When it's all said and done ...
When it's all said and done ...
13 June 2018
Officership is unashamedly an expression of “selfless” living and leadership in the era of the “selfie”.
“When it’s all said and done, more is said than done.”
You’ve likely heard that before – and perhaps you’ve experienced that at some point or another. What a waste of time and energy invested in a project or team, or even a lifetime, when the result is that, more is said than done. No one intentionally set out to live their days swamped in talk and busyness without achievement.
I’ve found a life-check question that is a surefire way to avoid the unintended outcome of my efforts and energy being mere busyness: “Do I live to exist or do I exist to live?” It’s a question that seeks to discover the degree to which my life has not only purpose but impact.
Impact requires purposeful, intentional effort to ensure that what needs to happen gets done the right way. The degree of that impact is so often dependent upon the embrace of the all-or-nothing proposition. The opportunity for greater impact rests within the vision and choices of every person.
Realising Greater Impact as one of the six “Whys” of the journey of The Salvation Army to a single territory, is dependent upon the purposeful and intentional effort of each Salvo.
It is too easy to assume that the busyness of the movement means impact is occurring. Greatest Impact happens when we find ourselves using our skills, gifts and experiences in partnership with God and what he is choosing to do around us. Greater Impact will be the result of a full surrender to God’s leading and vision for the Army and Australia, one Salvo at a time.
At the recent Red Shield Appeal launch in Perth the Governor of Western Australia, Kim Beazley, in his opening greetings, said of The Salvation Army, “In a selfie-age, you stand out as the Selfless movement”.
It was a word of appreciation of The Salvation Army, while challenging all in the room to consider personal perspective and motivation.
It was at the same time a challenge to every Salvo in the room to indeed continue to live, love and fight alongside others in a selfless service approach.
Salvation Army officership has provided an avenue for many Salvos through the years to make a greater impact, leading and supporting teams of Salvos in diverse expressions of The Salvation Army in locations across the nation.
Beginning this month, and over the months ahead, opportunities to explore and better understand the paths toward Salvation Army officership will be promoted, inviting people to consider if God might have in mind officership as an avenue for greater impact for their lives.
Officership is unashamedly an expression of “selfless” living and leadership in the era of the “selfie”.
As together we continue to journey to position The Salvation Army for greater impact, I invite you to consider the path of greatest impact that your life can make.
When it’s all said and done, what will you have done?
For further information on officership contact any officer, or email National Officer Recruitment Team Leader at matt.reeve@aus.salvationarmy.org.
Commissioner Floyd Tidd is National Commander of The Salvation Army in Australia
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