%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 ] /Count 1 /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 13 0 R /F7 15 0 R >> /XObject << /I1 17 0 R /I2 18 0 R >> /ExtGState << /GS1 19 0 R /GS2 20 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:20250430134950+00'00') /ModDate (D:20250430134950+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 2291 >> stream xXMs8W1S⧤aIĉ1kR 1& U6vy~)Y qrY)xuGh<]=47dt"xjIG9RX-d4j)9ʺ6^5b?5^}9,Ƀ'iE94p_6G"iCcz߰û17?/^Q~0(QQLGqa4V]g)͒EI֤iJQ>&Ņ~<.zYEpb? ? n,rL7M>lgXIҦ4fݮ%uZއjd/PQ>IxV-p%{OOٛSz)'OͲ"')N$.ϧӨV,j=X7L3Dڏ &i4RJE4+]:MdXഭ=^:rI>K8,| #_'O?/h3-=|pXV[RqDi=|W꫰p˒=|;Ȫ:m*Ce TҒ[r<7BVˌ6E)!;2)gE+;j dKsw^X Dt 3XV-.iHڛJ1Zn{ K~BDVlC<)+,'ZU/#zxO:*I hxҢ&WJ _M2 dО]]oi!]i\zgUR#Xg?g= "٬Y 8[,ae]ͳ^N@9͖.:甠g%CAtFRʺg@7P4`paa<ukz]KiURMKa{ bO8n!NwHḳpH O,&tA޻STO;cU[ş_BΠڭ/0Z>0bnFV0gI4MB|9IG.d,|^Kךo+qr]~pT[td@ٷZ Q5 @uT?(+\KԪڈ-i4Nyi:gKQV}T--QmIgh5 sF^ynۑ=e ͞[R?yȁzǠb F,zl=iMqCL KU[qqȪ6shF#g#o![aD]/sU>Tjx~PdMf!&ltD*S{c-)9J ~rԵjYHZ0>kL(IC\).n46Kʸ5uA۳%$7AFr_K&yn4ANq4BvSn5DƯ E 6IRAbœ<$!2^?v~yPtkQ/գ "{)`9aۍf:pM;S0O>Q$絕~OV47K&[p3 ݾn<m ,+c0d͂ۻ!ZO29@շ=Xl^-˷\w8_⢇Y`{dHO_^ƴr|M ?* g!aֿ% endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Times-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F5 /BaseFont /Times-BoldItalic /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 13 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F6 /BaseFont /Times-Italic /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 14 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F7 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 16 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 17 0 obj << /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 550 /Height 140 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Predictor 15 /Colors 1 /Columns 550 /BitsPerComponent 8>> /ColorSpace /DeviceGray /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 5329>> stream xqDǯ뺒$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 19 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 0.3 >> endobj 20 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 0.3 >> endobj xref 0 21 0000000000 65535 f 0000000009 00000 n 0000000074 00000 n 0000000120 00000 n 0000000419 00000 n 0000000456 00000 n 0000000605 00000 n 0000000708 00000 n 0000003072 00000 n 0000003179 00000 n 0000003287 00000 n 0000003397 00000 n 0000003510 00000 n 0000003625 00000 n 0000003736 00000 n 0000003765 00000 n 0000003875 00000 n 0000003904 00000 n 0000009479 00000 n 0000010610 00000 n 0000010669 00000 n trailer << /Size 21 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R /ID[<1e0deba9306d924dea9345568ecc561e><1e0deba9306d924dea9345568ecc561e>] >> startxref 10728 %%EOF Lessons learned on life's yellow brick road | Caring Magazine

Vol. #28

Grace Uncovered

Read Issue

Latest Impact StoriesView All

Popular Topics

PopularView All

Lessons learned on life’s yellow brick road

March 14, 2000
2 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Listen to this article

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME

 

bradley
Ethan Bradley

BY ETHAN BRADLEY – 

It was Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz who clicked her ruby shoes and said her mantra, “there’s no place like home” to get back to her Kansas farm. She was transported from a world of flying monkeys and dancing scarecrows to the monochromatic world of home. Her words to Auntie Em in one of the final scenes of the film cannot fully describe her experience in the Land of Oz.

I recently returned from the Salvation Army Russia Command. Now that I am back, I feel like Dorothy. I want to describe Russia to all the ‘Auntie Ems’ but sometimes words cannot suffice for some of my experiences there. The “jet age” makes it as easy as clicking your heels to get from one world to another and somehow this quick change can make your head spin like a Kansas twister.

One moment I was walking on the cobblestones of Moscow’s Red Square and 24 hours later I’m riding smoothly in a big car down Pacific Coast Highway near a Southern California beach. While the “jet age” plays tricks on mind and body, and the crossing of cultures can get you tongue-tied, it has made the world a smaller place. With increasing global travel, however, comes increasing awareness that we all share a similar sickness called sin. Violence and famine beamed by satellite into our living rooms all point to the notion, as Dorothy said it, “Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore.” Perhaps living in a country outside of the western world opens our eyes to the problems facing the world. What is the Christian’s response to a world which bears the burden of sin and separation from God? Is it simply to proclaim our “citizenship in heaven” while ignoring the fact that for many this life is “hell on earth”? Yes, we must hope for the heaven as Revelation 21:4 (NKJV) describes it where “…there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying…” but not hold back Christ’s redemptive power for the here and now. My experiences in Russia reminded me of this mission and the need for me to continue to fight.

As I return to the West I would like to say thanks to those who have kept me in prayer. I realize the rich heritage of the Army here. I also realize we must not rest on our laurels but continue to commit to our God-given mission of salvation. In John’s gospel Jesus promises “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23 NKJV).

Like Dorothy, we realize “there’s no place like home,” but in an increasingly homeless and hopeless world, may Christ be our only true home.

Ed. note: Bradley lived three months in Rostov on Don as a student at The Salvation Army’s Battle School. Following that, he spent two months in Moscow as a corps assistant in the Southwest Moscow Corps.

Download this page as a PDF

You May Also Like