Message from the territorial leaders

Going forward

Commissioners Anthony and Gill Cotterill conclude their series of weekly messages

ANTHONY: Gill and I have been sharing weekly messages on YouTube and in Salvationist for 58 weeks. When it was suggested that we did a video at the start of last year’s lockdown I naively thought it might be just for two or three weeks.

GILL: We had no idea what we would all be living through as the pandemic took hold.

ANTHONY: When we started, the purpose of the messages was to encourage people to trust God and to take hold of opportunities. They also allowed us to thank people at the front line of ministry and service, such as those in our older people’s services, homelessness units, nurseries and anti-human trafficking and modern slavery work, as well as administrative staff members.

GILL: Not forgetting corps and community centres, and all who have adapted their ways of working and been really innovative.

ANTHONY: And not just people in Salvation Army programmes, but also those finding the courage to be salt and light and love in their neighbourhood, doing the shopping, looking out for people and so on. Even some brass players have had the courage to play on their drives by themselves rather than in a band, blessing the people in their streets.

GILL: Thank God that we seem to be moving into a new phase of the pandemic in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, especially with the vaccination rollout. There will still be challenging days ahead, and we’re mindful that many countries are really suffering and need our prayers.

ANTHONY: Over the past few weeks especially, Gill and I have been encouraging people to grasp hold of opportunities – not talking about going back to things but having a mindset of always going forward. We’ve encouraged people to take time out to reflect, reassess and plan, and not to assume that we’re going back to how things were 18 months ago.

GILL: So we decided we need to do the same. We’re going to stop the weekly video messages, for a time at least. And we’re going to pray, reflect and reassess where we are. In time we might come back in a new format, and maybe even a new line-up. But now that we’re able to, we will be leading our first face-to-face meetings for some time.

ANTHONY: The last time we stood on a corps platform to lead worship was in February 2020, when we went to Poole with the International Staff Band. So it will be great to be back doing Sunday ministry in that way. We had a taste of that last week at William Booth College, leading worship for the lieutenants of the Messengers of the Kingdom session as they met together after their first year as officers, thrown in at the deep end in the middle of a pandemic. It was great to be with them in person. Like other people, we’ve been involved in conferences, seminars and meetings on screen, but to be together was wonderful. We thank God for that and look forward to being with more people in person once again.

GILL: We shared words from Isaiah 43 with the lieutenants: ‘Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland’ (vv18 and 19). That’s what God is doing, and we need to be reminded of it. But let us not forget what the opening of that chapter says – words that have been so helpful in these past months: ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour… Do not be afraid, for I am with you’ (vv1–5). They are wonderful words that we can take to heart once again.

As we go forward we give thanks to God. And we thank you so much for your prayers and encouragement. We also want to say a massive thank you to the video production team who have produced the weekly video messages.

ANTHONY: To Bridget, Neil, Ben and Sheron, we say thank you. They have done marvellous work, not only on these videos but also on all the other things they’ve been asked to do to make sure that the message of salvation, the message of love and the work of the Army could be known.

GILL: Please, everyone, continue to take great care. A sincere and grateful thanks again for all that you are doing in the name of Jesus and for The Salvation Army and the people we serve. God bless you.

This message is based on a video that can be viewed at facebook.com/ SalvationistOnline or youtube.com/ salvationarmyvideo