In Christ-centred work, Jesus is not an appendage or an afterthought. He is the core, the root, the source, the origin, the power, the point of it all: “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:36 NRSVUE).

Our territorial strategic plan calls us to hold all things—people, mission, leadership and administration—as spiritual undertakings. Holy winds are blowing across our movement, and the longing for a deeper spiritual life must be our priority. God is moving and working. Hopefilled days have returned, even though we have hard realities to face. We are no longer prepared to accept the status quo. Mediocrity no longer has a hold. Our movement, from bottom to top, expects more because the Lord himself expects more. Souls are being saved, members are being made, engagement is on the rise.

Let us not hold an administrative-centric agenda but be guided by a strong spiritual agenda. The work must be done, but all work must find its point and purpose in the spiritual underpinnings of our movement. Our primary reason for being is to draw people to Jesus. Our Salvation Army theology directly teaches that even administrative duty is to be practised as a spiritual discipline.

William Booth, co-Founder of The Salvation Army, masterfully harmonized intense spiritual leadership with rigorous administrative responsibilities. He famously instructed Salvationists to balance spiritual fervour with practical operations, teaching that administrative duties were simply the machinery needed to effectively “save sinners and serve others.” Booth’s approach to leading an organization required that spiritual vitality and administrative action be two sides of the same coin. This is often summarized by his philosophy: “Work as if everything depended upon work and pray as if everything depended upon prayer.”

Territorial headquarters exists to support the territory in serving the mission of the movement. All who share in roles and responsibilities, from the local to the most senior levels, are first and foremost spiritual leaders equipped with gifts and skills to perform administrative tasks.

At every level of the movement, spiritual leaders must give priority to personal devotion. Booth warned: “You cannot warm the hearts of people with God’s love if you have an icy altar yourself.” He practised strict routines of daily prayer and Scripture reading, viewing personal surrender to God as the true measure of a leader’s power.

On December 6, 1849, William Booth wrote a set of six resolutions, found among his papers after his death, with the title: “I do promise—my God helping.”

1. He committed to early morning prayer.
2. He pledged to guard his speech and avoid gossip. He referred to this as avoiding “babbling and idle talk.” He sought mastery over his tongue, recognizing that careless conversation, gossip and vanity sap a leader’s moral authority and distract from spiritual focus. 
3. He pledged to model Christlike conduct and bold evangelism. Booth committed to a public witness of humility and zeal, actively steering conversations toward eternal matters. 
4. He committed to a careful discipline for Bible study to ensure his life was anchored in Scripture. 
5. He pledged to pursue a personal holiness and trusting providence. This combined a focus on personal purity with the decision to trust God with the outcomes of his work. 
6. And finally, he pledged to enforce personal accountability. 

Booth ensured his commitment to these rules by building in a regular, personal review process.

All Salvationists would do well to adopt these same resolutions.

Let us always be mindful that the chief credential of a Christ-centred movement and leader is Christ. Christ is for us in carrying out his plan. His enabling grace is more crucial than our own credentials or experience, as important as those are. A Christ-centred movement with Christcentred leaders are resourced continually from the Scriptures and prayer. May our hunger and thirst for a deeper spiritual life keep us Christ-centred, others-focused and moving forward, “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:36 NRSVUE).

COMMISSIONER LEE GRAVES is the territorial commander of the Canada and Bermuda Territory.

This story is from: