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Keep Expanding
by Captain André Mere
Bara Togo
Every work whose origin is divine
communicates God's will to mortal humanity in a perspective of
eternity. Death
intervenes, and in so doing, constitutes a legion of witnesses
marking the times and experiences of every human instrument
used by God.
Today, William and Catherine Booth are
counted as modern prophets gone.
Although they are no longer of this world, their work
still survives with force. The Salvation Army is a creation of
one man and a woman. But when asked what will become of The
Salvation Army after he and his children leave for the other
world, William Booth wrote in 1908:
"The Army will remain, for God's will
for it will always remain. Its discipline, which is the bond
between its members, will always remain. The spirit burning
with love for the salvation of souls will always remain. The
hundreds of thousands of men and women of all classes, united
by the strongest of bonds, will abide. Yes, I feel that this
spirit is with me, it lives in my heart, it is in the work I
do, it will inspire my words, it will make friends, it will
provide me with the money I need. It will make me more than
victorious in life, in death, and for eternity."
These words of William Booth are still
relevant if we consider them in The Salvation Army's mission
today. Since the genesis of The Salvation Army, its main
purpose is known to all regarding its social and spiritual
activities across the world. To maintain the momentum, it is
necessary to wage a war without truce and mercy against vice
and evil passions in all their forms.
We are confronted by a violent world
which calls into question daily our Christian ethic.
We are constantly facing the question of what it means
to be a real Christian in today's world. We live in a very
hostile century, presenting many challenges not only to our
faith but also to our understanding of the world, family, and
ministry. Our challenge would be to equip ourselves with all
necessary armour in order to be able to resist all attempts in
trivializing the sacred. We’re called to stand on behalf of a
society in perdition, while boldly overcoming all pitfalls, in
an unambiguous way which proves to the world that the One in
us is greater than the one in the world.
We are called to perpetrate Christ-like
ways and practices in this dark time, to keep on burning and
anguishing for more souls, to keep expanding the vision to all
countries. Otherwise, we put off the light and our efforts of
serving suffering humanity all are in vain. If we don’t pursue
this vision, we will compromise our mission on the way and
drawn back into the mold the world is trying to impose upon
us.
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