Nov 52 min read

Commissioning 2024 – Call to Prayer for our Champions of the Mission

BY CAPTAIN KYLIE HERRING*

The four cadets of the 2023-24 Champions of the Mission session are preparing themselves for a sacred event – the making of a covenant that will mark the conclusion of their officer formation journey and their entry into the vocation of Salvation Army officership.

The cadets are Sameeha Deepesh, Colette Albino, Michellie Higginbottom and Samuel Higginbottom (pictured below).

The signing of this covenant marks entry into a deeply spiritual relationship with God for sacred service.

To be ordained and commissioned as a Salvation Army officer, the following covenant is made.

Called by God to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ as an officer of The Salvation Army, I bind myself to him in this solemn Covenant:

• To love, trust and serve him supremely all my days,

• To live to win souls and make their salvation the first purpose of my life,

• To care for the poor, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, love the unloved, and befriend those who have no friends,

• To maintain the doctrines and principles of The Salvation Army and, by God’s grace, to prove myself a worthy officer.

It is our hope and prayer that the journey of formation each of our cadets has taken over the period of their training has prepared them to step with confidence into these significant and sacred moments.

The cadets have engaged with the three spheres of formation – personal and spiritual, mission and ministry, education and theological – and have demonstrated their commitment to integrating their learning into their ministry and leadership practice.

Covenant Day is the first of our official Commissioning events and will take place in person at Eva Burrows College, Melbourne Campus, on Thursday 21 November.

We ask you to cover our cadets with your prayers over the coming weeks.

*Captain Kylie Herring is Leader - Officer Formation/Senior Training Officer - Eva Burrows College