Armybarmy Blog

June 29, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

Did you know that the Sports Illustrated list of the 50 highest paid athletes totalled salaries just over $1 billion, approximately equal to Mongolia gross domestic product?

What kind of a world can balance that kind of madness?

We need some heroes on the scene, and I don't mean ball-throwers. I've got a book coming out July 1, with Wesley Campbell, called BE A HERO. We're tackling some of the grossest injustice in the world by mobilizing an army of 10,000 heroes (for starters). I believe that we can watch God prove our instant adage- the face of the earth changes as the hearts of its people are transformed. If you're inerested in signing up, email me or pick up a box of books from armybarmy.com next month (info@thewarcollege.com). I will tell you a bit more about it in the coming days.
posted by Stephen Court

June 28, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I recently attended a question and answer session with Graham Kendrick and threw him the softball magazine interview standby- 'what is in your cd deck right now?'

I was quite impressed by the answer. Graham Kendrick, if you don't know, co-founded March For Jesus. He has 67 songs in the CCLI top 500 (67 songs among the 500 most popular- phenomenal). And he is 54 years old.

And he was listening to a CD by a dance club DJ. It is encouraging to hear that he is not out of it and that, therefore, you don't have to be out of it when you are thick in middle age. :- )
posted by Stephen Court

June 27, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I'd like to start looking at the current promises of the Articles of War for Salvation Army senior soldiers. I've already looked at the declarations, the old-school version that the vast majority of soldiers signed. But I'm going to tackle the official list of promises for which the Orders and Regulations are a footnote. The first...

"I will be responsive to the Holy Spirit’s work and obedient to His leading in my life, growing in grace through worship, prayer, service and the reading of the Bible."

John Wesley popularised for us the term ' means of grace' ( I suspect a Lutheran origin). The first half seems a little poetic (read 'redundant') but the last half is all about the personal means of grace.

Hey, look, it is wonderful for us to covenant obedience to the Holy Spirit. At the very least that means we need to hear Him. At the very least we need to wield a sword of the Spirit (the spoken word of God). That is a big covenant promise for more than a million soldiers. If fulfilled we're looking at a million fully-functioning prophetic people.

We commit to worship, one of the aims of which is to grow in grace. What kind of worship tickles the heart of God? Well, that requires a mouthful, but a start might look like this: humble, sin-free, excellent, in combination with justice (and blessing the poor). Not much said about which instruments (outside of a few Psalms!).

We commit to prayer. A commitment to prayer doesn't mean grace at meals and a little grocery list before bed time. To commit to prayer is serious stuff. What does it look like? Ask yourself who is someone you know characterized by a commitment to prayer. Then ask yourself what their commitment to prayer looks like. That is a start towards an answer.

We commit to service. For me that is a tough one. I grew up in the middle class Army that allowed me to take much credit in personal social relationships for the great work of the Army even though I was involved in slim-to-none of it myself. And I am guessing I was not alone in the million soldiers. Let's determine not to take credit for SA service when we're not doing our share.

We commit to reading the Bible. This is not your daily bread. This is something significant and consistent, something that sets direction and maintains an even keel. We've got to anchor our Wesleyan Quadrilateral on Scripture, a Scripture to which we must continually give space to speak to us, training, teaching, correcting, rebuking for World Conquest.

These are means of grace. This is how we can position ourselves downstream in the river of God's grace.

May God help us all to keep this covenant promise.
posted by Stephen Court

June 26, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
North American journalist Paul Harvey commented on the relationship between people’s religious beliefs and poverty. “There is no way that you and I are ever going to comprehend a society that feeds cows and starves babies,” Harvey writes, speaking of the land of India and his understanding of the Hindu religion’s sacred cows.
But one wonders which culture, India’s or affluent Western nations, has the most “sacred cows.” While our sacred cows are not part of recognizable religious traditions, American families feed their cattle 1,800 pounds of protein-rich grain in order to produce 250 pounds of meat for our dinner table.
Even if this seems improper so close to your dinner table, it might help to hear the way TIME magazine reports it: This industry is so big that in Texas, 18 kg. of cow manure per Texan per day is created.
posted by Stephen Court

June 25, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

"If the cause is great enough, sacrifice does not exist" (C.T. Studd).

Nice. A good reminder.
posted by Stephen Court

June 23, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I've been on about covenant so much recently because I am guessing that it is what is going to make the Army recognizable in 20 years. Listen to the brand-spanking new UK TC, Commissioner Shaw Clifton in his opening challenge to Salvationists in that territory (from the indispensable SALVATIONIST):

"‘NO one’s going to hold us back, because the Spirit of God is going to push us forward,’ declared Territorial Commander Commissioner Shaw Clifton at Sheffield Citadel after he and his wife Commissioner Helen Clifton were installed as territorial leaders. The new TC said: ‘There must be clear blue water between our living and the lifestyle of those as yet unsaved. We will cherish our God-given heritage on the sanctified life. We need to talk about the blessing of a clean heart.’

"The TC addressed the Army’s decreasing attendance and emphatically challenged all Salvationists to halt the decline, otherwise the Army would not exist in 30 years. ‘Life is too short to mess about. Time is running out,’ he said. ‘God does not want the Army to shirk or shrink, but to grow bigger and bigger and bigger.

"‘Let us keep the sacred covenants we have made as junior soldiers, senior soldiers and as officers. God takes these covenants very seriously indeed.’

Amen. Let's broadcast that challenge around the world. Tell your friends. Let us keep the sacred covenants!
posted by Stephen Court

Hi folks:

Here is a classic line from Jay Nordlinger's wonderful Impromptus (nationalreview.com) that allows me to address the pro-life position once again (and this time, eloquently):

"First, I cited the old feminist slogan "A fetus in a woman's womb has no more standing than a hamburger in her stomach" — and Dave Skorka writes, "That slogan would not be usable today. As we all know, thanks to the fine folks at PETA, 'meat is murder,' whereas, of course, abortion is not. Interesting to note how, on our side, the positions are reversed."

Jesus has sent us to turn the world upside down.
Grace,
Stephen Court

June 22, 2204.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

"Descend, O Holy Spirit, Thou
In sweet accord we wait for Thee;
Our Babel still, new words impart
That echo They divinity;
Love's language by the heart expressed,
By heart received and Spirit blessed."
(General Arnold Brown, SASB 211.1).

Does this not read like a prayer for the Holy Spirit to give us the gift of tongues? It seems pretty staightforward to me. I even checked with the poet on this one. If you desire the gift, why not pray the words?
posted by Stephen Court

Hi- here is the news not fit to print today:
1. a whole family went to jail. The father told a police officer outside of the station that he had been speeding. This came to that and he got arrested for disorderly conduct and so on. Then the wife and son got into the act and got arrested as well. The one hone call was made to the mother/grandmother, who came and got herself arrested. Then the father/grandfather showed up from church and laid t out on the police. You can't make this stuff up.
2. former US president Clinton explains that the reason he carried on with Miss Lewinsky is "because I could." Hmm. What a great exposure of the basic human nature.
3. and on a related note, The Salvation Army in Canada spends $1million taking out the garbage every year (from pathetic donations- that is, people dump their garbage on us as 'donations' and we pay $1mill/year to dispose of it).
So, what have we got here? A family that prays together stays (in prison) together, a basic human instinct to treat other people like trash as we impose our will upon them, a mission movement that not only can solve the issues of the family and anti-family man here mentioned by taking out their spiritual trash, but on the way to the dump can also throw out the garbage to the tune of seven diigts annually!

Hi- Christianity is shame-free. So here is a shameless plug for you to read armybarmy.com's 60 Seconds of Spiritual Pump. I just read it. I wrote it a long time ago and I am impressed! :- )

Here's a line: As the prodigal son could only reach the centre of the Father's will after he came to his senses and found himself, so The Salvation Army will only accomplish all that is in the Father's dreams when we find ourselves.

So, check it out, and the demo of the week and the online preaching and the armybarmy library (rich treasures here) and all the other great stuff available at armybarmy.com. It's a resource for world conquest.
grace
Stephen Court

June 20, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
So, we come to the last of the declarations of the Articles of War today (this week we'll start the newer version).

It contains a phrase 'til I die' that was considered too extreme for salvationists in our era. More on that below...

"And I do here and now call upon all present to witness that I have entered into this undertaking and sign these Articles of War of my own free will, feeling that the love of Christ, who died to save me, requires from me this devotion of my life to His service for the Salvation of the whole world, and therefore do here declare my full determination, by God's help, to be a true soldier of The Salvation Army till I die."

So the thought is that it is unreasonable to expect people to commit their whole lives to anything, even the Army.

Tell it not in Gath! Proclaim in not in the streets of Ashkelon!

Unreasonable? There are currently probably at least 4 billion people going to hell. Nearly 30,000 of them are children who die EVERY DAY just because they have preventable diseases. In light of this reality, should we consider it reasonable to ask for only a partial commitment of our soldiers? Maybe Thursday night and Sunday morning? Maybe for a decade or so or until a corps officer they don't like arrives- which ever comes first? Maybe until it feels that soldiership is hindering promotion opportunities? Maybe until our friendships make our covenant inconvenient? Maybe until our desires make it (covenant) so? Maybe until we're tired of the pace?

It is unreasonable to ask for anything less. And don't give me the garbage about over-challenging people. I've got a crew of heroes who live as slum brothers and sisters in a a flop house on the most notorious corner in Canada because they are looking for a challenge. I am finding that I cannot over-challenge them. And what I mean by that of course, is that whatever I come up with, they're game. I can throw the toughest, most extreme challenges at them, and they rise to the occasion (they are the Death and Glory Session of The War College, named after Booth-Tucker's Death and Glory Shock Troops on the streets of New York at the turn of the last century).

Don't tell me bunk about militant warfare vibe being untenable in our culture. One of the things our guys have valiantly carried is called The War Room, which is prayer in a little room 24 hours a day and seven days a week since the end of February. It is hardcore militant. And it follows the inspiration of one of the biggest Christian movements of this millennium- 24/7 Prayer movement. Now watch the vision of Peter Greig for this movement, and tell me that militant salvationism and aggressive Christianity is passe:

"So this guy comes up to me and says, "What's the vision? What's the big idea?" I open my mouth and words come out like this...

The vision?
The vision is JESUS - obsessively, dangerously, undeniably Jesus.
The vision is an army of young people. You see bones? I see an army. And they are FREE from materialism.
They laugh at 9-5 little prisons.
They could eat caviar on Monday and crusts on Tuesday. They wouldn't even notice.
They know the meaning of the Matrix, the way the West was won.
They are mobile like the wind, they belong to the nations. They need no passport. People write their addresses in pencil and wonder at their strange existence.
They are free, yet they are slaves of the hurting and dirty and dying.

"What is the vision?
The vision is holiness that hurts the eyes. It makes children laugh and adults angry. It gave up the game of minimum integrity long ago to reach for the stars. It scorns the good and strains for the best. It is dangerously pure.
Light flickers from every secret motive, every private conversation.
It loves people away from their suicide leaps, their Satan games.
This is an army that will lay down its life for the cause.
A million times a day its soldiers choose to loose that they might one day win the great "Well done" of faithful sons and daughters.
Such heroes are as radical on Monday morning as Sunday night. They don't need fame from names. Instead they grin quietly upwards and hear the crowds chanting again and again: "COME ON!"

"And this is the sound of the underground
The whisper of history in the making
Foundations shaking
Revolutionaries dreaming once again
Mystery is scheming in whispers
Conspiracy is breathing...

"This is the sound of the underground
And the army is discipl(in)ed.
Young people who beat their bodies into submission.
Every soldier would take a bullet for his comrade at arms.
The tattoo on their back boasts "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain."
Sacrifice fuels the fire of victory in their upward eyes. Winners. Martyrs. Who can stop them ?
Can hormones hold them back?
Can failure succeed? Can fear scare them or death kill them?
And the generation prays like a dying man with groans beyond talking,
with warrior cries, sulphuric tears and with great barrow loads of laughter!

Waiting. Watching: 24 - 7 - 365.
Whatever it takes they will give: Breaking the rules. Shaking mediocrity from its cosy little hide. Laying down their rights and their precious little wrongs, laughing at labels, fasting essentials. The advertisers cannot mold them. Hollywood cannot hold them. Peer-pressure is powerless to shake their resolve at late night parties before the cockerel cries.

"They are incredibly cool, dangerously attractive inside.
On the outside? They hardly care. They wear clothes like costumes to communicate and celebrate, but never to hide.
Would they surrender their image or their popularity?
They would lay down their very lives - swap seats with the man on death row - guilty as hell. A throne for an electric chair.
With blood and sweat and many tears, with sleepless nights and fruitless days, they pray as if it all depends on God and live as if it all depends on them.

"Their DNA chooses JESUS. (He breathes out, they breathe in.)
Their subconscious sings. They had a blood transfusion with Jesus.
Their words make demons scream in shopping centres.
Don't you hear them coming?

"Herald the weirdos! Summon the losers and the freaks. Here come the frightened and forgotten with fire in their eyes. They walk tall and trees applaud, skyscrapers bow, mountains are dwarfed by these children of another dimension. Their prayers summon the hounds of heaven and invoke the ancient dream of Eden.
And this vision will be. It will come to pass; it will come easily; it will come soon.

"How do I know? Because this is the longing of creation itself, the groaning of the Spirit, the very dream of God. My tomorrow is his today. My distant hope is his 3D. And my feeble, whispered, faithless prayer invokes a thunderous, resounding, bone-shaking great "Amen!" from countless angels, from hero's of the faith, from Christ himself. And he is the original dreamer, the ultimate winner.

"Guaranteed."

This is militant, aggressive, surrendered, uncompromised, stuff. Heroic. Romantic. It reads like an early Salvo War Cry article. How can you read something like that and go out and ask for a partial commitment? The worst thing we can do now is water things down. Watering down only produces watered down soldiers. We need to beef it up. Beefing it up produces beefed up soldiers. So, look, it isn't unreasonable to expect people to commit their whole lives to this cause. It is unreasonable NOT to call them to this commitment.

And besides, the same commitment is still there, hidden in the footnote- the O+R- which we're bound to follow anyway. Chapter X,section 5, paragraph 3. Why not put it up where it belongs so soldiers who don't sufficiently study the O+R don't get caught breaking covenant by deserting the Flag?
posted by Stephen Court

Hi-
I read in a cool article by Lyell Rader (WHEN GRACE DANCES) his call for us to 'lowly, holy wordliness.' Where do we sign up?
grace,
Stephen Court
PS Rowan, your emails are bouncing back...

June 19, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of my officership. If my Mom didn't tell me I would not have known. So, to all you Crusaders of Christ out there- Happy Anniversary! Ours was a kicking session. We're a bit thin now, maybe half strength (without counting everyone up). Ten down and we stil haven't won the world. Hmm. My guess is it will take me more than twenty to make a dent. So we're probably looking at a couple score years or so. My son Zion might have to finish the mission off- we'll see.

We're running near the end of the Articles of War declarations (don't worry- if you enjoy them I will tackle the newer version next- let me know- info@thewarcollege.com).

"I do here declare that I will always obey the lawful orders of my officers, and that I will carry out to the utmost of my power all the orders and regulations of the Army; and, further, that I will be an example of faithfulness to its principles, advance to the utmost of my ability its operations, and never allow, where I can prevent it, any injury to its interest, or hindrance to its success."

I've got two points on this, well, three:
1. Look, I've used this many times. "Lawful" is a handy adjective (interesting that it comes up on the same day I mention my training days!). We're bound to follow the lawful orders of our superior officers. I infer (although not strictly grammatically) that I am almost as strongly bound to disobey the unlawful orders. To fail on either end is to compromise the testimony and effectiveness of 1.4something million Junior and Senior Soldiers. Word to the wise- don't get sucked into leader 'worship' and do whatever you're told. But also don't get into self-worship and do only whatever you want.

2. obey the orders and regulations. It is part of covenant. Some people note that the new Articles leave out a fundamental phrase (more on that in an imminent blog). But it is really irrelevant because the O+R contains the commitment missing through the absence of the phrase in the new declaration. Here's the deal on the Articles. There is a footnote to the left side (doctrines). It is called the Handbook of Doctrine. There is a footnote to the right side (these declarations). It is called the Orders and Regulations. We are responsible for both of these in our lives. Here's a nice first step (suggestion only): read them (and suggest that all of your comrades read them).

3. The last bit is that we'll do everything we can to forward the Army mission and everything we can to protect its interests. One of the oldest pastimes for Salvationists is Army-bashing. Now, I have to admit I don't hear too much of it where I live these days, but I have heard my share over the years (even had a season in my life in which I was a pretty effective competitor- tragically). But let me tell you this story. I have had several DCs in my relatively short officership (4 1/2) and one of them said this to a group of officers in an offical setting (and I paraphrase): "You officers bash the Army all the time. If you were employers of our bank and you criticized the bank like you do the Army I'd fire you all. So, if I hear you cutting up the Army from now on I am going to call your accounting office and freeze your cheques." I love that DC, by the way! And, in light of the Articles declaration, maybe he should cut their soldiership, too.

There.

Also, I want to refine my latest stab at a famous quote from a few weeks ago on free will:

"Free choice boils dow to this: judgement now or judgement later."

Oh, and two of our cadets are getting commissioned as I type this- Congratulations to Marnie and Peter, a couple of warriors who are going to light up the darkness for the 60 years or so. Hallelujah!
posted by Stephen Court

Hi- I know a commissioner whose parent stepped out of a three day old casket during his funeral. I've just read today in IF TWO SHALL AGREE of another commissioner who, as a baby, was dead, 'like a stone in the white bed', confirmed without a pulse by the attending doctor. A warrior of Jesus stepped into the room and prayed down some glory and the baby girl was restored to perfect health. I have a friend, a student in our War College, who was in a meeting not too long ago in his home corps intended to raise his teenaged friend back to life. The meeting was a success (not in some figurative or 'spiritual' sense- the dead teen came back to life).

How about that? We've got ourselves some dead-raising going on in The Salvation Army! Hallelujah! We don't have to point back to Bramwell Booth and the old, worn levitation accounts (although I will be first in line when our Phillip Airways gets off the ground).

Now that isn't just to tickle our imaginations. It is merely an obedience of Matthew 10:7,8 (come on, now, read it!). We can only give what we've got. Freely we have received, freely we should give. And there are literally billions of people who could really stand to see some signs and wonders in their live, oh, about, today!

Let's press in, not give up, and confidently step out in obedient faith and add to my short list (wait- maybe I should tell you I was calling a prayer meeting recently with a specific intent and asked for some pray-ers individually. I didn't know them so I started by asking if they'd raised any dead people. The first six laughed at me. The seventh Salvationist looked at me and explained, "I never raised anybody. But God raises them through me. Hallelujah." The list goes on...). Hallelujah!

I'm not making this stuff up.
Grace,
Stephen Court
PS BTI July 2005 (two thousand and five), July 5-11

Hi- I just wanted the world to know that we've nailed down the dates for the 2005 BTI session- July 5-11. We've already had applications from as far away (from Vancouver) as Singapore, so pray it up and join us for some incarnational refresher experiences in 'North America's worst neighbourhood'.
grace,
Stephen Court

Hi- Do you know how somebody might say, 'he's got issues'? I've finally figured out that she probably means, 'he's got demons'.
grace
Stephen Court

June 18, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I just got this email from a friend. Check this out:

artist: Kayne West
genre: Hip Hop
CD: College Drop Out

"I need to recruit all the soldiers
all of God's soldiers
we at war!
we at war with society, racism, terrorism . .
but most of all we at war wit ourselves.
Jesus walk. .
God show me the way
bcos the devil tryna break me down
Jesus walk with me. . . "

Amen.
posted by Stephen Court

June 17, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Ah, the rubber hits the road on the declarations. This is a tough one today. My friend Rowan just emailed me, brainstorming about stages of simplicity. Roughly put, they range from having a lot and not sharing, through an ordinary lifestyle punctuated by moderate engagement with necessities and some attention to the poor, to a radical reconsidration of what is a necessity that includes minimalising and scaling back and a big commitment to the poor (he actually has one more stage- that of owning nothing).

I wonder if this is a simplicity stage cycle, in that we work our way down to the penultimae level (radical reconsideration) that transforms our worldview on the whole issue such that we find ourselves back at having a lot...

Does that make sense? We keep cutting and simplifying, and scaling back. Then we experience a crisis (maybe we go on a hero holiday and visit the widow and orphan in their distress) that helps us to see that all our scaling back really just leaves us still having a lot and not sharing much. So we start the stage cycle again, living more simply and investing more in the poor...

It is easy to get into a groove. We just got a raise and we haven't upped our cartride yet. Hmm. So we're not living as simply as we were two months ago.

I am privileged to live in a Christian community with some slum brothers and sisters who are about at Rowan's ultimate level of owning nothing. They are a constant challenge to me. I live in tension on this issue. And I think that it is good for me to live in tension on this issue.

All of this prefaces the next declaration. When you read "all... I can" please don't read it as 'whatever I can spare in my wallet after all the bills are paid and I've enjoyed a weekend of indulgence'. In this context, a tithe (ten percent) is merely the beginning (though required).* We are challenged here to run through Rowan's simplicity stage cycle again and again, re-assessing our lifestyle in light of the masses rushing, with VERY little, to hell (did I blog the Bovine Standard? our generation's sequel to the Cab Horse Charter? Every EU cow gets L2.20/day. It'd be nice if 3/4 of Africans now lacking that kind of luxury could enjoy what the cows do).

"I do here declare that I will spend all the time, strength, money and influence I can in supporting and carrying on the Salvation war, and that I will endeavor to lead my family, friends, neighbors and all others whom I can influence to do the same, believing that the sure and only way to remedy all the evils in the world is by bringing men to submit themselves to the government of the Lord Jesus Christ."

Beautiful. I know of no covenant more hardcore than soldiership. Look at it. Not only do you go as hardcore as possible with your time and strength and influence and money but you do all you can to get everyone else you can to go as hardcore as possible with their time and strength and influence and money.

And it makes motivation clear. No soft and fuzzy 'liberalism' here. It is to get everyone saved (the only way to remedy all the evils is to get all the evil-doers saved).

God help us live up to covenant.
posted by Stephen Court
*William Booth: "You might work out this rule on a graduated scale, beginning at the bottom with a tenth, and going on increasing as God increases... From a tenth you can rise to an eight, and then to a fifth, and a fouth, and eve further, Make His glory your joy, your conscience, your guide, and the Salvation of men, for time and eternity, the supreme object for which you live and trade and do everything else, and you will not go astray on this subject."

June 16, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

My friend made a good observation that our blogs on the Articles of War declarations are on the old declarations. I've done that for a couple of reasons: a. most of the salvationists alive today signed this version; and b. I signed this version. Having said that, if we can keep this thing going profitably, I will tackle the new ones after we finish these...

"I do here declare that I will never treat any woman, child or other person, whose life, comfort or happiness may be placed within my power, in an oppressive, cruel or cowardly manner; but that I will protect such from evil and danger so far as I can, and promote, to the utmost of my ability, their present welfare and eternal Salvation."

This is probably a good example of why there is a newer version. It reads a little patriarchical. Again, though, it goes beyond being a good person or a good parent or a good employer and redefines that concept (good ____) as someone who is doing everything she can to get people under her influence saved and blessed while on earth.

Awhile ago it was vogue to call the Army a church with a plus (the idea being that we don't just worship on Sundays but we ideally live it out in measurable-read social services- ways through the week; also, I just reiterate here I'm not a fan of calling it church). In a similar way soldiers are claiming to be Christians with a plus- not merely savd by the skin of our teeth but commited to being positive difference-makers in the lives of everyone we can influence. This is courageous Christianity and I know it throws off some of our more academic and some of our more casual types. It takes such covenanted commitment to win the world, I expect (degrees and caj Christianity will never make it).
posted by Stephen Court

June 15, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
It is late. Our cell hung around to watch the Pistons win the NBA Championship and then to digest the leaders debate (Canadian federal election). So I will just throw a few things out to you- none of which will get a just treatmen.

1. In our cell we discussed Elijah. Aaron figures that the fundamental role of a prophet is to call people back to covenant. So it actually relates to teh blogging theme this week. If you are an ex-soldier or inactive soldier, consider this week's blogs as a prophetic call to you back to your covenant.

2. Elijah was suicidal, partly because he concluded that he was all alone. He could have used the support, encouragement, correction, and fellowship of 7,000 who had not bowed the knee... He learned his lesson in that by the time his successor comes around there is a well-established school of the prophets. Jonathan noted that it is important that we cultivate prophetic community (if we reject the prophetic, it will led by God out, similarly to Elijah and the widow of Zarephath).

3. Danielle saw a car today with two bumper stickers: a. save the whales; b. pro-choice. In other words, the driver wants baby whales to live but baby humans to die (I know you might argue- my email is info@thewarcollege.com). I came around after Petra but I think in some comeback phase (with a converted singer from Foreigner?) they had a hit- When will the world see that we need Jesus?

4. There is so much that could be preached about the Pistons series. How about these points: defence wins championships- cover your spiritual kinks so the enemy can't eat you from the inside out (like the Lakers suffered); don't sell your soul for a ring (wait, didn't Jesus preach this one already?); big names don't make a team- the MVP has never been voted to an all-star team, while four of the losing players will be hall of famers (we need the whole body); just because everyone says it is impossible doesn't mean it is impossible- so, if you are one of the few who is living to win the world for Jesus, take hope.
posted by Stephen Court

June 14, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

Ecclesiastes 4: "And don't make rash promises to God, for He is in heaven, and you are only here on earth. So let your words be few. 3 Just as being too busy gives you nightmares, being a fool makes you a blabbermouth. 4 So when you make a promise to God, don't delay in following through, for God takes no pleasure in fools. Keep all the promises you make to Him. 5 It is better to say nothing than to promise something that you don't follow through on."

Some use this verse and similar ones in the New Testament to argue that we shouldn't covenant. But that isn't at all what Ecclesasiastes is saying. It makes two points:
1. don't make rash promises to God.
2. it is better to say nothing than to make a promise you don't fulfill.

Now, some of you have made rash promises in your soldiership covenant. It would have been better for you to have said nothing. My big brother never became a soldier as a mid-teenager, partly because all of his friends did. That is, they jumped into uniform so that they could go on the next band trip and made rash promises that many of them have broken. My brother followed the Biblical advice here and said nothing.

Look how this speaks to the two points:
a. So, we agree that we shouldn't make rash promises. But this says nothing at all about a reasoned, prayed-up, determined covenant of soldiership for life with God through The Salvation Army.
b. But that doesn't make my brother a hero (although he is a good guy!). It just makes his friends 'blabbermouths' and 'fools'.

While it is better to say nothing than to rashly promise, it is even better to make a godly promise and fulfill it. I mean, specatators and television wathers say nothing on record. There is nothing noble in that silence.

Of course, it takes guts and conviction to promise. That's part of the attraction. We're not called to some lame membership like Blockbuster Video or the Public Library, to which we can belong if we're breathing. We're called to something romantically heroic, something that may likely cost us our lives (as it has cost some of our valiant, fallen comrades).

The difference in cost leads to a difference in effect. Your public library and video membership card will help you accomplish very little in life. But your covenant with God as a soldier can help you accomplish world conquest (and for you doubters, it can still help you get heaps of people saved who are currently going to hell, breaking generations of demon-captives, and re-working much of the furniture in heaven).

In light of these conclusions, the next Articles of War declaration is a pretty easy read:

"I do here declare that I will not allow myself in any deceit or dishonesty; nor will I practice any fraudulent conduct in my business, my home or in any other relation in which I may stand to my fellow men; but that I will deal truthfully, honorably and kindly with all those who employ me or whom I may myself employ."

I mean, again, this is basic Christian stuff. I wouldn't want to hire anyone who couldn't sign this statement. Neither would I want to work alongside or live with such a person (one who couldn't sign). These are basic statements for people with the guts to put their word on the line and promise God in such a way that He can count us to fulfill the promises.
posted by Stephen Court

June 13, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Back to the declarations...

This is number three:
"I do here and now declare that I will abstain from the use of all low or profane language and from all impurity, including unclean conversation, the reading of any obscene book or paper at any time, in any company, or in any place."

This is a natural fruit of integrity in your life. It is not a matter of internally tightening the cranks and bolting the lips to protext yourself from breaking this promise. Ephesians 4:29 instructs, "Don't let any unwholesome word come out of your mouth but only what is profitable for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear."

This instructions flows out of a long grocery list of social instructions from Paul. You might infer that it IS, then, a matter of taping your lips shut and toughening it up. But the whole section in chapter 4 begins with 'Therefore'. And Paul is building on his famous apostolic prayer for these people, that,

"according to the riches of His glory, He may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through His Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.  I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen (Ephesians 3:16-20)."

Once we get rooted and grounded in love and filled with the fullness of God, then it is natural that we, "abstain from the use of all low or profane language and from all impurity, including unclean conversation, the reading of any obscene book or paper at any time, in any company, or in any place."

Now, Jesus was tempted as we are, in every way. If He had fast internet He'd probably run across some of the devil's stupid options for flirtatious and pornographic sites and pictures. This is possibly the most insidious temptation for a lot of Christian types, because it is private. So, don't be stupid about your internet use. I know guys who have totally screwed up on this point. Don't put yourself in position to be messed up if that is an issue for you. The better response, though, is to get to know the breadth and length and height and depth of the love of Christ so that the temptation is removed.

This is an important issue. We want to be a pure and spotless bride decked out in Army boots that we use to stomp all of the devil's jugular. That means we need total purity, in our conversation, innuendo, and our language.

Why promise it? We're stepping apart. We're putting ourselves on the line. We're positioning ourselves so that God can trust us with His power. We're not going to try. We're going to take God at His word and actually obey.
posted by Stephen Court

June 12, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I'm taking a short sidebar from the Declarations discussion to engage in related conversation with one of my friends. He is throwing some hard questions out there...

He asked,
1) Where is grace in Soldiership? I guess I ask this in the context that I have seen so many people leave the Army because they made a mistake, by doing one of the more deadlier sins (drinking or smoking) and they have been cast out of the Army. And yet it is fine for us to gossip, to have unclean conversations, to lie, etc. You know the deal. Where does Grace fit when someone stuffs up? Or is it - 'Naughty Naughty - you have broken your covenant with God! You will never be forgiven! You will never get to heaven!' The reality is probably not that bad - but in some places... it is pretty close to that!

I reply:
1. "Where is grace in soldiership?" Last declaration- "by God's help". You know full well that someone who screws up once doesn't get cut. In fact, your arguments suggest the opposite reality- that 'grace' is over-the-top in soldiership such that there is no discipline for pervasive sins such as gossip, unclean conversation, lying, etc. In light of your evidence it seems the real question should be "Where is discipline in soldiership?" And this is a great question. If a CO doesn't cut an unrepentant soldier then not only is grace abused but discipline is excommunicated. If anything, there is too much of what passes for 'grace' and not enough discipline.

2) He asked a question about legalism and I think I responded in the last two posts. Please see the PS for a recap.

He asked,
3) Have we actually stopped and asked God if he still wants us to be in covenant with him? Just a question! Are we doing Soldiership because we have always done it! You know what it is like in the Army - we get onto a good horse, and we keep riding it even if it died 100 years ago! Now, I am not saying that God isn't still asking us to be in covenant with him - I actually think my answer to this question is that He DOES still want this to happen, but, has anyone actually asked the question?

I reply:
3. Does God want us in covenant? Good question. I've got two answers:
i. Based on my last response (2), yes, because He wants to be able to trust us and covenant increases that likelihood (see PS).
ii. We believe God raised up The Salvation Army. I think that we'll agree that at some point He was behind the notion of soldiership and the covenant (which historically has been 'til I die'). If these points are true, and God continues to call people into The Salvation Army, then we have to believe that He is still calling us into covenant. The Army is composed of soldiers and officers (who, of course, are also soldiers). Everyone in The Salvation Army is covenanted in The Salvation Army. There are NO free-loaders nor free-agents. His call is implicitly His cooperation with covenant.

posted by Stephen Court

PS- First up- is covenant a relic of the Old Testament? Is it obsolete now that Jesus has come? Well, is tithing obsolete? No. Why? It isn't part of the law. Neither is covenant. There are only a few Nazirites in Scripture that we've identified. They include Samuel and Samson, John the Baptist, and, wait for this, Paul the Apostle. Oh, Paul was around after Jesus left the earth! He is THE posterboy for Christianity. And he figured covenant was not only legit and not legalistic, but actually important and beneficial. Hmm. My friend Rob Dolby has said, "You cannot earn God's love, but you can earn His trust." Covenant does just this. It is a boldness derived from the freedom we enjoy in Jesus that motivates us to step up to the plate (to mix metaphors) when the battle is on the line and commit in holy, binding agreement, to certain conditions that will allow God to trust us more.

Covenanted people are widely admired and generally outstanding in their effect.

group....................context..........characteristics
Samurai.................Last Samurai..sacrifice, simplicity...
Jedi........................Star Wars........set apart, disciplined, loyal
Scots.....................Braveheart......citizenship, belonging
Myrmidons............Troy................training, loyalty
30.........................David.............heroic
freedom fighters....Matrix........... sacrifice, revelation
Death and Glory.....Booth-Tucker.elite troops

It is also the nature of an army. You can't be in it unless you commit. And if you don't commit, you can't be counted on in battle. All the more does this apply in the spiritual warfare in which The Salvation Army engages.

June 12, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I'm taking a short sidebar from the Declarations discussion to engage in related conversation with one of my friends. He is throwing some hard questions out there...

He asked,
1) Where is grace in Soldiership? I guess I ask this in the context that I have seen so many people leave the Army because they made a mistake, by doing one of the more deadlier sins (drinking or smoking) and they have been cast out of the Army. And yet it is fine for us to gossip, to have unclean conversations, to lie, etc. You know the deal. Where does Grace fit when someone stuffs up? Or is it - 'Naughty Naughty - you have broken your covenant with God! You will never be forgiven! You will never get to heaven!' The reality is probably not that bad - but in some places... it is pretty close to that!

I reply:
1. "Where is grace in soldiership?" Last declaration- "by God's help". You know full well that someone who screws up once doesn't get cut. In fact, your arguments suggest the opposite reality- that 'grace' is over-the-top in soldiership such that there is no discipline for pervasive sins such as gossip, unclean conversation, lying, etc. In light of your evidence it seems the real question should be "Where is discipline in soldiership?" And this is a great question. If a CO doesn't cut an unrepentant soldier then not only is grace abused but discipline is excommunicated. If anything, there is too much of what passes for 'grace' and not enough discipline.

2) He asked a question about legalism and I think I responded in the last two posts. Please see the PS for a recap.

He asked,
3) Have we actually stopped and asked God if he still wants us to be in covenant with him? Just a question! Are we doing Soldiership because we have always done it! You know what it is like in the Army - we get onto a good horse, and we keep riding it even if it died 100 years ago! Now, I am not saying that God isn't still asking us to be in covenant with him - I actually think my answer to this question is that He DOES still want this to happen, but, has anyone actually asked the question?

I reply:
3. Does God want us in covenant? Good question. I've got two answers:
i. Based on my last response (2), yes, because He wants to be able to trust us and covenant increases that likelihood (see PS).
ii. We believe God raised up The Salvation Army. I think that we'll agree that at some point He was behind the notion of soldiership and the covenant (which historically has been 'til I die'). If these points are true, and God continues to call people into The Salvation Army, then we have to believe that He is still calling us into covenant. The Army is composed of soldiers and officers (who, of course, are also soldiers). Everyone in The Salvation Army is covenanted in The Salvation Army. There are NO free-loaders nor free-agents. His call is implicitly His cooperation with covenant.

posted by Stephen Court

PS- First up- is covenant a relic of the Old Testament? Is it obsolete now that Jesus has come? Well, is tithing obsolete? No. Why? It isn't part of the law. Neither is covenant. There are only a few Nazirites in Scripture that we've identified. They include Samuel and Samson, John the Baptist, and, wait for this, Paul the Apostle. Oh, Paul was around after Jesus left the earth! He is THE posterboy for Christianity. And he figured covenant was not only legit and not legalistic, but actually important and beneficial. Hmm. My friend Rob Dolby has said, "You cannot earn God's love, but you can earn His trust." Covenant does just this. It is a boldness derived from the freedom we enjoy in Jesus that motivates us to step up to the plate (to mix metaphors) when the battle is on the line and commit in holy, binding agreement, to certain conditions that will allow God to trust us more.

Covenanted people are widely admired and generally outstanding in their effect.

group....................context..........characteristics
Samurai.................Last Samurai..sacrifice, simplicity...
Jedi........................Star Wars........set apart, disciplined, loyal
Scots.....................Braveheart......citizenship, belonging
Myrmidons............Troy................training, loyalty
30.........................David.............heroic
freedom fighters....Matrix........... sacrifice, revelation
Death and Glory.....Booth-Tucker.elite troops

It is also the nature of an army. You can't be in it unless you commit. And if you don't commit, you can't be counted on in battle. All the more does this apply in the spiritual warfare in which The Salvation Army engages.

June 11, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Yesterday I promised to start a bit on the declarations of the articles of war covenant.

The second one is the cause of much angst among the 'grace' crowd:

"I do here and now declare that I will abstain from the use of all intoxicating liquor, and from the use of all baneful drugs, except when such drugs shall be ordered for me by a doctor."

I'm not exactly sure what the big deal is about. I don't want my son drinking alcohol. And I'll have him promise me not to do it. I won't settle for something like this: "Father, I'm not going to drink very much alcohol," or "Daddy, I won't drink any beer but I might do the occasional drug." I'm going to expect him not to drink and not to do drugs. I see no debate on this one at all.

If he keeps his promise I can trust him. If he doesn't, I can't.

Now, the bigger picture...

Covenanted people are widely admired and generally outstanding in their effect.

group context characteristics
Samurai Last Samurai sacrifice, simplicity...
Jedi Star Wars set apart, disciplined, loyal
Scots Braveheart citizenship, belonging
Myrmidons Troy training, loyalty
30 David heroic
freedom fighters Matrix sacrifice, revelation
Death and Glory Booth-Tucker elite troops

It is also the nature of an army. You can't be in it unless you commit. And if you don't commit, you can't be counted on in battle. All the more does this apply in the spiritual warfare in which The Salvation Army engages.
posted by Stephen Court

June 10, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Many of you have covenanted with God in the same way I have. I am discussing this important topic with a couple of friends in Australia (and will embark on similar conversations with others in the days to come).

The short of it is in my editorial introduction in the current JAC (see the top of this page).

The shorter of it is that I believe salvationists are the most covenanted people of all time. Rechabites, Nazirites, take a back seat to a salvationist. We also miss the plot almost pervasively on this issue. Our mistake here jeopardizes our future. So I'm going to interact with the declarations of the Articles of War for a few posts and see what happens. Some will find this totally boring. Sorry. To others it will be essential. Feel free to join me for the ride.

First up- is covenant a relic of the Old Testament? Is it obsolete now that Jesus has come? Well, is tithing obsolete? No. Why? It isn't part of the law. Neither is covenant. There are only a few Nazirites in Scripture that we've identified. They include Samuel and Samson, John the Baptist, and, wait for this, Paul the Apostle. Oh, Paul was around after Jesus left the earth! He is THE posterboy for Christianity. And he figured covenant was not only legit and not legalistic, but actually important and beneficial. Hmm. My friend Rob Dolby has said, "You cannot earn God's love, but you can earn His trust." Covenant does just this. It is a boldness derived from the freedom we enjoy in Jesus that motivates us to step up to the plate (to mix metaphors) when the battle is on the line and commit in holy, binding agreement, to certain conditions that will allow God to trust us more.

Here is the first declaration:
"Therefore, I do here and now, and forever, renounce the world with all its sinful pleasures, companionships, treasures, and objects, and declare my full determination boldly to show myself a soldier of Jesus Christ in all places and companies, no matter what I may have to suffer, do or lose by so doing."

I suspect you could write a book generating commentary on this declaration and invest a life in actually trying to live it out.

God's character is such that what He commands, He enables (that is, He is not a jerk God commanding the impossible so He can punish us for failing to live up to it). And so, our understanding of holiness is reflected in intention and not performance. The argument for legalism in the articles of war is plausible but falls where we recognize intention instead of performance.

This declaration separates us from every pansy Christian who disgraces the Holy Spirit by declaring that (s)he sins every day. How can God trust someone who intends to sin every day? How can you trust such a person at your shoulder when you go to war? No, I am going to trust a covenanted warrior who declares a full determination boldly to show herself a soldier of Jesus Christ in all places and companies, no matter what she may have to suffer, do or lose by so doing.

Oh, and while you're online, check out the demo of the week- BREAK ME.
posted by Stephen Court

June 9, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
You may remember that the Revival Centre got kicked out of its building by the government so that it could open its free heroin centre.
I just heard that the church folk meet outside the building on Sunday mornings to worship.
Nice.
posted by Stephen Court

June 7, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
A couple of posts ago I was on about what a terrible neighbourhood people say we live in.
I thought I'd balance it out a little bit. People around here seem to know their neighbours. They go to lengths for them. They share quite generously. They appreciate little things.
We're blessed in heaps of ways from the government, from our strong police coverage to parks and services and the Carnegie Library and community centre.
There are so many missions down here that you can eat 7 meals a day if you schedule yourself well and don't mind waiting in line.
There are several missions that do meetings every single night without exception- ever. What faithfulness! In what other community can you so easily point to the Gospel in word (preached every night in several places) and deed (free meals like you read about)?
There isn't a lot of padding on people's lives here and so it is relatively easy to get to Gospel in coversation. I mean, I'm not much of an evangelist but when I'm in uniform (and especially when I am accompanied by my son Zion) I am like Billy Graham (except for the number of converts and the great accent).
It has been greatly blessed by a bunch of friends I have who love Jesus.
It is in many instances easy to do something because there is relatively little competition for time and resources and attention.
Open airs still work here.
Most of the tenement hotels offer free cable!
There is never a lack for interesting people here.
There are six Salvation Army institutions in the neighbourhood.
The beachside park five minutes from Main and Hastings overlooks a bit of ocean and mountains- a view people pay millions for down the street. My son gets to see just about every means of transportation during the short walk to and from that park.
There are more musicians ('struggling') per quare foot here than in the rest of Canada combined!
You can sometimes smell the sea air in the morning.
Flowers restaurant is the hidden treasure of Vancouver (unbelievably massive handburger and a veritable mountain of fries for relative peanuts). I could go on...
posted by Stephen Court

June 6, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Sunder Krishnan has a deep book called THE CONQUEST OF INNER SPACE. In it he camps out for a little while on Isaiah 55:3,8-13(at this point you may want to read that bit).

Then he concludes:"Could it be that burnout, as we know it, is not so much a matter of too much work as it is working without listening to God, so that our work is not rooted in His covenantal purposes for us and the world? Isaiah 55 answers with a resounding 'Yes'" (p13).

So I am challenged again to make my moments sacred, to redeem all of my time, to compete in Laubach's game with minutes, to imitate Jesus in doing what I see Father doing, to find my fuel (like Jesus at the well) in that seeing and doing more than in President's Choice Decadent Dutch Chocolate Fudge Crackle and eight soft hours on two pillows. I also read in Sunder that the miracle of the burning bush is more appropriately the miracle of the fuelless fire. God needed neither the bush nor Moses to keep burning. The Fire keeps burning. We just need to hug the Flame. That seemed to work for the three Hebrew boys. In that Fire they had refreshing intimacy and freedom from the bondage.
posted by Stephen Court

June 5, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name. While we're at The War College, people should read Commissioner Wesley Harris' articel WHERE SIN ABOUNDS...
To help you, I've attached it below.

      Where sin abounds…by Commissioner Wesley Harris

VANCOUVER has been voted one of the most ‘livable’ cities in the world.  It is modern, attractive and scenically situated,   But the downtown eastside is a district where none of those descriptions  apply.   Many of its buildings are characterized by dereliction and graffiti.  Rubbish accumulates and includes syringes left by the many drug uses who haunt shop doorways  and odd corners.  Addicts make their uncertain way along the sidewalks.  In back alleys the presence of evil is oppressive.

  It is the kind of place William Booth must have had in mind when he wrote, ‘I don’t care how near to the bottomless pit I go in order to save mankind’.  There on the jagged edges of society Booth’s followers are to be found and I have recently spent a couple of weeks in their company.

  At the Harbor Light Corps  hundreds line up for food and receive treatment for their addictions.  Many kneel at the mercy seat and find Christ,  A trophy of grace is one of  the  first converts at the center,   still  saved and sober after over fifty years.

  In the district the Army provides accommodation for many homeless men and women every night and with the social endeavors go unceasing efforts to fulfill the Army’s mission to save souls.

  The past year has seen such efforts augmented by the presence of a small but determined group of  students at the Army’s new ‘War College’. As a senior I have been happy to warm my hands at the fires of their enthusiasm.   Drawn from five different countries these young people are not merely exploring theological theory.  And they are not just engaging in occasional evangelical forays.

  They are involved in incarnational ministry under the direction of Captain (Dr) Stephen Court, Captain Danielle Strickland and visiting lecturers such as General Eva Burrows (Rtd),  Colonel Earl Robinson and myself.    They live in the district, sharing rooms in very basic accommodation bearing the grandiose title of the ‘Empress Hotel’.  Despite their frugality the rooms are clean and tidy and in many cases newly decorated by the students themselves.

  One room is reserved for prayer,  which is continuous, night and day. Additionally, the students gather for corporate prayer each morning which often takes the form of reading aloud or reciting prayers from the Bible or Salvation Army song book while walking around a large room at the Army’s  Crosswalk emergency shelter.

  Students march in twos along sidewalks their flag, uniforms and  music announcing that the Army is in town.  Open-air meetings do no lack listeners.  In one such gathering I was moved to see a fresh-faced woman student kneeling beside an inebriated man  seeking to point him to the Lord whose grace he so obviously needed.

  Unifomed and non-uniformed students  engage in ‘street warfare’ and are generally well accepted as they give their Christian witness to pedestrians many of whom they get to know by name.  One of the students and I were the last to be served coffee in a  a resort for marijuana smoking before it was closed .  The opportunity to share matters of common interest and important aspects of our faith was valued.
     
  Around the swings in a local park students help to organize games and share the Christian message with children whose parents are happy that they are in the care of people who can be trusted to protect them.

  Some of the students are themselves trained teachers and especially able to assist in a program of tutoring in English as a second language and also assisting children with learning difficulties.

   The work of the War College is wholly supported by scholarships and student   fees.   It  is carried on in  close association with the 614 Corps (named after the particularly relevant reference in Isaiah 61.4).  To a unique degree this corps is cell based its activities currently consisting of 12 small groups meeting each week for fellowship, prayer and Bible study.

  An encouraging feature is that at least half of the students of the War College intend to apply for acceptance as candidates for Salvation Army officership – something for which their current experience will have been  good preparation.  In the meantime they pray that where sin abounds grace may much more abound.
posted by Stephen Court

June 5, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
I was pleased to get an unsolicited endorsement for The War College today from Patricia King, who you might know from her radical media presence- extreme prophetic television. Anyway, for what its worth to anyone considering applying, here it is:

“I highly recommend The War College training program. It beats to the same rhythm as my own heart and I have personally not met anyone like Steve and Danielle (school founders and overseers.) They are “Holy Spirit radical”, tenacious, solid, wild, and as committed as you get to Kingdom advancement and Body of Christ unity.
God is definitely calling His church to minister in the deepest, darkest places of society. This school will not only train you but will give you hands-on experience in incarnational style evangelism (living and walking amongst the addicted, the oppressed, the broken and the afflicted…as one of them…yet without sin).” Patricia King, Extreme Prophetic

Praise the Lord.
posted by Stephen Court

June 4, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

I was praying this morning and out came the words- no cracks:
individually- no cracks for the enemy to break through;
corporately- no cracks for the people to fall through.
May you have no cracks.
posted by Stephen Court

June 3, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
We fight in Vancouver's downtown eastside.

It is a very interesting neighbourhood, squished between historic Chinatown and trendy Gastown. I've lifted a few quotes from articles that pop up in a google search to give you a taste of things:

"worst neighborhood in North America."

"Vancouver risks making its HIV/AIDS crisis much worse, and it's already the worst on the continent."

"Residents of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside have a greater chance of contracting HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, tuberculosis, and syphilis than almost anyone else in Canada.

"The poorest neighborhood in Canada and home to an estimated 5000 injection drug users, the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver suffers from what may be the worst epidemic of HIV/AIDS in the developed world.

"one of the poorest and most drug-addicted neighborhoods in North America.

"the poorest neighborhood in Canada, has the highest incidence of HIV among injection drug users in North America.

a new wave of HIV transmission in the city that is already home to the worst AIDS crisis in the developed world, said Human Rights Watch.

evidence of Vancouver's emergence as a center of North American drug trafficking.

one of the highest overdose death rates in North America.

"A few years back, Francis Bula found one area on Hastings where property was going for $70 per square foot. Meanwhile, land less than a mile away went for $1,000 per square foot in the central downtown and $200 to $350 per square foot along Broadway.

"the creation of the quarantine zone...

"routinely called the single worst block in Canada...
_____
So you can see that we've got quite a fight on our hands. It is a good thing we've got Jesus on our side. It will make the transformation all the more God-glorifying.
posted by Stephen Court

June 2, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

A few days ago I posted on being spent. I've decided that I don't get spent, I am sometimes just invested.

We've got this new thing in town here called Warrior Academy. We're excited that this is a model that can be replicated in countries all around the world.

We do three hours/day with about 8-10 kids right now. It is intentionally spiritual-based and as we get our leaders trained up (July), it will involve some proven methods from a very cool kids ministry that specializes in kid evangelism and the prophetic. So, we're psyched.

The emphasis is on primitive salvationism.

We are looking at how a pre-school home school option will look in September and it looks like we'd grow into a homeschool as we get our stuff together.

We're looking to multiply warrior academy once a year into different cities. The new campuses will also aim to multiply once a year to new cities. So in 20 years we're looking at hundreds of campuses. 

If we can pull this off and train up one warrior a year (by that I mean a mid to high teen who is able to go out and lead a cluster of cells in a city) we've got hundreds of die-hard leaders. One a year is just 1. conservative, and 2. a factor of the age of the kids (e.g. we will produce none this year since the oldest is 7).

Things will look differently according to fronts and gifts. But we want it to share some of the DNA and intentional training and reproduction into warrior leaders.

So, I don't know if this tickles anyone's fancy here... if it does fire me an email at info@thewarcollege.com.
posted by Stephen Court

June 1, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.

Our mission here has a few catch phrases. One of them is 'authentic Christian community'. We're all about that. We've studied Bonhoeffer on the subject. One thing he said is, "Community means that we always relate to one another in and through Christ."
This is power because it avoids potentially manipulative, coercive, intimidating, seflish interaction all because Jesus is there, too (idea from Ogilvie).

Don't forget to read the new JAC, out today and good for much longer than it's two-month life-span- book mark it.
posted by Stephen Court

May 31, 2004.
Greetings in Jesus' name, friends.
Have you visited demo of the week at armybarmy.com yet? You should. There is a good resource for new SA songs that you can lift and use on Sundays. And if you are a songwriter or know one, we could put songs by you up so email me (info@thewarcollege.com). This week is BREAK ME by Danielle Strickland and last week is NEEDY by Marty Mikle.

Guess what happens tomorrow? The 31st issue of JOURNAL OF AGGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY goes up at armybarmy.com/JAC. The pdf will follow later in the week. But there is a load of great stuff in there this issue so be sure to bookmark it, read it carefully, and invite 20 or so friends to do the same. I'll likely expand on this soon.

Have I suggested that you read Geoff Ryan's new book- THE SIREN CALL OF A DANGEROUS GOD (great title) yet? You should. Ignore the subtitle, 'Essays in Evangelical Dialectic', which seems to shout out, 'you're not smart enough to read this book!' Just jump in- Geoff is a brilliant writer and a dangerous thinker (needless to say, I disagree with significant points he makes, but we started this Credo Press together, so...). I really appreciate that guy (we both lead 614 corps). You can buy it from us or directly from him (geoff_ryan@can.salvationarmy.org).

I heard a cool preach at THE RIVER last night and one of the commandments is 'do not steal'- that includes someone's reputation.

I know some people who are tired. My friend even suggested that they are spent. I didn't receive it for myself. I'm not spent! :-) I've not yet begun to fight, to test the waters of grace in which the great hearts drowned, the diehards now swim, and our persecuted comrades wade. May resolve bolster the courage of any of you similarly tested (if I get a chance I'll blog this killer article by WB I read today).
posted by Stephen Court