A Summer To Remember

This is the blog that was put onto The Salvation Army's blog today;

Well this summer has been really busy, tiring, uplifting and eye opening for me. I’d finished college (finally!) and I did a bit of volunteer work at school but the first main thing on my agenda was the World Youth Convention that was to be held in Sweden in July.

When I applied for the WYC, I’ll admit, I wasn’t too sure about going but once I found out I was, I was overjoyed. I spent the year following my application trying to raise awareness of this event in my division and raising money to enable me to attend. All this time had passed and I’d made it to the airport on Wednesday 14^th July to meet with fellow delegates and to make our way to Sweden.

I remember being the first person, with Rebecca Perry, to turn up and meet Major Andrea Sawyer and Major Janet Robson. They were to be our chaperones for the next few days. Shortly after we met, more delegates arrived one being Matthew Brown. I remember this really well because he greeted me by asking me if I was Rebecca Billard, to which I replied yes, followed by “Apparently we used to play together when we were 2 years of age”. This was due to our officer parents being in neighbouring corps. Two minutes in and we’d already seen some of the connections the Army seems to be famous for! They’d be plenty more to come! The rest of the day enabled us as a territory to bond and make friends which set the foundations for the ‘WYC family’ we have today.

Thursday morning gave us time to ‘sight-see’ Stockholm although with the weather being 28C by 8.30am, we actually went shopping for shorts and had dinner at Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream shop. Thursday afternoon saw the raising of the banners to mark the beginning of such a big event which everyone there, and many more who weren’t present, believed was the start of the next movement of The Salvation Army! Amen! Shortly after, our opening meeting started with a mind blowing, spine-shivering, Amen-shouting introduction from all of the creative arts groups bringing us Send The Fire. I just remember being speechless, frozen to the spot with the weirdest feeling tingling down my spine that continued throughout the meeting. It was clear from the moment the first chord played that the Holy Spirit was working in Sweden and in the hearts and minds of everyone there.

The General spoke about how God raised up The Salvation Army to do His work and that we had been called to the WYC for a reason. It wasn't by chance we were there, it was by God's plan. We listened to many messages from the creative arts groups and tried to go live to Times Square in New York. The mercy seat was flooded and people had to kneel at their seats or in the isles. The worship within the auditorium was spectacular and Major Mark Sawyer (TYS for U.K), amongst others, said that he's ‘never, ever experienced such powerful worship in all things he's ever been to.’ Words cannot describe what happened as the Spirit moved within us and this was just the first meeting!

The same atmosphere was around throughout the whole week and it really will be an experience I’ll never forget. I’ve made friends for life, been open to a whole new idea about what The Salvation Army really is and also been open to what God wants me to do with my life. The whole week spoke to me about where I’m heading in my life and whether I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing. I remember the meeting in which Commissioner Sue Swanson spoke about Officership very clearly, but what got me was the fact that there was also confirmation that there are other callings, not just Officership. She said that every Soldier of The Salvation Army needs to be open to the thought of Officership, but it isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay. It reassured me that whatever I do in life and wherever I go, God will be with me and He will tell me where I need to be, all I need to do is trust Him and be open to His will. It’s made me re-evaluate where I’m headed and I’m not as scared of the future as I used to be because I know He’s with me and I have a feeling that He’ll get His way in me anyway!! The WYC means an awful lot to me and it’s a privilege to be part of such an event and to be a part of the next movement of The Salvation Army. My hopes and prayers are that God will use this event to ‘Raise Up’ The Salvation Army and that we will use this event to ‘Raise Up’ our Lord God Almighty.

My summers are usually busy as I’m on staff at my divisional J.S Camp and I student at my divisional Summer School (Break-a-way), so a few days after the WYC finished, I was straight into J.S Camp, whose theme for this year was ‘Go MAD’ (Go Make A Difference). We studied Noah, Joseph, Esther, the man who came through the roof and Pentecost. For me the story of Esther stood out. Esther was chosen to be Xerxes’ Queen but she didn’t tell him she was a Jew. Esther’s uncle Mordecai didn’t like one of the royal officers Haman as Haman was determined to kill all the Jews. Mordecai ended up gaining the same rank as Haman when Esther decided to tell Xerxes of Haman’s plot and her race. This resulted in Haman being killed and Esther saving her people. The story shows us that God’s still working whether we see it or not. Esther couldn’t understand why God told her not to reveal her race when she got married, but a few years later when Haman’s plot came to light, she realised that she was there to save her people. I know I’ve looked back on my life and seen God’s hand working, but when I think back to how I felt at the time, I didn’t realise. I think it’s really reassuring that He’s always around and His plan for us is always in action, whether we realise or not.

Break-a-way (NW Division Summer School) was another God-filled week in which the story of Esther came up again! Esther is a story that has me thinking about my own life and how God is going to go about using me. When Spire visited on the Monday of our camp, they did two sessions on Identity and Vocation, both of which fitted in perfectly with what had been happening at the WYC and at JS Camp. I was confused at what my future had in store. I had applied to university but I wasn’t sure whether that was the way I should go and so these two sessions really hit home for me. I now know that whatever happens, the Lord will bring me on the right path at the right time, it’s all His timing. It’s all about trusting Him, something that is really hard, but worth it. Break-a-way always helps me on my journey and I believe that Summer Schools are very important to the youths’ spiritual journey.

My summer has been jam-packed full with God-filled events. I’ve been filled to my capacity with the Holy Spirit all summer and I know that that will not always be the case, but this summer has opened up my whole life to me! Whatever God wants me to do; I’m open to do it. 2 months ago, I wouldn’t have been open to His will at all. I know that it doesn’t matter which path I take to get to where He wants me to go because He’ll be with me the whole way if I let Him, and I’m going to let Him. All I need to do is stay open to His will and stay close to Him.