Ragamuffin: stop the violence

Words still needed after 40 years 

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ecently my lovely wife, Sally, and I watched the movie Bobby. It deals with history of Robert Kennedy. In Chicago we have been having some sad situations dealing with violence. Black on black shootings. Bullets going through walls hitting innocent children. It seems to be on the rise. It seems to be on the news every night - each day brings new violence. Here is the following long quote from Robert Kennedy that sadly still applies today…

Stop The Violence:

The victims of the violence are black and white, rich and poor, young and old, famous and unknown. They are, most important of all, human beings whom other human beings loved and needed….

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Ragamuffin: women

some of my best men are women

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omeone has said there are only three kinds of people - those who watch what is happening; those who make things happen; those who scratch their heads and ask “Hey what happened?”

In The Salvation Army women went above and beyond the call of duty in times of war. Many veterans sing the praises of The Salvation Army women who served during wartime.

It was during WWI that The Salvation Army was involved with war. Evangeline Booth, then the USA National Commander (a woman) was awarded the U.S. Distinguished Service Medal in WWI. At the time, she borrowed $25,000 to finance the beginning of The Salvation Army’s war work. Later, she borrowed another $100,000 from The Salvation Army International Headquarters in London to keep the work going. Some of these women in war fried up to 9,000 doughnuts daily. The troops loved the doughnuts and soon these ladies were referred to as Doughnut Girls. Frying doughnuts was only one of the services rendered to the soldiers. The women sewed on buttons, wrote letters home, held their hands during surgery and prayed with them before they went into battle. They were often spiritual counselors to the soldiers.

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Ragamuffin: risk

… a daring adventure or nothing

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new book by Ben Carson talks about risk in life and the spiritual journey. Today so many want to avoid risk. “Play it safe” is their motto. Scripture recounts over and over again that followers of Jesus are risk-takers not risk-avoiders. The real adventure of the spiritual journey is taking risks. Isn’t that what “faith” and “trust” is all about?

Ben Carson is brain surgeon and knows what it means to take risks. He was also an at-risk child in the big city of Detroit, Michigan. My wife, Sally, and I worked at The Salvation Army in Pontiac near Detroit. The need of the city is even greater now than when we were there back in the 1970’s.

What Dr. Carson wants us to do is to “embrace risk”! You gotta be kidding. That could be a real gamble. Why on earth would someone take a step out into the unknown and embrace risk when they know the comfort and safety of risk-avoidance.

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Ragamuffin: Hallel

He lifts the poor from the dust
and the needy from the garbage dump.
He sets them among princes,
even the princes of his own people!
Psalm 113:7-8 (NLT)

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allel” basically means “praise”. The Psalms are full of praise. Psalm 113 was probably sung prior to the Passover meal. It is a psalm that rings out with joy. It is a song of praise by the people of God for their God. We used to sing a song: “Hallelu Hallelu Hallelu Hallelujah, Praise ye the Lord”. Maybe you remember it? With alternate singing and standing with the various words. A nice fun song for children (and some of us adults too).

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Ragamuffin : the Bible & social justice

… maybe we should combine forces

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he idea of social justice has been around a long time. The Salvation Army’s stance has been good for the most part but wobbly at times. Notice Isaiah 58 :6, 10 (NLT):

6 “…this is the kind of fasting I want: Free those who are wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, and remove the chains that bind people.
10 Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.”

The Bible says much about poverty and hunger. We don’t go very far in the “holy writ” to discover that God has a heart for the poor, the oppressed and those that are the outcasts from society. It comes to fruition in the life of Christ in the Gospels. Throughout the letters of the New Testament we find the writers encouraging us to help those in need.

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Ragamuffin: death and resurrection

… contradiction in motion

Jeremy Taylor writes the following in The Westminster Collection of Christian Prayers: “Grant, O Lord, that in your wounds I may find my safety, in your stripes my cure, in your pain my peace, in your cross my victory, in your resurrection my triumph, and a crown of righteousness in the glories of your eternal kingdom.”

During the Lenten season, the praise of Palm Sunday, the agony of the cross and the victory of the resurrection we are taken on a roller coaster ride of emotion. The soul cries out, “Don’t you guys see, He is the Messiah! He is our hope! Don’t crucify Him.” Yet, the very fact that He is headed to the cross and the grave is our HOPE! It is in the midst of tragedy that we find spiritual relief. David Ford states: “It is in the light of Calvary that we can see what it means for us to confess our poverty and our helplessness and to renounce the attempt to overcome them on our own.”

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Ragamuffin: NPC highlights

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ecently my lovely wife Sally and I attended the National Pastor’s Convention in San Diego, California, with some other Salvation Army Officers. It was a great time to get away and enjoy some sun and good Christian fun.  We found some wonderful and unique people. Let me share some…

1. Kendall Payne – a singer who plays the piano and guitar with the ring of contemporary truth. Check out her website
2. Then there was the speaker N. T. Wright from across the seas - he spoke a unique message of the “kingdom on earth”, which reminded me of William Booth’s theology.

1. Shane Claiborne of The Simple Way spoke of transforming neighborhoods; incarnational ministry as good as it gets.
2. A organization worth noting is Back 2 Back Ministries - check out Becky’s book “Reckless Faith”.
3. Music miracle Ken Medema was also there, with the amazing way he weaves story and song! He is blind but he sees deeper than most.
4. Jim Wallis was promoting his book of social justice and change “The Great Awakening” – it sounds interesting!
5. And communion on the menu of the last service … I always enjoy that time of reflection and prayer. Yes, I participated …

And sooo much more! If you ever get a chance, it is worth going! Just for the comedy like Jeff Allen, Nazareth and Bob Stromberg! (Check them out on the web.) And here is a link for the convention.

Ragamuffin appears every Monday on theRubicon. Find past Ragamuffin posts and a bio of Capt. Jay Davis here.

Ragamuffin: church family

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he Church Family is actually a community of faith. It is a collective of people endeavoring to live like Jesus. It is of one mind but definitely not like the Borg of Star Trek. We are a collection of individuals who care for others.

I recently came across something that another Salvation Army church has adapted from Rick Warren’s purpose driven style. I have modified it a little further but find it a helpful reminder that I am a part of a valuable community of faith. It is worth contemplating. I am not always big on signing cards, pledges and vows but this is pretty good.

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Ragamuffin: US election

All eyes are watching this race

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aybe you have heard the definition of “Politics”? Derived from two words: “poly” meaning “many” and “ticks” meaning “blood sucking creatures”!

We are in the midst of the presidential showdown for the top job here in the United States.  The Democrats and the Republicans are the main two camps. There are other sects but they are less prominent. So every four years we go to the commercials, the debates, the attack ads and smear campaigns so we can figure out who are going to be the nominees.

Right now we basically have Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama for the Democrats. Which is ground breaking since it is a choice between a woman and a minority. The race is about more than just that of course. The Democrats are usually considered “liberal” and spenders. The Republicans have a guy, John McCain, with a conservative Christian still in the race but mathematically not able to win the nomination.

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Ragamuffin: struggles

… with sin and ourselves

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e are a “holiness” movement.
Our doctrine states that we believe in “sanctification”. Does that mean we don’t struggle with sin?
The holiness concept has always been dear to me yet so misunderstood. How do we deal with sin yet hold this valid teaching and live it out?

Overcoming sin is something that has to be done with the help of someone beyond ourselves – God! I am not “perfect” in many ways. I need His grace. I live off it. His acceptance cannot be based on my “goodness” but His furious, overwhelming love.

Winning the battle over sin must be done in light of this concept of grace. My prayers for help admit that I need Him. My declarations of trust in His work on the cross become my firm foundation for any victory or any type of holiness being displayed in my life.

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