Benediction

May the Lord disturb and trouble you,
May the Lord set an impossible task before you,
And dare you to meet it.
May the Lord give you strength to do your best;
And then - but only then -
May the Lord grant you peace.
Amen

MIE

The Australian Southern Territory trains leaders for future Mission Immersion Experiences to our Partner Territories (DRC (Congo Kinshasa), Liberia, Mexico, Caribbean, Mozambique, and Indonesia)... check out justsalvos.com soon for more details on getting involved.

Prostitution - the truth...

The legalization of prostitution is at best an attempt to bandage up a societal problem... at worse it's the systemic oppression of women and the widening of potential for more!! Thankfully, The Salvation Army understands that the exploitation of women (sometimes named the 'sex trade') simply encourages trafficking and oppression... let's dig in and stop it. Here is IHQ's official statement about it: stay tuned in and read more for convincing evidence!

'The Salvation Army believes that women and men in prostitution should not be seen as criminal offenders by virtue of their activities in the sex trade industry. Many are drawn into prostitution by reason of poverty, ignorance or coercion. However, The Salvation Army does not wish to see prostitution treated or regarded as a normative or acceptable practice, or as a socially or morally legitimate career choice by any person. Legalisation of the sex trade unintentionally but inevitably creates a social climate in which those engaged in human trafficking can expand their industry, making it difficult for the police to intervene, even though advocates for legalisation claim that licensing gives more safety and protection. The Salvation Army has not campaigned publicly on the issue of prostitution laws because it wishes to maintain its position of trust with persons, especially women, in prostitution. However, the Army takes a stance against decriminalisation of any commercial exploitation of women or men for sexual purposes. The Army also supports measures to criminalise the activities of clients in the sex trade industry.'

Salvo doctrines... young warrior style.

check out how well you know your doctrines.
Click here for 3:28 minutes of 11 doctrines of The Salvation Army.

Urgent request for prayer - India Northern Territory

The Salvation Army
International Headquarters
Office of The General

To:- Active and Retired Commissioners,
Active and Retired Territorial Commanders,
Officers Commanding

Dear Colleagues in Christ,

Urgent request for prayer - India Northern Territory

I am asking on an urgent basis for prayer for our Salvationist comrades in the India Northern Territory. Salvationists in the State of Orissa have been directly impacted by recent civil disorder and are in need of our loving thoughts and earnest prayers.

Following the deaths of local Hindu leaders, some fundamentalist Hindu citizens have been offering violence to their Christian neighbours, including Salvationists. Two corps halls have been destroyed together with a quarters building, and 100 Salvationists are now hiding in fear in the nearby forests. Please pray that God will protect them.

Also our Boys' Home has been destroyed. Thirty children and the officers caring for them are now in police protection. Please bring this situation to God in prayer. Efforts are being made to relocate the children to another of our homes.

Please pray for Colonels Kashinath and Kusum Lahase, territorial leaders, and all their staff, and especially for the divisional leaders in Orissa.

God grant a swift return to normality and a restoration of tranquility in these communities.

To date there are no reports of Salvationists injured or killed.

Thank you for your fidelity in prayer. God bless you all.

Yours in Christ,

Shaw Clifton
GENERAL

The Curse

A few things happened yesterday that lead to this blog.
1. I was reading Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger by Ron Sider (which, I highly recommend)
2. Commissioners Mungate were over for tea.

Among the things we spoke at about a tea was the point raised by Sider in his book that wealth is not simply a neutral product that we deal with in different ways - but that it is a curse and robs us of the joy of living in the Kingdom.
He demonstrated this in several ways in his book but one that struck me was that following world war two giving from developed world to developing worlds was at an all time high... but as we began to get richer our giving decreased... the more we have the less we give and the worse off we are... suicide, obesity, depression - those rates soar in the developed world... it's like we refuse to hear the words of Jesus to the rich young man who pointed out the thing he lacked... being free of his possessions.

The god we serve in developed countries is wealth. As we chatted about the fervent, aggressive and able army in the Democratic Republic of the Congo under the dynamic leadership of the Mungates - ready to open 'fire' in at least 8 other countries around it... we were struck by the need for Australian Salvationists to catch the Kingdom readiness... and also deeply aware - personally as well - that we are slowed down most by our own trappings...

How do we fight off the 'fat spirit' of wealth, comfort and spiritual apathy?
1. live a different way (embrace simplicity)
2. live in a different place - if you constantly surround yourself by wealth and comfort.. then you will forever be comparing yourself to those with more... this will lead to the inevitable pursuit of more and you are trapped again... move in beside some poor neighbours - there are many areas of the city where this is possible..
3. give extravagantly - just keep giving it away - not so much to save the world - just to be free from the lure of wealth - when you give it away it kills the spirit of greed... do it today. Phil Wall offers this test in his book I'll Fight against materialism to test to see if you are in it's grip - take the most valuable thing you have and simply give it away. Do it.
4. Spiritual disciplines - this is a raging debate right now... do we have to pray and read the bible everyday etc... isn't that just legalism etc... I think spiritual discipline (including fasting) is one way to stay spiritually alert in a deadened culture... it's a tool against wealth and excess to train hard spiritually - I say stop debating and just get to it... bottom line - it certainly can't hurt!!

anyway, I'm just thinking outloud - but I'm aware again more than ever of wealth and it's strangle hold on the church. Ron Sider says if just the rich christians would give generously we could solve world hunger THIS YEAR... just the rich christians... oh, and in case you feel like you are off the hook - that's you!!

Courtcases

I was at Urban Conversations last night in downtown Melbourne (614 hosted) with Judge Jennifer Coate speaking.

Jennifer is currently the State Coroner for Victoria. She is the first woman to ever hold this position. Before taking on this role, Jennifer was the President of the Melbourne Childrens Court, a person of great passion and intellect and she spoke on, "Justice and the city". It was quite fascinating to hear her speak of her work on youth justice (keeping youth under 18 out of jail as much as possible) and many other fascinating things about her work (particularly the hard situations of children coming before the court).

We were all struck deeply however, by her final comments - prompted by a brilliant question from General Eva Burrows... 'what's the thing that makes the most difference?' - Judge Jennifer said it was without a doubt, love, compassion, kindness, community, inclusion and relationships... she encouraged the Salvos to do what we do best and keep creating those relationships with the 'excluded'. She said that a high risk youth offender who finds a positive community decreases their risk of re-offending by 30% just by joining it. I'm thinking to myself... more Lord - enable us to be available for more... she also stated that 80% of the re-offenders (high risk of constant offending) were kids who had been removed from their own homes... she said good foster homes are urgently needed...

so, by way of reminder:
1. be friends with an excluded young person (maybe that homework club volunteering in a rough part of town is worth it after all?)
2. be a foster parent (hard reality - incredibly impacting change).
3. create an inclusive community (stop hanging out with everyone you already know - find some people who need new friends).

JUST thinking really.
Grace