Salvation Army Commando's ???

Yesterday, while 'surfing' the Web, I came across a headline which read, "Salvation Army sending Commandos to Nigeria in Search of Missing Girls!" I thought to myself that this illustrates some of the crazy stuff you can find on the internet!

Then I started mulling the thought over. As part of the Christian Church, would it be too far fetched to think of The Salvation Army sending elite fighting forces into troubled parts of the world for Jesus? After all, that is what aggressive evangelism is about, isn't it?

Now, to be clear, Salvation Army forces are 'Soldiers without Swords' who preach love and peace and, most importantly, deliverance from sin! If we had such an elite force, they would not be seeking to destroy God's creation....they would be seeking to save it!!!!

Of course, we DO have them! We call them soldiers and officers! Tens of thousands of them in 120 countries around the world. This is their mission....to save the lost!

Well, whether we call them soldiers, officers or, as the web article called them...commando's, be sure they are there fighting the forces of evil. They fight, not with hash-tags or military weapons, but with the Word of God!

Commando's...maybe not such a bad idea!

"Come, join our Army, to battle we go,
Jesus will help us to conquer the foe;
Fighting for right and opposing the wrong,
The Salvation Army is marching along.

Chorus
Marching along, marching along,
The Salvation Army is marching along;
Soldiers of Jesus, be valiant and strong;
The Salvation Army is marching along.

Come, join our Army, the foe must be driven;
To Jesus, our captain, the world shall be given;
Foes may surround us, we'll press through the throng;
The Salvation Army is marching along.

Come, join our Army, the foe we defy,
True to our colors, we'll fight till we die;
Saved from all sin is our war cry and song;
The Salvation Army is marching along.

Come, join our Army, and do not delay,
The time for enlisting is passing away;
Fierce is the battle, but victory will come;
The Salvation Army is marching along."

Not Today!

Since retiring, I have learned that it is still necessary, from time to time, to say "Not Today!" to yourself! Well, what do I mean by that? Sometimes we get so busy with commitments we make, that we work ourselves to exhaustion! As a caregiver, I have learned that care-giving is but one responsibility I face. In addition to this very special 'work', you still have to keep up with the housework, shopping, cooking, laundry and so much more. Then there are the outside commitments...perhaps work, volunteering, church and so many more activities.

I always want to be faithful to the responsibilities I have, however, there are times I get out of bed in the morning and have to say, "Not Today!" Today I will rest, recuperate, set many responsibilities aside and just take care of my physical and emotional health. Then, also, I have learned that it is OK to do this!

The problem is you can rarely plan for these occasions of rest. You need them when you need them! They just come, sometimes at the most inopportune times. Whenever they do come, know that it is OK to just 'shut down' and, as a friend recently said, take a "mental health day".

This is especially important to caregivers. You must take care to insure your help to others for years ahead.
Don't be afraid to say, "Not today", whenever it is necessary. That way you will be around much longer to fulfill all of your commitments!