2 Timothy 1:3: Let Us Pray

Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 09 Oct. 2011 and The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 23 Nov. 2015 by Captain (Major) Michael Ramsay

 

This is the November 2025 version, to view the October 2011 version, click here:

https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2011/10/2-timothy-13-let-us-pray.html

 

2 Timothy 1:3: “I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.” I have a story about thanking God… or talking to Him anyway.

 

A golfer, now in his golden years, had a lifelong ambition to play one hole at the famous Pebble Beach in California, the same way the pros do it: The pros drive the ball out over the water straight onto the green that is on a spit of land that juts out off the coast. It was something he had tried hundreds of times without success. His ball always fell short, into the ocean. Because of this he never used a new ball on this particular hole. He always chose an old one with a cut or a nick in it.

      This one time when he came to Pebble Beach to try again and he arrived at that particular hole, he teed up an old, cut up ball and said a silent prayer. As he was about to strike the ball a loud voice from the heavens says, “Wait! Replace that old ball with a brand new ball.”

      The old golfer did but he still had some misgivings. He still lacked faith a little bit that he would ever see his ball again despite the fact that the Lord seemed to be implying that he was going to finally achieve his life-long ambition of avoiding this water trap, just like the pros. Hesitantly, the old golfer stepped up to the tee one more time, this time with a brand new ball and as he did, he heard the voice again from above: “Wait. Step back. Take a practice swing.” He did.

      The voice boomed again, “Take another practice swing.” He did. Then, after a moment of silence, the Lord finally said, “put the old ball back on the tee.”

 

2 Timothy 1:3: “I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.” Here the golfer can thank God that He spared him his new golf ball.

 

We are going to be looking at 2 Timothy today in our lead up to the Advent Season this year. Paul probably wrote this letter while he was in prison in Rome in the mid-60s CE. Now, this imprisonment was different than other imprisonments that Paul suffered. Previously Paul was under house arrest – an electronic monitoring type of situation, albeit before electronics of course - where Paul had a fair bit of leniency in his imprisonment. Now, however, he is in a dungeon. Tradition has it that this is Paul’s final imprisonment; He will only leave the dungeon for the grave. Paul will die via capital punishment here in Rome and he is now awaiting that conclusion.[2] The conditions in the dungeon were probably not as bad as those for people today in Guantanamo Bay – I doubt that the Romans were actively torturing him like the USA does there - but Paul’s experience may not be entirely dissimilar and probably even worse than prisons in this country. It certainly is not the house arrest that Paul had experienced earlier.[3] This is what life is like for Paul as he is writing this letter to his friends.

 

In his letter, one can see that Paul is obviously lonely. He misses his church family (2 Timothy 1:4). He is remembering in this letter his church family in Ephesus,[4] especially Timothy and Timothy’s mother, Eunice; and Timothy’s grandmother, Lois (2 Timothy 1:5). Paul wants to see them again. He misses them. Paul, as he expresses his loneliness in this letter, is in all likelihood having feelings not entirely dissimilar to the feelings experienced by Officers and others who are moved from community to community in the Army (cf. Romans 1:11; 1 Thessalonians 3:6 and Philippians 1:8). We are separated from those we love and with whom we have together served the Lord.

 

Paul, the apostle, is reaching out in this letter to his friends and church family and look: what is one of the first things that he tells them? He says, “I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers” (2 Timothy 1:3).

 

Paul says that he thanks God day and night as he constantly remembers them. The Authorized Version reads, “without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.” Without ceasing (Greek: adialeipton) Paul remembers his Christian brothers and sisters in his prayers (cf. Romans 1:9-10; Philippians 1:3; Colossians 1:31; Thessalonians 1:2; 3:6). The Greek word used here, adialeiptos (unceasingly), is a powerful word and is found elsewhere in Paul’s writings only in Romans 9:2 (cf. Romans 1:9-10; Philippians 1:3; Colossians 1:31; Thessalonians 1:2; 3:6).[5] Paul in this letter is saying that whenever – day or night - the Lord brings Timothy, Eunice and Lois to his mind, Paul prays for them.[6]

 

Paul knows the power of prayer. Paul in another letter to this same church in Ephesus states about prayer that after we have put on the full amour of God that we are to – Ephesians 6:18-  “…pray in the spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”

 

Prayer is a powerful thing and even when Paul is imprisoned, he still has access to this power of prayer and he is not afraid to use it. 2 Timothy 1:7: “for God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:3: “I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.”

 

This is important for us to remember. We need to constantly remember our Christian brothers and sisters in prayer. We should continue to uphold them in prayer. We should also pray for all the saints, as Ephesians 6:18 records.

 

We all know what the Bible means when we read the word ‘saint’ in the New Testament, right? In the New Testament a saint is NOT a dead person through whom God does miracles. ‘Saint’, when we read the term in the New Testament just means, ‘Christian’.[7] The word literally means ‘holy’ or ‘holy one’ and ‘saint’ was what Christians were commonly called in the first century (cf. TSA doc. 10).[8] When we read the word ‘saint’ in the New Testament, in our mind we should probably hear the word, ‘Christian’. We should pray for all the Christians and we should, like Paul, pray for people without ceasing day and night, whenever the Lord brings them to our thoughts (cf. for ex. Acts 9, Romans 15, 1 Corinthians 16, Philippians 4:21-22, Colossians 1).

 

When Susan and I were urban missionaries in Canada’s poorest postal code, on Vancouver’s downtown eastside (DTES), with The Salvation Army’s 614 Corps, they began a War Room there. The War Room was a prayer room. We had a room in a slum hotel that looked out on that infamous corner of Main and Hastings Street in the DTES of Vancouver. There were people praying in that room overlooking that intersection, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for more than a year anyway. We would each sign up for 3-hour shifts of prayer in the War Room. I often took the 5am – 8am shift. At first a 3-hour prayer shift seemed like a long time but by the end of each shift one inevitably wondered how the time passed so quickly. It was a wonderful time and place to commune with God. Some would take one prayer shift in the War Room a week, others one shift a day, others sometimes more. Twenty-four hours a day, morning and evening, day and night, someone would be praying in that War Room in that slum hotel on Vancouver’s DTES and wow what a blessing that was. 2 Timothy 1:3: “I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers.”

 

Like we said before, prayer is a powerful tool and even when Paul is imprisoned, he still has access to this power of prayer and he is not afraid to use it. 2 Timothy 1:7: “for God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.” The Apostle Paul when he was in a dungeon awaiting execution, with a clear conscience, day and night would remember the saints in prayer. Paul, while he was in the dungeon, he was praying for the saints, the Christians, the other believers. Paul, while he was in jail awaiting execution, was praying for all those on the outside that the Lord was bringing to his mind.

 

This is important. We need to uphold each other in prayer. There are many things that need prayer. It is good to pray that in our own lives, that we follow the will of God and it is also important to pray for others. We have members of our corps who have been sick and or away; as we pray for them, God will use our prayers to use them to do His will. Prayer is a powerful tool and the church that prays together stays together. Prayer is a powerful tool and we should not be afraid to use it. We have a lot that we as a congregation are facing: City Hall TUP; Christmas hampers, Christmas services, kettles, meals, and more; We have emotional and spiritual care matters. We have so much we are facing – all of us and each of us: health and more.

 

We have all heard of as well, if we have not experienced ourselves, the power of prayer for salvation in people’s lives. How many people have we led in a prayer of confession of faith after family has been praying for them for years? We know the story of St. Augustine, of course; this was his story. His mother, St. Monica, prayed for him for many years before he came to the Lord and then the Lord used him to influence the church even unto this very day. Prayer is a powerful tool and we are to use it to uphold our Christian brothers and sisters day and night as the Lord brings them to our minds. This is important. We need to pray for each other.

 

A few years ago now, then General Linda Bond, the international leader of The Salvation Army called us all to pray as an Army. She has asked us to pray Thursday mornings for half an hour from 5am – 8am. This was a great practice.

 

Today you are welcome to pray here anytime when the building is open or you are welcome to pray in your home or you are welcome to pray wherever the Lord leads you to pray. Wherever you pray, let us here, as a church family, like Paul, let us, 2 Timothy 1:3, thank God, whom we serve, as our forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day we constantly remember each other in our prayers.

 

Let us pray.

 

---

[1] But cf. James D.G. Dunn, The 1st and 2nd Letter to Timothy and the Letter to Titus, (NIB XI: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2000), 776-781 on authorship and date.

[2] R.C.H Lenski, Interpretation of 1 Timothy, (Interpretation of Colossians, Thessalonians, Timothy, Titus, Philemon: Minneapolis, Minn.: Augsburg Publishing House, 1964),474.

[3] Walter W. Wessel and George W. Knight III, Introduction to 2 Timothy in NIV Study Bible (ed. Kenneth Barker; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002),1882

[4] James D.G. Dunn, The 1st and 2nd Letter to Timothy and the Letter to Titus, (NIB XI: Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2000), 781.

[5] Donald, Guthrie: Pastoral Epistles: An Introduction and Commentary. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1990 (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 14), S. 140

[6] W.E. Vine. ‘That without Ceasing’. In Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Word. (Nashville, Tennessee: Royal Publishers Inc., 1939),; cf. Expositors

[7] Cf. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, ‘40: Hagios’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 1995), p.1.

[8] John D.W. Watts. 'Holy.' In Holman Bible Dictionary, general editor Trent C. Butler. Nashville, Tennesee: Holman Bible Publishers, 1991), 660. Cf. G.B. Stevens in Hastings’ Bible Dictionary. Cited W.E. Vine. 'Holiness, Holy, Holily.' In Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Word. (Nashville, Tennessee: Royal Publishers Inc., 1939), 557.Cf. Paul Minear, Interpretation 37 no 1 Ja 1983, p. 22: In his death and resurrection, Jesus' holiness or sanctification became the measure and standard of all holiness, whether of places, times, things, or persons. (Key passages which reflect this are John 10:36; 17:17-19; I Cor. 1:2; 6:11; Heb. 2:11; 10:10; 12:14-24; 13:12-14.)"

Deuteronomy 15:1-11: Poor No More!

 Presented to The Salvation Army, Alberni Valley Ministries, 16 January 2022 and 16 December 2025, by Captain (Major) Michael Ramsay

 

This is the 2025 version, to view the earlier version, click here:

https://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2022/01/deuteronomy-151-11-poor-no-more-count.html

Deuteronomy is an interesting book. It begins with probably a recap for the children of the generation who left Egypt. It begins on Mt Sinai and the opening story is that of most of the Israelites declining the gift of the Promised Land – until it is too late. It then records their desert wanderings and various battles as well as Moses’ prohibition from entering the Promised Land; It then lays out a number of laws outlining how God’s people are to live, the most famous of which are the 10 Commandments listed in Chapter 5. Can anyone tell me what are the 10 Commandments?

 

1.     “I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.

2.     “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

3.     “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.

4.     “Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

5.     “Honour your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you.

6.     “You shall not murder.

7.     “You shall not commit adultery.

8.     “You shall not steal.

9.     “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.

10. “You shall not covet your neighbour’s wife; and you shall not desire your neighbour’s house, his field, his male servant, his female servant, his ox, his donkey, or anything that is your neighbour’s.”

 

There are a whole lot more laws than these, of course. The next few chapters of Deuteronomy delineate a few more, elaborate on them, give us more details, and/or reasons for them. In Chapter 9 we read the famous episode of the Golden Calf and in Chapter 10 we have the second printing of the 10 Commandments. We then have a number more chapters elaborating upon and explaining the laws. Chapter 15, which we are looking at today, relates very much to Deuteronomy’s version of the Fourth Commandment – keeping the Sabbath Day holy.[1] In Deuteronomy the reason for this commandment is different than the reason specified in the Exodus account (Ex 20:8-11); in the Deuteronomy account the reason for the Fourth Commandment is that the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. They are not to make perpetual slaves of each other. Furthermore, when they enter the Promised Land, Deuteronomy 15:4, “there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, He will richly bless you.” But then by Verse 11 it is noted that even so, “there will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.”[2]

 

Matthew 26:11 (Mark 14:7, John 12:8) Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 15:11 in saying, “the poor will always be with you”

 

As this is the case, Ignacio Ellacuria says, in essence, the great salvific task is to evangelize the poor so that out of their poverty they may attain the spirit necessary first to escape their indulgence and oppression, second to put an end to oppressive structures, and third to be used to inaugurate a new heaven and a new earth, where sharing trumps accumulating and where there is time to hear and enjoy God’s voice in the heart of the material world and in the heart of human history.[3]

 

I think that is very important. We need to evangelize the poor. We know what the word evangelize means, right? It comes from the Greek word ‘euangelion’, which means ‘good message’ or ‘good news’.[4] We need to share the good news with the poor. Jesus, as recorded in Luke 4:18, in his very early sermon in the synagogue in his very own hometown quoted the prophet Isaiah – Isaiah 61:1 - in this very sentiment. He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me because He has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.”

 

What is this good news? What is this ‘euangelion’? This good news is that we can be saved from eternal death. We can be bodily raised from the dead to eternal life and even more.[5] We can have the Spirit of God on us now in our very lives. By the power of God, we can start to experience a new life this very day – renewing our heart and transforming us from the inside! That we can all have this is good news – especially for the poor! And there is more: for just as salvation isn’t just for the future it also isn’t just for the individual; it is for all creation (Romans 8:19-22).

 

And in our society today, as in almost all, if not all societies throughout history, the group that consistently experiences being excluded from the society of the privileged is the poor. Today in Canada we talk a lot about indigenous history and the TRC. Today out of the United States, BLM is still a significant movement. Today there is still much talk about identity politics. Today there are many people discriminated against. The people who have been primarily victimized in these and all other groups are the poor. The consistent target of exclusion in our society – and our world - is and has always been the poor.[6]

 

In the USA which experienced some of the worst slavery and anti-black history in the whole world, this century already they had a rich, powerful, privileged black man ruling their nation while many black and other people still suffer horribly under the curse of poverty and exclusion from society.[7] The Church however is inclusive society and while some of the poor and disenfranchised are already experiencing the blessings of the Good News of eternal salvation, sadly many are still waiting to experience solidarity in the totality of salvation – that of mind, body, soul, and circumstance. A just society, a Christian society is one where everyone will have access to community. A just society, a Christian society is one where the poor and the wealthy will experience solidarity in their salvation. A just society, a Christian society is one where the rich will no longer risk their eternal rewards by withholding material necessities from the poor, as it says in Matthew 6:19-24.

 

John Sobrino tells us that God can use the poor to unleash the solidarity that can be salvific for both the poor and the nonpoor, where “poor people and nonpoor people are mutually bearing one another, giving to each other, and receiving from each other. This kind of solidarity goes beyond mere unilateral [one-way] aid, with its intrinsic tendency toward imposition and domination. [This kind of Christian Solidarity] … can resolve the ambiguity and root out what is harmful in the falsely universalizing concept of globalization.”[8] Bishop Desmond Tutu and President Nelson Mandala referred this as ‘Ubuntu’ which literally means, ‘a person is a person through other people.’ [9] Solidarity is not a one-way street where some dominate others. Salvation is not a one-way street where some dominate others. A Christian society is one where we share resources and bear one another’s burdens (Acts 2:42-47).

 

Ignacio Ellacuria writes that we need to work to create such a society that can replace our civilization of capital, our civilization of wealth, with its the closed and competitive individualism. This needs to be replaced with....[10] A Society of Love: Societies based on wealth (capitalism) can never be Christian (Matthew 6:24) as they exclude the poor.

 

When Jesus was born, lived, died, and rose again He began ushering in His proleptic Kingdom. We know what ‘proleptic’ means, right? It means both now and not yet. The Kingdom of God has begun. It will culminate in Jesus’ return. The Pentateuch records what God’s Kingdom will look like. Deuteronomy 15:4: “there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, He will richly bless you.” Deuteronomy was speaking specifically about the penultimate Promised Land but as with so many other texts, its culmination comes only in the Promised Land of the Kingdom to Come. This Kingdom is coming now and as we work to make this Kingdom a reality, we prove our citizenship in it (Philippians 3:20).

 

The Church is Christian society. As citizens of Heaven, it is important that we no longer objectify others and exclude them from society. The society of Jesus is inclusive. We need to not only allow but also invite our neighbour to participate in society – No more excluding the poor or anyone else! We need to give every person every opportunity to be part of our group. We need to allow every person to serve. Do not force anyone to just be served. Allow everyone to help. Do not demean some by considering them unable to assist. We must empower every person to help others.[11] We must! The Kingdom of God is about inviting others to be part of a society of Jesus, where we love and serve one another. This is the society we are to be building as we await Christ’s return.

 

Today, I encourage you to look for an opportunity to invite someone to serve our Lord alongside you. For those who work and volunteer here, I invite you to not only give out clothes to others who need clothes but allow someone in need to help you; for those who work here, allow someone who has enjoyed a meal with you at the soup kitchen to clean tables or do dishes alongside you. For all of us who are here today, ask someone you serve what is their opinion – ask someone who may not otherwise think that you even care about their opinion, what is their opinion – and then listen to what they say! And honour them by engaging them! For all of us who are here today, ask someone to pray for you; pray for someone else and then ask them to pray for you! When you do this, you involve others in the community of Christ; When you do this, you involve others in the society of Jesus. When we do this, we invite others to be a part of the Kingdom of God.

 

This week let us look for opportunities not to merely serve others but to invite others to be a part of the Kingdom of God by inviting them to serve God right alongside us. Only then will we all have an opportunity to truly be part of the society of Jesus.

 

Let us pray

Luke 2 Christmas Letter

Presented to the Alberni Valley Care Homes, December 2025, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

December 2025

 

          So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.  While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” – Luke 2:4-12

 

Christmas is the time when we remember the birth of Jesus. Jesus is God’s Son. He was born in a stable and placed in a feeding trough for a crib. His young mom and her husband-to-be were away from home and had no place to stay. God didn’t invite many people to celebrate the birth of his Son, but He did invite shepherds who were working overnight in the fields nearby.

 

Jesus, God’s Son, lived a life that we can all look to for inspiration. He preached Good News to the poor. He offered Salvation to the world. He taught how we could live together in peace and justice, goodness and mercy. He died young but that was not the end. Jesus rose from the dead and made it so that all of us can live forever. Even today, he can help us with all of our concerns. This is who Jesus is.

 

The shepherds were there on the first Christmas to celebrate the birth of Jesus who would go on to do all that and more. Today we are all invited to celebrate the occasion of Jesus’ birth and if you haven’t met him yet, you can; all you need to do is pray. He will hear you. He loves you.

 

Have a blessed Christmas.

 

From all of us at The Salvation Army

Major Michael Ramsay

Luke 2:1-20: Walking to Cobble Hill While Pregnant...

Presented to the Alberni Valley Community, at the 2025 Hope in the Valley Gala, held at the Italian Hall, 15 November 2025, by Major Michael Ramsay

 

Among other roles I fill, I am a Christian pastor. We are entering the Christmas season. We know how the first Christmas went… What happened?

 

There is this couple – Mary and Joseph – they aren’t married. They want to be. Mary anyway is probably a teenager. She’s pregnant- very pregnant – and they have to go pay their taxes or something similar. In order to do this, they need to leave their town and travel to the capital city (or a suburb thereof). It was about the same distance as between here and Cobble Hill or Duncan. They didn’t have a car. They had to walk. It would be at least a two day walk.

 

They get there and, of course, it is time for Mary to have the baby. The water breaks or contractions start or something. They have to find a place to stay – but they don’t have a hotel room and there is no shelter. There is no hostel. Hospitals as we know them don’t exist and Mary is about to give birth. A business owner lets them use his barn and their baby is born.

 

Now, Joseph isn’t the baby’s biological father. This baby is God’s son and so, by definition, he is also God. Christmas is when we celebrate God becoming a person, when we celebrate the birth of God’s Son.

 

God invites specific people to celebrate the birth of His Son. It is night. And there are these shepherds, unskilled labourers working the nightshift. These aren’t the owners of the sheep or even the people who get to work the day shift – this is the night shift. God invites them – out of everyone in the world - to witness the birth of God’s baby, who by definition is also God.

 

They come to see Him. That is how God chose to enter the world. He wanted to share a most important event with unwed teenagers and people stuck working overnight on Christmas.

 

In the Christian faith, like God did at the birth of His Son, this is who we are supposed to include and honour as well – not the rich, not the self-sufficient, not those who don’t seem to need anything – but those who are on the outside looking in. John Wesley sums it up by saying that if we are God’s people, we will love and care for all God’s people and even more we will have a preferential treatment for the poor and other people on the margins. And this, my friends, is what you are doing.

In the previous 12 months you, as part of our team,

·        have housed 21 people, who were previously homeless, in a place of their own

·        have provided people with their first ever jobs

·        provided more than 144 500 meals from our Soup Kitchen

·        provided a further 11 000 meals from our food truck

·        provided a further 5000 people with groceries

·        sent kids to camp who have never been to camp

·        given clothing and school supplies to children in need

·        provided hundreds of toys to children who would otherwise get nothing for Christmas

·        You have kept 3 940 people inside, off the streets at night; providing them with a bed, shelter, a safe place, with no in-and-out privileges so that once they are inside for the night, they stay safe for the night. You have kept them off the streets.

When I was commissioned and ordained as an Officer in The Salvation Army, I took a sacred oath:

...To care for the poor, feed the hungry, clothe the naked. To love the unloved and befriend those who have no friends.... And, by God’s grace, to prove myself a worthy officer.

 

This we, you and I and the rest of our team, have been faithful to and, by the grace of God, will continue to do so.

Thank you.

 

My Friends you are making a difference.