BY ROBERT DOCTER

With General Linda Bond, territorial leadership, family and well over 2,000 friends in attendance, 41 cadets of the Friends of Christ Session celebrated graduation from Crestmont’s College for Officer Training in commencement services June 8 at The Gathering.

Following a musical prelude by the Western Territorial Band, conducted by Bandmaster Neil Smith, the Friends of Christ marched into the worship center. Joining members of the Pro-claimers of Christ Session, the more than 100 cadets presented the graduating cadets’ session

song, “Friends of Christ,” with lyrics by Lt. Col. Diane O’Brien and music by Bandmaster Ralph Pearce.

Major Brian Jones, director of curriculum, prayed for the cadets, and William B. Flinn, chair of the Crestmont Council, offered words of greet-ing to the audience and cadets. Commissioner Carolyn Knaggs, territorial president of women’s ministries, read the selected Scripture from Isaiah 51:1-6.

Commissioner James Knaggs, territorial com-mander, then introduced National Commander Commissioner William Roberts, who delivered

Cadet Allison Struck spoke for the Friends of Christ Session at commencement June 8. Below is an excerpt from her message.

Educational back-ground in the Friends of Christ Session ranges from master’s degrees to GEDs. Yet, in 2010, we were similar in our response to our callings, even if not in personal histo-ries or experiences. After 668 days we now have far more in common.

We sat in classes and seminars, worked on brigades and lived and worshipped—all together. Our academics taught us skills to serve as Salvation Army officers: Bible knowledge, writing sermons, Salvation Army history and doctrine, and creating and keeping a budget. We exchanged ideas and learned techniques for dealing with difficult ethical decisions and received a foundation for counseling hurting indi-viduals. The academic lessons taught us about deadlines, accountability and time management.

Our academics also provided framework for other lessons, lessons that cannot be measured by a grade: the invisible yet pow-erful lessons, such as submission, persever-ance and tolerance—learned through prac-tical assignments. We learned to submit to the authority of our leadership, even when we disagree; that many assignments and tasks may not be fun, but must be pushed to completion; to share different perspec-tives and tolerate ideas and thoughts that

n Army to be at work in 125 countries

General Linda Bond an-nounced the appointment of officers to “open fire” for The

Salvation Army in Greenland during Denmark’s 2012 Con-gress.

Lts. Magnus and Petura Haraldsen, who trained in Nor-

n San Diego Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center

BY JULIE WILLIS AND MARIA TODARO

June 19 marks the 10th anni-versary of the first-ever Salvation Army Ray and Joan Kroc Center in San Diego, Calif., and the Kroc Center is preparing for a 10-day celebration from June 15-24.

“We are thrilled to share this historic occasion with the commu-nity and are so thankful for their support and friendship,” said Corps Officer Major Rick Peacock. “Joan Kroc provided us with an amazing vehicle to change lives, and com-munity support is really essential to move us into the future.”

Each day of the celebration will offer the community a free opportunity to participate in a Kroc Center program or activity, including family soccer, an acting

workshop, and participation in venue activities; download free passes at kroccenter.org.

A commemorative event June 19 in the Joan B. Kroc Theatre will take guests through the center's past, present and future, followed by a community con-

cert by the Dr. Seuss Fund with performance by the San Diego Concert Band on the grass recre-ation field in the heart of the Kroc Center and food from vendors of local San Diego restaurants. Event sponsors include: the Dr. Seuss

It is as though God is saying: ‘Remember yesterday as you prepare for tomorrow.’ —Commissioner William Roberts~

~

Frontlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2Friends of Christ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4–5In Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6Sharper Focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6From the Desk of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

The Spice Box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7On the Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Inside:

Friends of Christ complete trainingCadet Allison Struck speaks at Commencement

General Linda Bond speaks to Lieutenants Petura and Magnus Haraldsen, and their sons Daniel and Andrias. The family will move to Greenland to begin Salvation Army work there. Photo courtesy of International Headquarters

FRIENDS OF CHRIST, page 3

Alaska $77,525Cascade $450,130Del Oro $412,583Golden State $680,794Hawaii $123,670Intermountain $460,785Northwest $643,216Sierra del Mar $337,393So. California $708,636Southwest $681,030CFOT $50,000ARC $800,000THQ $1,480,000

TOTAL $6,905,762

Sacrificial giving helps the less fortunate

World service income for 2012 from Western soldiers and officers has

provided $6,905,762 to help those in need around the world.

Cadets Caroline and Dustin Rowe enter the Pasadena Convention Center at the start of the commencement service. See more at thegatheringpix.com. Photo by Nikole Lim

Commencement held in Pasadena

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CELEBRATING OUR 30th YEAR The Western Territory’s news source for 30 years

June 10, 2012Vol. 30, No. 10b

SPEAKER, page 7

GREENLAND, page 2

SAN DIEGO KROC CENTER, page 2

Salvation Army opens fire in Greenland

Flagship Kroc Center celebrates 10 yearsThe San Diego Kroc Center

In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? (Ps. 56:4 NIV)

RENO, NEV.—The corps, led by Majors Michael and Janene Zielinski, held a Memo-rial Day observance. Major Joe Whipple, vet-eran and retired Salvation Army officer, explained the meaning of Memorial Day. Everyone joined in a flag ceremo-ny and The Salvation Army Beginning Band played patriotic tunes. Senior Soldier Dave Wright spoke on the One who "gave all" for our souls.

Soldiers, adherents and Adult Reha-bilitation Program beneficiaries then provided a barbecue for 420 people, while the children enjoyed crafts and a carnival.

PETERSBURG, ALASKA—Lts. Caleb and Christin Fankhauser received do-nations for the corps’ food bank from an unlikely source. When a community member (who wishes to be unnamed) recently celebrated his birthday, he ad-vised friends that he preferred canned food over birthday gifts. He then do-nated the food to The Salvation Army to subsidize the food bank.

YAKIMA, WASH.—The Home League hosted its 57th annual Nursing Home Luncheon with 85 guests from local nursing homes. Each person at the lighthouse-themed event received a lighthouse craft to complete. Corps Officer Major Crystal Morrow led a sing-along accompanied by Joanne Sargent on piano, and Lisa Sargent gave the devotion.

TURLOCK, CALIF.—The corps held its second Community Awareness Day May 18 along with 15 different agen-cies. Attendees received a card, to be stamped at each agency they visited. When they accumulated 10 stamps, they received a bag of groceries, a hot dog, chips and drink. In three hours, the corps fed 266 people and distrib-uted 200 boxes of groceries.

Major Debi Shrum is the corps officer.

HOBBS, N.M.—The Roadrunner Foodbank in Albuquerque reinstated the Hobbs Corps, allowing it to pur-chase food at 19 cents per pound and receive free USDA commodities.Re-applying entailed a lot of work, including clean-up, acquiring necessary equipment and securing racks to hold the pallets of canned goods. Corps Of-ficers Capts. Leslie and Susan Spousta rallied corps members to meet the ap-plication deadline.

WESTERN TERRITORY—This year’s “Vocalize” contest winners, for their original poetry and recording of it, include: Adult Category (over 18)—1st, Lindsay Fleeman (Southern Terri-tory, special contestant, ineligible for cash prize), “Crossroads”; 2nd, Justin Docherty (Crestmont), “You Are Not Alone”; 3rd, Antwon Mason (Stock-ton), “Strive”; Honorary Mentions—Jessica Stennett (Tucson Amphi), “The Tongue”; Jen Arens (South San Francisco), “Others”; Youth Category (under 18)—1st, Alexandra Van Cleef (Tustin Ranch), “Letting Go.”

The annual event is sponsored by the territory’s Creative Workshop Ministries. For more information, visit uswcreativearts.com.

June 10, 2011New Frontier2

N E W S B R I E F S O F T H E W E S T

Doing theMost Good

C O M M I S S I O N I N G 2 0 1 2

Trailblazers honored

Hero awards given at Rose Bowl tailgate party

KarenGleason

Editor

GREENLAND from page 1

SAN DIEGO KROC CENTER from page 1

Fund, 10News, Azteca America, San Diego Car Care and Suffolk ROEL.

In 1998, Joan Kroc generously donated $87 million dollars toward the develop-ment of the first Kroc Center in the Ro-lando neighborhood of San Diego, Calif. At the press conference announcing her gift, she recalled taking a tour of San Di-ego that deeply touched her heart: "I real-ized they [children] desperately needed a safe gathering place, a place with facilities and trained professionals to nurture their social skills, arts appreciation and athletic potential."

In the four years that followed, Kroc—with The Salvation Army—dedicated

volunteers and the community worked together to create a world-class facility that would bridge the gap between potential and opportunity for all who walked through its doors.

On June 19, 2002, the sprawling 12.4-acre campus that houses several buildings ranging from a 600-seat state of the art theater to an NHL-regulation sized ice arena opened to the public. Today, ap-proximately 5,000 members and thou-sands of guests of all ages are engaged in activities such as ice-skating, fitness classes, skateboarding, rock climbing and swimming.

way, were commissioned as Salvation Army officers and pre-sented with the Greenland flag. “The next flag you receive,” said the General, “will be The Salva-tion Army flag.”

The Haraldsens and their two sons will move to Greenland in time to begin work there on Aug. 1.

Greenland, the world’s largest island, is about 81 percent ice-capped. It is slightly more than three times the size of Texas, and lies between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada.

While the island dominates the North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe, its sparse population of nearly 58,000 is confined to small settlements along the coast. Greenland’s ethnic makeup is 89 percent Inuit and 11 per-

cent Danish and other, with the primary religions of evangelical Lutheran and traditional Inuit spiritual beliefs.

From a report by Major Levi Giversen

newAppointments

A Hero of the Faith award was presented at The Gathering men’s rally to a “Salvation Step-Up Soldier” in recognition of faithful and dedicated service to The Salvation Army.

Envoy Craig Fanning, Kenai Peninsula Corps, Alaska Division

Larry Dayton, Sacramento Citadel Corps, ARC and Del Oro Division

Captain John Stennett, Boise Corps, Cascade Division

James Reeves, Crestmont

Trey Hiller, San Francisco Lighthouse Corps, Golden State Division

Captain Robert Steiner, RMI Coordinator, Hawaii and Pacific Islands Division

Captain Michael Halverson, Fort Collins Corps, Inter-mountain Division

Stefan Wennstig, Seattle Temple Corps, Northwest Division

Sam Valdez, San Bernardino Corps, Sierra del Mar Divi-sion

Pat Riley, Pasadena Taberna-cle Corps, Southern Califor-nia Division

David Aird, Sun City Corps, Southwest Division

Major Linda Manhardt, a Western Territory officer, is training principal in the Philippines Territory, where she worked to build a new library that will allow for the training of twice as many cadets and is seeking accreditation for the college.

Manhardt began a weekly outreach program with the cadets, ministering to people in the surrounding communities. As a result, the new outpost is steadily adding junior and senior soldiers. The Christmas kettle program expanded, enabling the college to widen services to seniors and for emergency needs.

Previously, Manhardt served two terms as training principal in Tanzania, where she opened the training school, and in Kenya as the assistant training principal. She has served at National Headquarters, Territo-rial Headquarters and as director of the Los Angeles Day Care Center, as well as in corps appointments.

Major Linda Manhardt, an outstanding leader, is a Trailblazer.

Ted McClure played basketball at The Salvation Army’s Phoenix South Mountain Commu-nity Center, where he became a Christian. After receiving a bachelor’s in business

from Whitworth University in Spokane, Wash., he returned to South Mountain and opened several businesses.

McClure has served on the South Mountain Advisory Council for over a decade, the past three years as chairman, and played a pivotal role in supporting the corps in its transition to the Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center. He developed the Edward Stuart Scholarship Fund to provide membership subsidies for families within a two-mile radius of the Kroc Center, and created new partnerships with 7-Eleven Stores.

McClure’s new restaurant, Spee-D-Tees, features an area displaying The Salvation Army shield and promoting the South Mountain Kroc Center.

Ted McClure, exemplifying the spirit of the Army, is a Trailblazer.

George Walker, life member of the Chico Advisory Board, has been an active board member for over 40 years. For two decades, he en-visioned an adult re-habilitation program (ARP) in Chico—a vision that became reality in 2007 when a facility opened, named after him.

The George Walker ARP is a testament to his commitment to the suffering addict. In recovery himself for over 42 years, he is always available to meet and encourage beneficiaries. Today, at age 92, he still at-tends every graduation at the ARP.

In the community, Walker has served on the Butte County Housing Authority, the Sheriff ’s Meth Strike Force, the Chico Noon Rotary Club, the Chico Museum Association and the United Way Citizen Review Board.

George Walker, in his commitment to the Chico community, is a Trailblazer.

Lorrie Davis, Gresham (Ore.) Corps soldier, has served as corps youth director for 16 years. She has witnessed hundreds of children accept Christ and helped 11 under-

privileged students get into and graduate from local colleges. Under her leadership the corps youth program has grown into a strong, life-changing ministry.

Recently, Davis initiated the opening of the Gresham Corps youth center and after-school program for children and teens, which serves more than 60 youth per day. In addition, she launched “The Vine,” a Friday night youth worship service.

Davis helped the corps start a “First Robotics Team” to introduce young people to engineering and science by building and demonstrating robots. She has also coached the corps’ Bible Bowl team, which won the Cascade divisional championship the past three years.

Lorrie Davis, an inspirational leader of youth, is a Trailblazer.

Joan Kroc speaks at the groundbreaking of the original Kroc Center in San Diego.

TRANSFERRING OUT OF TERRITORY

Major Elicio MarquezDivisional Commander—

Panama DivisionLatin America North Territory

Major Darlan MarquezDivisional Director of Women’s Ministries—Panama DivisionLatin America North Territory

Appointments effective Aug. 1.

New Frontier June 10, 2012 3Doing the Most Good

FRIENDS OF CHRIST from page 1 Long Serviceawards 2012

Summer internship 2012

Proclaimers of the Resurrection SessionADULT REHABILITATION CENTERS

Cadet Robbin SwalesSan Francisco ARC

Cadets Michael and Noel EvansSan Jose ARC

Cadet Sam LeMarDenver ARC

Cadets Micheal and Jessica StackSan Diego ARC

Cadets Todd and Karen LoveladyTucson ARC

ALASKACadet Crystal Birks

Fairbanks CorpsCadet Tersy Matto

Hoonah CorpsCadet Darrell Williamson

Juneau CorpsCadets Justin and Aimee Docherty

Gateway Corps

CASCADECadet Joseph Morefield

Bend CorpsCadet Theresa Williams

Gresham CorpsCadet Nathan Darling

Idaho Falls CorpsCadet Celeste Guess

Medford Citadel CorpsCadets Sidney and Reyna Salcido

Portland Tabernacle Corps

DEL OROCadet Luke BettiRoseville Corps

GOLDEN STATECadets Jeremy and Brittany Baker

Modesto Citadel Corps

Cadet Robbin SwalesSan Francisco Citadel Corps and

San Francisco ARCCadets Michael and Noel Evans

Santa Clara Citadel Corps and San Jose ARCCadet Susan Cassin

Santa Cruz Corps

HAWAIIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDSCadet James Combs

Lihue Corps

INTERMOUNTAINCadet Catalina Xiong

Centennial CorpsCadet Darla Malone

Fountain Valley CorpsCadets James and Hilda Parks

Grand Junction CorpsCadet Sam LeMar

Denver Red Shield Corps andDenver ARC

NORTHWESTCadets Victor and Regina Verdugo

Bellingham CorpsCadet Mareah Morrow

Eastside CorpsCadets Henry and Vanessa Gonzalez

Kalispell CorpsCadets Ricky and Sylvia Scruggs

Spokane Citadel Corps

SIERRA DEL MARCadet Brenda Crosby

Riverside CorpsCadets Jeff and Regeina Williams

San Bernardino Citadel CorpsCadets Judah and Megan Young

San Diego Citadel Corps

Cadets Micheal and Jessica StackSan Diego Kroc Center Corps and

San Diego ARC

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIACadet Jessica Sneed

Compton CorpsCadet Shanon HawkesworthPasadena Tabernacle Corps

Cadets Manuel and Daisy GaytanRedondo Beach Corps

Cadet Leslie ZimmermanSanta Barbara Corps

Cadet Joshua HamiltonSanta Maria Corps

Cadets Jeff and Katie BreazealeTorrance Corps

Cadets Troy and Felicia CookTustin Ranch Corps

SOUTHWESTCadets Bill and Cathy Simon

Farmington CorpsCadets Larry and Joy Groenleer

Las Vegas Citadel CorpsCadet Brenda Morthland

Prescott CorpsCadet Juan Barriga

Roswell CorpsCadets Lance and Dana Walters

Sun Cities Area CorpsCadets Todd and Karen Lovelady

Tucson Amphi Corps andTucson ARC

OUT OF TERRITORYCadet Michael MooreSt. Michael, BarbadosCaribbean Territory

25 YEARSLt. Colonel Douglas DanielsonMajor Clayton GardnerMajor Pam GardnerMajor Eileen HalversonMajor James HalversonMajor Denise HawkMajor Guy HawkMajor Pamela MarkhamMajor Scott NicloyMajor Mario ReyesMajor Kathleen SargentMajor Maynard SargentMajor Carolyn Storey

30 YEARSMajor Mark DaveyMajor Martha DaveyMajor Nancy DihleMajor Debra DoveMajor McKinney DoveMajor Timothy FoleyMajor Thomas FordMajor Faye NishimuraMajor Deanna Sholin

35 YEARSMajor David AtkinsCommissioner Debora BellMajor James HoodMajor Sallyann HoodMajor Daniel HughesMajor Gary KyleLt. Colonel Rose-Marie LeslieMajor Crystal MorrowMajor Thomas MorrowMajor George Rodriguera

40 YEARSLt. Colonel Walter FugeMajor Tedd Lowcock, Jr.Major Bonita RiderLt. Colonel Daniel Starrett, Jr.Lt. Colonel Helen Starrett

My first year as an officerBY LIANE NEWCOMB, LT.

You turned my wailing into dancing; removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent, O Lord, my God, I will give you praise forever.

So concludes Psalm 30 and my first year as an officer in Hoonah, Alaska.

I felt like I was coming home when I landed on the island of Chicagof in June 2011, and in the days that fol-lowed I believed I received the very best appointment in my session. Although I didn’t know them, I prayed for these very people the moment I began my application for officership and now have the benefit of seeing God’s answers.

What is special about Hoonah? Per-haps it’s the people and their strength in the face of adversity. This village of 760 had suffered many deaths over the pre-vious 18 months, including two police officers slain in the middle of town. How does a pastor come into such a situation and walk alongside the pain of loss? You do it one step at a time with prayer and compassion, sometimes with silence, sometimes with words—and always with the touch of a hand.

I faced the challenges of my very first winter with snow and sketchy mail and travel services depending on the

Auxiliary Captains commissioned as Captains

Captains Aurelio and Ligia Ambriz

Corps OfficersCaldwell Corps

Captains Adrian and Viviana Viquez

Corps OfficersSanta Cruz Corps

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FIRST YEAR, page 6

the commencement address, “Hope for the Future from the Past.” Roberts first advised the graduates that he was delivering a “com-

mencement address—not a sermon.” He spoke as if he anticipated some difficult and possibly discouraging times ahead for the cadets, yet expressed strong belief in the power of hope to deal with the dif-ficulties of the present, and told them that hope is discovered in the memories of the past.

“In the Scripture passage just read to us, the children of Israel were discouraged, almost without hope, exiled in a foreign land,” he said. “Nothing had gone right and they wondered, ‘has God kept his promise?’

“That kind of thinking,” Roberts said, “is a concern only to those who take God seriously.”

As Roberts said, God first got their attention. “Listen to me you who pursue righteousness and seek the Lord; look to the Rock from which you were cut and the quarry from which you were hewn; look to Abraham, your father, and Sarah, who gave you birth” (Is. 51:1-2 NIV).

“God insisted that that they remember their past, that it be their guide,” he said. “Those without a history are doomed to repeat it. As an antidote to their discouragement, the Lord advises his people to remember who they are—from where and what they had come.

“It is as though God is saying: ‘remember yesterday as you prepare for tomorrow,’” Roberts said. “Guard your memories; without memo-ries we would have nothing on which to base our morality. Set up memorials along the way as the Israelites did. They are a way we make promises to the future.”

Roberts said God urged us to look at our origins. “These are lessons of the past. What have you learned from them?,” he asked. “Lessons of the past only have meaning as they are remembered. What have

you learned about yourself? Perhaps you have learned that God will take the wilderness of your making and replace it with the garden of his making, and remember that absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us (Rom. 8:39 MSG).

“You have learned your lessons well,” Roberts said. “Now, remem-ber them tomorrow.”

The cadet chorus sang Fanny Crosby’s memorable hymn, “Blessed Assurance,” before Major Timothy Foley, training principal, com-mended the graduating session. With Jones, Foley presented academic degrees and certificates to the graduating Friends of Christ.

Speaking for the session, Cadet Allison Struck talked about the joy of being Christ’s friend, and of the power of group cohesiveness that develops when people from different walks of life come together to form a common bond with each individual fulfilling multiple roles as teacher, learner and group member.

Struck spoke on the multitude of lessons learned over the course of her training, including the budgeting, doctrine, individual growth, and being accountable.

“The most profound lesson is about relationships; the success of our ministries is directly proportional to the strength of our personal relationship with God,” Struck said. “Now, after 668 days, we sit before you today, sharing a calling, sharing some history, sharing our educa-tion, and sharing some memories. Most importantly, we share a com-mitment to win the world for Jesus as Friends of Christ.”

Foley led the assemblage in the song “Fairest Lord Jesus” and Cap-tain Eugene Jo offered the benediction.

No scar is etched so deeply and no blow is dealt so deftly that the love of Jesus can’t heal! I am strikingly reminded of this truth every day in my ministry. Nightly I pray, “Thank you, Lord, for your miracles.”

Today I want to share with you how much I delight in serving as an adult reha-bilitation center (ARC) chaplain. Working alongside desperate men, doing my best to

help them find the light of God, has become a passion for me. In post-retirement service now, as I reflect back over my years as an active officer, I realize that I experienced nothing that offered such a rich opportunity to directly make a real differ-ence in another human life. Having another person do this for you is very different from doing it yourself. As we ministers get personally involved, we are deeply enriched. The Alcohol-ics Anonymous slogan, “We keep it by giving it away,” is a valid spiritual principle when applied to our faith as well.

Lost, anxious, our spiritually, emotionally ill people are brought to us by the county jail bus, their pastor, spouse, brother, sister or parents. I have known them to hike for as long as 36 hours along a railroad track, then sleep overnight out in the dark and damp just to be at our front door when it opens.

These hungry people come to us for a new chance at life. What they find when they arrive is a safe place where they can regroup, reflect, and start their lives over again. The chaplain has a narrow window of opportunity, not only to save a life—preventing a person from going to an early grave or spending a lifetime behind bars—but to save that person’s soul as well. Addicted to drugs, alcohol and other enchaining habits, our applicants have lost all control. They come desperate for help.

One man shared his story like this: “My life was in rubbles. I was caught in a compulsion. There was nothing I could do. After entering the ARC, I became engrossed in the message of the cross. I had never even been in a church before. But I re-member the physical, mental and emotional change I felt, and I knew I had been given the gift of sobriety…I realized Christ had died for a suffering alcoholic like me.”

Another told me: “I grew up in an unreligious household. But then, as I watched the men file up to the altar after the sermon, I asked myself: ‘Should I give my heart to Jesus?’ Eventually I did, and soon I was praying each morning and evening alone in the chapel: ‘Dear God, keep me sober today and tomorrow.’”

In my first meeting with them, the majority of our men tell me bluntly they are hoping to “get God” into their lives. It’s often a last ditch effort for them. “I have tried everything else,” they tell me. These men desperately seek salvation from their predicaments. Such fertile ground for the Word of God is a joy to cultivate and tend.

Most of our applicants are already acquainted with the 12-Step Programs of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA). These programs are complementary to the Christian faith—making it especially easy for chaplains to witness effectively for Christ within the context of recovery. The 12-Step Program is nothing if not spiritual at its core. The volume Alcoholics Anonymous, often referred to as the Big Book of AA, reads, “We have been not only mentally and physically ill, we have been spiritually sick. When the spiritual malady is overcome, we straighten out mentally and physi-cally” (p. 64).

The majority of the men and women checking into our facilities have learned this. They have reached the conclusion that under their own power they are completely helpless over their addictions and have heard that there is a “Higher Power” somewhere who can set them free. Occasionally, they look me directly in the eye and declare,“I’m completely lost. Tell me about this Higher Power I keep hearing about at meetings.” They can’t be any more honest than that.

As chaplains we now guide our people into a new life-style, picking up where AA and NA leave off, showing them that this “God of their own understanding” is Jesus Christ. This connection between recovery and spirituality needs to be handled with compassion, sensitivity, understanding and competence. If you have been broken like them, and God has saved you, you see them as beautiful—and are excited at the prospect. Our challenge lies before us. It is clear: We must not let these beloved, desperate people down. And we need far more ministers in this vineyard: “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” (Matt. 9:37 NIV).

June 10, 2012New Frontier6 Doing the

Most Good

Welcome to the fightDear Friends of Christ,

It was but moments ago that you were commissioned as The Salvation Army's newest officers in this Great Fight. Hallelujah! It is with joy and excitement that I write to you, as a fellow friend, fol-lower and Soldier of Christ.

As you commence the journey before you, do not lose focus on the One who has established his purpose in you. Do not ask that he "purpose" your endeavors as an officer—he is your purpose! His purpose will prevail (Prov. 19:21).

The red you now bear on your shoulders should reflect a red hot passion for others. You, friends, are entitled to nothing—less the privilege to serve, love, witness to, and shepherd the lost. You are not entitled, but have been entrusted to this work. As you gain greater responsibility and new territory, maintain a position of great humility before the Lord asking him to increase your anointing and influence. His power works best in your weakness (2 Cor. 12:9).

As you become entrenched in the tasks and de-mands of each day, do not become overwhelmed. Instead take time to make much of God. For he is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him (Phil. 2:13).

When you do grow weary, rest. But do not rest in the same sense the world does. Instead, run to the arms of your Savior and God—he is the one true source of your strength. His renewal and restoration is rivaled

by no other (Isa. 40:31). Sweet moments of quiet will deepen your friendship with Christ and passion for the lost.

Do not grow cold or indifferent. Weep over your church and community. You are to have great compas-sion on his people (Matt. 9:36). Fight for the souls of the unsaved. War for God's best in their lives. Let his Word be your greatest weapon; let whispered and shouted prayers be your greatest ally (Heb. 4:12, 1 Tim. 2:1).

Do not forget to celebrate. Rejoice over your church and community. Their victory is yours! It is fitting for the pure to praise him (Ps. 33:1). Let all those who take refuge and put their trust in God rejoice; let them ever sing and shout for joy, because he has made a covering over them and defends them; let those also who love his name be joyful in him (Ps. 5:11).

Never forget that your calling is not to serve in The Salvation Army, but in the Army of the Lord. You're calling is no different than mine—it is to seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God (Mic. 6:8). Your calling is to make Christ the head of your spiritual house (Josh. 24:15). Your calling is to be holy and blameless before the Lord (Col. 1:22b). Your call-ing is to love others into the kingdom of God (1 John 4:11-16). Your calling is to be abandoned to the cause of Christ.

Go with great boldness and excitement into his service; many blessings on each of you in all that lies ahead!

Welcome to the Fight.

Erin WikleSoldier

I write these words with an idea in mind of how God has led us through The Gathering and a question: What does he want from us now?

Can't you just tell that he's delighted to be with us? I believe God desires fellowship with us on a regular basis and on an increasing scope. As the Holy Spirit fire has been burning in your soul, do you not now want to share this flame of holy love to everyone? Me too.

So many are sensing a calling in their lives for ser-vice. This can be realized by officership, local officer-ship, employment or other voluntary opportunities. The territory stands ready to facilitate the will of God in you and will support your holy intentions to honor him as he chooses.

Some of you now want to become soldiers in The Salvation Army. Good for you. We need an increasing force to have a greater impact to win the world for Je-sus. When you begin to win your world, God begins to win the world. It's his plan and he so wants to include you in the joy.

Did you notice the launch of SAVN.TV? This has developed into an amazing tool to reach the many who have yet to know saving grace for themselves. I'm believing that our reach will expand exponentially as a result. Perhaps you'd like to sign up and be trained

to become a social media chaplain? I hope so. Not only will you learn some of the fine points of helping and leading people to Jesus, you will begin to know the thrill of being in the will and plan of God. He has given us this possibility. We need to take it on in full strength to his honor and glory.

Didn't the musical excite you to how you can be a disciple of Jesus? It was wonderful, and even more ter-rific to know it was written, produced and performed by our own folks.

So many talented people participated throughout the meetings. God is blessing us more than we real-ize. These same gifts from God can support the many ministries we have all over the territory. Let us honor him with our full intention to use everything at our disposal to worship him.

Please take time right now to affirm your own com-mitment to be holy and serve God completely. You can do this from any occupation or avocation. Your life will fill with the joy of Jesus and you will experience God's increasing presence in all that you do. Hallelujah!

Now what?You and Jesus. The Salvation Army will better move

forward to win the world for Jesus. Hallelujah!

Now what?

GlenDossMajor

We keep it by giving it away

JamesKnaggsCommissioner

weather. Since I grew up on an island, I am not a stranger to isolation and its effects: the high cost of food, necessities and travel; and learning to do without conveniences such as department stores, auto mechanics, a bank, and fast Internet. However, these challenges are not insurmount-able. You adapt by ordering online, using your imagination and walking by faith. It’s all about perspective and God is good at helping me focus on what is most important: people. I have to admit this new lieutenant was the source of many smiles and much laughter as I enjoyed delicious new foods for the first time, attempted to learn Tlingit words, and drove on

snow and ice. In December, after years of ill

health, my mother passed away and I had the first-hand demonstration of God’s love through the people of my little village. People immediate-ly came to comfort me. My loss was their loss. It is characteristic of the people of Hoonah to share in the suffering and the joys of each other. They have learned to be strong and endure. How very profound is God’s love when we allow it to flow freely through us.

This past year, I had the privilege of praying and sharing in song at a handful of memorial services and presided over three; my mother’s

service in Hilo was the third. The Scripture above indicates trading one position for another. Removing the sackcloth was a sign of mov-ing on. God impressed upon me to empower the people of the Hoonah Corps to move on. We are doing that one step at a time.

One year later, I still believe this is the best appointment of my session. In spite of the sorrow and personal pain of loss, I’ve chosen to allow God to turn my wailing to dancing, remove my sackcloth and clothe me with joy, that I may praise him forever.

May God be glorified and others come to know him.

FIRST YEAR from page 3

I’ve only been asked on one or two occasions to deliver a commencement address and never to graduating Salvation Army cadets. Therefore, I will take this space to tell you what I would have said had I had the honor to speak to you in person.

Yes, you are graduating and being sent out with your new epaulets, shiny stars and some basic training. This is not what most people think of when they imagine a college. This institution calls itself the College for Officer Training. This label suggests it’s involved with “training”—that’s learning specific skills and transferring the same skills to another similar setting. It accomplishes some of that.

You have become aware of some of the multiple identities you must own. First, did you realize that you have embraced a different culture? You are no lon-ger an individual person. You are part of a military organization that requires you to embrace some specific codes of dress, speech, attitudes, belief, and behavior. You very soon will need to reveal your

skills in a number of different roles: an administrator, a pastor, a counselor, a youth worker, a fund raiser, a song leader, an accoun-tant, a public relations executive, a social worker and so on. You have learned a little bit about one of the most complicated jobs anywhere. You are also becoming educated about matters that go way beyond one-to-one transfer.

So, I don’t like the “training” label because you will continue to be in the process of learning much more, none of which is directly transferable. You have been saturated with some im-portant generalities that pertain to the communication of your own spirituality to others. You have not “learned” them. These qualities must be owned. It is a “practice.” You must sense, feel and translate to behavior the meaning of love. If you don’t un-derstand compassion in today’s world you’re in serious trouble.

You take your faith and your commitments to a tension-filled, divided, racing, frenzied, harried, beautiful world on the edge of all kinds of bankruptcy. Its populations contain varied ethnic and racial groups holding vastly different values. You

better have yours locked firmly in your mind and heart or they will be mysteriously separated from you. It will happen before you’re even aware they are gone.

This does not mean that you impose your own values on others. It means that you under-stand and respect the values of others while living out your own. By “living out,” I hope you avoid making value judgments about the worth and choices of others.

Speed seems to be the metaphor of the age, and as is always the case, when speed is pres-ent thoughtlessness increases along with a sizeable escalation in the number of wrecks, both human and machine. Computer technology dominates the world ethos even as computers themselves begin to give way to iPads, iPods, and iPhones.

You, also, enter a world in which a chasm of alienation is nurtured by a philosophy of sepa-ratism fed by arrogance. We seem always to insist on “us and them” labels. “Us” people always contain benevolence, truth, righteousness and justice. “Them,” we believe, never find the really true truth, and always hold grimly to that which is false, wrong and unjust. Also, besides being just plain wrong, “them” people and their crazy ideas scare us to death.

Polemics seems to be the theme of the day. We see it in almost anything that contains com-petition—politics, sports, individuals, ideas. It starts with ignoring one’s values and ends with stereotyped labels.

“I am always right, and you are always wrong,” he says with a tone of condemnation. Yet, Learned Hand, the great Supreme Court Justice of distant, bygone years, said: “Liberty is never being too sure that you’re right.” So, to be free, one needs an open mind—willing to entertain difference, willing to examine doubt, and able to eliminate the certainty of cynicism with healthy skepticism.

Today, the nation seems to be in a “no compromise” position. The actions of Congress seem to give permission to everyone outside looking in to follow the same rigid policies—all or nothing.

In a commencement address in 2006 to students at Georgetown University, documentary filmmaker Ken Burns urged the graduating class “to become soldiers in a new Union Army, an Army dedicated to the preservation of this nation’s great ideals, a vanguard against the new separatism and disunion.” He saw the country slipping into a new civil war, this time socially and culturally, “where the threat is fundamentalism wherever it raises its intolerant head.”

Maybe that Army can be a Salvation Army, an Army that “loves the unloved, never reckon-ing the cost, with banners and bonnets they come”; an Army that completely abandons any intolerant judgmentalism and continues to adhere to the teaching of Romans 14.

I say to you: be a hero, stay enthusiastic. In the original Greek usage of the term it meant “God in us.”

Keep on believing.

There’s a weed in our yard. “A” weed now, though it had a lot of company until my sister pulled out all its fellows. Only one thing kept this particular weed from joining the others on the discard heap: it had done something special.

Somehow, unnoticed among all the other weeds, it had worked its way through the middle of a 12-inch-high stone, growing thicker and taller until it actually split the stone in half. It appar-ently didn’t take long; the hill had been weeded once already this spring. The new weeds sprang up by virtue of the abundant April rains; one found a crack in what appeared to be solid rock. My brother-in-law’s favorite decorative rock is now two rocks.

When Jesus called his disciples to gather around him, it was always for a purpose. Every word, every action, was designed to fit them to serve God competently and faithfully in any situa-tion. His methods included instruction and training in how to apply the mind of God in their decision-making, in their view of others, in knowing when to come on strong and when to be meek and tender in dealing with others. It was a training of body, mind and spirit.

He taught them to find security in God, rather than in material things. He taught them to pray. He taught them a new set of values, and challenged them to new heights. He demonstrated what it means to truly forgive; he also taught them not to gloss over the effects of sin, but to confront self-deception with

truth, and to be able to accomplish that potentially threatening confrontation with love and acceptance of the indi-vidual. He not only taught them to love their neighbor, but also to love their enemies!

He equipped them, he encouraged them, he empowered them—giving them authority to come before the Fa-ther in his name—and he sent them out, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:18-20 NAS).

Jesus gathered his disciples, equipped them, trained them and sent them out to do the seemingly impossible. And through mighty acts of faith, they did.

It seems impossible that a weed could grow and split a large stone, but it can. We forget the tremendous force the growing weed exerts; we are surprised at what it can do.

A “Gathering” such as that in the Western Territory is a part of Jesus’ de-sign to recruit, train, inspire, equip and send out revitalized troops into the field to do the seemingly impossible. And through mighty acts of faith, the seem-ingly impossible can and will be done. There is nothing that God could accom-plish through those early disciples that he has not the power to accomplish in the here and now. I don’t need to remind you, but I love repeating it, so bear with me: With God, nothing is impossible.

A commencement address forthe “Friends of Christ”

June 10, 2012 New Frontier 7

Like a weed

Doing theMost Good

RobertDocterEditor-In-Chief

SharonRobertsonLt. Colonel

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don’t always match our own. But perhaps the most profound lesson we learned during our time together is that of relationships.

First, the success of our ministries is directly proportional to the strength, of our personal relationships with God and we were exhorted to give these relation-ships top priority. We were urged to find those to keep us accountable and walking in favor with God. Second, our family relationships matter. We learned we are called to a life where our time is not always our own and to share our callings with our spouses, children and extended family. We learned that God is concerned about our families and will help us serve them as we trust him to lead us. Finally, we learned to be success-ful in the relationships with the people God places before us.

For 22 months we were a session, not always an easy road to creating success-ful relationships. Group assignments in

and outside class, house duty crews and brigades created many group oppor-tunities. We learned we are all fallible and that we have the ability to hurt each other. We confronted, defended and forgave each other. We learned how to encourage and strengthen one another, how to hurt together during loss and celebrate during times of excitement. We learned that relationships worth having take a lot of determination and commit-ment.

We go out knowing that God designed us to be in and develop relationships with those we are called to serve. We believe that the relation-ships—friendships—we build as officers have the potential to lead people into a relationship with Jesus.

As we sit here today, we share a call-ing, history, education and memories. Most importantly, we share a com-mitment to win the world for Jesus as Friends of Christ.

SPEAKER from page 1

You very soon will need

to reveal your skills in

a number of different

roles: an administrator,

a pastor, a counselor, a

youth worker, a fund

raiser, a song leader, an

accountant, a public

relations executive, a

social worker, and so on.

~

~