Christmas is “the most wonderful time of the year”—or so the song goes.
Perhaps if we’re honest, we’d admit that Christmas has its ups and downs. It can the best of times and the worst of times. There are perfect turkeys and burnt cookies. Joyful homecomings and traffic jams. Happy memories and, sometimes, painful ones, too.
Two thousand years ago, the first Christmas also had a mix of “best” and “worst.” The birth of a Saviour and a smelly stable. Heavenly hosts and humble shepherds. The love of God come to life and, later on, the death of God for our salvation.
Whatever ups and downs we might have this season, nothing can change the message of Christmas: that God is with us. And that’s the best news ever.
To learn more about God’s love and the true meaning of Christmas, visit a Salvation Army church near you.
WORDS TO LIVE BY
Amidst all of the hustle and bustle, the giftgiving and the parties, it’s important to remember “the reason for the season” and we try to put the “Christ” in “Christmas” every December in Faith & Friends. This issue, we have “Star of Wonder,” written by General Brian Peddle, the international leader of The Salvation Army. The article nicely encapsulates why this time of the year is so special.
However wonderful that is, Assistant Editorin-Chief Pamela Richardson pointed out to me her favourite article in December: “Special Delivery” by Terry Harris.
“Terry’s story,” Pamela explains, “is a great example of what the Army’s mission and ministry is all about—‘Christianity with the sleeves rolled up’ especially at Christmas, giving hope to people when they need it the most, in the name of Jesus Christ. And in Terry’s case, he embraced that hope and is now sharing it with others through his service with the Army. It doesn’t get much better than that!”
I agree! You can read Terry’s article on page 8. Elsewhere in this issue of Faith & Friends, you’ll see how a dedicated group of women in Montreal knit for a worthy cause, and you’ll read about a veteran who dons his Legion uniform to volunteer at the kettles every Christmas.
All of us at Faith & Friends would like to wish you a wonderful Christmas and a happy, healthy and safe 2023.
Ken Ramstead
To show Christ at work in the lives of real people, and to provide spiritual resources for those who are new to the Christian faith.
Faith & Friends is published bimonthly by: The Salvation Army
2 Overlea Blvd, Toronto Ontario, M4H 1P4
International Headquarters 101 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4P 4EP, England
Brian Peddle, GENERAL
Commissioner Floyd Tidd
TERRITORIAL COMMANDER
Lt-Colonel John P. Murray SECRETARY FOR COMMUNICATIONS
Geoff Moulton, DIRECTOR OF INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF AND LITERARY SECRETARY
Pamela Richardson
ASSISTANT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Ken Ramstead, EDITOR
Kristin Ostensen
MANAGING EDITOR OF SALVATIONIST AND SALVATIONIST.CA
Lisa Suroso GRAPHIC DESIGN SPECIALIST
Rivonny Luchas
DIGITAL MEDIA SPECIALIST
Ada Leung
CIRCULATION CO-ORDINATOR
Giselle Randall, Abbigail Oliver STAFF WRITERS
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Larry Dewey is retired, but he keeps busy volunteering for various organizations and sits on multiple executive boards. A few years ago, a friend invited him to attend a fellowship breakfast at the Salvation Army church in Fort McMurray, Alta. That was when his relationship with the Army began.
“They’re an awesome group. It’s not only in Fort McMurray; it’s throughout the world that The Salvation Army has a good reputation,” Larry says.
Beginning in January 2020, Larry and his wife spent several months in Edmonton as he underwent 39 radiation treatments. For every session, his wife would knit a toque. It was a conversation starter but, more importantly, a distraction. By
the end of the treatments, she’d made 42 toques and donated every one of them to the Army in Edmonton.
Larry takes pride in volunteering at the kettles as he dons his Legion uniform and rings the bell at his local grocery store.
The connection to his community is what keeps him volunteering each year. As a member of the Royal Canadian Legion, he wants folks to know that the Legion is supportive of The Salvation Army’s work.
“They do a lot. I’ve got to pay it back,” Larry says.
The hours put in by the volunteers during the Army’s Christmas kettle campaign make it possible for pro grams and services to run all year round. The money raised goes back into the community to help fight poverty, homelessness and hunger.
Kettle volunteer dons his Legion uniform to ring the bell for The Salvation Army.As a member of the Royal Canadian Legion, Larry Dewey wants folks to know that the Legion is supportive of The Salvation Army’s work
by General Brian Peddle
When I consider the star that was a significant part of the Christmas story, I’m reminded that scientists view the stars in the sky very differently. They use light years to measure the distance of the stars from us on Earth. A light year is the distance light travels in one Earth year, so about 9.46 trillion kilometres.
The sun is our closest star and is some 150 million kilometres away. So, the sun’s light takes about eight minutes and 20 seconds to reach us, meaning we see the sun as it was more than eight minutes ago. The next closest star to us—Alpha Centauri—is some 4.3 light years away, so when we view this star today, we see it as it was 4.3 years ago. It’s as if we are looking back in time.
This means that the Magi written
about in Matthew 2:1-2 would have seen a star whose light was beaming before they could even see it. And yet, God used that star to lead them to Jesus: “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw His star as it rose, and we have come to worship Him” (Matthew 2:2 New Living Translation).
Jesus came to be the Light of the World. He came to shine His light in darkness—our darkness, the darkness of this world. We read in Isaiah 9:2: “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” This was prophesied long before Jesus was born.
Are we talking about light years when it comes to Jesus? No, I don’t think so, because the Bible tells us He is the alpha and omega—the
beginning and the end. He is as much a bright light today as He was at the beginning of time, or when He came to the earth to take up residence and “move into the neighbourhood” (John 1:14 The Message).
Jesus is not constrained by time. He is the “Light of the World” (John 8:12) and shines light into the darkest places of our troubled world, bringing change. The Light has come! There are no light years that can separate us from this Light. He is here, He knows us, and we can walk and talk with Him now. His purpose in coming was to be with us, but He has been, and always will be, with us.
If you do not know Him already, you, too, can know this Light of the World. His name is Jesus, and He came to the world to bring about
transformation. If you are seeking change, seek Jesus. If you are living in a dark place in life, seek Him who is the Light of the World.
For those who already know Jesus, He reminds us that we are light in the world. In Matthew 5:14 we read: “You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colours in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill” (The Message).
May you be a source of light in your corner of the world this Christmas, as you bring the Light of the World to others!
May God richly bless you throughout this Christmas season!
If you would like to know more about the Christmas story, turn to Luke 2:1-20 in the Bible.
“Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw His star as it rose, and we have come to worship Him.”
MATTHEW 2:2 (NEW LIVING TRANSLATION)(left) General Brian Peddle is the international leader of The Salvation Army.
by Terry Harris
THERE WAS A TIME IN MY LIFE when I was journeying through a lengthy season of unemployment. Worse than not being able to pay my bills or trying to explain that I was “between jobs” in social situations was the fact that I was losing hope.
I was working very hard, not only in my job search but also volunteering with many organizations. I hoped to be hired when there was a vacancy, but nothing seemed to pan out. Well-meaning people said, “Terry, what you lack in money, you are gaining in experience.” To which I’d reply, “Yes, and if experience paid the rent and the bills, I would be as happy about it as you are.” I admit, I was bitter.
Sometimes the longer we go with out something that’s important to us, the less likely we are to believe we will ever have it. This was how I felt about my employment situation. My whole self-esteem was wrapped up in the struggle to find a job. I was probably feeling sorry for myself more than I should have.
In reality, God was providing. My wife and I had a roof over our heads, food on the table, clothes on our backs and, most importantly, a supportive network of family and friends who loved us. But I was blinded to much of that at the time because I chose to link my value and worth to whether I was employed or not.
I’d read my Bible and had been taught that if God takes care of the sparrow, so He would take care of me (see Luke 12:6).
It’s one thing to know Scripture, quite another to put it to the test. Did I really believe in God’s provision and His goodness?
It was during this time that I had an experience that shifted my perspective from self-pity to empowerment.
A couple of months before Christ mas, a friend suggested that I apply to receive a Salvation Army Christmas food box.
She reasoned that since I fell within a certain income bracket, I would be “eligible.” Due to my preconceived bias, stereotypes and pride, I hated the fact that I was eligible for a Salvation Army Christmas box. I wanted to work, to be independent and to escape my circumstances.
And I had a certain mindset around who needed those things, and I never thought it would ever be me.
However, I reluctantly agreed.
When the day came to receive the delivery, I was nervous. I felt as if I had “unemployed” written on my forehead, and I was going to be exposed as the failure I believed I was.
I was anticipating judgment as well: “You’d better take this box and you’d better be grateful for it!”
But my concerns were completely unfounded.
The experience of receiving a Sal vation Army Christmas box was
“I felt as if I had ‘unemployed’ written on my forehead.”
When I opened the door, the delivery person came in with a huge box. We received more food than we could have ever anticipated, enough to cover our Christmas needs. It really felt like Santa Claus had landed on our doorstep.
And the man who delivered the box reminded me of Santa, too, not in appearance but in demeanour.
“How you doing? Great to see you!” he boomed as he brought the box up our steep staircases.
He acted like someone who had just heard a hilarious joke and couldn’t contain himself. He said something that got me laughing, and it produced a full belly laugh that shakes your insides and makes you breathless. I hadn’t laughed like that for a long time, and it felt good. What a Christmas gift!
More importantly, he knew how to protect and restore one’s dignity. By the end of our conversation, he had me feeling like I was doing him a favour for taking the Christmas box, as opposed to him doing me a favour by delivering it. The fact that I was unemployed and was eligible for a
Salvation Army delivery wasn’t relevant to the conversation. This man wasn’t just delivering food boxes; he was delivering joy and hope, and when he departed our house, he left all of that behind.
A couple of years after that Christmas, I ended up working for The Salvation Army in the chaplaincy department, ministering to those who are incarcerated.
Little did I know at that time that I would have the opportunity to do what that man did, to come in on behalf of the Army and offer the same hope to other people. I real ize now that part of my training for eventually working with The Salvation Army was learning how to be a recipient. I’m grateful for that because I now know what it’s like to be on the giving end and the receiv ing end.
I would like to believe that the whole experience has made me less judgmental, more compassionate, less bitter and more joyful. And for that, I am grateful.
(left) Terry Harris is a chaplain with The Salvation Army in Kingston, Ont. As part of his responsibilities, he is a member of the Spiritual Connection broadcast team volunteers, chaplains and incarcerated individuals who conduct a Christian service each Sunday at 10 a.m. on Amherst Island radio station 101.3. It reaches local Kingston institutions and the community and has an international reach through the internet.
by Melissa Yue Wallace
Five years ago, Montreal resi dent Ginette Poulin was going through an emotional time. Her mother had recently passed away, and she was looking for support and comfort. She lived close to The Salvation Army’s Montreal Citadel in the Ville-Émard neigh bourhood and noticed an invitation to join “Stitch and Chat,” a group for people who knit, sew or crochet.
“I kept looking at the sign and thought, Maybe it’ll be a good thing. I’ll be with a group of women, and
it’ll help me get over the death of my mom,” says Ginette.
“I’m so glad I joined!” she con tinues. “The people who attend are full of kindness and we all help each other. There’s a lot of love.”
The idea for Stitch and Chat transpired at a Salvation Army women’s camp, when members of the church discovered their shared gifts and pas sion for knitting. Two members had already been knitting Izzy Dolls for
Health Partners International, which provides medicine and treatment to vulnerable patients around the world, so they were eager to start Stitch and Chat in 2016 to form a community that could encourage each other.
It started with four members and has since grown to upward of 35. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the group met every Tuesday afternoon for two hours at the church to work on projects, learn from others, talk and enjoy refreshments.
“Over the years, I’ve registered more than 96 individuals from more than 41 countries in Stitch and Chat—it’s really amazing,” says Louise Fernandez of the Army’s immigrant and refugee programs, who has worked with the Army for 20 years. “It became a fellowship and we began to have meaningful conversations over our coffee break that helped people express themselves and grow closer.
“For example, one time, I asked
Happy Smiles
Stitch and Chat members create special moments every time they get together
Fruits of Their Labour
Just a few of the thousands of items the women of Stitch and Chat have created
people to share their first experience of putting makeup on, or I asked them what room they prefer most in their apartment or house, and why. The stories that came out were amazing. We had a woman in our group pass away. Months before, she had given all of us an angel pin for a special occasion. We were knit together as we wore our pins and attended her funeral. These were special moments we created.”
Gift of Warmth
Members of Stitch and Chat had knit ted more than 6,000 Izzy Dolls even prior to the group’s formation. They have also knitted slippers for a wom en’s shelter. Every December since 2018, the group has adorned Christ mas trees outside the church building with mittens, scarves and toques, free for anyone who needs warmth.
“Instead of dollar store stars and little bells, why not make garlands out of knitted items?” asked Louise.
The initiative is further supported by Farm Wives’ Circle, a knitting group from Châteauguay, Que., who donates bags of knitted items each year.
“Everything that gets taken from the tree, we replenish it,” says Louise.
“Some people find it hard to believe it is a free gift they can take, but the beauty of it is that we trust it is going to people who truly need it.”
The pandemic has meant fewer knitted items than previous years, but the group continues their volun teer efforts to keep people warm.
“If a member doesn’t want to do a programmed project or have their own in mind, we help them so they can accomplish their goal,” says Lou ise. “We also include the Stitch and Chat members in church activities, so they can be part of Army life and feel welcome.”
Stitch and Chat members met sporadically during the pandemic,
depending on restrictions and an individual’s comfort level. Still, Lou ise and members of the group kept in touch throughout, often through phone conversations, and they plan to gather together as soon as conditions exist for a safe and healthy reunion.
“I received permission from 98 percent of the group members to give their phone numbers to each other, so we would call each other, and I’d ask if they were safe, if they had seen anyone and so on,” says Louise. “Often, they wouldn’t want to hear about themselves; they would want me to tell them something new!”
“We meet on the street sometimes and talk about Stitch and Chat,” says Ginette. “We missed each other during the pandemic, but we keep on knitting because for all of us, it’s a passion.”
Visit The Salvation Army’s Montreal Citadel Christmas tree in December at 6620 Monk Boulevard.
(left)
Melissa Yue Wallace is a journalism graduate and freelance writer who is passionate about helping people in need and encouraging the organizations that work tirelessly to care for them. Melissa lives in Richmond Hill, Ont., with her husband and twin children.
“We keep on knitting because for all of us, it is a passion.” GINETTE POULIN
The story of a thrifted Christmas.
On our twins’ first Christmas, I wanted to find great party dresses on a budget— not always an easy task! As luck would have it, I found two red poufy Christmas dresses at my local Salvation Army thrift store. The size was too big but I knew I could make it work. Here are my tips for extending the life of kids’ clothes:
Is it an item that can be hemmed or slightly altered? I hemmed the bottom of the dress by hand the first year with thread and doublesided tape, and you’d never know. The second year, I let the hem down. Could you pair with clothing or accessories that fit? I used a white sweater over top the first year that was the right size, along with tights and a bow to complete the look. The second year, I was able to use the matching black sweater as it finally fit.
Remember, kids grow up! Hold off donating clothes right away. If you find the perfect holiday dress but it’s a little bit too large, have no fear. They’ll eventually fit!
We are going into Christmas number three with the same dresses! The twins don’t wear holiday attire every day, but thanks to my local Salvation Army thrift store, these are the dresses that keep on giving.
(left) Tijana McAllister is the frugalista behind A Plentiful Life, a lifestyle blog that shows readers how to live their best life on a budget. She is also a creative expert for The Salvation Army’s thrift stores. Find a thrift store near you at thriftstore.ca.
