Soldiers of our God, ARISE!

Soldiers of our God, arise! The day is drawing nearer; shake the slumber from your eyes, the light is growing clearer. Sit no longer idly by, while the heedless millions die. Lift the blood-stained banner high and take the field for Jesus. 

These words from The Salvation Army song book inspire and ignite within me a passion for this Army of salvation. They speak of our purpose, our mandate and declare the very essence of who we are. Soldiers: fighting to win the world for Jesus. Yet there are whispers within the ranks that say, ‘The Salvation Army has abandoned its post and failed in fulfilling its mission’, ‘It’s stuck in the past’, or ‘the movement is stagnant and without vision’. These whispers distract us from the fight, and they need to stop. We will not quit out of frustration but will fight harder, with greater endurance and stronger determination, because while our tactics may change, our mission remains.

The Salvation Army was founded in 1865 by William and Catherine Booth during a dark time where poverty, injustice, corruption and disease infiltrated the streets of the east end of London. The Salvation Army was established to challenge and fight against social injustices and see people rescued into the kingdom of Jesus. This zealous Army spread rapidly, and our history is marked with stories of courage, innovation and salvations won. We must learn from our past, engage in the present and step into the future.

Not that much has changed. Ours is still a dark world in need of light: the light, life and love of Jesus! People are still drowning in an ocean of sin, broken and hurting, desperate for something more.

The chief coroner announced last month that in the past year, 541 lives were lost to suicide. Connection through social media seems to trump true community, but the reality is that people are lonelier than ever. Depression is rampant. People are marginalised on account of their age, gender, disability, ethnicity or socio-economic status. Thousands of children live in poverty. Addictions to alcohol, pornography, gambling and even work oppress. Corruption is rife and injustice extensive.

Today, The Salvation Army is made up of soldiers who are dedicated, disciplined and determined disciples of Jesus. They are cleansed because of Christ’s sacrificial blood and equipped, empowered and filled with the Holy Spirit’s fire. They aren’t afraid to stand up in defence of the marginalised; they love their neighbours and seek to imitate the example of Christ.

They are courageous, bold and innovative; willing to put reputations on the line to challenge injustice and corruption. They rise above the standards set by society and set their sights on a higher purpose. These soldiers fight with endurance to bring hope and purpose to a deteriorating world. Not as individuals, but as units who thrive within and strive for community. Much of their fighting is done on their knees in persevering prayer, and the sword they possess is the Word of God, which they know well and are deeply committed to. They are zealous, undaunted, fearless, unswerving and unstoppable as they storm the forts of darkness.

In this Army we find belonging, we find purpose, we take up arms and fight to see people freed from oppression, injustice conquered, and souls saved into the Kingdom of Heaven. Hallelujah!

In this Salvation Army there is a place for you, irrespective of your age, your gender, your ethnicity, your past, your fears or your failings. This is an Army fuelled with passion, filled with purpose and fighting to prevail over darkness.

So … Soldiers of our God arise! Forward march with Blood and Fire and win the world for Jesus!

Aquitted

Their eyes pierce like swords
Staring me down
With judgement
Despising me, and all I've done.
Their whispers echo through the room,
I can't make out what they are saying
But I know
"Guilty"
They snicker, they mock, they ridicule
And they are right.
I've found myself here, on the stand
Not as a witness
But accused and condemned.

Innocent until proven guilty
What a joke.
I am guilty
I know it
They know it
He knows it
So I sit, waiting for my sentence
I'm without defence
What's the point?

I've sat in their seat
Judging
Mocking
Ridiculing
I'm guilty of murder, deceit, lust and hatred
I've hurt those who loved me
I've broken covenant
I've been two-faced, hidden behind masks
I'm guilty all the same
Swimming in shame
I know it
They know it
He knows it
So I sit and wait for my sentence

He rises from His seat
He approaches me
I don't anticipate what's coming
His eyes pierce like a sword with
                 Love
                         Grace
                                   Mercy
I don't hold His gaze
The shame is all consuming
He takes me by the hand
Leads me off the stand
Staring me down
With tears in His eyes
Immense in deep, deep love
Despite what I've done.
His whisper echos through the room
"Go in freedom and sin no more. They might condemn you, I don't."
"I love you with an everlasting love
 I know you
 I know your heart
You are forgiven, you are set free"
He removes the shackles binding me

Something starts to happen from within
It builds like fire
I welcome the discomfort
Guilt and shame ... dissolve

I lift my face to look him in the eyes
In the intimacy of that moment
It's like...
That's all he ever wanted.

The fire within continues to burn
Somehow he's infiltrated me,
Consuming me.
The joy
           hope
                   love is indescribable
Like nothing I've ever imagined
He anoints, appoints and affirms me
He shifts His gaze to the door
Indicating my time here is done
His whisper echos through the room
"Not guilty, Freedom"

I walk in it
As I walk in this new found freedom
In His truth
It's like His embrace is all encompassing
It gets stronger, firmer with each step
As I leave this place of judgement,
Acquitted,
I take one last look.

And there He is
On the Stand
In my place
Their eyes pierce Him like swords
Their whispers echo through the room
They snicker
They mock
They ridicule
But He's innocent
I know it
They know it
He knows it

From that place of guilt and shame
He nods to me
Affirming me as I walk in His freedom
This is love
               This is grace
                                 This is mercy
                                                    This is Jesus

Their Shouts Prevailed ...

One of my most memorable wedding gifts was the megaphone I was given by my church family. I say “I” was given, because, it really was for me, (and they did apologise to Brenton for it) apparently they just couldn’t resist … much to my delight. It was a bit of a joke … because anyone who knows me, knows the LAST thing I need is a megaphone. At our wedding, I tried to use the megaphone for my speech during the reception,

 

Cute, look how her groom is gazing adoringly at his new bride.
(either that or he's thinking "Do they hate me? Why did they give her a Megaphone?")



but no one could take me seriously (no idea why) so I resorted to the microphone. The truth is I liked to be heard.

Don’t we all?

Some of us find making ourselves heard a little easier than others.

One group in the bible, who didn’t struggle in making their voices heard, was the Jewish high priests and leaders at the trial of Jesus before Pilate.

“Their shouts prevailed” Luke 23:23 (NIV)

These three words struck me when I read them a few months ago. It was like I was reading them for the first time, and it seemed as though God was SHOUTING them to me. “THEIR SHOUTS PREVAILED!!!” A number of personal questions came to mind.

“What am I shouting about?”

“Where are my shouts prevailing?”

“Where is my voice being heard?”

I was incredibly challenged!

How did the shouts of the Jewish high priest and leaders prevail?

They were prepared. “Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him.” Matthew 26:3-4 (NIV) They were prepared. They had a plan in place, they’d had meetings, talked about it, rallied the troops and took it to the appropriate authorities to present their case.

They were persistent “But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.” Luke 23:5 (NIV)

 The more opposition, or resistance they encountered from Pilate the louder they got, and the stronger they got. They didn’t let his opposition hold them back. They weren’t going to take no for an answer.

They were passionate. “The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him.”Luke 23:10 They totally believed in what they were shouting about, they were dedicated and committed to it. They were fervent, the atmosphere must have been heated and intense.[1]

They were united. “With one voice the crowd cried out, “Kill this man! Give Barabbas to us!” Luke 23:18  They had a united voice and there is power in unity.

The Jews had an effective group, with an effective strategy: preparation, passion, persistence, and unity so … their shouts prevailed.

BUT … while we can learn from their strategy, we have to acknowledge that their motive and purpose was tainted. They were shouting for injustice. They were shouting to have an innocent man killed, there was nothing honourable about that. Yes, they were passionate, they truly believed in what they were shouting for, (so much so that as Jesus hung on the Cross near death he prayed “Father, forgive them, they don’t know what they are doing.”) but their cause was lacking.

As followers of Jesus, our cause is justice, as was his. God is a God of justice, and injustice breaks his heart, Jesus has experienced it himself. He knows what it’s like.

When we shout, when we desire for our voices, our shouts to prevail, let them be for justice. We don’t have to look far before the injustices around us become apparent, the world is swimming in injustice; domestic violence, addictions, discrimination, inequality, child poverty, poverty to name a few. If you lack passion, and have a desire for justice pray to the Lord: “Break my heart for what breaks yours, everything I am for your kingdoms cause.” But be warned, God will answer your prayer.

For those who can’t speak up, who haven’t discovered their voice yet, for those who struggle to make their voice heard, raise your voice on their behalf.

We shout for Justice! And we will prevail when we shout with preparation, passion, perseverance and unity.

There’s a megaphone inside all of us, a shout longing to prevail. Raise your voice.

SamMe

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[1] (In the KJV, Luke 23:23 starts “With loud voices …” The original Greek language says: phōnē Megas (which I find incredibly amusing given my fascination with megaphones!) “Megas is often used of intensity and its degrees: with great effort, of the affections and emotions of the mind, of natural events powerfully affecting the senses: violent, mighty, strong or things esteemed highly for their importance: of great moment, of great weight, importance. It also denotes large, big, and massive.” (Thanks Blue Letter Bible!)

I mean come on, is it really any wonder their shouts prevailed?

Her Global Snapshot - where to from here?

It's 2013, and her picture is bleak. It's a picture of inequality. It's a picture of injustice.

From New Zealand to China, Ethiopia to Yemen, Congo to Cambodia, throughout the Globe women face inequality and injustice on a daily basis. Her Global Snapshot: Domestic Violence, Female Genital Mutilation, Honour Killings, Breast Ironing and Human Traffiking doesn't begin to brush the surface of the injustice. Be sure to read 'Her Global Snapshot' before reading on.

Injustice!

She is Beautiful. She is Strong. She is Gifted. She is Woman.
And she deserves better than this!

 In the midst of the dark cold hard stories and facts there is hope! In the face of injustice people are standing up and fighting for the rights of women, for their equality and for their freedom from oppression. The truth is, that no matter where we are, what our situation, there is hope and we can be involved in the fight for justice. It can be really hard to know where to start, so here are five tips to get started:

1) Get Informed.
Don't be ignorant, read newspapers, search the web and find out what's really going on out there. Injustice seems to be everywhere we turn. I've compiled a list of websites and resources here which confronts many of the issues raised in 'Her Global Snapshot'. Be proactive and learn about what our sisters around the world are facing each day.

2) Identify your passion.
As I've delved into the injustices women face, there are a couple of issues in particular that pull on my heart strings and bring me to tears (ok, so most of them make me cry, but some make me really bawl!). I've discovered a passion for maternal health and fistula repairs (maybe due to my nursing background?). Other people are driven to fight out about other issues. On the weekend I was speaking at a youth event and shared about some of the injustices in 'Her Global Snapshot', one young woman shared afterwards that after hearing about child rape as a tactic of war in the Congo, she was stuck on that for the rest of the message. It pulled on her heartstrings, it's her passion. Identify yours and then use the passion to fight for justice.

3) Get Connected.
There are others fighting for justice. Others who are equipped and resourced to fight with the know how. They are seeing success in womens lives. Follow their facebook pages, sign up for their newsletters, get connected with them. When you do, your own understanding, involvement and influence increases. I've certainly found that to be true for myself.

4) Spread the Word.
Don't keep the information to yourself. Talk about it in your circles of friends, post statuses on facebook bringing the issues to peoples attention, let others know what's going on and how they can get involved. MAKE SOME NOISE! SHOUT OUT ABOUT INJUSTICE FOR JUSTICE.

(Found this pic on Pinterest)

5) Spend some cash.
Like I've already mentioned there are plenty of organisations doing amazing work in the lives of women around the world. Get connected to them, and spend some money. Pay for a fistula surgery, finance a little girl to go to school (seriously, education is the greatest way to combat the injustices women face), micro finance a woman so she can start a business and care for her family. Check out the websites and resources for a list of organisations to get connected too. Most of them tell you how you can give.

Who knows what you'll end up doing once you get started.
Easy aye! Change the World! Fight for Justice! Do it!

SamMe

"While women weep, as they do now, I'll fight" - William Booth