September 1943
329
John the Baptizer, first stepped down to the fords of the Jordan and began to proclaim the advent of a great and m i g h t y personality, Jesus Christ— from that time until now, men have been identified by their works. It may be a proud and haughty perse cuting rabbi, who suddenly says, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” and who then gives himself to be stoned in Lystra, to be imprisoned, to be shipwrecked, and finally to be beheaded' in Rome ior his efforts. It may be a poor Negro tenant farmer in East Texas, who prays over his campfire, as I. am sure old “Bully,” my Negro friend, does pray for the success and protection of a certain army Chaplain. But, my friend, in each case there is the manifestation of the missionary spirit. It is found wherever Christians are found. The Divine imperative Let us ask ourselves: Why do we be lieve in missions? Then, having asked the question, let us answer frankly and honestly. I think, first, we should list the fact of accepted custom or childhood training. “Missions” are a part of the church budget, and therefore we feel should be supported along with the rest; Or this kind of ministry is part of what we believe, and so is not to be questioned. Of outstanding importance, it seems to me, is the fact that the New Testa ment is most explicit on this point. It is impossible for one to read this God-inspired Book and not find on every page commands and exhorta tions to make Christ known to all the world. When Jesus said, “Go ye into all the world,” certainly that was a command. Who on this earth, other than fools, would dare violate a direct command given by One with such absolute authority as J e s u s Christ possesses? His is authority not ob tained by political chicanery or usur pation. God Himself entrusted the world’s redemption unto His Son. He has authority to command us, who are saved by His atonement, because we are not our own but are doubly [ Continued on Page 359].
A Staff Sergeant Speaks By S/SGT. WALTER L. FRAY
O N THIS island »somewhere in the Southwest Pacific, where not many decades ago canni the United States Army, along with other Allied forces,* is working side by side with natives and missionaries. To most of us, it was our first oppor tunity to see the results of mission work on foreign fields. I believe that the greater part of the boys here will go back home with the determination ♦ to do more for the missionary pro gram. We see the need of more mis sionaries here on this island, to say nothing of the near-by islands where the white man still has not gone for fear of-being used for a pot of soup, or of being roasted. But when we think that these cannibals are souls for whom Christ died, we realize how little we are doing for the cause of lost humanity. It is a great challenge to us as Christians to heed the command that Christ gave when He said, "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel." This command is still given today. As a Christian, what will you do with it? We are glad that we are in a loca tion where we can have a chapel and regular chapel programs. One thing of much interest to us is the sharing of our chapel with the natives. Each Sunday we have a goodly number of them present, and even though they cannot understand the English lan guage, they realize that they are in a
sacred service. Our Sunday morning services usually begin with a song by them in their own native tongue. The have wonderful harmony, and get great b l e s s i n g from singing praises to His name. Since we Army men have seen the results of missions, and the need for more workers, we have decided that even though we are among the armed forces of our nation on this far dis tant island, and cannot talk to the natives because of the difference in our languages, there is still something that we can do, and that is to give a part of our earnings to the mission program. This idea was born in our weekly prayer meetings, and as far as we know is something entirely new in the Army. The Lord has greatly blessed us for our efforts with a little over a thousand dollars in the last few months. * We were confronted with the ques tion of where to send our proceeds. After much prayer about the matter, and since our group represents almost every denomination, we decided upon a plan of distributing the money to many mission stations throughout the world. Our prayer is that the Lord will use it to His name's honor and glory. Will you who read this pray with us that regardless of the outcome of the conflict that we are now in and regardless of who goes home and who does not, we will be true to Him who gave Himself that we through His poverty might have eternal riches?
bals ruled in their own way, today
Left: Choir of the Natives of the Island.
Above: Army Post Chapel Choir.
All photographs by Headquarters 13th Atr Depot Group
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