%PDF-1.7 1 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Outlines 2 0 R /Pages 3 0 R >> endobj 2 0 obj << /Type /Outlines /Count 0 >> endobj 3 0 obj << /Type /Pages /Kids [6 0 R 19 0 R ] /Count 2 /Resources << /ProcSet 4 0 R /Font << /F1 8 0 R /F2 9 0 R /F3 10 0 R /F4 11 0 R /F5 12 0 R /F6 14 0 R >> /XObject << /I1 15 0 R /I2 16 0 R /I3 23 0 R /I4 24 0 R >> /ExtGState << /GS1 17 0 R /GS2 18 0 R /GS3 21 0 R /GS4 22 0 R >> >> /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] >> endobj 4 0 obj [/PDF /Text /ImageC ] endobj 5 0 obj << /Producer (dompdf 1.0.2 + CPDF) /CreationDate (D:20241127023156+00'00') /ModDate (D:20241127023156+00'00') >> endobj 6 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 7 0 R >> endobj 7 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1722 >> stream xWMW@ᷤXb ;AC";Cϰujj4R8Wｪ^$"IeV+kzhkÎZ?[ & M]Yدp))oq{x"CYIEUJD:_8*J!W9 r#VŅ |&Up3 ӻ8^%Ӽ%CupL2;[~DfͣޙqIyA5UO)WnJ^U3^z%יoƏ:y@BJX}cKғ%/TdYtҽr$GBKtcC pr@7ATǯoWĝJyM{:v>fQ{`7rA+Z1 E lf- yhҎYmK8~?v'kkG)z+j[4 J㬮N7"'ܶ7v D`1dwtݢy+Cc%ĺF3at~ Չ 䴟BqI` rAG\mbn<0,< [E5"UgVmD9a[yH$gmI(%vyԫ3  v=S#ր6ұ|BKߧu0v5z:oc&V!\c4uc 2yZ=G8I9OZQ)HܟBN \ݴrNc7JQ1PÞzf{ T# ;gco'Piju6Z1}N^:&r/ü {8-L4ʐh9"SHB)'b澡9쳟7F3y tv; p[eLLwی~gpTvbS87>/뻻ZpB4"l{}tOĦ`^dj_6IEf]}Jk3|0yT9ٗlz] s͜ endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Times-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F5 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 13 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F6 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 550 /Height 140 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Predictor 15 /Colors 1 /Columns 550 /BitsPerComponent 8>> /ColorSpace /DeviceGray /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 5329>> stream xqDǯ뺒$ILfff&I335Lf2\3I2L&_3$3I$d+$\W=9y9lLss99P`0 `0 `0 `0 !U_:~u = F~sZŻدns⃪Qg¢G(F[-s͓^ DZ>d>3Dr#\OΉ, ZFwjux<;4Ƀxز#_v?nO<|{7c(b{Oū}w[N e~Hs䎷wwOn<1B.k+%U=eԘ -mCj)t:}c'ϓ*n"-ovkZ?R"V%wʶ7s]eX&eǕq` 1-2e JYHCFOUam 7:(Ԙt_@ހN t{B~ :V@}o#7!z^&zFL:ʤn X<- %"bNWqF c` M'4?cH-V`ǵAF>=#Ěm75dB I&7E5<>-͏їFǿl3M6x]Y&)2 FoΌ N.<t i4wL\^=_|Fo؏IȄ ik$ɄL?{?|tmCޮ=~T&iTevϷ'奔s?EꋄLPY͹箵?@L:Aˤ3y_:9AtA*0qVe- e6g)%a}.qKcI V/xʤzM|\ HSql0;*%+Mذ-闛obebu2iU&lLbtIcxb5^B#8 ޮaʻ _ w>j+L:$"&O;bZ K1 jmU玫ݢ=S/J<WO2'_yUPvp=`"aL5 Nl7"rlQT޼==-I[Se* F'(\`󴯉'{:נnVZ TG6*r$Tyx^LJū.C<3` %ANrxUo"˄ 0&$tO F&bIcW3GG͈ y!{m,LkCI d,(2"@ dR%F1thUL8Rݒ^+v9^?sʯYעDl~Qd" N2sc|ov}=F,3K#vxIvG^,[OM&wI[#,Jޙ\ض;L^fv[LbyYvM#/EI#/Zס$(ڼ ," &LK/IF i-Zx彰픢]MKeR n(PhV'LҸ\f$w/ e]"mɷWO߻˱ KerSPe (ӼGMȈ}X?ʍto7ZKl+81_Y&ǡd uʤ1Vw!sQ"/$zNkw(t)2BWQW"˄OXLp:e‡# וzn2F}qlc5ؾ:WH xLz LP:d# Q>(MRېd2Qt$o~R$YR5,-nޜLr_βehd" 2k1lvO X= eC p+[R=jU!֖}_DޟY2 (*wkZQ>Fl̲soR#^u3hhyTԲt.LtD8sk4z4Rbl@zp4hy0Tn\=.fnő Y/:TC9<@fSI$:QR/bq7DfR/ֻn)Vqd"䳽˄GL;ϝRG顼n&%Sv eFv,L"t}I&N> D73]$e)( ;]XhL`kSzJlcC$<)깍h}dr,1ܝRM뭍eMa $?e3f8΍҈&P(x+JU5{I 3 M- ;7|#G9 !\œ&=xp2,L{-`?OW":4uܚEadv ~9q.VdV%UT@73$@W¯B!ݒaVLH:!opr;gAɀiήpfߙR E/IDO*Luf0}{7mfyDxT.g)w5RvHx#Z]&M$ gZUTt+lZqZ_;a&JaG,-JLJDFIcV|:I3nB&;N0Lna=Y_Gl,p5,,kc EKgd;2vt7selT9˸sX޲.6r<1!| L0lTMS1?Xsf cq )KSgBB&׭x. v c@^Yk΀v],E[ɾ QhYyXXC2)g/J@su1ScL, ?C[{V2i͛!סӠ&> 6lu>4Ƕʤ|=12鱧l{^:a/Y%~].26G: p^CZ V&Vedҟ?RrX7d#I]ՕuL1 ?_ /12IEh ̴b<ӯ^e _ϝ䰻^]vy> /ColorSpace /DeviceRGB /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 873>> stream x1j08-K/)],) &gi+:U̲\"9H!@"9H!@"9H!@eY.Z[p_E{QHKV[/`j%ʒcP,SX4W{7urd5ɱPr:-ֆʇX$$zfZpClbw7z{[]qGlwlGlZiM,ߺ7x}w` L9=3zpWL9 j)ۓB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$e]k` B$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$/؋ endstream endobj 17 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 0.3 >> endobj 18 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 0.3 >> endobj 19 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 20 0 R >> endobj 20 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1023 >> stream xVn6}W phId/Cm]a@[0쁖hD},ݹ:- Nˆ"y=k^"%t7 <.yLD$t5nh\lMMrJ3fGWbgtE:Uю- *ՌrV9^Z;(~dx߰Z`is?hsMoΑȊH6}{:c(WIB`!}Ex:N8xrWVV{HdG?7AOUHǨZ.ObD5IH;(b+픸H'hIPvEz9TK#czb^VzmM k,c^IB3ڎQXˤf#su%=&aPk?=:Ru N^UsCWt{5Ǫ 2W hc0,3D+uͥ܀ qJA02ֶrW61›c;;wE`-ׅX13&wlU:0N[.f= V;ر fAU*IPaN C˙<+SCoGD,'c~}z;yg~ 'X4;(!4JqPF  q1zyÖ tL_#nW4}"l@F#o/b ȟeͲ1.P4Zw,ex1lJr9 L YX\3%_6ˌ.aJRB+O/3/qܗ.0y~["ywHf6A/7 endstream endobj 21 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 1 >> endobj 22 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 1 >> endobj 23 0 obj << /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 550 /Height 140 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Predictor 15 /Colors 1 /Columns 550 /BitsPerComponent 8>> /ColorSpace /DeviceGray /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 5329>> stream xqDǯ뺒$ILfff&I335Lf2\3I2L&_3$3I$d+$\W=9y9lLss99P`0 `0 `0 `0 !U_:~u = F~sZŻدns⃪Qg¢G(F[-s͓^ DZ>d>3Dr#\OΉ, ZFwjux<;4Ƀxز#_v?nO<|{7c(b{Oū}w[N e~Hs䎷wwOn<1B.k+%U=eԘ -mCj)t:}c'ϓ*n"-ovkZ?R"V%wʶ7s]eX&eǕq` 1-2e JYHCFOUam 7:(Ԙt_@ހN t{B~ :V@}o#7!z^&zFL:ʤn X<- %"bNWqF c` M'4?cH-V`ǵAF>=#Ěm75dB I&7E5<>-͏їFǿl3M6x]Y&)2 FoΌ N.<t i4wL\^=_|Fo؏IȄ ik$ɄL?{?|tmCޮ=~T&iTevϷ'奔s?EꋄLPY͹箵?@L:Aˤ3y_:9AtA*0qVe- e6g)%a}.qKcI V/xʤzM|\ HSql0;*%+Mذ-闛obebu2iU&lLbtIcxb5^B#8 ޮaʻ _ w>j+L:$"&O;bZ K1 jmU玫ݢ=S/J<WO2'_yUPvp=`"aL5 Nl7"rlQT޼==-I[Se* F'(\`󴯉'{:נnVZ TG6*r$Tyx^LJū.C<3` %ANrxUo"˄ 0&$tO F&bIcW3GG͈ y!{m,LkCI d,(2"@ dR%F1thUL8Rݒ^+v9^?sʯYעDl~Qd" N2sc|ov}=F,3K#vxIvG^,[OM&wI[#,Jޙ\ض;L^fv[LbyYvM#/EI#/Zס$(ڼ ," &LK/IF i-Zx彰픢]MKeR n(PhV'LҸ\f$w/ e]"mɷWO߻˱ KerSPe (ӼGMȈ}X?ʍto7ZKl+81_Y&ǡd uʤ1Vw!sQ"/$zNkw(t)2BWQW"˄OXLp:e‡# וzn2F}qlc5ؾ:WH xLz LP:d# Q>(MRېd2Qt$o~R$YR5,-nޜLr_βehd" 2k1lvO X= eC p+[R=jU!֖}_DޟY2 (*wkZQ>Fl̲soR#^u3hhyTԲt.LtD8sk4z4Rbl@zp4hy0Tn\=.fnő Y/:TC9<@fSI$:QR/bq7DfR/ֻn)Vqd"䳽˄GL;ϝRG顼n&%Sv eFv,L"t}I&N> D73]$e)( ;]XhL`kSzJlcC$<)깍h}dr,1ܝRM뭍eMa $?e3f8΍҈&P(x+JU5{I 3 M- ;7|#G9 !\œ&=xp2,L{-`?OW":4uܚEadv ~9q.VdV%UT@73$@W¯B!ݒaVLH:!opr;gAɀiήpfߙR E/IDO*Luf0}{7mfyDxT.g)w5RvHx#Z]&M$ gZUTt+lZqZ_;a&JaG,-JLJDFIcV|:I3nB&;N0Lna=Y_Gl,p5,,kc EKgd;2vt7selT9˸sX޲.6r<1!| L0lTMS1?Xsf cq )KSgBB&׭x. v c@^Yk΀v],E[ɾ QhYyXXC2)g/J@su1ScL, ?C[{V2i͛!סӠ&> 6lu>4Ƕʤ|=12鱧l{^:a/Y%~].26G: p^CZ V&Vedҟ?RrX7d#I]ՕuL1 ?_ /12IEh ̴b<ӯ^e _ϝ䰻^]vy> /ColorSpace /DeviceRGB /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 873>> stream x1j08-K/)],) &gi+:U̲\"9H!@"9H!@"9H!@eY.Z[p_E{QHKV[/`j%ʒcP,SX4W{7urd5ɱPr:-ֆʇX$$zfZpClbw7z{[]qGlwlGlZiM,ߺ7x}w` L9=3zpWL9 j)ۓB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$e]k` B$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$/؋ endstream endobj xref 0 25 0000000000 65535 f 0000000009 00000 n 0000000074 00000 n 0000000120 00000 n 0000000461 00000 n 0000000498 00000 n 0000000647 00000 n 0000000750 00000 n 0000002545 00000 n 0000002652 00000 n 0000002760 00000 n 0000002870 00000 n 0000002983 00000 n 0000003099 00000 n 0000003128 00000 n 0000003238 00000 n 0000008813 00000 n 0000009944 00000 n 0000010003 00000 n 0000010062 00000 n 0000010167 00000 n 0000011264 00000 n 0000011321 00000 n 0000011378 00000 n 0000016953 00000 n trailer << /Size 25 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R /ID[<8e2db31b7eef5217f755fcbc0fab2980><8e2db31b7eef5217f755fcbc0fab2980>] >> startxref 18084 %%EOF Irrevocable | Caring Magazine

Vol. #28

Grace Uncovered

Read Issue

Latest Impact StoriesView All

Popular Topics

PopularView All

Irrevocable

June 11, 2006
3 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Listen to this article

The spice box

by Sharon Robertson, Lt. Colonel – 

I shouldn’t have been driving at all, let alone driving at 70 miles an hour on an interstate notorious for its heavy traffic and high speeds. Barren hills of unreclaimed desert alternated with fields of thriving crops and green orchards, but I saw neither through the film of tears that at times overflowed and coursed unheeded down my cheeks. My heart was at war with my raging mind: “I want out! This is wrong—God cannot expect me to remain part of such an organization. I can’t do it—I’m quitting.”

“The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

Shock drove the tears from my eyes. Where did that come from? A Scripture verse, obviously, but not one I’d ever memorized. He’s done it again! It really shakes me up when God impresses on my mind bits from his Word that I never consciously learned, and he knows it! But why now? Ugly memories forced their way to the surface; anger surged, but the tears were gone. God does not call his people to serve where he does not want them—so why has he put me in this situation? And why won’t he agree that I should resign? Now.

“The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”

The reasons for my anger and, yes, despair, are irrelevant now. It is enough to know that they were real, and they were valid. I had discovered serious wrongdoing, and it apparently was not going to be dealt with as I thought it should. I was questioning the morality and ethics of the organization to which I had dedicated my life, and asking myself if service in this Army was truly my calling. Was my calling to Salvation Army officership real, or had I gotten caught up in the romance of the organization, an organization known for its service to God through service to suffering humanity?

“I didn’t call you to serve The Salvation Army—I called you to serve me as an officer of The Salvation Army.” Whoa! That was no Scripture verse.

“Big deal, God. A distinction without a difference. You called me into Salvation Army officership. As an officer I serve the Army.”

“No, I called you to serve me, wherever I choose to place you. You gave your word. I haven’t changed my mind—have you?”

“Well…no-o-o-o-o…”

“Relax. Just remember, this is my Army. I called it out, just as I called you. ‘The gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.’ Listen, I have a plan…”

I learned a lot from God that day. He taught me that The Salvation Army is an organization, imperfect, fallible, but called out and ordained by him and dedicated to his purposes. He reminded me that I was pretty much the same—imperfect, fallible, but called and ordained by him and dedicated to his purposes. He taught me that I didn’t have to agree with everything that happens in the Army—I have only to seek his guidance in serving him to the best of my ability. He taught me that where I discovered wrongdoing, it was up to me to do my God-given best to bring about change—but to leave the results in his hands. He taught me not to ignore wrongdoing, but to confront it, to fight for what I believed was right for this Army and the Kingdom of God. He taught me that I wouldn’t always win all my battles, but that didn’t mean I could quit trying.

And most of all, he taught me that the good gifts and the call of God, both precious things, are not taken back. I looked it up. It’s Romans 11:29. I won’t forget again.

Download this page as a PDF

You May Also Like