Wednesday, April 14, 2010.

We recently had a Jr Soldier enrollment and it caused me to really look at the promise that these kids were making to God w/ accountability from their local body aka Corps.

Having asked God for forgiveness, I will be his loving and obedient child.

Because Jesus is my savior from sin, I will trust him to keep me good, and try to help others follow him.

I promise not to use intoxicating drink, harmful drugs and tobacco.

I promise to pray, to read my bible and, by his help, to lead a life that is clean in thought, word and deed.

This promise may seem simple or primary but I think it is fierce! What a foundation to lay in a young persons life. Even more so, what a legacy. I was recently speaking to a TC from South America and he asked me "How do you measure success?" I though about this a while and answered with several good, in my mind, explanations. He then looked at me and, with fervor, said "Membership is everything." I thought about that for a wile and have drawn a few conclusions from my own experience.

1. Everyone wants to belong to something and be a part of something bigger than themselves.

2. The opportunity for membership, all inclusive community with an all access pass if I may, gives to the enrolled the chance to walk out applied kingdom loyalty.
(Loyalty in the world is represented by what plastic grocery store card you have in your wallet to get the good deals - whereas Kingdom loyalty develops the character of faithfulness and commitment, two things lacking in the world.)

3. Membership measures success as it marks how many are willing to believe His message ,as you represent it, enough to throw in their lot and follow something of purpose and single mind.

I know that I am a member, a covenanted soldier, not only because of the spiritual leading but also because of the inspiration of seeing others around me who made me think "I want to serve Jesus like that." or "I want my life to count for something real." This is so often represented to us through the examples of our older brothers and sisters in the Faith and, the opportunity to join up not just talk up a purpose is a part of the application of our faith. In the SA I think there is even a deeper "joining" in holy purpose through our covenant. The idea of membership, in this context speaks to the greater idea of being sold out for the Gospel.

I also think that within the emergent/emerging communities we may be able to measure membership with different language.

Anyways I am enjoying this challenge from my brother.

Have you enlisted anyone lately?