DNA

Grissom, Kathryn Willows, Sarah Sidle, Nick Stokes, Dr Ray Langston! These are names I live with almost every day! My absolute favourite TV series, CSI Vegas. CSI has fuelled my fascination with the world of forensic science and the way that amazing techniques in forensic technology can incriminate criminals and ultimately solve crimes. I'm particularly taken by the advancements in DNA knowledge. DNA discovered by James Watson and Francis Crick in 1951 is a complex science but basically it means every living thing including humans have a unique code, a kind of blueprint that underpins our individuality.

It gives us our uniqueness.

Someone came and addressed me aggressively recently about my Salvationism. I don't very often write about the Salvation Army on my blog but feel this may help some people this time. This person came up to me at Sanctuary 21 and clearly wanted to get some stuff off his chest about what he thought about S21. This guy is a lifelong Salvationist and was visiting Durham for the day. His less than friendly start to the conversation began with these words. "This place is not 'Army'. He then went on to give me a long list of reasons why he thought we were not 'Army'

Here are all the reasons he stated.

There is no brass band.
I can't see a flag.
You are not in full uniform and you are the officer!
You only have red shields up and not a crest.
There are no war cry magazines hanging around.
You work with other churches and there is no place for multi denominationalism we were raised up to be separate.
There is no car park
This is not the tradition of the Salvation Army!
And finally he went off the subject of Salvationism and added a finishing shot, "and the coffees rubbish!

As he was aggressively imparting this anti-encouragement one of the guys who is a part of our community, a guy who is homeless and sleeps most nights behind Argos in the City Centre came in. He was cold from a night on the pavement. I half watched, one eye on the ranting Salvationist one on the homeless guy. I watched as one of our team sat by the homeless guy put her arm around him. Got him a hot cup of tea, then say and talked to him before making him some breakfast.

This really set me thinking about what really marks us out as unique?

What is our DNA?

Here was a very angry guy with his eyes fixed on the mechanics of Salvationism. What we look like, what we have in our buildings, what the Salvation Army is perceived it should look like.

Then there was a guy who was poor and needy and whatever the factors that have led him to this lowly place in his life, desperately needed love, acceptance and compassion.

So what is our DNA?

I don't think, it's shiny shoes, crests and tambourines. I'm not knocking those things, and I certainly am not judging Salvationists who choose to put their stock in those things.

But more and more I am convinced our DNA is Jesus.

It's love, acceptance and compassion.
It's the whosoever.
It's the whatsoever.
It lies in meeting needs.
It's saving dark souls.
It's sharing what we have.
It's having down to earth conversation.
It's not judging.
It's trying not to be critical.
It's encouraging one another and others.
It's befriending the friendless.
Giving hope to the hopeless.
Cleansing the dirty, practically if we have to.
Doing whatever we can for the kingdom.
It's taking massive risks with mission.
Loving the nobody.
Healing the broken.
Loving the lost.
As William Booth challenged all Salvationists across the generations, prophetically, I believe, to fight. Fight for the very lives of those who desperately need Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

I got a sense as the angry Salvationist was in the throws of his torrential outpouring, that us Salvationists really need to drop the wrong battle. The one that has been raging for the longest time about how we look, how we appear. Because frankly, if we don't have the DNA of Christ running through our veins then how we look ain't really going to matter at all.

If we could just grasp the real DNA. The compassion, the love, the acceptance of the whosoever (including each other). I honestly believe we can be a real Army once again. A massively effective Army. An Army that sees it's mission actually working as it touches thousands of lives worldwide with the love and power of God as the Holy Spirit works through us.

I'm not mad with the guy who thought we weren't Army. I know we are, I know I am taken by it's mission and it's original passion for reaching the needy and the broken.

I think that's our DNA.

That DNA will ensure a victorious Salvation Army, a victorious Church.

There are good times ahead guys.

Massively good times

Gaz