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Praying At Noon
by Major Rob
Reardon
From our earliest days as a movement,
it was the expectation for Salvationists worldwide to
intercede on behalf of the General each day at noon. While
this is more less an Army tradition, it holds deep biblical
support. The imperative is given in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13,
17: “Brothers and sisters, we ask you to respect those who
are working with you, leading you, and instructing you. Think
of them highly with love because of their work. Live in peace
with each other. Pray continually.”
These verses are used by Commissioner
Bronwyn Buckingham, as she calls the Army world to prayer for
the leaders who will be called to the High Council in May of
this year for the purpose of electing a new General of The
Salvation Army. Beyond this important call, however, these
words from the apostle Paul to the church in Thessalonica are
a reminder to us all that we are to keep our spiritual and
ecclesiastical leaders at the top of our prayer lists because
of the highly important role they play in our lives. Without
our spiritual leaders, we would be like leaves on an autumn
tree, barely attached to the branch through which we draw our
spiritual nourishment. To this end, our prayers for them, in
all respect and love are to be for their perseverance to the
Gospel and their own strong connection to the true vine,
Christ Jesus.
In John 15, Jesus paints for us a word
picture that provides vivid detail to the vine and branch
imagery. This is the hope we should have for our Salvation
Army leaders – that they remain in Christ so that he will
remain in them, thereby spiritually enabled to produce fruit
that is long-lasting and lifegiving. We are the beneficiaries
of such leadership. As Salvation Army leadership convenes
during those sacred days in May, would you join with fellow
Salvationists, praying that the connection to the true vine is
so deep and inextricably linked that our leaders would be able
to, as Jesus says, “ask anything [they] want, and it will
be given…” (John 15:7). We recognize that when truly
connected to the vine, our leaders will not be asking for
anything born of their own will, or even of their
constituents, for that matter, but the will of the Father, who
knows exactly what the Army needs and what the world needs of
his Army in these days.
Would we all be so connected to the
vine so that we could pray along with our poet General, Albert
Orsborn:
All my work is for the Master,
He is all my heart’s desire;
O that He may count me faithful
In the days that try by fire!
(SASB #672)
May that also be the prayer of our
leaders as they follow Christ and lead The Salvation Army!
If you would like
to join thousands of Salvationists online in prayer for the
General of The Salvation Army, you’re invited to join this
special Facebook group that has been actively praying for
successive Generals since 2011 -
<link to Facebook group>
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