I was invited to give the message at a combined meeting held at Central Corps organised by the Youth Department. A good crowd of youth, plus a number of older folk turned up to support.
There was a wonderful display of pictures giving us the history of The Salvation Army. Obviously a lot of effort was put into this event.
A lovely spirit prevailed. There was warmth and enthusiasm.
There was, however one missing element. We celebrated Founder's Day but not a single song written by the Founder was sung. I had expected the singing of
"O boundless salvation! deep ocean of love,
O fullness of mercy, Christ brought from above,
The whole world redeeming, so rich and so free,
Now flowing for all men, come,roll over me!
There are seven verses and the last one with a note of triumph.
"And now, hallelujah! the rest of my days
Shall gladly be spent in promoting His praise
Who opened His bosom to pour out this sea
Of boundless salvation for you and for me."
It would be a grand finale to march with flags waving singing this verse or the old Army song,"Come join our Army to battle we go." We are an Army! I'm old fashioned - it befits my age! I love the old Army traditions. "Tradition is the living faith of those who are dead; traditionalism is the dead faith of those still living" Jaroslav Pelikan.
The Mercy Seat was lined with seekers for which we thank God. And that's the purpose of The Salvation Army - to save souls, grow saints and care for suffering humanity.
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