Compassion, Competent, Courage
Yeccchhh – I just killed what looked like a pregnant, size-of-my-big-toe, black spider. It was crunchy. I forgot for a while that spiders out here make Toronto house spiders look like a joke. However, I am out in the wilderness so what can I do?
I’ve been sent over to Camp Redwood Glen to attend the first SA Social Services Golden-State Division Conference. I’m here for two days and just finished the first night. It’s been super informative and very encouraging to hear the keynote speaker and the guest speakers.
Our keynote address was Mr. Tom Walker, the Social Services Secretary for the Northwest Division. It’s not our division but he’s a great speaker so they flew him in.
As I listened to the mission of the Army and our call to com-passion (with-struggle) for others, I know that although this is a social service conference, this is the Army’s mission. In not only social services, but also in our other forms of ministry are we called to have com-passion.
He used an illustration that we must also have com-petence (with-striving) together by being like high-jumpers in track meets. They all strive to jump over and clear a certain height (challenge) and then together raise the bar to do it together once again.
We are currently struggling with the “together” part in our social services office at the corps because of the many changes that the corps has undergone over the past few months. I know that now that the Thanksgiving/Christmas season approaches, it will be even more important that we strive “together”. Please keep that in your prayers for we will need God to pull us together in a unified voice for Him.
Thus the courage – that we can not do this without courage. Our very own William Booth and his army imagery is testament to the need for it. Going into the grittiest parts of society and having courage in this war of worldliness.
It’s never easy to have courage. Sometimes we would rather call it lack of common sense or that we must be under the influence of some substance. As cheesy as it is…yes, in fact I will say it…I can have courage under the influence of the Holy Spirit’s guidance – God is with us and we’re leaning on His everlasting arms.
With that being said, I lacked much courage trying to get up to my room tonight. There was a mama deer and two baby deer in the way. I was afraid there was a protective daddy deer out there to get me too. This story would have been better for me if it were at least a family of bears. =P
I’ve been sent over to Camp Redwood Glen to attend the first SA Social Services Golden-State Division Conference. I’m here for two days and just finished the first night. It’s been super informative and very encouraging to hear the keynote speaker and the guest speakers.
Our keynote address was Mr. Tom Walker, the Social Services Secretary for the Northwest Division. It’s not our division but he’s a great speaker so they flew him in.
As I listened to the mission of the Army and our call to com-passion (with-struggle) for others, I know that although this is a social service conference, this is the Army’s mission. In not only social services, but also in our other forms of ministry are we called to have com-passion.
He used an illustration that we must also have com-petence (with-striving) together by being like high-jumpers in track meets. They all strive to jump over and clear a certain height (challenge) and then together raise the bar to do it together once again.
We are currently struggling with the “together” part in our social services office at the corps because of the many changes that the corps has undergone over the past few months. I know that now that the Thanksgiving/Christmas season approaches, it will be even more important that we strive “together”. Please keep that in your prayers for we will need God to pull us together in a unified voice for Him.
Thus the courage – that we can not do this without courage. Our very own William Booth and his army imagery is testament to the need for it. Going into the grittiest parts of society and having courage in this war of worldliness.
It’s never easy to have courage. Sometimes we would rather call it lack of common sense or that we must be under the influence of some substance. As cheesy as it is…yes, in fact I will say it…I can have courage under the influence of the Holy Spirit’s guidance – God is with us and we’re leaning on His everlasting arms.
With that being said, I lacked much courage trying to get up to my room tonight. There was a mama deer and two baby deer in the way. I was afraid there was a protective daddy deer out there to get me too. This story would have been better for me if it were at least a family of bears. =P
Comments
am assuming you got to the room safely. only then to experience the earthquake. so much excitement in such little time!