Friday night . . .

So I feel so full tonight that I feel as though I really should blog . . .but now when I'm faced with an empty dialog box, I'm not sure what about.

Should it be about me, Mary, and Hope lighting the candles to start off shabbat – reading Psalm 145 and calming our minds for the night ahead.

Maybe it could be about dropping off my friend at the Domestic Violence Shelter and watching her go in, knowing that she felt safe and excited about the future, full of hope.

Or it might be about Celebrate Recovery – when we had our Court of Awards during the Dinner with 60 people in attendance. We gave out sashes to 10 Sunbeams, 8 Girl Guards, and 8 Adventure Corps Boys!

From PSYC Pendleton SALVATIONISTS Youth Corps ---- HEROES AT LARGE!

But then again, the meetings afterwards were good too – we had our Troops tonight – we have them twice a week now – and everyone was busy and active – and yet it went well. Sort of like organized chaos – Sunbeams did cooking (those Brownies were sure good), the Girl Guards did the fashion design books that the twins got from DHQ for Christmas (thanks, DHQ!), and the boys painted crosses and had lots of fun making amess. Then they found some very hard bread loaves (the long, skinny kind) and had sword fights outside with them.

I might even mention that this morning, Hope and I spoke to a class at BMCC about mental health in children and the effect it has on their education – I got to mention that any teacherwannabes could help on Friday nights and it would be appreciated – and some guy actually showed up to HELP!!! Woo hoo – He was a big help, too.

But nothing I could say would give the full extent of what happened and it would all sound very tame to anybody who read about it . . . so instead I will just say that it has been along, tiring, but fulfilling day. And I hope my friend sleeps well in her new bed at the shelter.

New Step Study Groups

You want growth - well, we've got groups! Come to one of the new Step Study groups and see how the Bible can give you the tools to victorious living! A life truly changed is truly changed by Him!

Monday nights -

Women's Group led by Tammy M. - childcare provided - at 4:30pm - so you can get home for dinner!

Men's Group led by John Booth - don't miss out.

Tuesday - 4:09pm - Men's Accountability. Not for the faint of heart, but maybe for the weak of discipline. You can keep each other accountability, provide support, encouragement, prayer and maybe a little head-slapping! (What WERE you thinking????)

Wednesday - the Midweek Point to replenish your soul. Start with dinner at 5:00pm (so you don't have to rush home and then get stuck there!), some worship at 6:00pm, and then bible study groups for adults and teens. Jr. Singing Company meets during the Bible Study time and Jr. Soldier Preparation Classes are starting up as well.

Thursday - Women's Step Study Group - led by Florencia R. childcare provided but game boys are welcome!

Friday - It's back to Celebrate REcovery. We've got the Large Group Meetings (they count on your cards), the small groups for men and women, and youth programs that teach character-building. The kids call it earning their chips - but we know that might be a little different!

So, no excuses - there is something for everyone!

Happy New Years 2009

Well, we sure can decorate! the music, well, we've got to get a playlist for next year! The DJ was great - and the lights were fun - but there's got to be a "clean" list of songs for a party! we had fun and it was good, clean, safe fun!

Chip Night

Chip Night - it's a beautiful thing. You get to hear everyone's anniversay - from the 24 hour ones to the 24 year ones - that would be Cynthia - woot woot!

Don got his 20 year chip - coin - in September. You are truly my hero. Mine is coming up - because of you, my love! Jesus kept me on the course but you gave me the inspiration to get on the road!

We will start having our Court of Awards for the Troops on those nights beginning in November as well.

It's so good having Tess back - and the exciting thing is that she will be getting her oldest daughter back - God truly restores what the locusts took away.

Back in the swing of things . . .

Well, I guess there really is a summer lull. It didn't seem like it to me because we had camps and PSYC and all . . .but the last few weeks, Celebrate Recovery has been packed with people! We've had about 100 each week and it's been fun and exciting and whew!

Our latest development has been the children's programs - we were basically just trying to get by each week but the number of children has grown so much that we are going to start the infamous SAY programs - Salvation Army Youth - Sunbeams, Girl Guards, Adventure Corps.

At first, we were thinking of doing a Bible Study but we realized that these programs are perfect - they are character building, they teach life skills, group relationships, achievements, etc. We are excited! we have a schedule for rotational parents for nursery and preschool and the coffeeshop time will even have a focus for kids, as well!

We started another series of Step Studies groups on Thursday nights and it seems to be going well. The one on Wednesday nights have bonded closely and are working their way diligently through the books.

Keep coming back - it works!

Happy Birthday, Pendleton CR!

Hard to believe it's been so long since I posted - lots of stuff has happened!

We celebrated our one year birthday at Celebrate Recovery in Pendleton, Oregon. It was great fun - John from Boise was the guest - it was testimony night and wow - well, let's just say it was a great testimony.

In kids programs, we had fun as well . . .considering that 15 kids were gone to camp, we still had about 15! About 8 were in the nursery and it was funny to look in the door and see Annie with two kids being bounced on her lap!

We had to start two different coffeeshops - one for families, one for adults. The kids are crazy - is that common with kids who come from families in recovery?

Prisoners of War - or Fighting Blind Enemies

There is a little known story of Elisha blinding the enemy in 2 Kings 6:8-22. In the Bible, we read about how he knows of the enemies location and each time the enemy wants to attack, the men of Israel are ready for the King of Aram. Then the King of Aram seeks out Elisha and surrounds his town with chariots and a great army. The servant of Elisha is afraid until his eyes are opened to see the surrounding Armies of the Lord and they have chariots of FIRE! However, they aren't even needed because Elisha prays for blindness in the enemy army and then leads them (for 13 miles) deep into Israeli territory (into the city of Samaria).

He then prays for their sight to be restored and instead of surrounding the enemy army and killing them, they prepared a great feast for them - with food and drink - and then sent them back to their king. It worked. God got the glory and the fighting from that enemy ceased.

What a great illustration and picture of The Salvation Army. We are aware of the strongholds of the enemy - for example - alcohol - yes, the Bible says drink a little wine and is not exclusively against the consumption of it. Many cultures take a little beer with their meal. Is this a sin? The Bible does not say it is. But it certainly can be - and often is - a stronghold for the enemy. In the Army, we become aware of many of the pitfalls and strongholds that can capture us and make us "prisoners of war." We teach our people to be aware of the location of the enemy - his wily ways . . .

When we become surrounded by seemingly insurmountable odds, we need to remember the flag that encircles us - the Blood and the Fire.

I love the next part, too - the enemy is brought into the city - and then treated with kindness and love. Are they converted? Sadly, no. Did they stay? No, they returned home. But were they enemies any longer? The Bible says no. It's the people who were treated kindly but they took reports back home to the king.

I see The Salvation Army here so clearly. The world sees us how they want to see us - a social services organization, a good rehab organizatin, people who do lots of good. When they are brought inside the city, they realize we are a church - a religious group of fanatics who are doing nice things for people for an ulterior motive - to convert them. They begin to see us as we really are - people of God (which can sometimes be very offensive in a tolerant world that is not tolerant of Christianity). And yet, just about the time, they reach for their weapons to throw at us (cries of discrimination, threats of funding losses, etc.), we do the same thing to them that we do to everyone else (hopefully) - we treat them with love and kindness and respect (I hope!).

Now the enemy KING in our world is not going to be happy if we are nice to people who are in his kingdom and he is not willing to call a cease-fire just because we feed drug addicts and alcoholics. But we can expect less direct fire - because after all, people are people - and when you treat an enemy (who is within your power) kindly, they often respond with embarassed retreat.

And lest you want the argue the idea, remember who is encamped outside the city - the Army of God - ready to fight at the command of the Lord - for us.

If God is for us, who can be against us?

Pastor Darren

Pastor Darren went to Detox yesterday. He's not really a pastor but he wants to be. . .unfortunately he struggles with his other friend, the bottle. He loves the Word of God and he loves Jesus but when addiction grips you, it is hard to escape. . .

Here's a miracle God did for him. As we grew closer to Detox, he became more and more nervous . . .I finally caught on and asked, "Darren, is there any reason they WON'T let you in?" He finally admitted that four years earlier, he had been 86'd out of detox and told he couldn't ever come back. Great! I immediately started praying while we continue to drive. When we got there, we prayed about God providing the healing and Darren providing the surrender . . .and went in.

The woman at the desk looked hard and stern - "he'll never make it in," I thought. She looked up his name and, sure enough, she came out carrying a card. I could feel Darren tense up next to me - and I felt sorry for him - this had been his last hope. The camp by the river was not providing him with any means to change his ways . . and he had let all his friends down with this return to the bottle. The people that he had spoken to Jesus about didn't see the truth in his testimony.

She finally spoke. "Well, it looks like you haven't been here since 2002 - so you're good to go. Come on. Get a move on. I haven't got all day." Just like that. No record of his past -no mention of the event in 2004.

God does that for us - wipes the slate clean. He is good - and he loves Darren.

Families are in Recovery together

When a parent starts the journey to wholeness, he or she takes his whole family with them. Sometimes the kids are in foster care, sometimes they are still in their life of chaos - but always they are taken down the road with the parent.

As the parent heals, they are left with the children that they have raised (or not raised, as is often the case) and, more often than not, the child is not comfortable leaving the life that they have come to know. Many times, the child has been in control of their own life and when the parents start taking back the reigns, there is a time of rebellion and stubbornness.

We have about 30 kids in our church whose families have been reunited because the parents have started making better choices. These families come to church and experience peace and hope. they go home and - there to meet them at the door - is strife and arguing.

We want to find people who are called to work with these families and help bring them to wholeness, wholeness in Christ, wholeness as a family, wholeness within themselves.

We have 3 NA groups who meet at our church each week and the children come and play with one of the older ones being appointed as "babysitter." We have such a wonderful opportunity for ministry - and we are doing some already - but we could do so much more.

Sonday's Cool is providing a good basis for Friday nights but the other nights are waiting . . .the time is not here yet . . .or is it?

Who will go, says the Lord?

Caryn has a year

Caryn's mother has been praying for her family since she herself started a new life with Jesus. A few years ago, she started working at The Salvation Army because she was on TANF and you have to work someplace. The officers loved her and she began coming to the church - gradually beginning to understanding the forgiveness and grace of God.

Her family has been coming to Jesus one by one - and he keeps meeting them where they are . . .as they are.

That's how revolutions really work - they begin at the bottom level - grass roots - right where we are.

One year - way to go, Caryn!

Accountability

Accountability - a big word. But, as big as it is, it is much easier to say than it is to do. One of the strong points of our family (church/corps) is the accountability that goes on - sometimes to the extreme. We have agreed that we allow ourselves to be held accountable if we are doing something that is questionable as far as representing Christ - and we allow ourselves to be confronted on it.

When I find myself dealing with someone that I should be letting someone else work with, the ladies will confront me on it. When one of the men is caught looking at some eye-candy that strolls by, believe me - three other men will tackle him and hold him down (men are much mean than women!).

Unfortunately, it also allows for dissension and confrontation when it is not necessary.

A big word.

Step Study Groups

We have several step study groups going on and it is so encouraging to see people coming towards the corps as I'm leaving from the afternoon women's bible study - knowing that they are going to gather and apply God's word to their life just as we did.

Mary Ellen leads a group of 6-8 women and they have been going through the Recovery Principles together. The Recovery Principles take the Beatitudes and applies those verses to the 12 steps. The Step Study goes through each step/principle and the ladies are about to start their fourth step.

They are thinking of going on a 4th step retreat where you go up into the mountains and work on your past/your list . . . .your searching moral fearless inventory.

So what would be on mine? Well, this year, I've been learning that I tend to be a little . . .um, co-dependant . . . and I've been working on that. It was hard - and a little weird - to have Bible studies springing up all around me. And I'm not leading them or even going to them. In fact, when I finally did go to one that I wasn't leading, it was like a breath of fresh air - and I find myself eagerly looking forward to it each week.

So my codependancy is coming under control but it only means that I can now handle more things on my list . . .great!

What's on YOUR list . . .your searching moral fearless inventory?

Revolution 180

So we are going to make THIS blog the Celebrate Recovery blog - because in recovery, the idea is to make a 180 - turn clear around, go the other direction. Repentance means this same thing . . .it is so much more than just being sorry for what we've done wrong.

We are hoping to get a grant that helps us go to the next level - and we are going to try to put some foundational elements into place before we get the grant (I'm going on faith).

Celebrate REcovery is our Friday night church service that takes the Word of God and combines it with the Twelve Steps. I know that there is some controversy over whether or not the church is supposed to be incorporating "recovery" principles into it's ministry - but the way I look at it, Jesus is all about "recovery." The cool thing is that he is also about renewal and repentance.

We started about a year ago - using materials from Saddleback Church. They took the Beatitudes and very successfully were able to meld them with the Twelve Steps. There is an opening dinner - usually a BBQ, followed by a Large Group meeting (Church) which has rockin' music, testimonies, teaching, chip nights, etc. Then everyone breaks into Small Groups (men, women) and they meet and talk about the teaching (sort of like Sunday School on Friday nights!). Afterwards, we have a Sally's Cafe where we have snacks and goodies to munch on. IT all ends about 10pm on Friday night - except for the cleanup crew.

It's been going well - and it has brought a lot of people into the family of God. Some people come on Sunday mornings and some just come regularly on Friday nights. We have about 60-80 people each week - and it definitely keeps us jumping.

We'll keep writing in this blog about the ups and downs - the hard things, the good things, the people whose lives are changed. . .

For now, thanks to Robbin and the crew for keeping it going! Good work, guys!

Joshua 8-10

My Scripture – Joshua 8-10

My Observation - I see Joshua leading his people and fighting the neighboring kings. For the most part, when Joshua goes to battle, he takes direction and guidance from the Lord. But then, even when they don't inquire of the Lord, they stay true to their commitment. God helps them to be victorious.
My Application - Talk about a picture of salvation and holiness. Joshua and his people have entered into the Promised Land but still have to overcome the enemy in the land. We get saved - we are IN the Promised Land but there are still areas in our life where war is raging. we have to go into each area and root out the enemy -sometimes destroying it utterly (Jericho), sometimes salvaging what we can out of it (ai).

For example, in our corps - drug use is Jericho - destroy it completely. A life of immorality and premarital sex has brought about children - we need to destroy the immorality in our lives but we can still bring out the good that has come from it - children that God has created. Covenants made without seeking God's guidance - say,marriage to a non-Christian - can still be upheld with God's help, as long as we are acting NOW in accordance with God's will.

In all these areas, if we go in the strength of the Lord, he will go before us - and after us - and WITH us.

My Prayer - Lord, help me to not be discouraged and not be afraid. Lead me into the battle where I can see the enemy vanquished. I want to allow you to purge them all from my life. Keep me holding the flag!

Accountability for bible Readings - yikes

Accountability for bible reading . . . yikes!
Today, I got a phone call = from the same person who has called me every day for a week. A little annoying, actually - but it was a good call. Did I read the Bible today? It's my accountability partner - asking me about my Bible reading. Eight women, who have finally admitted that they are often too busy to read the Bible every day in a focused manner (they usually read it fairly haphazardly) are reading a chapter of Proverbs each day and journaling what strikes them (since today is the 30th, we all read Proverbs 30).

It's been good for this week - although some of us read other stuff, too. I came across so many verses that applied to stuff going on in my life. We started a notebook with pages dated 1 - 30 and each day, we moved to the next chapter - after writing a verse or two down. The next month, we will come back to that same chapter and target another verse to ponder. . . .

It's a good exercise to help get into God's word.

Odd Battlefields

The battle is fought in interesting places. Yesterday was our Celebrate Recovery meeting - and last week was chip night - an exciting night where everyone gets to get their "coin" for so many days/months/years of sobriety and freedom from some hangup.

Hope - 24 hours from codependency regarding her mom - which is huge, because her mom calls her 10 times a day and Hope has chosen not to answer her phone calls- for today.

Terry and Caryn both made a decision NOT to smoke anymore - at the writing of this blog, it has been 7 days. Jim, now has 3 weeks under his belt.

Joe-Bob showed up from out of state - said he couldn't make it without his family and he needed the Army. He has dealt with his 15 warrants in Florida, got permission from his P.O. to "go home" - and showed up on the bus, eager to see everyone again. I think he was a little surprised at all the new faces - but he was glad to see the old ones still around. I was overhearing the conversation at the lunch table, and he was asking "What's with you and God?" The response was - "I LOVE God. God loves me! What's with YOU and God!?"

And lately, it's been on Fridays after all the hustle and bustle has died down. Tiffany has been riding me to take people home and we talk about God and her life and her addictions. she says if she can keep busy until after 10:30pm, she'll be okay - she can go home and go to bed. But before 10, she'll stop by the convenience store for a beer (only one - but it's the quart), or call a friend (she says she is his mattress but it works for her - how sad is that . . . ). So last night she had "shotgun" and she talked about her week of clean (since our drive last week) and how she was nervous about tonight (saturday) which usually is when she falls on both counts. So tonight she will go over to the corps about 6pm to hang out with whoever else needs to hang out and maybe next week she will have two weeks.

Little pockets of warfare - and Chris is the victor in all of them.

1 cor. 15:57 57But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Sundays are always good but some Sundays shine brighter . . .

Today was incredible. Sundays often are but this one was especially nice.

We had Sunday School - and this starts the new session of lessons - with the new teachers and classes. 25 in Adult Sunday School and about that many in the kids classes.

Sunday Holiness Meeting - the music just keeps getting better! I appreciate Chris and his able team leading the way for us to march into the presence of God.

We prayed over the Campbell Family. They are missing Jessica. I love when the whole church prays for people.

We had special guests from DHQ, Cindy C and her husband, Gil - and they participated in the program. Cindy presented a trophy for the corps because the kids who went to Music Camp did such a great job last year - and $500 - oh, yeah.

We commissioned 15 youth local officers - and sent them into the battle!

We also commissioned ten junior soldiers - and they looked smashing in their uniforms! Dan led them in the pledge and they are gonig to make a big difference in the Revolution - I can tell!

Captain Don finished his sermon series on 1 John and gave good word! He finished it with a challenge in the form of a video by Lifehouse - Everything. Catch that here . . . Over 40 people were at the altar. Lots of praying and crying out to God.

We enjoyed lunch with each other afterwards and finally made our way home.

The nap was well-received.

Uniforms

Uniforms, uniforms, uniforms.

We've been dealing with sizes, and measurements, and pants and tunics and blouses for two weeks now - and the rush is only getting worse.

Why uniforms now when only a few years ago - there was such an "death glow" to them? I see people getting excited about them because they are part of something - they belong.

We have people who have been enrolled as adherents who finally get enrolled at soldiers - and it is with much care and respect that they try on their tunic - gingerly, hopefully - and it is with much pride that they view themselves in the mirror. Pride is not such a good thing - except when it comes in the form of belonging to Christ - being part of His family - becoming more like Him.

Soon, we will get the final order of revised sizes and the final try-ons will begin.

We even ordered hats!

SAY Leadership Training

Today, a small group of Revolutionists traveled for several hours to join other people and learn all they could cram into their heads before heading home. Hope, Grace, Taghelor, Ariel and Captain Martha listened to Angel Webb talk bout the troops programs and how they could be an important part of our ministry.

We've done Sunbeams and Guards before but as corps officer, I couldn't keep up with the reporting and other factors - so we have been just having the girls come to the women's crafting nights and be part of the family that way.

Hope however got all excited about the possisbilities and took the fire home and gave some of it to Angie - whose fire turned into a huge bonfire. They have plans to revive the Sunbeam program at Pendleton Corps and can't wait until Thursday night.

Let's see how it works out!!

Speak Up and Live

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Martin Luther King Jr.


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