4
The War Cry | JULY 2015
T
he mission of The Salvation Army, as long as it shall stand
and serves those in need, shall be to proclaim the Gospel of
Jesus Christ. I am never ashamed to assert we are followers of
Jesus. We do not hesitate to take the name of Salvationist. But
if I am asked what our belief is, I reply, "It is Jesus Christ."
Our esteemed Founder, William Booth, said "We are a
salvation people. This is our specialty: getting saved, and then
getting somebody else saved and then getting saved more and
more, until full salvation on earth makes the heaven within, which is fi nally
perfected by the full salvation on the other side of the river."
I am a fi rst-generation Salvationist, as is my wife. We are grateful that those who
have gone before have left us an admirable and excellent heritage. These words,
written many years ago, continue to resonate in our hearts: "Many hands, many
hearts, many heads toiled and prayed and planned to bring the Army where it is
now. History will record but a small part of the events, and many of the actors will
be completely forgotten, but from God's history on the Great Muster day, every
heartache, every tear, every agonizing prayer, every day and night of toil will be
read out and credited to the proper persons. God won the victory, and to Him we
give the glory. It was not an uninteresting fi ght" (War Cry, July 16, 1892).
And the heritage to which I pin and bind myself to forever, God helping me, is
Jesus Christ.
MESSAGE FROM THE NATIONAL COMMANDER
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
W
ILLIAM
B
OOTH
FOUNDER
A
NDR�
C
OX
GENERAL
D
AVID
J
EFFREY
NATIONAL COMMANDER
The Salvation Army Territorial Commanders
P
AUL
R. S
EILER
Central Territorial Commander
B
ARRY
S
WANSON
Eastern Territorial Commander
D
ONALD
B
ELL
Southern Territorial Commander
J
AMES
M. K
NAGGS
Western Territorial Commander
The Salvation Army National Publications Department
Allen Satterlee
Editor�in�Chief
Frank Duracher
Assistant Editor-in-Chief
Jeffrey McDonald
Editorial Director
Roger O. Selvage Jr. Art Director
Gloria A. Hull
Design & Production Editor
Ashley C. Schena
Graphic Designer
Andrea K. Ricker
Graphic Designer
Cynthia A. Edelen
Publications Marketing Manager
Charles Piercey
Electronic Communications Co ordinator
Erin Thibeau
Editorial Assistant
Esther M. Satterlee Circulation Man ager
Elizabeth Duracher Publications Outreach Officer
Melissa Hollinger
Administrative Specialist
Member of the Evangelical Press Association.
Now in its 135th year, the
"War Cry" prints
on average 180,000 copies monthly, 1,700,000
at Christmas and 750,000 at Easter.
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O U R M I S S I O N
The Salvation Army, an international
movement, is an evangelical part of
the universal Christian church.
Its message is based on the Bible.
Its ministry is motivated by the love of God.
Its mission is to preach the gospel of
Jesus Christ and to meet human needs
in His name without discrimination.
National Publication of
T H E S A L V A T I O N A R M Y
JULY 2O15
Volume 135 | Number 9
The War Cry (ISSN 1550�5286) is published 14 times a year at
615 Slaters Lane, P.O. Box 269, Alexandria, VA 22313.
Single copies $1.50. Subscriptions $15 a year USA, $15.50
Canada, $16.50 overseas (U.S. currency). Periodical postage
paid at Alexandria, VA 22314 and additional mailing offices.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The War Cry, 615 Slaters
Lane, P.O. Box 269, Alexandria, VA 22313.
�2015 The Salvation Army
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken
from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright �1996,
2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188, USA. All rights reserved.
T
he East End of London in 1865 was spiritual bleakness
manifested. Had William Booth searched, he could not
have found a less likely place for a permanent mission, let
alone the founding of a worldwide movement. Yet it was there,
until it was over here and over here and over there, until the
sum of those heres and theres spread across 126 countries.
But listen! There are those still calling out to Booth's band,
"Come over here!" And others saying, "We want you there."
More heres and theres, some as totally unpromising as the East End.
How is it that such a peculiar movement prospers, or that, when pushed back,
it pushes on? Here the most limited and the most gifted sit together singing the
same songs, believing passionately in the same thing, facing challenges by the
same mission while worshipping the same Savior. But that last point is the
answer. It never was about what people are but what they are meant to be. It is
the recognition that the most polished and pretty are fl awed, fatally fl awed, but
there is a Savior, a Redeemer who sees beyond the scars and stuff to fi nd the
lost sons and daughters of Adam, not only repairing them but also making them
into something better than they could ever have been without Him. They sang of
that Savior in the hot, stuffy tent in 1865 and we sing of Him still in the grand
celebrations of 2015. Our Lord Jesus is the Savior and without Him, the word
salvation in our name has no meaning.
We celebrate not just an organizational milestone, but God, who infuses life
into our people and so into our movement. We cannot take our next breath
without Him; we dare not take a single step if He does not lead; we cannot think
of another tomorrow if He will not be there to show us what's next. We confess
after 150 years that we have no strength but what He has given. Nor would we
want it any other way.
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