Vox populi | moving officers

How would you mobilize our Army?

I

am not getting moved today.  Oh, I’m sure Hillary Clinton will say something that I will find moving, but I mean in the sense The Salvation Army is not moving me today.  It is appointment day in the Canada and Bermuda Territory.  Some people will be thrilled their officers are moving while others will be devastated by the news.  Some officers will be surprised at their move while others will be thrilled, and some will looked surprised while being secretly thrilled by the news.

In our territory there is a consultation process with officers, consultation in the sense a discussion about a possible move would take place with an officer while in other territories a consultation between officers, the congregation and DHQ takes place long before the move is made.

In this day and age of complex appointments, need for relationships to foster growth in a corps, and a desire for longevity, is there still a place for the giant sports-like draft to reposition officers around a territory?  Would it be beneficial to leave well enough alone or to leave problem situations alone so people can work through the issues, and come out the other side having learned something and grown through the process?  How about going to a system where you get a call to an appointment; a performance based system for redistribution of people resources?  Great, but what if you get stuck in a place that is gonna just kill you?  If such a place exists that is.  And, how would you avoid the pride and covetousness bred by the clamour and desire for prestigious appointments?  If such a thing exists that is.

I’m curious what you think about the appointment system.  What would you offer a system to mobilize our Army?  I personally think an ultimate fighting cage match might be the way to go, but I don’t want to unduly influence your thinking.  Let me hear you on this.

Vox populi appears every Friday on theRubicon. Find past Vox populi posts and a bio of Capt. Rick Zelinsky here.

11 Comments to Vox populi | moving officers

1. Rick -you make some valid points. I’d like to address a few of them. First, the area of complex appointments: in this age of specialization, the Army needs to give consideration to officers as specialists in certain ministries - e.g. corps/church, chaplaincy, correctional services, immigrant/refugee services etc. I see no downside in an officer remaining in the same field for the duration of their service, if they are productive, feel fulfilled and are representing God and Army well in a specialized field.
   Second, the idea of some kind of call system for the Army is one I find very attractive. The challenge/opportunity to ” apply” for positions would encourage officers to continue to develop their skills and talents throughout their active service. Also, as some ministry units have had the reputation of being ” hard on officers” - they would have to clean up their act if they wanted officers to apply to be their pastor/Director.
   My son-in-law is completing his seminary training with the United Church of Canada. His first posting will be by appointment. He must minister there a certain number of years ( I think it is 5, but I’m not certain). Then, he is free to apply for other positions. Perhaps something like this would work for us.
   Lastly, on the topic of “problem situations”, we do officers and appointments no favours when we just move the officer on. I agree that both the officer and the appointment need to learn how to work through problems and resolve them. Perhaps we need officer who are specialists in mediation who could come into a situation and help them come to a resolution?
   Anyway Rick, thanks for writing on this topic, and giving me a chance to vent!
Holly Patterson on April 25th, 2008

2. When you become an officer you agree to be moved where the army believes you can best bring about the Kingdom of God. This is (obviously) quite a stumbling block for many officers and also a hindrance for others to become an officer.

   Recently it seems to me it is more of a fundamental question of trusting God. Do I believe God is bigger than The Salvation Army? Do I believe that if he wants me to work out my salvation as an officer that He (God) will be in my appointments?

   Of course this is easy for me to say. I’m merely on officer’s son who is working out his salvation outside of officership.
Mark on April 26th, 2008

3. So Mark,
   Are you saying that TSA can’t make a mistake, because God’s will is always accomplished? Isn’t it possible we can thwart God’s plans?

   Holly, you’re not ranting either. I think we can go both ways on our feelings about appointments versus calls, but you quickly see how mired we can get. How would we ever make the shift? While I’m completely ready to be appointed wherever, I think there are some fundamental issues with the process.

   One glaring issue for me is the whole accountability piece. If there are issues, how is the person held accountable? It seems it’s too easy to move on. Answering a call certainly builds in some of the accountability pieces. An anglican teacher of mine said “he’d sooner dip his big toe in hell than have to answer to a congregation”. He too is on an appointment system.
Rick on April 28th, 2008

4. I agree with you, Rick, on the accountability piece. Just looking at the list of officers who are on the AGC list for this July reveals several who are obviously moving in our division because of problems. It is obvious because 1) the tenures were far too short and 2) we hear about problems in other ministry units. Yes, believe it or not, Salvationists gossip. I know… I was shocked too when I heard that.

   The Army’s solution to dealing with officers who are struggling is, as Rick indicates, to move them on. On an obvious level, this is unfair to the units that have to endure similar problems being repeated by the officers. But on another level, it’s also unfair to the officer. They are not coached and given the tools to overcome the areas of inadequacy that lead to the problems. Their future appointments continue to be lateral moves with no opportunity for more responsibility. The officer is stunted all because we, as an organization, do not do the “hard work” and deal with it effectively. The officer is stunted and the small corps that take them on (small because the Army wants to limit their damage) are stunted.

   For the sake of the Army and the officer, this accountability process must take place. Even if we do not allow congregants to have any more input into the officer placement process than they currently have, HQ needs to be proactive when these issues arise and help both sides work out their problems.
Juan Burry on April 28th, 2008

5. Before I was an officer, I was a youth pastor in the Wesleyan Church.
   My senior pastor decided to resign. I chose to consider my options are three doors were opened. So the question is who was I to determine which one was God’s will. We had to consider if we liked the town, the home, the schools and proximity to family. Then there was the issue of prestige because one congregation was 400, another 900 and the other 1200 people. Fortunately, money was not an issue because they were the same. Getting the right match was huge because I had served under a loving pastor and a harsh administrator. I definately didn’t want to make that mistake again. So I had to ask myself this question. Did my personality, giftings and vision match that of the senior pastor? Oh yeah, I almost forgot…What does God want? Where does he want me? There was no peace to be found. God always answers with a yes, no or wait. Since there was no clear direction, we went to work at a childrens home as house parents, until further notice. God really shaped our hearts there and so when He told us to come to The Salvation Army we were ready. To me, it was a relief. I only had to say yes to Jesus and let Him take care of the rest. Now after being in the field for six years in the same appointment I have seen many things that make you go hmmmm. I even have struggled with putting my trust in man, but when it boiled down to it, the real question God asked of me was “do you still trust me?” Then I admitted to Him, that I was really struggling to trust and I was reminded that promotion comes from the Lord. 1 Peter 3:6 “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,” NASB
   For I know that whatever I hold on to has a hold on me, so I’m holding on to His word.

   Be Blessed and be a blessing!
Robyn Bridgeo on April 30th, 2008

6. I appreciate the question that was raised by Rick. Is God or is it man that is in control of our future appointments as officers? I like to think optimistically both. It was man who wrote the bible inspired by God…can man today still be inspired by God? Absolutely they can only if they can set a side their pride, prejudice, and previous bad experiences with the thought “I too once had an appointment that i did not like”. It is this attitude that officers who are placed in specific appointments that does not fit in the ultimate will of God. Then again miracles of all miracles if Jesus can turn water into wine..so can Jesus turn a bad situation into something amazing. I think the question I’m raising is, who are we truly working for - man or God? As an officer I work for God and God alone.. that is whom I am accountable to!
Lisa on April 30th, 2008

7. Thanks Robyn, my carnal self would probably have jumped at the 1200. The money would have to be good though. that’s 1100 more problems to deal with. kidding aside, you remind us we need to trust God to work within the context we find ourselves. This position is always easier to hold to when we haven’t been on the receiving end of an error, but it is still true.

   Interesting also to see Lisa’s comments which take your position a little further and factors in the human condition, or human element at the least.

   My wife and I had this argument last night in relation to composting. We’re on a “Save the Earth” regimen in our house. Turn off the lights, unplug appliances not in use, reduce, reuse and recycle. She told me God isn’t going to let the earth explode. I agree. I think it will die and rise again before it explodes because I believe it is possible to thwart God’s plans. Ultimately our struggle comes down to that. Yes, the Army can’t place us where God can’t find us, but it can be awfully terrible during that period where He’s searching for us.

   Peace.
Rick on April 30th, 2008

8. for me the issue comes when an officer loses vision for their appointment. I am an officer in a specialised ministry and when I was appointed to my present appointment, it was here doing the work that I discovered that God wanted me to do his work. I believe in the consultation process but I also believe in Spiritual Authority and sometimes liked the old system of being told where to go. My parents were Officers for 45 years before their retirement and were never once consulted about their “move”, but I never saw a sense of sadness in them about where they were going next. I saw joy and trust that God had inspired the leaders just enough. I would like to be told I am going because if my DC knows me and my ministry enough then I should believe that they will be guided directly!
Estelle on May 1st, 2008

9. Estelle,
   That’s great, and I am glad your D.C. knows you that well. In our territory which spreads 5,000 km east to west and 3,000 km north to south, we have 10 divisions. The likelyhood a DC would know all their people intimately to the point they could quickly identify their giftings if asked is unrealistic if not impossible. Hence, the consultation. Also, the demographic of officers is changing. Probably when your parents were in training college the average age was around the early 20’s mark, while today the average hovers in the 30’s. People are often coming to officership with experience behind them. Again, it isn’t realistic to place the same expectations on them.

   I am with you that for me the defining piece which would make me leave officership is if the Army (of which I am symbiotically attached) was to tell me I can no longer do mission. Thanks for insights and feedback.
Rick Zelinsky on May 1st, 2008

10. As an ordinary soldier (and a new one at that), it seems even to me that if things are getting easy, then I’m probably not giving as much as I’m supposed to. And whenever I feel slighted it’s a signal to me to put my narcissism in check (not that I’ll ever succeed in doing so!)

    That’s why I especially enjoyed Lisa’s response. If an officer feels an appointment is completely unsuitable then prayer and discernment is the necessary response, because it will transform any situation.

    Rick, you’re right that your territory is simply too vast for a DC to know each officer well. I would submit though that consultation has its own limitations. Even in small, geographically-concentrated organizations people on both sides hear what they want to hear. And even an appointment that didn’t specify “mission” could never prohibit such an activity. The job might shape and refine what was possible, but that capacity would always be there because need is always there….

    Thanks

    Andrea
Andrea614Regent on May 1st, 2008

11. Great point Andrea. There is need and mission everywhere we find people. My only proviso would be that we need to be intentional about the places we go to do mission, places where the rest of christianity isn’t going, but that’s another blog for another day
Rick Zelinsky on May 2nd, 2008

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