March Forth! Marssige Edasi!

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Today we had cadets from The Salvation Army's training college in Helsinki. They arrived at around noon and, after settling in at their hotel and having lunch, went with us to a local shopping center for an indoor open air. After that, we went to a childrens' home, where they did a program for the youngsters. 

The youngsters play a relay game where they had to carry a lego on a spoon in their mouth, and then transfer it to the next person. 

The cadets lead the children in a prayer at the end of their time at the childrens' home, holding hands with their arms crossed. When the prayer was finished, everyone turned around and their arms were uncrossed.

The final program with the cadets was a cookout in our yard. We usually have our teen program on Thursday nights, but opened it up to everyone from the corps and all together 37 of us joined together. 

The youngsters have fun playing musical chairs (although the chairs kept sinking into the soft ground when people would plop down on them!) 

The cadets lead the group in singing "Lord I Lift Your Name on High." 

As always, we ended the day by roasting marshmallows--which was a first for the cadets but is now an anticipated treat for our young people. 

A Quest for Answers

Discover the Real Jesus

Who Was Jesus, Really?

from Lee Strobel

Enjoy!

Evelyn

SASB #706
1.What can I say to cheer a world of sorrow?
How bring back hope where men have sorely failed?
Just where I am I'll speak the word of comfort,
Tell how for me Christ's sacrifice availed.
Just where he needs me, my Lord has placed me,
Just where he needs me, there would I be!
And since he found me, by love he's bound me
To serve him joyfully.
2.What can I do to ease life's heavy burdens?
What can I do to help mankind in need?
Just where I am I'll share my neighbor's hardship,
Lighten his load, and prove a friend indeed.
3.What can I do to justify my living?
What can I be to worthwhile?
I'll be a voice to call men to the Saviour,
Just where I am, and win my Father's smile.
Miriam M. Richards

SASB #740
1.Like to a lamb who from the fold has strayed
Far on the mountain, of the dark afraid,
Seeking a shelter from the night's alarm,
Longing for comfort of the shepherd's arm,
So Jesus found me on sin's mountain drear,
Gathered me close and banished all my fear.
In the Love of Jesus there is all I need,
While I follow closely where my Lord may lead;
By his grace forgiven,
In his presence blest,
In the love of Jesus,
In the love of Jesus, is perfect rest.
In the love of Jesus is all I need,
While I follow closely where my Lord may lead;
By his grace forgiven,
In his presence blest,
In the love of Jesus, is perfect rest,
Is perfect rest.
2.Like to a pilgrim in an unknown land
Seeking the comfort of a guiding hand,
Fearing the perils of the winding way,
Pleading for strength sufficient every day,
I met my Lord; and, though the path be dim,
He knows the way and I will walk with him.
3.Like to a child who, when the night may fall,
Out of the darkness hears his father call,
Far and a-weary though his feet may roam,
Sees in the distance shining lights of home,
So at the last the music of his voice
Will calm my fears and make my heart rejoice.
Ivy Mawby (1903-83)

Palun tulge grillipeole homme õhtul kell 18.00-20.30. Meil on kadettid Soomest meiega.

Please come to the cookout tomorrow evening 6:oo-8:30. We will have cadets from Finland with us.

The following is excerpted from http://www.sonlight.com/educational-philosophy.html

The world is out there to be marveled at, enjoyed, explored, and learned from. Once you catch on to this idea, you will find it easy to see educational value in almost everything you do.
No More Boring Textbooks!
We believe that most children respond more positively to great literature than they do to textbooks. Books—quality books—can distill the wisdom of an entire life into the span of a few pages. They can feed us with spiritual insight beyond imagination. Whether written by Christians or non-Christians, great books help us to develop critical thinking skills. They cause us to question the validity of our own values and beliefs in light of the author's perspective.
Once a good book grabs your child's attention, you'll find that the educational process becomes relatively painless—because your child will actually want to read!
Explore the Wonder of the World
Look for "teaching moments" throughout the day.
Our world is a place of wonder and exploration. Just take a look around—potential learning experiences can be found at every turn. Use your daily encounters with the unfamiliar to teach your children.
If they (or you) don't understand something, look it up. Use a dictionary or encyclopedia. Go to the library. Use the Internet. Do some research! Search for the answer together. Make it an adventure.
After you find an answer, expand the learning experience by looking for a practical application to reinforce the lesson. Remember: not everything your children need to know can be learned in books. Some things can only be learned by doing.
The World Needs the Gospel
Although God's plans are for all peoples, most children can't imagine that anyone lives differently than they do. Most have no idea that there is a big world around them filled with people who have completely different experiences from their own. We want to help children understand history as it looks from the perspective of these people who, for social or cultural reasons, see things differently than we do.
Balanced Perspectives
We can only speak persuasively to members of other groups if they are convinced that (1) we have listened to them, (2) we have understood what they are saying, and (3) we have empathized with their perspectives. Then, if we still hold a different perspective, it is despite our obvious understanding of and empathy with who they are and what they have said.
We want children to know that God is faithful—they can listen to other perspectives without having their faith destroyed. If our children can lead others to begin questioning their beliefs, they will have no shortage of people asking them "to give the reason for the hope that [they] have" (1 Peter 3:15). They can then approach a new and unfamiliar situation with the humility and grace that is appropriate to an ambassador of Christ.
They will have no need to fear because they will learn that the truth—God's truth—will prevail. He who is in us truly is greater than he who is in the world (cf. 1 John 4:4). And He who is by our side really will give us the right words to say when the time comes (cf. Matthew 10:18—20). Children come to know this not just in their heads, but also in their hearts, through experience.
Natural Learning
Children learn by discovery. They observe, analyze, and then seek to emulate what they have seen a master wordsmith do before them.
As Dr. Beechick has so strongly noted, this is the method by which Benjamin Franklin taught himself to write. It is the method by which many of the world's greatest authors have learned to put their words together.
The "natural learning" method is not as obviously logical as standard workbook methods. In "natural learning," children will make a discovery; we will reinforce it for them; but they won't find 50 similar "problems" neatly laid out for them to "solve." This method is, in some ways, slower than the traditional workbook method, and for a person who demands a linear path from one topic to another, it can certainly frustrate.
Children have to really puzzle things through and figure them out. They often have to use external resources to help. However, when they finally "get" a principle that they've been struggling to master, they will never forget it! They will understand it thoroughly and be able to apply it in almost any context.
An Engaging Process
You have the opportunity to serve as mentor to your own children. Don't waste the opportunity! Interact with your children. Ask questions. Point out similarities and contrasts between what you read in one book with what you read in another. If you find that two books disagree, point out the disagreement—and pursue a solution to the problem. Show your children by example how mature, well—educated people interact with materials they disagree with.
There are areas of life—skills, perspectives, attitudes—that can never be passed on to our children through words alone. These are the intangible qualities and elusive blessings we want our children to enjoy: things like a positive self-esteem; a sense of belonging and of being loved; a love for learning; and an appreciation for beauty. All of these are attitudes, values and methods you can pass on to your children that they will easily miss if you simply hand them a stack of books.
Testing
It is far better that your children should learn to be skilled educators than excellent test-takers!

The following is excerpted from http://www.sonlight.com/ten-goals.html

Our Top Ten Goals... Do They Match Yours?
What are your goals?
What are you looking for?
We want to tell you about some of the top goals we have had in mind.
Maybe you will adopt some of our goals. Maybe you will deliberately reject some. Either way, you will be better prepared to make wise decisions. Here are our top goals:
1. To teach students to seek God’s Kingdom above and beyond everything else.
We believe this is the primary goal Jesus set before all of us who claim to be His disciples. “Seek first His [God’s] kingdom and His righteousness” (Matthew 6:33).
We want to keep that goal in front of ourselves and our students . . . at all times.
2. To create a learner’s heart, enthusiasm and excitement for learning, a desire to discover.
What good does it do to fill children’s minds with all manner of information if they never learn how to learn, or if they never acquire a heartfelt desire for education?
We want our kids to grow up with the same attitude and conviction Solomon had: “[Wisdom] is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her” (Proverbs 3:13-15).
When students want to learn, nothing will stop them from achieving their goal. But if educating our children is solely our goal for our children, we have to wonder: will they continue to educate themselves after “school” is done?
3. To raise children with an international perspective and a godly heart for the world.
God’s plans are for all peoples. And we want never to forget what is foremost on God’s heart. Thus we are unwilling to focus solely, or even primarily, on the West and western history.
What most kids can’t imagine is that anyone lives differently than they do. Most have no idea that there is a big world around them filled with people who have completely different experiences from their own.
We also do what we can to help students understand history as it looks from the perspective of people who are outside the halls of power and who, for social or cultural reasons, just see things differently than we ourselves and “our own” people have always been taught to view them.
4. To inspire students to honor Christ boldly•in speech and conduct.
We believe that the Christian faith is not merely intended to grant us eternal personal comfort; it is meant to change the way we live and, through us, to alter the world around us.
We want children to find true heroes•people whose lives they can emulate, people whose lives they want to emulate.
We want them to read biographies that not only tell them about the good deeds that others have done and the wise habits these people have developed, but that help them see these people as they really were: people whom God used despite their shortcomings.
We want children to sense the excitement and challenge of following Jesus in big and little things•not only at home, at church, and in family relations, but also in the worlds of work and of cultural development.
We want children, through their reading, to see, know, understand, and be willing to make the sacrifices that they may be called upon to make if they are to fulfill God’s purposes in their lives.
5. To train children to become winsome and effective ambassadors for Christ.
The Apostle Paul speaks of ambassadors and soldiers for Christ. And ambassadors and soldiers don’t merely identify the enemy or identify what is alien then turn or run away. They engage the enemy; they interact with whatever is not part of “their own.”
And so, ambassadors must not only be intimately familiar with their authorized message. They must also know their audience. They must know what their audience thinks, believes, and values. They must know the places where their audience’s mental, emotional and spiritual defenses are strong...and where they are weak.
Using the Biblical military analogy: soldiers for Christ must be taught not only to recognize who the enemy is (what is false); they must be taught to discover the peculiar strengths and weaknesses of the enemy, what strategies the enemy will use, and what strategies they may use against the enemy. Soldiers must also acquire a minimal amount of (at least simulated) combat experience before going into the fray.
6. To teach students not only biblical content but how to listen.
Someone has said that God gave us two ears and one mouth and we ought to use them in approximately that ratio. Those of us who wish to be effective communicators for Christ should do two times as much listening as we do talking.
It makes sense. The act of listening communicates powerfully to another person that “I care.” After all, who would you believe really cared for you and to whom would you listen: someone who listens intently to what you have to say before giving a gracious and thoughtful reply, or someone who launches into a prepared monologue designed to “set you straight”?
Studies have shown, and we have seen it proven time and again: children whose parents read to them regularly and at length are far more capable of listening and understanding what they hear than are children whose parents read to them but little.
We seek to convey different sides to an argument.
Many people•both children and adults•are afraid of what “the opposition” may say. Our minds become so filled with worry about our possible inability to reply appropriately that we never hear what the other person has to say.
And so most of us are far more comfortable to remain ignorant of other people’s claims than• first• to become familiar with what they have to say and• second•to find quality answers or, possibly, to admit they have a point we had never thought about before.
7. To teach students, through experience, that God is faithful; they can listen to other perspectives without falling into sin or having their faith destroyed.
In other words, the tools, techniques, knowledge and skills of godly intellectual warfare.
We want students to be convinced, through experience, that there are legitimate answers to questions coming from “the other side.” Not only so, but even when they don’t happen to know the answers, they need not run in fear.
There is no need to fear because the truth• God’s truth•will prevail. He who is in us truly is greater than he who is in the world (cf. 1 John 4:4). And He who is by our side really will give us the right words to say when the time comes (cf. Matthew 10:18-20). Students come to know this not just in their heads, as an article of faith, but in their hearts, through experience.
8. To inspire students, to fulfill the work of true scholars.
Some people may question the value of quality scholarship. We believe it has a direct and valuable impact on a person’s ambassadorship. The person who has “done his homework” is in a far better position than he who has not to communicate effectively and winsomely with a person who is coming from a very different perspective.
9. To create within our students a love for quality literature•and prepare them for action in both social and ethical issues.
We believe quality literature, whether written by Christians or non-Christians, should cause us to search the Scriptures to find out how Jesus would respond in similar circumstances.
And as we seek these answers and think about these subjects, we prepare ourselves for the future when we will find ourselves very much involved in situations similar to those we’ve read about.
10. To raise “culturally literate” students.
As E.D. Hirsch, Jr., demonstrates in his bestselling work, Cultural Literacy, there is a certain basic set of background information every person must know if s/he is to get along in a culture• let alone to influence that culture.
A person must be aware of the key historical events, the significant persons, movements, groups and ideas that have shaped the culture.
We want to raise world-changers: people who will make a difference•for good.
And so we place a premium upon cultural literacy.
We believe our children must be prepared to respond to these cultural influences in a strong and Godly fashion.

Lt. Colonel W. Arthur Bamford has been moved permanently to the SkilledCare Unit at Waterford Glen. ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1257, Asbury Park, NJ 07712.

Col. Bamford was CSM of my home corps when I was growing up.

His influence on my life cannot be measured. He and his wife taught me more than probably anyone else besides my own mother.

Evelyn

Please continue to pray for Christy, daughter of Majors Chet & Joy Emmons. Also for the whole Emmons family, as Chet's father was recently Promoted to Glory.

http://www.tvturnoff.org/

http://www.studentdays.ee/index.php?m=Info&com=6&item=0&lang=eng&mid=3&

Matthew 28:1-10
Mark 16:1-9
Luke 24:1-12
John 20:1-18

Kristos vas kriis!

A rumor is spreading that we are having a cookout today (Sun. 23 April). We are NOT!

But! We ARE having a cookout on Thursday (27 April) at 6:00. Some cadets from Finland will be here with us, and it's bound to be a good time!

This will take the place of our usual noortekoosolek.

Can you say grillipidu? :-) (Mmm ... viinerid!)

Evelyn

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ctmag/special/globalwarming.html

Decoding 'The Da Vinci Code'

a review from Boundless webzine

Deciphering "The Da Vinci Code"
Albert Mohler

'The Da Vinci Code': Exciting New Novel, Tired Old Conspiracy Theories
by Greg Hartman

I'm trying not to think "methinks thou dost protest too much"! ;-) Just kidding!!

Evelyn

Outreach Resources

Cracking the Da Vinci Code
Friday, April 14, 2006 -- The runaway bestseller will soon be a blockbuster movie. The story has inspired a legion of fans and ignited a firestorm of controversy - by Drew N. Dyck
from the Salvation Army Faith & Friends magazine, out of Canada

Looks like the New Zealand War Cry also has an article, but it's not online yet.

Okay, so I've been trying to sift though this in my brain. Someone please tell me if I am a heretic!

It seems to me, that it wouldn't change my faith one iota if I found out that Jesus had been married (to Mary Magdalene or anyone else!) and had a child.

My house is full of artwork of Mary nursing Jesus, originally painted to emphasize his humanity ("truly and properly God, and truly and properly man" blah blah blah) in reaction to ideas that he was only divine.

I guess people think it would be a big scandal if Jesus was married and even had s-e-x. But how could anything be more scandalous than God growing as a human fetus and being born as a human baby and breastfeeding from a human mother?

Evelyn

http://www.ismckenzie.com/2006/04/a_collection_of_english_langau.html

Charisma Online
Fire in My Bones
by J. Lee Grady
Why I'm Not Worried About The Da Vinci Code
No need to fear. Dan Brown's popular novel isn't going to shatter biblical truth or unravel Christianity as we know it.

20 Big Lies in the DaVinci Code
Don't be fooled. Here are just a few ways Dan Brown's best-selling book twists and distorts the truth of the gospel.

Well, I've finally joined the rest of the world, and just read The Da Vinci Code. I know, I'm always a day late and a dollar short! (We borrowed it from a teenager here.)

Remember -- it is a work of fiction.

The movie comes out May 19. Above-mentioned girl wants to go as a youth group, but I'm still thinking about it!

Click here for some info from Christianity Today on the subject.

So, have you read this book? What do you think? Do you plan to see the movie?

Evelyn

Tim's hand was looking pretty bad today, and still bleeding, so we took the advice of our doctor (who is out of town currently) and went to the hospital. We brought Liis with us, to translate. Although she's only in 7th class (grade), she does an excellent job translating. And her mother works as a nurse in this hospital, so she knows lots of people there!

It was a little weird, because we had to take a number, just like you would when buying something from a deli or something! It was similar to that Mr. Bean episode when he has in hand stuck in the tea kettle though. (I kept complaining about "socialized medicine"!)

But the wait wasn't long, they cleaned it and bandaged it, gave him a tetanus shot and an x-ray (a waste of taxpayers' dollars, in my opinion!), and then we were on our way. Price paid: ZERO!

So, keep praying for him, because it does hurt, and I am worried about it. Tomorrow he goes to Youth Councils for the weekend.

Evelyn

It is a sure sign of spring: we had our first cookout today with our youth group! We know we only have the yard until the end of June, so we want to make the most of it. Here you see Liis, Etthel, Sille, Andrei, Ats, Elizabeth and Chris around the fire. 

Ats and Chris down their marshmallows while Andrei and Liis work on their own. 

Sille and Liis roast marshmallows while Andrei questions whether he should eat his! 

Etthel and Sille roast marshmallows while Andrei mixes his with potato chips. 

SASB #752
1.Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin?
The blood of Jesus whispers peace within.
2.Peace, perfect peace, by thronging duties pressed?
To do the will of Jesus, this is rest.
3.Peace, perfect peace, with sorrows surging round?
On Jesus' bosom naught but calm is found.
4.Peace, perfect peace, with loved ones far away?
In Jesus' keeping we are safe, and they.
5.Peace, perfect peace, our future all unknown?
Jesus we know, and he is on the throne.
6.Peace, perfect peace, death shadowing us and ours?
Jesus has vanquished death and all its powers.
7.It is enough: earth's struggles soon shall cease,
And Jesus call us to Heaven's perfect peace.
Edward Henry Bickersteth (1825-1906)

The first verse of this song was the final benediction of Salvation Meeting every Sunday when I was growing up. That means almost 1000 times that I heard it played on the piano (CCC Mrs. Lock!) and organ (YPSM Mr. Henry!) during my childhood. What a way to start the week! (Salvation Meeting was at 6:00 and was usually the last program on a Sunday.)

Evelyn

Please pray for Tim. He hurt his hand while moving some furniture, got a pretty bad gash and will probably lose the thumb nail.

It happened on the way into the new building.

Lots of work to do, this is a hassle we don't have time for!

And it hurts. And he can't stand the sight of blood.

God knows our needs. Thank you for praying for Tim!

Evelyn

I finally updated our family blog with new pictures from Easter. Be sure to check it out.
--Tim

JOURNAL OF AGGRESSIVE CHRISTIANITY
Issue 19, June - July 2002
The Mission of The Salvation Army
Captain Geoff Ryan
“Jesus was not crucified in a cathedral between two candles, but on a cross
between two thieves on the town garbage-heap; at a crossroads so cosmopolitan
that they had to write His title in Hebrew, Latin and Greek; at the kind of place
where cynics talk smut, and thieves curse, and soldiers gamble. Because that is
where He died and that is what He died about that is where churchmen should
be and what churchmanship should be about.” (George MacLeod)
“Meanwhile our churches, like secular associations, are concerned with fundraising,
beautiful buildings, large numbers, comforting sermons from highly
qualified preachers, while they display indifference to the poor, the insane, and
the lonely. Jesus himself would find no place in our all-too-respectable churches,
for he did not come to help the righteous but to bring sinners to repentance. Our
churches are not equipped to do that sort of thing.” (John White)
A corps officer should understand that he is sent by God and the Army to all the
unconverted, non-church-going people in his district, especially to the most
needy and depraved among them. (Orders and Regulations for Corps Officers)
The Only Two Questions
What is the mission of The Salvation Army? Who were we created to be? What is
it we were created to do? Identity and function – the only two questions that
really need answering and they are being asked all over the place, all the time
and by all sorts of people.
The Russians summed it up nicely for me. Walking around St. Petersburg in the
early 1990’s, not speaking a word of Russian and with “The Salvation Army” in
large, silver Cyrillic script.... Upon
seeing my unusual uniform and reading the boast emblazoned across the front of
my cap, they would invariably ask or shout or laugh, one of two questions: “What
is The Salvation Army?” or “Who do you save?” Always one or the other and
sometimes both.
It took me some time to realize that these questions were not only valid, but well
asked and that between those two questions lies the answer to everything else.
They require examination of our identity and our mission: who are we and what
do we do? In trying to answer these questions, for the sake of the Russians, I
gradually started asking them to myself. I spent nine years trying to answer those
questions and at times I wonder how good a job I really did. In some ways I’m
still asking.
The asking is taking place on this side of the Atlantic as well, as I soon found out
upon return from Russia. Who are we? What should we be doing? I wonder
though whether the questions are being asked honestly though? Because if you
ask an honest question then you should be able to expect an honest answer.
You at least deserve one. But honest answers to these questions carry with them
a host of implications and a horde of consequences. The Pandora’s box for The
Salvation Army is the one that contains the true and direct answers to these
questions and we are wise in approaching it with more than a little fear and
trepidation.
We lament our confusion and uncertainty. But our instinct is to avoid the bright
sun of clarity for the netherworld of uncertainty and questioning and tentative
assertion. Muddy the waters, set off a smoke bomb, turn the lights off and you
can avoid the obvious - the hard facts that bruise your shins and skin your ankles
and generally just make life more of a hassle. “The truth will set us free”, Jesus
warned us. But freedom is often frightening, it has implications, carries
consequences and demands an investment and responsibility that our
commitment-phobic culture instinctively shies away, rather like a priest on the
road from Jerusalem to Jericho.
With less and less to lose with each passing year, let us open the box, clear the
water, turn the lights on and answer the questions. Personally I think the truth
therein is relatively simple. To be sure, a hard truth, but nothing too complicated.
As a Russian philosopher once said: “Life is simple. People complicate it”. So it is
with our life as an Army. The difficulty lies not in the obvious answers to the
questions asked – but in the fact that we lack the honesty to listen steadily to
these answers and live our lives – individually and corporately – in that truth. The
answers are not what we want to hear so we root around in the box hoping to
turn up some other answers, some different ones, some that better fit with what
we had in mind and how we have constructed our lives and corps and ministries.
A liar is not only someone who speaks a falsehood but includes also those who
hear falsehoods amid the spoken truth....
We need to have a sense of history and continuity, a deep understanding of what
God was up to in 1865 when he gave Booth the vision that was The Salvation
Army. Jacques Ellul, the French Christian philosopher, opined that “modern man
was a man without memory” and that this was a dangerous thing. To be
disconnected from the past and bereft of any tradition or sense of self leaves one
a prisoner of the present, bound by the laws and and temporal and fleeting
values of the transitory. We all need giants on whose shoulders we stand.
I believe there were three seminal moments in William Booth’s life that defined
and directed the vision given him by God and consequently all The Salvation
Army was and became. I believe that vision was crystal clear and specific and
focused and guided Booth throughout his life from beginning to end. It was a
while coming, but when it hit, it came with a certainty and clarity that I believe
never left him. It grew and developed, evolved even, but in its essence remained
as intact as the night God passed it on to Booth.
You see, vision is specific. Anything I have ever read about visions or visioning
tell me the same thing in one respect - a vision has hard edges, sharp edges
even. A vision is specific and unyielding in its focus - more laser beam than lamp.
If it is fuzzy around the edges, if it is too wide and large and spacious and all encompassing,
then whatever else it might be, it is not a vision. A plan maybe,
an idea, a strategy even. But not a vision. Visions are specific callings given by
God to his visionaries, his prophets. Men and women that he calls as vessels to
embody the vision, give birth to it and nurture it to full flowering. This is what
happened to Booth.
A Vision Birthed
It was summer 1865. Booth had been asked to lead a mission in London’s East
end, filling in for a leader who had fallen sick. Specifically, it was a tent campaign
in an abandoned graveyard in Whitechapel, then as now, one of London’s
rougher neighbourhoods. After one evening's toil, around midnight, Booth
returned home to his wife Catherine. She was waiting up for him. He was tired,
but “strangely excited” as he later remembered it (possibly an unconscious nod
to Wesley’s famous heart experience of being “strangely warmed” over a
hundred years previously). Walking in, William declared to Catherine, “I have
found my destiny!”
He was 36 years old. He had been working as a full-time minister of the gospel,
and more specifically a preacher and evangelist, for about 13 years at this point.
He had preached to thousands of people and seen hundreds of souls won to the
kingdom. Yet only now he finds his destiny? What did he mean? This is a vitally
important question because it is from this point, this juncture, that the Christian
Mission and subsequently The Salvation Army was created. So important is this
event that we commemorate it officially in The Salvation Army as Founders Day,
July 2; the day on which the evangelistic campaign on the Whitechapel
graveyard commenced is rightly seen as the birth moment of our movement (and
not William Booth’s birthday as is widely assumed).
So what was Booth on about to Catherine that summer’s night? He meant that
saving these particular type of souls in this particular place was what God wanted
him to do with his life and so he set about creating an organization in order to do
it as effectively as possible. His destiny was to the poor, the marginalized, the
disenfranchised, the submerged tenth, the last, the lost and the least.
A Vision Passed On
The second event came a bit later that same year when his son Bramwell was 12
years old and the Christian Mission was just getting started, The Salvation Army
yet to be birthed. It was again late on a Sunday night following a hard day of
preaching. Bramwell Booth, William and Catherine’s oldest child, was twelve
years old. Cyril Barnes writes of this moment in his book: “Words of William
Booth”.
“They had left Mile End Waste and gone but a few yards along Cambridge Heath
Road when William pushed open the door of a drinking saloon. What Bramwell
saw he never forgot. As a grown man he recalled seeing a ‘brilliantly lighted
place, noxious with the fumes of drink and tobacco, and reeking of filth… .The
place was crowded with men, many of them bearing on their faces the marks of
brutishness and vice, and women also, dishevelled and drunken.’
As the lad looked wondering what was the cause of all this sorrow, his father
said: ‘Willie, these are our people; these are the people I want you to live for and
bring to Christ.’”
This whole scene is full of Old Testament imagery. The Father and patriarch,
giving his blessing to his first-born son, passing on his legacy, ensuring that what
he has started will continue and flourish. The whole exercise undertaken by
Booth is about sustaining vision with William taking the vision that God had given
him and cloaking Bramwell with this mantle; a prophetic act foreshadowing
Bramwell’s term as the second General of The Salvation Army.
How many of us would take a twelve-year old son or daughter and expose them
to such a scene? But Booth - gripped by a vision that would consume the rest of
his life and one to which he would sacrifice everything he had, children included
as it turned out, needed to ensure that his heir would know what he was about
and understand the charge God had given him and that he himself would become invested in developing and sustaining this vision.
Catherine Bramwell Booth, writing of this incident in her biography of Bramwell
Booth goes on:
“Prophetic, almost symbolic! For these two, Father and son, were destined to
travel strange roads together; metaphorically speaking, one sees them hurrying
through all, or nearly all, the Whitechapels of the world, always searching out the
sinful, repulsive and outcast of the children of men, and always saying to each
other, “These are our people.”
“That first vivid impression of mankind’s misery and degradation, of its
immeasurable spiritual need, which he received in Whitechapel, never left
Bramwell Booth. More than sixty years later he lay dying in circumstances of
peculiar personal sorrow and loss, but his thoughts and prayers were with “our
people"
Summing Up
The third seminal incident occurs in May 1912, three months before Booth is
promoted to glory. It is his last public address, delivered at the Royal Albert Hall
in London before 10,000 people, a month after his 83rd birthday.
Last words are always very telling. We study the last words of the great and
famous looking for clues about their speakers. Books are published containing
nothing more than the last words of famous people. We somehow feel that a clue
to the life and purpose of such people will be contained in their parting words,
that what have they have experienced and learned will be summed up and
explained. That if there is a legacy it will be passed on.
So what did Booth say? What charge did he give to the more than 10,000
Salvationists gathered to catch his closing statements?
Well Booth does do a summing up. He spoke of housing for the poor, of
unemployment, and addictions, health issues, criminal and prison reform, noting
that while not one of these was intentionally the object of life’s efforts – his vision
– The Salvation Army had nevertheless addressed each of these concerns. He
declared that his object was to do God’s will in his life and that sixty-five years
previously, he had consecrated his life to this end, to this “object”, as he termed
it. And what was God’s will for William Booth?
With reference to the litany of social ills afflicting the poor that the Salvation Army
had addressed, Booth continued:
“And the object I chose all those years ago embraced every effort, contained in
its heart the remedy for every form of misery and sin and wrong to be found upon
the earth, and every method of reclamation needed by human nature.”
Then he concludes with his now famous “I’ll Fight” declaration:
“And now, comrades and friends, I must say goodbye. I am going into dry-dock
for repairs, but the Army will not be allowed to suffer, either financially or
spiritually, or in any other way by my absence; and in the long future I think it will
be seen – I shall not be here to see, but you will – that the Army will answer
every doubt and banish every fear and strangle every slander, and by its
marvelous success show to the world that it is the work of God and that the
General has been His servant…While women weep, as they do now, I’ll fight;
while little children go hungry, as they do now, I’ll fight; while men go to prison, in
and out, in and out, as they do now, I’ll fight; while there is a drunkard left, while
there is a poor lost girl upon the streets, while there remains one dark soul
without the light of God, I’ll fight – I’ll fight to the very end!”
This I’ll fight is probably the closest thing to a mission or vision statement that
Booth ever made. It is echoes Jesus' mission statement given at the
commencement of his public ministry as recorded in Luke 4: 18, 19 where he
quotes Isaiah’s 61st chapter. It is the cry of a prophet “nailing his colours to the
mast” (albeit more after the fact than before). Words to inspire the troops by
pointing to personal example and history and personal vision.
In essence what Booth was saying was that this is what I have been about for the
past 68 years: the drunkards and criminals, the prostitutes, the starving, those
lost for time and eternity. This is the call - the vision - that God placed on my life
and out of which came The Salvation Army. This is what we (read Salvationists)
are about. This is why you are here today. Learn from me, follow my example,
catch the torch as I throw it to you and move forward. And with that he left the
platform and three short months later left for heaven.
Therefore…
If there is any value is looking at one’s ROOTS, in returning to the fundament
and source of the vision, it is for times and questions such as these. The way
forward must needs be linked to a comprehensive understanding of the road
already traveled. We need to attempt to understand God’s purposes and plans
with regard to our movement and the answer to this lies in the that vision that
was birthed well over a hundred years.
We speak here of ecclesiology and not methodology. Most of the disputes and
identity issues that crop up in The Salvation Army today regarding who we are
and what we should be doing (and where and among whom we should be doing
it) pick methodological battlegrounds on which to battle out their issues. Yet
method itself defines little if anything - rather it is defined by context and guided
by philosopy, or in this case theology and ecclesiology. It is pointless to argue
about things such as uniform styles, musical tastes, sacramental options, the role
of officers etc which are inherently methodological and structural issues, if the
vision remains questioned, ill-defined, confused or lost.
To say that Booth was simply about reaching the lost and leave it at that is to
misunderstand the nature of vision and to misread the particulars of Booth’s
calling and vision. Yes, Booth was, at the end of the day, an evangelist – a
pragmatic evangelist whose passion and inclination was to preach and
evangelize.... To move from
this, however, to the assertion that this, in and of itself, constitutes his vision and
that this was no more focused or particular than a “reaching of the lost”,
irrespective of which “lost” he was attempting to reach, is to willfully ignore the
evidence of our history as a movement and Booth’s own recorded thoughts on
the matter:
“To help the poor, to minister to them in their slums, to sympathize with them in
their poverty, afflictions, and irreligion, was the natural outcome that came to my
soul through believing in Jesus Christ.”
The imperative to reach the lost does not constitute a vision. It is larger, wider
than any vision. It is in fact a commission, in Christian circles generally termed
the “Great Commission”. It comes from Christ’s words to his disciples in Matthew
28:18-20, taken as binding on all subsequent disciples. It is a non-negotiable for
anyone who becomes a Christian. To say it is a vision per se, is a misnomer. To
say that this general instruction to all believers constituted Booth’s is to
misunderstand the nature of vision and calling and possibly to fail to grasp God’s
wider plan for the salvation of the world.
Booth had a passionate understanding of his message as a gospel for the
whosever. The vision God gave him was for those of the whosoever that were
neglected by the churches and rejected by mainstream society. His vision, and
the vision for The Salvation Army was of a mission of, to and with the poor.
Certainly this vision is lived out within the context of the Great Commission.
Picture if you can an actor, playing a particular role on stage, with a scenic
backdrop that establishes the context and sets the tone and informs the theatregoers
of the period and setting for the play. This is how I believe God envisions
us as The Salvation Army: One actor amid his troupe, playing a specific role with
specific intent – our vision – as part of his grand play of
redemption.
“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love…Repent and do
the things you did at first.” (Revelation 2:4,5)

When I randomly went to www.easter.com, I was redirected to the Hallmark website!

Am I the only one who thinks that's weird?

I love this song! It's especially fun to play on my baritone horn.

SASB #148
1.Low in the grave he lay,
Jesus, my Saviour;
Waiting the coming day,
Jesus, my Lord.
Up from the grave he arose,
With a mighty triumph o'er his foes.
He arose a victor from the dark domain,
And he lives for ever with his saints to reign.
He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!
2.Vainly they watch his bed,
Jesus, my Saviour;
Vainly they seal the dead,
Jesus, my Lord.
3.Death cannot keep his prey,
Jesus, my Saviour;
He tore the bars away,Jesus, my Lord.
Robert Lowry (1826-99)

We came home yesterday to find three big bags of clothes on our front porch. (Remember, we live at the corps -- the corps meets in our house.) We've had several people ask lately if we take donations. Of course we always say yes! So it was a special Easter treat today to have some clothes for our homeless friends (and formerly homeless! hallelujah!).

Evelyn

SASB #22
1.To God be the glory, great things he hath done!
So loved he the world that he gave us his Son;
Who yielded his life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the earth hear his voice!
Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father through Jesus the Son,
And give him the glory; great things he hath done!
2.O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.
3.Great things he hath taught us, great things he hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer and higher and greater will be
Our wonder, our rapture, when Jesus we see.
Fanny Crosby (1820-1915)

SASB #725
1.He leadeth me! O blessed thought!
O words with heavenly comfort fraught!
Whate'er I do, where'er I be,
Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me.
He leadeth me, he leadeth me!
By his own hand he leadeth me;
His faithful follower I will be,
For by his hand he leadeth me.
2.Sometimes 'mid scenes of deepest gloom,
Sometimes where Eden's bowers bloom,
By waters still, o'er troubled sea,
Still 'tis his hand that leadeth me.
3.Lord, I would clasp thy hand in mine,
Nor ever murmur or repine,
Content, whatever lot I see,
Since 'tis my God that leadeth me.
4.And when my task on earth is done,
When by thy grace the victory's won,
E'en death's cold wave I will not flee,
Since God through Jordan leadeth me.
Joseph Henry Gilmore (1834-1918)

Well, this is our first Easter in Estonia! One year ago, we were flying to America for my mother's funeral. We had "Thanksgiving Dinner" today, using a can of cranberry sauce that my sister Mary-Kay brought when she was here for Christmas (precious treasure for me!).

One thought that keeps going through my mind is how much more I appreciate Easter and the hope (nay, promise!) of resurrection since the death of my mother. It all is much more personal now, much less theoretical and more practical for me. Because Jesus is alive, I know my mother is alive -- in heaven with Him! Hallelujah!

Yesterday was the official opening meeting for the Võru Corps, which is about an hour's drive south of Tartu. The Blackpool Songsters (from England) were the guest musical group, and they sang these two songs. It was a bittersweet day for me, mourning the loss of being at our own opening meeting a year ago. (The day before our opening meeting, we got the phone call that my mother had died.)

MT 28:1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
MT 28:2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
MT 28:5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: `He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
MT 28:8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."

Evelyn

We had a good crowd for our Good Friday service, which was held at Kolgata Church. Over 65 people came to hear the Blackpool songsters from England.

The Blackpool Songsters presenting a number during the program.

The congregation enjoying the music of the songsters.

Among the people who came were our friends who regularly come to the corps: Kunnar, Ülle and Andres. 

The Blackpool Timbrelists added a uniquely Salvationist flavor to the program.

Good Friday, 14 April
Blackpool Songsters concert at Kolgata
Tähe 66
18:00

Mark 14:43-52
Mark 14:66-72

MK 14:43 Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders. MK 14:44 Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: "The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard." 45 Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, "Rabbi!" and kissed him. 46 The men seized Jesus and arrested him. 47 Then one of those standing near drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.
MK 14:48 "Am I leading a rebellion," said Jesus, "that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? 49 Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled." 50 Then everyone deserted him and fled.
MK 14:51 A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.

MK 14:66 While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. 67 When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him.
"You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus," she said.
MK 14:68 But he denied it. "I don't know or understand what you're talking about," he said, and went out into the entryway.
MK 14:69 When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, "This fellow is one of them." 70 Again he denied it.
After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, "Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean."
MK 14:71 He began to call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, "I don't know this man you're talking about."
MK 14:72 Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times." And he broke down and wept.

LOVE FEASTS
by Major Stephen Grinsted

EIGHTY years ago Salvation Army officers were reminded of the value and purpose of Love Feasts. An anonymous writer wrote in a magazine for officers: ‘Love Feasts, which in former years were held in some corps at fairly frequent intervals, seem to have dropped out of general use amongst us. As a means of promoting the spirit of love and unity, healing breaches and bringing about reconciliation between individuals or groups of persons in the corps, the Love Feast has proved to be blessedly effective.’
Today some older Salvationists, from their dim and distant past, may have vague recollections of Love Feasts. However, most young people will never have heard of such feasts yet alone have any idea of there purpose.
Love Feasts, a development of the Agape, with their emphasis on brotherly love were held in the days of the early Church. They are mentioned in the New Testament but only twice in 2 Peter 2:13 and Jude verse 12. However, these references refer to the way such meetings were being abused. The letter writers Peter and Jude make no comment on the way such gatherings edified the believers. ­
Describing a Love Feast an early Christian wrote: ‘The participants, before reclining, taste first of prayer to God. As much (of food) is eaten as satisfies the cravings of hunger: as much drunk as befits the chaste. Afterwards each is asked to stand forth and sing, as he can, a hymn to God, either from Holy Scripture (a Psalm) or one of his own composing … As the feast commenced with prayer so it is closed with prayer.’ By the third century this type of meeting had fallen into disrepute because it had developed into a mere charity supper.
Many hundreds of years later, in fact in 1729, the Moravians re-introduced the Love Feast and John Wesley on a tour of America in 1737 witnessed its effectiveness. He then adopted it as apart of Methodist worship, introducing meetings for public testimony at which members partook of bread and water as sign of unity, mutual confidence and goodwill. At first the feasts were held monthly but later became a quarterly feature.
The impact Love Feasts had upon the young William Booth is recorded in Harold Begbie’s Life Of William Booth. At the Love Feast held on a Sunday afternoon men spoke freely of their religious experiences. With its emphasis upon fervent prayer the meeting often led to remarkable conversions.
In the Rules Of The Christian Mission adopted at the first general conference in 1870 there is a short instruction concerning Love Feasts: ‘A public Love Feast shall be held once, at least, in every quarter.’
By the end of the 19th century the Methodist Church regarded the Love Feast as a relic of earlier years but The Salvation Army was commending its value and effectiveness. In the September 1895 issue of The Officer the Field Secretary reminded officers that the Love Feast was not a Sacrament but a simple means to a great end the spreading of the greatest element in the Christian religion – Love. He said: ‘Where sermons, preachments and exhortations have failed to bring that blessed love spirit as it should exist, the simple applications of the Love Feast has, under the blessing of God, brought peace, happiness and healing to many wounded souls and corps.’
He suggests that the knee-drill is one of the best meetings for a Love Feast but they could also effectively be held during the week of prayer preceding Self-Denial, in conjunction with campaigns to make soldiers or a ‘boom for backsliders’.
Officers were to provide on a table at the front of the hall a large jug, with water and glasses, small plates or baskets with an assortment of biscuits. The seats were to be arranged in a semi-circle around the table facing the front of the hall. The spaces between the seats were to be wider than normal to allow the officer and two assistants to move freely while distributing the biscuits and water.
The meeting was to open with a song such as ‘Love Divine’ and then after a prayer the officer in his or her exhortation should explain the purpose of the feast. Then, as the officer quoted suitable verses of scripture and songs, the distribution of the biscuits and water followed.
Those who had harboured in their hearts un-Christlike feelings against anyone who was present were encouraged to renounce those feelings and to signify that fact by breaking a biscuit with the person against whom they had held the unloving spirit. They were then urged to express their changed feelings fully, but only in confession – not advice. While seeking to develop reconciliation and harmony that resulted in joy and‘happy hallelujah’ officers were cautioned to discourage anything in the nature of frivolity.
It was as a teenager at Preston some 35 years ago that I first experienced a Love Feast. The corps officer Brigadier Attenborough led it. In my second year at the International Training College the Chief Side Officer for men Lieut-Colonel Alfred Holmes arranged a Love Feast in a Wednesday evening side class. There was a tremendous sense of God’s presence as the colonel moved along the rows and as he took our hands he said, ‘In name of Jesus Christ I offer you the hand of fellowship’.

Maundy Thursday

JN 13:34 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

JN 15:9 "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit--fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 17 This is my command: Love each other.

The Other Holy Day
In the rush toward Good Friday and Easter, don't forget Maundy Thursday.
by Elesha Coffman
Amid the bustle of Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter, Maundy Thursday is easy to overlook. Few calendars label it, and some churches don't observe it at all, though it may be the oldest of the Holy Week observances. It's worth asking why, and how, generations of Christians have revered this day. "Maundy" comes, possibly by way of one or more European languages, from the Latin "mandatum," meaning "command." The reference is John 13:34: "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another." Jesus spoke those words ... the Thursday before Easter. Protestant churches that do observe Maundy Thursday may offer a dramatic re-enactment of the Last Supper.... Foot-washing services and adapted Passover Seders are also fairly popular....
A few European countries have added cultural observances to the list of church traditions. In England, the monarch distributes small purses of Maundy Money to elderly residents of the town selected for each year's service. The practice dates back to 1210, when King John gave garments, knives, food, and other gifts to poor men on Maundy Thursday in accordance with Christ's mandate to love others.... It's common to hear from the pulpit that no one can fully appreciate the joy of Easter Sunday without experiencing the darkness of Good Friday. But the disciples would have been bewildered by both without the lesson of Holy Thursday. The day they received the command to love, had their feet washed by a king, and first understood the link between the Passover sacrifice, Christ, and the bread of life, shouldn't be missed by any of us, even if the calendar shows a blank square.

"For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." (Luke 9:56, KJV)

"You do not know what kind of spirit you are of, for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." (NIV footnote on Luke 9:55-56)

MRS. MAJOR IDABELLE CROUCH
October 16, 1917 - April 8, 2006
" Lord God All - Powerful, your temple is so lovely! Deep in my heart I long for your temple and with all that I am I sing songs to you. "
(Psalm 84: 1,2)
In the morning hours of April 8th, a gracious, valiant woman of God, Mrs.Major Idabelle Crouch, was Promoted to Glory from her home in Erie, PA. Shewas surrounded by her family, Walter, her dear husband of 64 years, sons,Walter and Paul, daughter-in-law, Jane, and grandchildren. After saying hergood-byes she peacefully went Home to be with her Lord. Idabelle sufferedmany health concerns in recent months and was truly ready to go Home. Shewas a woman of tremendous faith. In many of her notes she expressed herpraise to the Lord for His faithfulness through the years. She knew theLord was her constant companion, and her strength came from thatassurance.Idabelle was known for her deep compassion and love for those sheministered to, including her family. Her spiritual gifts included the giftsof evangelism and encouragement....
Shealso had a wonderful disposition and was great to work with. Idabelledisplayed musical ability as she played cornet and piano and sang duetswith her husband, Walter.Idabelle was one of six children born into the loving Christian home ofSalvationist parents, Albert and Alice Wheeler, on October 16, 1917 inUtica, NY. Growing up, she was educated in the Utica public schools.Idabelle and her family were faithful soldiers of the Utica, NY Corps.Also, growing up in the corps, she was involved in Sunday School, YPL, GirlGuards and Corps Cadets and learned to play the cornet and piano....
TheCrouches were appointed as Assistants (Pro-Tem) at the Buffalo, NY Men'sSocial Service Center (1975). In 1976 they were appointed Administrators ofthe Men's Social Center in Portland, ME. They retired from active servicein 1983.Upon retirement, they settled in Erie, PA. During her retirement years,Idabelle continued her dedicated, valuable service to the Lord at the Erie,PA Corps....
Please uphold thefamily in prayer: husband, Major Walter Crouch; sons, Walter W. Crouch Jr.of Chicago, IL and Paul Crouch of Warren, PA: brother, Thomas Wheeler ofWilmington, DE: three grandchildren and two great granddaughters.

"Here's something to try if you want to stretch in the area of giving: Suppose you pass a homeless man everyday on your way to work. Maybe he's sitting on the sidewalk, or standing at a stoplight holding a tattered, hand-lettered sign. This week, rather than averting your eyes and walking past quickly, plan ahead. Take a shopping bag and fill it with granola bars, juice bottles, fruit, nuts or other snacks. If you live in a cold climate, throw in a pair of warm gloves and a hat. Add some fast-food or other restaurant gift certificates, or bus tokens. Then, when you see that person, stop, look them in the eyes, smile and hand them the bag. Don't preach them a sermon. And don't tell anyone what you have done."
The Power of Hidden Disciplines

Just a quick update to say that everything worked out and the Tartu Corps now officially has a corps building! With the Territorial Commander and Chief Secretary with us, Evelyn and I were handed the keys to the building; it's hard to believe it has really happened.

Before we can start using it, we will have some minor work done: sound-absorbent tiles on the ceiling so that we don't disturb the neighbors who live right above us, and a small kitchen in the corner of one room. But we hope in a few weeks we will begin to have services there.

Thanks to all of you who have faithfully prayed for us through all of this. We know God is faithful and can't wait to see what He will do in Tartu next!
--Tim

On Watch with Christy
Dear Family and Friends ...
Even the most impossible dreams can come true… all we need to do is believe....
After a few days of rage, deep, dark fear and tossing about in a sea of weariness, I’ve surfaced again. I’m readying my body, mind and spirit for surgery on April 13th… and am seeing myself stepping gently, but courageously through the coming days, weeks and months of healing. I know there will be ups and downs… that’s life right? But I believe more and more each day that I can do whatever it takes to return to the active and whole life I lived before Mr. T set up residence in my leg. Soon he will be out on the curb, and I’ll be taking one little step at a time toward healing, health and recovery.
Your messages of hope, comedic relief, emails, cards, and phone calls reminding us that you’re still with us through this squall have helped to steady us both when we’ve felt overwhelmed by what we’re facing. You stand as beacons of light for us in the darkest times.
Erik and I leave for Boston on Tuesday morning. We’ll spend the day at the hospital with pre-surgery admission testing and meetings with physicians regarding the radiation implants. Wednesday will be a quiet day for us together as we get ready for the big day ahead. My surgeon has said my hospital stay will be a few days following surgery, and then Erik and I will stay with Rita and Sandy in Jamaica Plain until I am well enough to make the trip home to Maine by car. We are hoping to be back in Maine by the week of April 24th.
Stay tuned to progress on the surgery and other updates through the website over the coming weeks. Thank you for holding us in your hearts, sharing your ... love with us, and surrounding us in prayers. I believe deep in my heart that all will be well.
Love and deep thanks to each one of you…
Christy

It's been a roller coaster ride of a day!

Several weeks ago we found a building that we felt was a good place for the corps. It is a former carpet shop in the ground floor of an apartment building that is only a five minute walk from our house. It is also newly renovated and needs no real fixing up, which was unlike any of the other places we saw. The Chief Secretary from our territory came down to see it at the beginning of the month and also felt it was good, and so signed the preliminary papers to begin the purchase process.

The only condition for the purchase was that all 60 people who live in the building had to sign a paper saying that they agreed that the use of the space could be changed from a shop to a church. Without this, the city would not approve our use of the building and we could not purchase it.

So today the Chief Secretary and Territorial Commander came to Tartu to sign the papers to finalize the purchase. The TC looked at the building and agreed that it was in a good location, in good condition, and an adequate size for the Army's work in Tartu. But when we asked if we had all of the signatures from the people in the building, we were told that there was one who was still thinking about it and that she would decide at the end of the day. That left us in a bit of a dilemma because by then, we would have signed the papers and already owned the building which we might not be able to use. With some reluctance, the TC agreed to go ahead with the signing.

Then the next turn on the roller coaster began. In order to secure the purchase, the money from Finland had to be transferred into the bank account of the notary who was finalizing the transaction. The transfer had been arranged, but for some reason had not made it to the notary's account. They waited all day for this to happen, but finally they decided to spend another day in Tartu and finalize the purchase tomorrow, when the money should be there.

This gave us time to be sure that the final resident of the building signed the paper as expected. I went with our real estate agent Ermo and the agent for the people selling the building to meet with the woman and assure her that we would be good neighbors. When we got there, even though we had an appointment it took quite a while for her to come to the door, and when she did she greeted us rather gruffly and with no explanation said that she would not sign! When we tried to ask why, she just repeated that she would not sign, said goodbye and shut the door. This left us with quite a dilemma. After talking together for quite a while, Ermo and the other agent agreed that they should go back in a few hours and try to talk to her again and hope that this time she would listen and sign.

Evelyn and I went out to dinner with the TC and CS shortly after this and told them the news. They agreed with us that if there is no signature, we could not make the purchase. We were thankful for the bank delay because it might have saved us from a big problem! So we were left with waiting to hear if we had the signature, and if we didn't get it, try to look at new properties before they had to head back to Helsinki.

At this point, I was ready to get off of the roller coaster; a bit too much excitement for me!

After a few more hours of suspense, the ride finally came to an end: Ermo called to say that the other agent and the man selling the property visited the lady and she agreed to sign. We breathed a sigh of relief.

So now here I am eating a kohuke (an Estonian treat kind of like--but much better than--a small chocolate covered cheese cake) and rejoicing in the experiences the God brings our way. Tomorrow they are scheduled to sign the papers and if all goes well, the Tartu Corps will have a new home by the end of the day.

If you would like to see what the building looks like, click here (scroll down for pictures).
--Tim

MODESTO MANIFESTO
In November, 1948, while Billy Graham was holding evangelistic meetings in Modesto, California, he met with Cliff Barrows, George Beverly Shea, and Grady Wilson to determine how they would conduct themselves and their meetings in order to be completely above reproach. The resulting "Modesto Manifesto," while not written down as a formal document, is the standard for accountability that the Team has followed ever since.
The following resolutions could be applied to the life and ministry of any Christian:
HONESTY
It was resolved that no communications to media and to the Church would be inflated or exaggerated. The size of crowds and number of inquirers would not be embellished for the sake of making the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association look better.
INTEGRITY
It was resolved that financial matters would be submitted to a board of directors for review and facilitation of expenditures. Every local Crusade would maintain a policy of "open books" and publish a record of where and how monies were spent.
PURITY
It was resolved that members of the Team would pay close attention to avoiding temptation-never being alone with another woman, remaining accountable to one another. Wives would be kept informed of activities on the road in order to help the wives feel a part of the Crusades.
HUMILITY
It was resolved that members of the Team were never to speak negatively of another Christian minister, regardless of his denominational affiliation or differing theological views and practices. The mission of evangelism included strengthening the Body of Christ as well as building it.

http://www.billygraham.org/mediaPlayer/default.asp?f=layout

Palm Sunday, 9 April
John 12:12-19
Psalm 118:25-27

JN 12:12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,
"Hosanna! "
"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"
"Blessed is the King of Israel!"
JN 12:14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat upon it, as it is written,
JN 12:15 "Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion;
see, your king is coming,
seated on a donkey's colt."
JN 12:16 At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.
JN 12:17 Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. 18 Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign, went out to meet him. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, "See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!"

PS 118:25 O LORD, save us;
O LORD, grant us success.
PS 118:26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD.
From the house of the LORD we bless you.
PS 118:27 The LORD is God,
and he has made his light shine upon us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession....

Today we sang, among other songs, "Joy to the World". It might seem strange to sing a "Christmas carol" on Palm Sunday, but we thought that the lyrics applied!

1.Joy to the world! the Lord is come;
Let earth receive her King,
Let every heart prepare him room
And Heaven and nature sing.
2.Joy to the world! the Saviour reigns;
Let men their songs employ,
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy.
3.He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of his righteousness
And wonders of his love.
Isaac Watts (1674-1748)

Pray for our comrades in Narva!

Colleen Smalley
and
the Henderson family

Palm Sunday, 9 April
John 12:12-19
Psalm 118:25-27

Monday, 10 April, William Booth's Birthday (Salvation Army's Founder)
Mark 11:12-19
Luke 19:45-48

Tuesday, 11 April
Matthew 26:6-13
John 12:1-11

Wednesday, 12 April, Bobby Smith's Birthday (my brother)
Matthew 26:14-16
Luke 22:1-6

Maundy Thursday, 13 April
Matthew 26:36-46
Luke 22:39-46

Good Friday, 14 April, Blackpool Songsters concert at Kolgata
Mark 14:43-52
Mark 14:66-72

Saturday, 15 April, official opening of the Võru Corps
Matthew 27:1-10
Matthew 27:27-31

Easter Sunday, 16 April
Matthew 28:1-10
1 Corinthians 15:1-11

http://www.thekingcenter.org/

“If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new definition of greatness. And this morning, the thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.”

Pride (In The Name Of Love)
One man come in the name of love
One man come and go.
One man come he to justify
One man to overthrow.

In the name of love
What more in the name of love.
In the name of love
What more in the name of love.

One man caught on a barbed wire fence
One man he resist
One man washed up on an empty beach
One man betrayed with a kiss.

In the name of love
What more in the name of love.
In the name of love
What more in the name of love.

Early [evening], April four
Shot rings out in the Memphis sky.
Free at last, they took your life
They could not take your pride.

In the name of love
What more in the name of love.
In the name of love
What more in the name of love.

In the name of love
What more in the name of love.
In the name of love
What more in the name of love.

http://www.vatican.va/special/anniversario_gpii/documents/index_en.htm

"Do not be afraid"

I really have no words to adequately express my love, gratitude, and respect for this man.

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/index.htm

HEB 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Evelyn

With all of the changes of appointment taking place nowadays (pray for General Shaw Clifton!), I suppose it is time to announce that we are under Farewell Orders.

We will be moving to Tallinn in June to become Corps Commanding Officers of the Tallinn Kopli Corps. Captain Pirjo Mikkonen will be moving here to Tartu from Lahti, Finland.

DT 2:2 Then the LORD said to me, 3 "You have made your way around this ... country long enough; now turn north.
DT 2:7 The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey.... These ... years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything.

Lots more news to share, but I'm too tired tonight!

Evelyn

P.S.
This is NOT an April-Fool's-Day joke!! :-)