was plain enough. The sea was the ocean of life- the sea of real, actual human existence. That lightening was the gleaming of piercing truth coming from Jehovah’s Throne. That thunder was the distant echoing of the wrath of God. Those multitudes of people shrieking, struggling and agonizing in the stormy sea, was the thousands and thousands of poor harlots and harlot-makers, of drunkards and drunkard makers, of thieves, liars, blasphemers and ungodly people of every kindred, tongue and nation.

Oh what a black sea it was! And oh, what multitudes of rich and poor, ignorant and educated were there. They were all so unalike in their outward circumstances and conditions, yet all alike in one thing- all sinners before God- all held by, and holding onto, some iniquity, fascinated by some idol, the slaves of some devilish lust, and ruled by the foul fiend from the bottomless pit!

"All alike in one thing?" No, all alike in two things- not only the same in their wickedness but, unless rescued, the same in their sinking, sinking... down, down, down... to the same terrible doom. That great sheltering rock represented Calvary, the place where Jesus had died for them. And the people on it were those who had been rescued. The way they used their energies, gifts and time represented the occupations and amusements of those who professed to be saved from sin and hell- followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. The handful of fierce, determined ones, who were risking their own lives in saving the perishing were true soldiers of the cross of Jesus. That Mighty Being who was calling to them from the midst of the angry waters was the Son of God, "the same yesterday, today and forever" who is still struggling and interceding to save the dying multitudes about us from this terrible doom of damnation, and whose voice can be heard above the music, machinery, and noise of life, calling on the rescued to come and help Him save the world.

My friends in Christ, you are rescued from the waters, you are on the rock, He is in the dark sea calling on you to come to Him and help Him. Will you go? Look for yourselves. The surging sea of life, crowded with perishing multitudes rolls up to the very spot on which you stand. Leaving the vision, I now come to speak of the fact- a fact that is as real as the Bible, as real as the Christ who hung upon the cross, as real as the judgment day will be, and as real as the heaven and hell that will follow it.

Look! Don’t be deceived by appearances- men and things are not what they seem. All who are not on the rock are in the sea! Look at them from the standpoint of the great White Throne, and what a sight you have! Jesus Christ, the Son of God is, through His Spirit, in the midst of this dying multitude, struggling to save them. And He is calling on you to jump into the sea- to go right away to His side and help Him in the holy strife. Will you jump? That is, will you go to His feet and place yourself absolutely at His disposal?

A young Christian once came to me, and told me that for some time she had been giving the Lord her profession and prayers and money, but now she wanted to give Him her life. She wanted to go right into the fight. In other words, she wanted to go to His assistance in the sea. As when a man from the shore, seeing another struggling in the water, takes off those outer garments that would hinder his efforts and leaps to the rescue, so will you who still linger on the bank, thinking and singing and praying about the poor perishing souls, lay aside your shame, your pride, your cares about other people’s opinions, your love of ease and all the selfish loves that have kept you back for so long, and rush to the rescue of this multitude of dying men and women.

Does the surging sea look dark and dangerous? Unquestionably it is so. There is no doubt that the leap for you, as for everyone who takes it, means difficulty and scorn and suffering. For you it may mean more than this. It may mean death. He who beckons you from the sea however, knows what it will mean - and knowing, He still calls to you and bids to you to come.

You must do it! You cannot hold back. You have enjoyed yourself in Christianity long enough. You have had pleasant feelings, pleasant songs, pleasant meetings, pleasant prospects. There has been much of human happiness, much clapping of hands and shouting of praises- very much of heaven on earth.

Now then, go to God and tell Him you are prepared as much as necessary to turn your back upon it all, and that you are willing to spend the rest of your days struggling in the midst of these perishing multitudes, whatever it may cost you.

You must do it. With the light that is now broken in upon your mind and the call that is now sounding in your ears, and the beckoning hands that are now before your eyes, you have no alternative. To go down among the perishing crowds is your duty. Your happiness from now on will consist in sharing their misery, your ease in sharing their pain, your crown in helping them to bear their cross, and your heaven in going into the very jaws of hell to rescue them.

 

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One Death Won Life: An Easter Invitation

For Christians, our Easter celebration starts on Good Friday, the day Jesus was crucified. Our celebration begins with death, and not just any death, but the death of our Lord and Savior. And we call it good! How can this be?

Leading up to Easter, we see Jesus enter Jerusalem, scold the wicked, heal the sick and prepare His disciples for His upcoming death. The night before Good Friday, Jesus celebrated the Passover feast at a table with His disciples. Many important things happen at this meal, and what is most important is that God reveals Himself through Jesus and lets us in on the work He’s been preparing since the beginning of time.

What happens on this night, at this meal? Let’s look at just two things Jesus says:

1.     Jesus comforts His disciples

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going." (John 14:1-4 NIV)

2.     Jesus promises the Holy Spirit

 "If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." (John 14:15-18 NIV)

As Jesus explains to the disciples that He will soon be betrayed and put to death, He says, "Don't let your hearts be troubled by this! It is good that I leave you, because when I do, I will not only prepare a place for you in heaven, but I will also send my Spirit to guide you while you are here on earth."

And then, it happens. Jesus is arrested and put on trial the next day. Religious leaders and an angry crowd convince Pilate, the Roman leader of Judea, to have Him crucified. Jesus is mocked, beaten and spit upon before being nailed to a cross to die. His disciples, even if they believed everything Jesus said the night before, must have found it extremely difficult to understand Jesus' pain and suffering as good. Jesus death, as gruesome and unjust as it was, is the greatest thing to ever happen to you, me and the entire world.

We can rejoice because Jesus' one death won life for all of us. The story of Easter doesn't end on Good Friday. In fact, it ends with a beginning.

In Matthew chapter 28, we see Mary Magdalene approach Jesus' tomb three days after His death, only to find that his body is no longer there. Shortly thereafter, Jesus appears to Mary and later to the disciples. And He's not some ghostly apparition – It's really Jesus, flesh and bone, alive! Through the work of God, Jesus has conquered death and spends the next 40 days with His disciples before ascending to be with the Father.

When Jesus went to the cross, He knew that God's power would triumph over death, and not just triumph to raise Him again but to raise us all.

What does this mean? When Jesus died on Good Friday, all of our sin (everything that separates us from God) died with Him. This means that every bad decision I've made or will make in the future is forgiven through Christ. Before Jesus' death and resurrection, I’d be dead meat! I've always been a sinner. Even as a Christian, I am still a sinner. I wrong my God in one way or another every day. We all do. But now, it's no longer held against us. It's gone, buried with Christ.

Jesus resurrection on Easter Sunday is an awe-inspiring illustration of not only God's power over death but also His power to give life. As Jesus explained at the Last Supper, after He ascends, God sends His Holy Spirit down to live within the disciples and all who believe in Him. This is God saying, "There is no separation between us anymore. I love you so much that I want to be with you forever, all day, every day."

Easter bridges the gap for us. Christ's death and resurrection leads us away from an old life of death and sin to a new life of forgiveness and fullness.

So, what has this meant to me personally? How has Easter transformed my life? Let's look at a passage from 1 Peter:

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1:3-5 NIV)

This scripture states that as a believer and follower of Jesus, I am a completely new person with an inheritance of eternal life. This means that God loves me and my sins aren't counted against me. It means I can love others the way I was meant to, like Jesus did. And it means that when I die, my life is not over. The pain, struggles, and disappointments of life here on earth aren't all there is. There is so much more.

What is new birth like?

For me, the transformation of new birth in Christ has been pretty incredible. I think thoughts I've never had before. I make decisions I'd never have made before knowing Him. Whether my thoughts or decisions are "small" like how I spend an afternoon or "big" like how I spend the rest of my life, I now find Jesus at the center of all of them. And that's the Holy Spirit working in me. Does that sound a little weird? Someone else's (God's) spirit living in you, transforming your entire being, how you think and how you act? At first, it is a little weird! Then, it becomes completely natural. Because this new person is who I really am, who I was created to be - a child of God in relationship with my Maker, motivated to do good for Him and others.

What is eternal life?

Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. (John 17:3 NIV)

Don't some days, weeks or even years feel like eternity? Things on the horizon seem so far away, yet Jesus says eternity is here. Eternity is now, with Him and in you. All the peace, all the joy, all the good that He has, you have access to right now.

If God created us and God is in us by His Spirit, then whatever He does has to affect us, right? Just like whatever we do has to affect Him. We ignore Him, and He is hurt. We bring Him glory, and He is pleased. There is a real relationship here in which both parties are participants. So, when Jesus died, something in us had to die, too. And what died was death. God triumphing over death, which only He can do, gives us the opportunity to follow Him into eternity.

Because of Christ's resurrection, we can say:

 "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55 NIV)

It's gone. God has power over life and death. And for you? He chooses life. He says, "It's here, in me. Come and get it!" God allows us to, in a way, share in His power, by accepting it, and saying, "Yeah, I want that. Lord, what you offer is all that is good. And I could use some good right now. I could use some life!"

Could you use some good? Could you use new life right now? I encourage you to really think about what Christ's death and resurrection means to you. Reflect on your life up to this point. If you believe in your heart that everything in this post is true, tell Him! Whisper to God or shout it from the rooftops! You're forgiven from sin. You're saved from death. You're alive in eternity. Hallelujah!

Written by Elyse Jankowski
Community Relations Associate

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