大象传媒

Please note:
This script cannot exactly reflect the transmission, as it was prepared before the service was broadcast. It may include editorial notes prepared by the producer, and minor spelling and other errors that were corrected before the radio broadcast.
It may contain gaps to be filled in at the time so that prayers may reflect the needs of the world, and changes may also be made at the last minute for timing reasons, or to reflect current events.

Radio 4 Opening Announcement: 聽大象传媒 Radio 4. It鈥檚 ten past eight and time for Sunday worship which comes this morning from Millfield in Sunderland and celebrates the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Salvation Army by William and Catherine Booth.
The preacher is The Salvation Army鈥檚 international leader General Andr茅 Cox. The service is led by Dorothy Nancekievill, supported by the International Staff Songsters, who begin the service by singing 鈥楢ll for thee鈥�.
INTERNATIONAL STAFF SONGSTERS: All for thee
INSERT PLAYED INTO THE CHURCH (MALE ACTOR)鈥淏less you a thousand times! How often during my journey have I taken my eyes from off the book I was reading to think about you 鈥� yes, to think tenderly about you, about our future and our home.Shall we not again commence a life of devotion, and by renewed consecration begin afresh the Christian race?鈥滾EADER (DOROTHY)Welcome to the Salvation Army in Sunderland. Those words come from a letter written by William Booth to his wife Catherine soon after their marriage. Together they founded The Salvation Army in the East End of London in 1865. Now we鈥檙e an international Christian church providing for people鈥檚 spiritual and physical needs in 126 countries.聽Today is in fact a double-celebration as this church in Millfield, marks 125 years of serving God in this community of Sunderland. Our members, young and old, continue to uphold the calling first heard by William and Catherine our founders to present the message of Jesus Christ to people of all ages and circumstances, and to show the love of God unconditionally to all in practical ways.As we worship together, we hope you鈥檒l join us in reflecting on the new life that God offers everyone through Jesus. Our first hymn, by Charles Wesley, marvels at how God brings about this renewal in our lives 鈥� how we鈥檙e liberated through God鈥檚 amazing extravagant love to a living relationship with him.
HYMN 1: 聽And Can It Be
GEORGELet us prayFather God, we come before you in the knowledge that your saving love is free to everyone who calls on the name of Jesus. Thank you for your amazing love for us, so deep that we are overwhelmed by your mercy and grace.聽
Through your son, Jesus, who gave his life for the world on the cross, your nature is truly revealed and your love shown beyond doubt. Through his life, death and resurrection you reached out to the world drawing us once again to yourself, restoring humanity to a full relationship with you, so bringing forgiveness to all who follow you. 聽Give us a new sense of purpose, and restore and renew us to be all that you want us to be.ALL: AmenDOROTHYThe Salvation Army we all know today started rather quietly, when a young man鈥檚 eye was caught by a rather good looking Methodist. He was called William Booth, she was Catherine Mumford, and this was the 1850s in London.Their love story would last 40 years and led to the creation of a Christian movement which now spans the globe.Salvationist, author and broadcaster Cathy Le Feuvre explains more about this remarkable couple.
INSERT PLAYED INTO THE CHURCH: Cathy Le Feuvre and actorsThey met at an afternoon tea party in mid May 1852, and just a month later they were engaged. From the start Catherine and William鈥檚 love was based not just on instant mutual attraction, but a real shared love of God, who they were determined to put first in their relationship.聽Indeed, on the day of their engagement, there was a clear indication of the future in Catherine鈥檚 loving note to her fianc茅e 鈥�The thought of walking through life perfectly united, together enjoying its sunshine and battling its storms, by softest sympathy sharing every smile and every tear鈥�, is to me exquisite happiness; the highest earthly bliss I desire. And who can estimate the glory to God, and the benefit to man, accruing from a life spent in such harmonious effort to do HIS will?聽
The relationship wouldn鈥檛 always be smooth running. There would initially be years of separation while William sought to pursue his calling in life as a Christian evangelist. There would be illness, debt and the pressures of raising a large family. And, finally, after years of working together in various churches and then as travelling evangelists, the couple would in 1865 鈥� exactly 150 years ago this July - settle in London and form their own Christian Mission 鈥� the movement which in 1878 was renamed 聽鈥楾he Salvation Army鈥�.That, however, was years away when William took up his quill pen to write to his Kate, just a month after their engagement. Yet already there was a hint that their love would grow into something much more than a marriage and family and a lifetime of support for each other鈥︹�溾��And now, Catherine, shall we not solemnly give ourselves to God, to do his will and accomplish his purposes. Oh what happiness to know that we are working in sweet union with his providence and gracious dispositions toward us and toward the world. I tell you that nothing can afford me lasting and satisfactory and complete enjoyment but the work of winning souls鈥�.鈥� 聽聽
INTERNATIONAL STAFF SONGSTERS: EVERYWHERE
LEADER (DOROTHY)The song 鈥楨verywhere鈥� with words by General John Gowans, the 16th General of the Salvation Army, and sung by the International Staff Songsters. [Music plays an important part in Salvation Army worship with all types of expression used in our services.] Many of our churches have choirs, known as Songsters, who take part in Christian worship every week.聽I鈥檓 privileged to be the director of the International Staff Songsters -who are some of our best singers from Salvation Army choirs across Britain. We鈥檙e Christian musicians who use our free time to share the Gospel through singing all types and styles of music; from modern hymns, spirituals, to classical and folk songs.聽
Once a month The International Staff Songsters share Christian witness and testimony by visiting a particular Salvation Army community, which is why we鈥檙e in Sunderland this weekend. Wherever we go, through music we seek to introduce people to Jesus Christ and his power to change lives. Of course that always involves people coming face to face with the living word of God in the bible.
BIBLE READING 聽(Graham Wharton)A reading from the Book of Philippians, Chapter 4, beginning at verse 4.Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
LEADER (DOROTHY)Our reader was Graham Wharton, Centre manager of the Southwick Community Project which works with people in the Sunderland area who have been long-term unemployed. Our calling as The Salvation Army is to help the whole person in their physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing, in every part of life, without discrimination. 聽
Another local project is the Swan Lodge Lifehouse that offers 24-7 support and accommodation for people who would otherwise be homeless. Sometimes, the situations and difficulties, bereavements and struggles we all face in life get the better of us. The centre offers more than a hostel or a bed for the night, giving highly personalised support to help people get back on their feet and stay there.聽Former client Craig Hilton, now a member of staff at Swan Lodge, shares his journey.
TESTIMONY: Craig HiltonWhen I say to some of the guys I meet at Swan Lodge 'I know how you feel' it's because I really do know how they feel. I鈥檝e been homeless, I've been begging and I鈥檝e been addicted to drugs and alcohol. And to come through that, that's what they need, they need to see there鈥檚 a hope and a chance to recover. I鈥檓 a devoted Christian and through the change Jesus Christ brought about in my life I have become the person he created me to be.In a frighteningly short space of time I went from being married with kids, having a large car, and a successful job 鈥� to being divorced, getting mugged and sleeping under a fire escape. I turned up at The Salvation Army trapped and desperately needing help. Swan Lodge Lifehouse gave me hope, motivation, encouragement and, yes, love.聽We need a bit more in here about the struggles, set backs and the time it took for Craig to get back on his feet.Today, it鈥檚 good to be able to give something back and to help others face the future with hope and confidence.
INTERNATIONAL STAFF SONGSTERS: Compelled by love
READER 1 Brian ThompsonI am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed鈥攁 righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 鈥淭he righteous will live by faith.鈥�
READER 2 Sandra WilkinsonTherefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
LEADER (DOROTHY)Words of St Paul in Chapter 1 of his Epistle to the Romans, and of Jesus recorded in St Matthew鈥檚 Gospel Chapter 6. Our preacher this morning is the international leader of the Salvation Army, General Andr茅 Cox.

INSERT PLAYED INTO THE CHURCH SERMON PART 1Some months ago I streamed an address for our international website, reminding our 26 thousand officers and 108,000 employees across the world where our spiritual life comes from. There鈥檚 only one place which triggers such a fantastic spiritual growth and that鈥檚 prayer. William and Catherine Booth and their pioneering leaders were people who believed God answered prayer 鈥� and their experience was that God answers far beyond our wildest expectations or what we might dare to hope.聽
Those early day Salvationists sometimes at great personal expense at times facing persecution believed that they could overcome and change the world around them.聽
The first Christians and early day Salvationists shared a strong faith. They believed in the power of the word of God to touch and transform lives. And so do Salvationists across the world today.The word of God was preached and there were spectacular results in those early days not because of the individuals but because of God who was at work in their hearts and lives.Paul puts it this way when he wrote to the first Christians in Rome: As he said he wasn鈥檛 ashamed of the Good News of Christ 鈥� and neither is the Salvation Army. The message is indeed the power of God at work 鈥� saving everyone who believes, from every background, culture, ethnicity and class. As the Scriptures say, 鈥淚t is through faith that a righteous person has life.鈥� We too believe that. We take the whole gospel to the whole person. And that might 聽mean battling with all sorts of problems 鈥� be it alcohol, drugs dependency, or the fear of loneliness, exclusion and rejection.聽The power of the message remains the same but the message requires messengers. As Paul we are called to proclaim, preach, teach and live the Gospel message unashamedly. Salvationists aren鈥檛 just what they say but we are the people we are because the Gospel has transformed us.聽The power of the Gospel message changes lives! The Gospel message is for all people without distinction. No one is excluded. In Paul鈥檚 mind there is no room for doubt, he has received the Gospel message which literally changed and transformed his life.聽God is at work right here and right now! What a tremendous encouragement that is for those who see it and experience that reality every day. It affects the way we see the present but more importantly how we view the future聽
HYMN 2 聽Fairest Lord Jesus聽
INSERT PLAYED INTO THE CHURCH SERMON PART 2In a few weeks鈥� time over 16,000 Salvationists from all over the world will gather at the O2 in Greenwich to celebrate and think about the next hundred and fifty years. 聽What on earth are we going to be discussing? For the contexts in which we all work are often so different but the message is always the same. In Nairobi the lives of the poorest people existing off the dross of rubbish tips have been transformed through a sports project for young people. In Bangladesh and in the Tsunami affected areas of Indonesia and Sri Lanka micro finance projects are helping families get back on their feet and help themselves in a sustainable way, bringing always the self-respect which always comes with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In Haiti following the earthquake local salvationists are at the forefront of projects that are enabling people to rebuild their homes by providing business training and life skills. And this is never international missionaries parachuted in, but always local community generated. It鈥檚 certainly true that The Salvation Army is best known for the social transformation it can bring to people鈥檚 lives. But that doesn鈥檛 happen anywhere in world without the love joy and peace of Jesus invading each individual. The message of the love of Jesus and the value of the individual before God never changes.聽
God is calling us into a bright future. As Christians, we are not a people who live in fear because we know and experience the fact that the Kingdom of God has come near to us in Jesus.聽
Paul in writing to the Philippians reminded them to rejoice, and 聽be thankful, and not to be anxious. Christians never base their future in worry and fear 鈥� and as an international movement we believe that God will always show us the next steps. Part of that involves clear thinking about how the gospel can transform the mega cities of the future. 聽Those whose lives are blighted by stress and the treadmill of materialism. One of the toughest calls for all Christians including the Salvation Army is engaging appropriately with the burgeoning young populations in these mega cities where there is so much attract and excite but also so much opportunity for disappointment and spiritual bankruptcy.
But God has not changed; His message to the world remains unchanged. God still reaches out to this world in love and despite our human weekness Paul reminds us that it is the Gospel message that is the power of God at work within us saving all who believe.
William Booth the Founder of The Salvation Army penned the words of a well-known song which is an anthem sung by Salvationists around the world in many languages. This is how he describes the wonderful gift of Salvation:
鈥淥 boundless salvation, deep ocean of love, O fullness of mercy, Christ brought from above, the whole world redeeming, so rich and so free, now flowing for all men, come roll over me.鈥�
The truth is that this boundless salvation so rich and so free is available to you and to me if we truly want it!聽
Now that is something truly worthy of a celebration and I pray that we will all indeed experience that power of God at work in our lives today.
May God bless you!聽
HYMN 3 聽O Boundless Salvation
GEORGEWe long for a boundless salvation for you, for me and for the whole world. Prayer roots us ever closer into the will of God 鈥� 聽so let us now pray with the assurance that God hears and answers prayers, and responds beyond our greatest expectations.
PRAYERS (Katie Mair over)
Katie Mair:Father God, our hearts are full of gratitude and rejoicing as we remember and celebrate the many souls who have been saved through the ministry of The Salvation Army.
Brian Thompson:As we worship you today we give thanks for our Saviour, Jesus Christ, who died and now lives in the hearts of those who proclaim him Lord.ALL: We rejoice in your boundless salvation.
Sandra Wilkinson:Father God, we pray for deeper faith and spiritual energy to share the message of salvation with all people through the mission of The Salvation Army.
Katie Mair:As we pray, we bring to you all who are struggling with life, living in fear, feeling lost or lonely. We ask you Father to reach out to all in need of you right now, thinking especially of the many threads of tragedy interweaving, one with another, in the stories emerging from those rescued from the Mediterranean. Touch them and their families, and all of us 聽with your peace, your love and your comfort.ALL: We rejoice in your boundless salvation.
Brian Thompson:We give thanks for the part the Salvation Army plays in the community here in Sunderland and we pray for all who live and work in this city. May the hope of Jesus fill each heart and may our prayers be a blessing over our neighbourhood.
Sandra Wilkinson:May our doors be open to welcome everyone who enters, may each person find acceptance and understanding; may the love and grace of Jesus be seen in those who serve God here and may God鈥檚 boundless salvation be received by all who seek him.ALL: We rejoice in your boundless salvation.
GEORGE:We pray together in the words that Jesus taught us:Our Father, who art in heaven,Hallowed be thy name;Thy kingdom come;Thy will be done;On earth as it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread.And forgive us our trespasses,As we forgive those who trespass against us.And lead us not into temptation;But deliver us from evil.For thine is the kingdom,The power and the glory,For ever and ever.聽Amen.
INTERNATIONAL STAFF SONGSTERS: The Christ of Calvary
DOROTHYThank you for joining us here in Sunderland this morning. Our final hymn is a joyous proclamation of the glory of God at work in our world and in our lives today. Ever singing, march we onward, victors in the midst of strife; joyful music leads us sunward, in the triumph song of life. You鈥檒l know the tune!
HYMN 4 聽Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
BLESSING (Dorothy)[As we鈥檝e joined in celebration of the boundless glory and joy of 聽our loving and gracious God,聽May we live in the victory of our resurrected Lord聽and serve each other in the power of His Holy Spirit.]聽And may the blessing of God almighty,Father, Son and Holy Spirit go with us now and for evermore.
All Amen
BRASS: The Pioneers, Composer James Anderson (featuring the tune When the Saints Go Marching In)
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Extracts taken from:: 聽William and Catherine - The Love Story of the Founders of The Salvation Army told through their letters鈥櫬燗uthor: Cathy Le FeuvrePublished by Monarch books 2013