How long????

Today marks 100 days until commissioning!!! I can't believe this, time has flown by. What have I learnt? Well, I have learnt loads although I haven't learnt how to articulate exactly what it is. In 100 days I will be nervous, but very excited. Am I ready to be an officer? Well, kind of. I feel ready today although this will (and does) change every day.

He is Risen!

I am just recovering from a really good Easter. I spent Easter this year in Leek in Staffordshire with a group of Cadets and 2 college Officers. The theme of the weekend was The Big Hope. The events of the weekend were all supporting the theme. On Saturday we had an outreach event in the town centre giving out leaflets, colouring pages for the children, Face painting and distributing Hot Cross Buns. As I think back at this outreach, I can see the theme of hope coming through. We gave the people hope that The Salvation Army is not just after their money. We want to offer them friendship, and much more than that, we can point them in the direction of the Giver of all Hope, God.

Saturday evening was the youth event. The Youth leaders took the young people through the events of the last 4 days of Easter. Us Cadets led them through the resurrection section reminding them that because of the resurrection they can receive life in all it's fullness.

Sunday morning was Sunday School which was led by our group. This was on the theme of Mission Impossible and ended with the reminder that with God, the Easter story became Mission Possible. I led part of the morning that followed Sunday School. I felt that I made a few mistakes during this meeting, but I was told by the college officer to be myself and so I was. At least the people of Leek can see that we are not perfect!

The evening meeting was led by the rest of the group and they were really good and led us into God's presence in a good way. I feel that God blessed our ministry this weekend, and through this He also blessed me and I hope that He blessed the others as well.

Correction

I have been corrected. Raylton does not have a cyst, he has an abscess. I apologise to anyone who has been mislead about Raylton's medical problem.

Raylton's Adventures

Raylton is poorly at the minute although he doesn't seem to know how poorly he is. He has got a cyst on his bottom which is quite big. Because of this he has had to visit the vet although it doesn't seem to bother him.

Before last week Bramwell had never been to a vets. I think both Raylton and Bramwell were equally excited at the prospect. Raylton was very well behaved when the vet got him out of his carrier and sat him on the table. Bram was also well behaved at this moment. However, when I got them both home and Bramwell tried to give Raylton his medication Raylton was not as obliging.

Next week, Raylton is having an operation to remove this cyst.

Where I am.

When I was a child, we used to sing a song in the children's singing group that went along the lines of Where I am, I'll find you, where I am, you are. It isn't far away in places where I'd like to be, but where I am, you are. The second verse is similar, but is where I'll go I'll find you, and the last line says, please help me to remember in the days that are to come that where I'll go, you'll be there too.

I was reminded of this song during Spiritual Day here at the college, and it was good to be reminded of this. Especially as I think about my move to Welwyn Garden City and all of the preparations that this entails. Of course I know that God is already preparing the folk for the arrival of Bram and myself.

Am I Weird?

We had a time of sharing in college yesterday about what insights we had gained from reading and thinking about Habbakuk 3:17-19. It says, "Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights" (New International Version). Everyone else was saying about how they should praise God in the difficult times of their lives, but I was thinking about my time at Poplar when the same people kept coming in for food parcels, with the same problems, and no matter what I did to help them they did not change, and how I should still show God to them by my actions despite them not changing.



Another example of my thinking differently to everyone else was last week when we talked about what the Christmas story had said to them this year. They were all talking about the Shepherds, and the wise men, and I was thinking about how the Christmas story is one of pain. Maybe I just like to think differently to everyone else, or maybe I am not capable of being normal.

Beautiful Picture of Community

This Christmas we have lost one of our members of the Corps. It has been a very sad time for us, but what has emerged has been a beautiful out showing of love and care for everyone within the Corps community. When the sad news was announced during the carol service there was tears, but the people who were crying were comforted by people from the congregation.

This for me was a display of a loving, caring and accepting congregation. It is images that I will never forget. It is what I believe a true Christian community should look like in times of shared grief. People looking out for each other, helping each other through.

200 Days to go!!!!!

Today marks 200 days until commissioning. It's approaching fast! We have now finished all of our essays for 2007 and tomorrow evening is the carol service which marks the end of term.

Is it may age or has this year gone fast? Still, there is time to relax before the real work starts on Christmas day which we spend with people from our district of Poplar, Stepney, Whitechapel, and wherever else people come to us from (Strictly speaking Stepney and Whitechapel are not in our district but people choose to spend the day with us from these areas).

It Is Finished!

I have worked out how to do a countdown clock! I can now see at a glance how many days, minutes, hours and seconds it is until commissioning. I'm so excited! Only 240 days!!!! I'm sure you can see my excitement at both being able to do something like create a countdown clock and the fact that commissioning will soon be upon us from all the exclamation marks in my text. I hope the Corps or centre that gets us as their Officers will be just as excited as us!

Work in progress

I have added a countdown to my commissioning at the bottom of this page, but I haven't quite worked out how to make it countdown yet. If anyone has any hints or ideas please let me know. Maybe my mind is still swimming after a morning of Christian Themes with the topic of why does God allow evil in the world, and Faith in Context with the topic of Post Modernity. I have questions in both. I think God is stretching me today which always has to be positive.

Happy Birthday

Yesterday was my brother's birthday. He is now the grand old age of 34, so happy birthday Mark! Yesterday also marked the 141st birthday of Poplar Corps. I'm sure that Poplar Corps of today does not bear a lot of similarities of 141 years ago, although I would hope that it relies as heavily on God today as it did all of those years ago.



I also discovered yesterday that October 31st marks the day that the reformation commenced. It seems like quite a notable date in the calender!



And finally it was halloween. I think that we were really lucky because we only had one lot of kids wh ocame to our door trick or treating. Although it wasn't that lucky because it was at 21.55. Slightly late for doing that kind of thing I thought. But I was reliably informed that these kids were suitably dressed in costume.

Welcome Back to PIP

Monday I started back to my PIP, which is my Personal Initiative Project that I have to do whilst in College. This is something that I really enjoy. I work with 9 - 13 year olds at the Youth Club at Poplar Salvation Army. I have been away from the Corps for 3 months because of my summer appointment, but walking into the youth club on Monday evening it seemed like I had never been away.

I did what I enjoy doing, and was on the door, taking the kids money and signing them all in. This week I saw some kids that I hadn't seen for over a year, but for some reason they remembered me!

One of the main reasons that I particularly enjoyed club this week was because it was such a happy place. I saw a glimpse of heaven lived out on earth in the heart of Poplar. It was beautiful. I think for the first time since doing club I could see God's hand in the work that we were doing. We weren't praying, we weren't praying, we weren't preaching, and I don't think that God was mentioned at all all evening, but He was definitely there with us.

Wow! The summer has flown past and I am now back at the Training College for another 9 months. As I was singing our sessional song today, my mind was going back to all sorts of things that have happened during the past year. I thought about my welcome meeting last year when I marched down the aisle, the last in my session with all of my friends from Poplar Corps supporting me. I thought about the commissioning of the session that have just been commissioned, and how I was thinking about my own commissioning then. God is the same today as He was last year at our welcome meeting, it is just my understanding and knowledge of God that has changed.

Over the summer I have seen some amazing things that God has done through my work. He brought some unexpected people into the prayer day that I had organised for my mission project. I am totally amazed that God is actually allowing me to take part in His work. This is something that I can't understand, but be thankful that I have a part to play in His plan for the world.

My Mission Project

When we are sent to our summer placements there are a number of things that we are expected to do. one of these is a mission project. Basically, the college want you to do a project that helps you to reach the local community. My mission project was a day of prayer.

I was slightly concerned that the prayer stations that I had organised around the room were a little too simple. I was also concerned that I hadn't put enough work into it. Again, God proved to me that it wasn't my mission project but His.

The day was really good, and well attended with some people praying for about 4 hours continuously. It was brilliant to see so many people wanting to pray.

What a great day!

Yesterday was a great day. I love it when I have great days. It was good, because I had really good conversations with people. I found out lots about various people who enter our charity shop. I also got the opportunity to pray with someone, which is always good. Nerve racking but good.

It's days like today when I realise that I will love my job. Ok, I mean my life, after all, Officership is not a job but a lifestyle choice.

I am a battle axe.

I'm turning into a battle axe! Today I was in the charity shop at the hall when 3 men who were drunk came in. They started looking through the rails of the shop and started to change t-shirts in the middle of the room. I had to tell them not to do this, because I suspected that they would change into their trousers in public as well. This was confirmed a few moments later, although they respected my wishes and got changed in the street. I didn't ask them to change in the street, I just asked them not to do it in the shop.

After this incident today, I really felt at home. This type of thing would have happened at Poplar when I worked for them. I wonder how many of my session mates have had to deal with this kind of incident this summer.

A hug makes it better

I had a bit of a tough week on placement last week. This culminated with me questioning my calling to be a Corps Officer, as opposed to being a Salvation Army Social Services Officer, which is what I would like to do at some time during my service. I asked myself if I would be able to deal with the kind of problems that being a Corps Officer brings. Yesterday, there was not many people in the meeting, and was hard going trying to lead it, but I just laughed my way through.

At the end of this particularly tough meeting, and tough week I was greeted at the door by one of our elderly ladies, who must be nearly 90 if not over 90. She had a big smile on her face, and said to me, "you're lovely you know". I was clearly taken aback and she gave me a big hug. This comment and hug made me feel on top of the world. Today, one of my ladies in afternoon fellowship gave me a hug because she had enjoyed today's meeting which I thought was not very good as well. Seems to me that God is trying to tell me something about being in the centre of His will.

I'm a second year

Today, I have been thinking about what being a second year Cadet is all about. So here are a few of my thoughts.
1. I will be a commissioned officer of The Salvation Army in 48 weeks.
2. My essays will be longer.
3. God loves me just as much today as He did the day I entered the training college nearly 1 year ago.
4. Expectations will be higher of my ability to lead meetings.
5. My shoulders are a little heavier (2nd year Cadets have 2 bars on their epaulets, 1st years have 1).

My hopes for the coming year are -

• I will grow in my relationship with God.
• I will grow in my knowledge of God.
• I will be the best person that I can be for God.
• I will develop into the best Salvation Army officer that I can be.

Caught in a trap.

When I started college, one of my biggest fears was that I would get caught up in the trap of comparing my results for my essays. Slowly but surely my marks have improved, and as they get higher I then expect higher marks or my essays. I am now caught in this trap. If I get lower than a certain mark for an essay I am disappointed, which my rational mind knows is a silly way to be, but it doesn't stop me being this way!

Update

I have now been at Clapton 4 times. This seems weird to write, because in some ways it feels like I have always been there. Today I was working in the kitchen, and it all seemed really natural, not like a new job at all. Well, except for when I gave somebody 1 piece of toast when it should have been 2, but it was handled graciously.

I am really conscious that I can hide away from people in the kitchen, or in general busyness, which is something that is very easy for me to do. This is instead of the more difficult task of talking to people.