God’s way with me

Three delegates from the 252nd session at the International College for Officers and Centre for Spiritual Life Development share their testimonies

MAJOR LALBIAKDIKA REGIONAL OFFICER, MYANMAR Singapore, Malaysia and

Myanmar Territory

I GREW up in a poor Christian family attending the Methodist Church in Tuingo, Myanmar. My parents are farmers and had to work hard. Although poor, my parents served God as much as they could. As a teenager I wanted nice and beautiful things. However, my father always said: ‘It is good for [us] to draw near to God’ (Psalm 73:28 King James Version).

Football was my favourite sport and at 17 I started playing in the local team. My dream was to go to India, join a football club and support my parents. In 1995, I was selected to join one. However, I had been in Mizoram, India, two years and I knew that, if I joined, I would not be able to enter my country at any time. So, I returned home.

At that time, an officer’s family lived near us. One day they told me that the Lord wanted to use me in his ministry. That became the Lord’s plan for me – a great challenge!

They had a beautiful daughter, Ngurthanchhingi, whom the Lord chose to be my wife. The Lord’s plan is amazing! So, I stopped going to football and got married and we applied to become officers. We were on the waiting list for three years. During these years, the Lord gave me many experiences.

In 2001, I was assigned to a corps as a candidate helper. At that time, the Regional Youth Leadership Training Programme was scheduled to be held there. We faced objections from those who did not want us to have the training. However, I am very happy that the town leadership gave us permission. Hallelujah!

I was commissioned in 2004. I am grateful that God has used me in so many ways to reveal his greatness: I visited corps by walking for 20 miles, by bicycle, and with my children on a motorbike. I could not do these without the help of the Lord!

Ngurthanchhingi was suffering from breast cancer during the Covid-19 pandemic. When she was about to have surgery, admitting her to hospital became a challenge. I didn’t know what to do! My friend, the Lord never forsakes his people! I’m glad to know that the Lord has appointed a good doctor to continue her chemotherapy treatment. Blessed be the name of God.

CAPTAIN SARAH ILSTERS ASSISTANT REGIONAL LEADER, LATVIA Sweden

and Latvia Territory

HAVE you noticed that God has a personalised discipleship plan for the heroes of the Old Testament? Everyone different, but everyone progressing through the tasks they’re given so their trust in Yahweh grows. I see my journey in theirs.

Growing up in a Salvation Army family, Jesus was not foreign to me, but it was not until I attended a Scripture Union summer camp that I understood becoming a disciple. I knew when I became a Christian that it would be a journey of obedience. I was 12.

I soon understood that God had put a gift of leadership within me; I started a Christian group in school and led the Christian Union at university. I studied to become a teacher – to understand how people learnt so I could teach them about the Kingdom. One Sunday during Self-Denial, we were shown a video about Eastern Europe and challenged to pray about teaching people the gospel.

I felt that God was pointing at me. Wanting to be obedient, I found myself landing in Latvia to start what I thought would be a three-year term. Little did I know I would meet my husband in the third year and still be there 25 years later!

Initially, I was tasked with working with children and youth in the region. I felt like God had thrown me in the deep end but, after some time, I started swimming.

In 2000, new leaders came. We formed a small team and ‘re-started’ Riga 1 Corps. God gave me a year with the team, but they left one by one until I was leading the corps on my own. I never believed I would be able to, but God gave me everything I needed. I led the corps for 12 years. During one of my monthly days of prayer I felt God saying it was time to become an officer. I told my leaders and was soon studying long-distance with William Booth College. I was commissioned in 2011, but in my everyday reality nothing much changed – I just kept walking with Jesus!

Our life with Christ starts as a seed. Through faithfulness and obedience, our roots grow deep in his word and our branches of serving become strong. Over the past 25 years I have seen lives changed, corps grown and God’s grace leading us every step. caged,copsgoadGodsgaceeadguseeystep

WHAT IS THE ICO?

MAJOR JUANITA STANFORD CORPS OFFICER, PARMA

USA Eastern Territory oJesus.

IT was a Baptist bus ministry team that demonstrated God’s love to me in practical ways. They visited my home every Saturday through my primary school years. Their faithful and consistent love was an open invitation to know and experience the love of Jesus. I decided to follow Christ in that church. However, family chaos and poor choices in my teenage years overshadowed that initial commitment to God and I strayed away from his love and the support of the church.

Unknown to me, a similar experience happened to my boyfriend, Demetrius, back home.

Desiring to live our lives in a godly way, Demetrius proposed, I left school and we eloped, quickly starting a family together. As young Christian newlyweds, we visited churches, looking for a place to belong and stumbled upon a small corps. Though I had no prior knowledge of the Army, it was clear that we’d found a place to grow in faith and make a difference. And grow we did!

About a year later, while giving a donor tour in the tiny hall, I sensed the Lord calling me to full-time service as an officer. Now, after 24 years of officership, six appointments and more spiritual lessons than I can recount, I have learnt that even the most difficult circumstances – when surrendered to God – can be used for his honour and glory.

But my God did not abandon me. He sent a young believer into my life, Nekisha, whose Christian witness and invitation to attend church transformed my life. That college campus chapel became holy ground and I surrendered my life to the lordship of Jesus.

The Holy Spirit met me when I wanted to give up. God has healed my body from pain, comforted my tears and used my mustard seed moments of faith to accomplish more than I dreamed possible. God has been faithful, even when I doubted him. He has fulfilled secret desires of my heart through answered prayer. He has allowed me to minister to many children and families, just like the bus ministry team did for me so many years ago.

‘But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us’ (2 Corinthians 4:7). I pray that my life and ministry will always reflect his all-surpassing power.

Lent Resources

Whether you give up something or you take on the challenge of doing a generous act each day, Lent is a time to be intentional about your preparations for Easter. Here are some resources you might find helpful:

Prayer Matters

This daily devotional booklet prepares for Easter through reflection and creative action. Each day features Scripture, a question, a prayer and something to put into practice. On Sundays it will pray through a song, and during Holy Week it will follow Jesus’ journey to the cross.

See page 7 or download from salvationist.org.uk/resources

Lent: Journey with God

The Resource Centre includes a range of tools to support Salvationists through their spiritual journey as they think about Christ’s sacrifice. This includes a reflective video and questions to consider, as well as links to readings, prayers, videos and music from other territories.

Download from salvationist.org.uk/ resources

WE are all familiar with the picture painted in Matthew 26:36–46 when Jesus takes some of his disciples to the garden of Gethsemane to pray. Jesus finds himself in the middle of an emotional tug of war. In this deeply painful prayer, he prays: ‘My Father, if there is no other way than this, drinking this cup to the dregs, I’m ready. Do it your way’ (Matthew 26:42 The Message). It is in this imagery we begin the journey towards Easter.

Jesus, faced with the brutal reality of his death on the cross, surrenders to the will of the Father. He realises that, although in real terms the few days ahead would be filled with unbearable

The Heart of God

Every poem in this collection says something about Jesus and about us too. By bringing to life some encounters and events surrounding the first Easter, the verses explore the heart of God in discerning and challenging ways. The Scripture on which each poem is based and key Bible verses are given to provide the background that inspired them.

Available to purchase from sps-shop.com