War Cry - March, 2015 Page 42

AUNT SALLY is happy to provide free personal advice and opinions on a variety of subjects.

Need help with relationship problems, spiritual questions or parenting situations?

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Send your questions or comments to Aunt Sally via email at [email protected] or by
regular mail at Ask Aunt Sally, Salvation Army Publications, 615 Slaters Lane, Alexandria, VA 22313.

Questions appropriate for printing in the War Cry will be answered through this column.

Dear Small:

Considering there are over seven bil-

lion people living on Earth, one of eight
planets orbiting the sun in a universe
sprinkled with billions of stars, it is easy
to feel like a microscopic speck of dust
in a vast arena!

But three things make us remarkable:

we are made in the image of God, He
was personally involved in our creation
and we have an eternal soul.

God said, "Let us make human beings

in our image, to be like us" (Genesis 1:26a)

God the Creator, the almighty ruler

of the universe and beyond, who is all-
powerful, all-knowing and everywhere
present at once, said, "Let us make man
in our image"! We stand out in the uni-
verse because we are made in the im-
age, in the likeness, of God.

We are living beings with individu-

ality, autonomy and reason (Sal-
vation Army Handbook of
Doctrine

). We are made

for relationships and
community. We yearn
for a personal rela-
tionship with God.
We resemble our
Father in Heaven!

While God "cre-

ated" and "made"
the other creatures of
the earth, sky and sea,
He personally breathed His
breath of life into man's nostrils.
The very breath of God filled the lungs
of the first human being, from whom all
others descended.

And we have a soul! We have a spirit

given to us by God that is eternal and
will outlive our earthly bodies.

While each of these wonders occurred

at the creation of the first man and be-

came part of the DNA of humanity, God's
interest in us continues on a very per-
sonal level, with each of our lives.

God's Word tells us that He formed us in

our mother's womb (Psalm 139:13) and
that He knows the very numbers of hairs on
each of our heads (Matthew 10: 29-31). We
are special because God considers us spe-
cial, because God loves us. And we are
special because Jesus Christ, God's only
Son, paid for us with His very life.

When you consider all of these marvels,

it is the universe that is small next to us!

Dear Lookin':

There has been a considerable

amount of discussion, debate, opinion
and writing on the subject of traditions
and relevance of late. Much of the con-
versation is predicated upon two false
assumptions: tradition has no value in
today's culture; and Christians must make

themselves and the Gospel relevant

to non-Christians in order to

reach them for Christ.

First, tradition has al-

most reached the sta-

tus of villainy in some

segments of soci-
ety today, including
among people of faith.

Granted, there are a

few practices that could

benefit from an honest

review to determine if their

use still contributes to the spiri-

tual health of the congregation.

Overall, the rituals, ceremonies and

observations that form traditions in our
churches are a link to people from past
generations who have worshipped and
worked for Jesus. There is something
we can learn from them. Traditions re-
mind us of our roots as a denomination.
They provide consistency, and in some

instances contribute to our unity. Good
traditions ultimately glorify God and aug-
ment our continuing development as
people of faith. We need our traditions.

The second assumption is relevance,

and it has been something of a buzz-
word in the Christian community for a
while now. Basically, it is the perceived
need to show that Jesus and Christi-
anity have some use or value to non�
Christians. Of course, Christians and the
church should not live in the past. They
should be interested in finding ways
to engage the culture and reach out to
those who are not in relationship with
Jesus. We have the answer! We need to
let the whole world know!

The difficulty arises when the man-

ner in which some seek to engage the
culture compromises their own wit-
ness, so that they blend in and have no
light-bringing effect. Our Savior did not
blend in with the world in order to win
believers; Jesus was confrontational
and countercultural. That same Je-
sus who died for the world said, "Don't
imagine that I came to bring peace to the
earth! I came not to bring peace, but a
sword. I have come to set a man against
his father, a daughter against her
mother, and a daughter-in-law against
her mother-in-law"

(Matthew 10:34-35).

Another difficulty with the concept of

relevance is when the church's spiritual
influence and leadership is weakened
by refusing to share biblical concepts
that make people feel uncomfortable.
In particular, the focus of activity and
service planning by the church should
be seeking God's will first and foremost
and that He be pleased and glorified
with all that is planned.

While the manner in which we share

our beliefs is important, it is what Chris-
tians believe that infuriates many who
live outside of God's will. All the ef-
fort in the world to be welcoming,
non-threatening and engaging will not
change that. And it is the very thing
that we dare not compromise on:
God's authoritative Word to mankind.

The War Cry | MARCH 2015

Dear Aunt Sally:

With the universe so big, what
makes me so special?

-- Feeling Small

Dear Aunt Sally:
How do we keep our traditions
and stay relevant?

-- Lookin' for the Balance