Concord Chronicle

This week our daughter, Kaylynn, turned 21 years old. I cannot believe it! I remember the night I went into labor with her. We just finished Adult Bible Study that we hosted at our home. Rhys, buckled in his car seat, and I sat in the back of the minivan as Gwyn drove our church members home. After the last person was dropped off, we headed back to our own place.

I didn't realize just how bumpy the back seat was. Rhys squealed in delight as we bounced ever so slightly in the air over every little speed bump or turn in the road. It was on our last few bumps when I thought, "Hmm, I don't feel so good." My own little squeals of joy turned to winces and twinges of pain.

Once we unloaded the car, I definitely didn't feel so good. I gave my parents a call - thankfully they were stationed about an hour away from us - and they were on their way. Rhys was settled into bed. My parents were on grandparent duty. And Gwyn and I were off to the hospital!

The hospital was strangely quiet. We had the whole labor and delivery ward to ourselves. Gwyn and I walked up and down the stark white corridors to keep the labor progressing. An epidural and a few hours later, Kaylynn came into the world.

It's mind-blowing. So much has happened since that night with me and my little girl (and the same with each of our children). I replay memories in my mind, and I thank God for them - happy ones and not-so-happy ones. Parenting is not for the weak! Actually, as a parent, one realizes that you need to rely on a higher power to get you through each day.

But now that she has reached adulthood, she is making her own way, making her own choices. My prayer is that she will remember the lessons learned and will one day impress them onto her own children. (I know, I know, there is still time for that ... but I'm sure that will come much sooner than I will be prepared for.) It was important for us to raise our children knowing about God and his love for the world and the discipline or correction that comes when we disobey his word. I don't want to be too dramatic, but I will not always be around. But God's Word will never fade away! I hope that we each study His Word and live guided by its teachings.

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up" (Deuteronomy 6:5-7, NIV).

Major AnnMarguerite Jones

"Great results can be achieved with small forces.” - Sun Tzu, "The Art of War"

There was a tradition in ancient warfare called "single combat”.

It was a way of settling military disputes without incurring the bloodshed of a major battle. Author Malcolm Gladwell explores one of the most famous examples of this in his book “David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants”. The way I grew up hearing this story, David is always portrayed as the underdog, and his victory over Goliath as improbable, if not miraculous.

But it turns out it was the other way around - against David, Goliath was a dead man walking!

We can read the story in 1 Samuel 17, but the gist of things is that the Philistines - a seafaring people from Crete - had landed an army on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean with the objective of conquering everything on their way to get to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Their objective lay in the high country and to get there they had to cross ever-increasing ridges with valleys in between in an area known as the Shephelah. The Kingdom of Israel, which was headed by King Saul, obviously caught wind of this, and Saul brought his army down from the mountains and he confronted the Philistines in the Valley of Elah, one of the most beautiful of the valleys of the Shephelah. The Israelites dug in along the northern ridge, and the Philistines dug in along the southern ridge, and the two armies just sat there for weeks and stared at each other. They were deadlocked. Neither army could attack the other, because to attack the other side you’d have to come down the mountain into the valley and then up the other side, and you’d be completely exposed.

So to break the deadlock the Philistines send out Goliath, who stands 9’ 9” (about 3 meters) wearing polished bronze armor that weighs about 125 lbs (about 58 kilos) with a spear whose iron tip weighs about 15 lbs (almost 7 kilos).

Day after day he challenges the Israelites to single combat. He tries to goad them to action by insulting and blaspheming their God and their religion. Saul and his army were scared to death of him, assuming that he would make short work of any champion with inferior stature and armor.

Any medical professional today encountering someone whose height was so far outside accepted norms as Goliath was, would immediately suspect a condition known as acromegaly. This is caused by a benign tumor on the pituitary gland that causes continual secretion of human growth hormone. Some modern examples include Abraham Lincoln and the wrestler André the Giant. The side effects of this condition include reduced peripheral vision, double vision, joint weakness, and a slow lumbering gait. All of these side effects are described in the biblical account! This is probably why Goliath asks David why he comes against him armed with sticks (plural) when David only had one staff. His poor vision is probably why he has to be led into the valley by an attendant carrying his shield.

David, on the other hand, is young, fit, and agile and an expert with a sling. Slingers were the first “artillery” and they were incredibly accurate. We know from historical accounts that an experienced slinger could hit a bird in flight! Modern calculations reveal that the release velocity of a projectile from a sling is in excess of 100 mph (45 m/s). Moreover, the stones David picked up in the valley of Elah would be made of very dense and heavy Barium Sulfide. That weight at that speed is equivalent to the stopping power of a modern handgun!

In short, slow, ponderous Goliath stood absolutely no chance against David’s equipment and demonstrated proficiency with a sling. Moreover, David was literally on a mission from God:

“You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head” (1 Samuel 17:45-46, NIV).

Satan often tries to convince us that we are the underdogs in this world or that we don’t have the resources to compete with the world’s systems, but as usual, this is a lie! We do not have to fight in the way the world wants us to fight or by its rules. We are often strongest when we appear to be most weak. Listen again to Paul’s testimony:

“That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:10, NIV).

When Moses felt under-equipped in his mission to Pharaoh, God asked him “what’s that in your hand?” And that stick in his hand was used to perform amazing miracles! In the same way David “only” had a sling, but for God’s purpose, it became mightier than the most formidable military equipment of the day.

There are many other pieces of scripture that amplify this principle and I encourage you to search them out, but I think that Paul sums them up succinctly:

“What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?… No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:31 and 37, NIV).

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ I can assure you that God is most definitely “for” you. If He has asked something of you He has already provided all the equipment you need!

Victory is not only possible, it is guaranteed!

Believe it!

Blessings on you and yours,
Jim Black

This week, Majors Gwyn and AnnMarguerite Jones will be at Officers' Councils.

SUNDAY

• 9:00 AM - Praise Team Practice - Chapel
• Note: If musicians can come early, we would appreciate the help in getting equipment back onto the platform.
• 10:00 AM - Sunday School - Classroom 3
• 10:00 AM - Corps Cadets - Classroom 2
• 10:00 AM - Adult Sunday School - Library
• 10:15 AM - Time of Prayer - Prayer Room
• 11:00 AM - Worship Service - Chapel
• 12:15 PM - Fellowship Time - Fireside Room
• 12:30 PM - Youth Music Rehearsals - Chapel
• Note: We are trying to get our Food & Fellowship Crews/Teams revitalized. If you would like to be part of this ministry, please remain after church for a short meeting.

TUESDAY

• 6:00 PM - Men's Bible Study - Classroom 3
• No ROOTED Small Discipleship Group this week while Major Ann is away.

WEDNESDAY

• 10:00 AM - CAMEO: Happy Fall Y'All - Zoom and Library

For those who will be participating, thank you for your willingness to help with our first Trunk or Treat!

Everyone: We ask that on this occasion as many as possible, park your cars in the upper parking lot to allow visitors to park in the front lot. You may wear your costume to church, (nothing too scary, please!)

Trunkers: Please arrive at The Salvation Army by 9:30 at the latest on October 30th and park your automobile in your assigned space near the tree in the center of the far parking lot. Please plan to decorate your trunk as you see fit before church begins. There will be people assigned to watch the cars and keep the gate secured until opening time at 1 pm. Please plan to have plenty of candy, toys, trinkets, or prizes of your choice available for the children who come. And wear a costume if you can! As soon as possible after church, go to your car and plan to stay there until 3. You are responsible for your car and giveaways throughout. At the end, please do not move your car until the children have left the lot and are safe from harm.

Parking and Tree Lot Control:

• 2 persons - 9:00 - 10:45 - Tree Lot and Church lot - Help set up Tree Lot with games/jump house/and Trunkers - encourage church attendees to park in Upper Lot.
• 2 persons - 10:45 -1 - Standing guard during church then helping with crowd control as needed.
• 2 persons - 1-3 visitor parking - Help visitors to drive slowly, park in church lot and find way to Tree Lot.
• 1 person - 1-3 gate guard - open and control gate. Remain near gate in case it needs closed, for emergencies.
• Restroom monitors - 2 persons

Game leaders:

• Corn hole - 2 persons
• Lawn darts - 2 persons
• Bean bag tic tac toe - 2 persons
• Cakewalk - 2 persons (need Bluetooth speakers)
• Jump house - 1 person - must be over 21
• Gospel tracts - 2 persons (as people are leaving)
• 2 relievers - These people will be around to relieve game and jump house people as needed.

Food Helpers - 3 persons for hot dog and popcorn station (This will be located in the little parking lot by Room 13/Pantry Entry/Men’s Outdoor Restroom under a canopy.)

Please let Major Willdonna Rich know if you are available to help.

College for Offer Training

2022 Christmas Assignments

November 11-December 22, 2022

CASCADE DIVISION

Cadets Andrew & Sheryl Flockhart - Boise, ID

DEL ORO DIVISION

Cadet Sean Pease - Concord, CA

HAWAIIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDS DIVISION

Cadet Joseph Duran - Hilo, HI

INTERMOUNTAIN DIVISION

Cadets Brian & Emily Reed - Salt Lake City, UT

NORTHWEST DIVISION

Cadet Sam Gilmore - Seattle Temple, WA

SOUTHER CALIFORNIA DIVISION

Cadet Jocelyn Boyd - Los Angeles Central, CA

Cadets ADelza & Cristian Da Silva - Hollywood, CA

Cadets Nalo & Stacie Faasavalu - Whittier, CA

Cadets Brett & LaShan Harrison - Long Beach, CA

Cadets Isaac & Merary Henry-John - Glendale, CA

Cadet Tania Morales - Los Angeles Central, CA

Cadet Michael Mott - Inglewood, CA

Cadet Loren Philpot - Inglewood, CA

Cadets Hyoung & Ji-Young Seo - Santa Monica, CA

Cadet Jennifer Breazeale - Torrance, CA

Cadets Maria & Nicolas Carrillo - Santa Ana, CA

SOUTHWEST DIVISION

Cadet Jordan Sargent - Phoenix Kroc, AZ

May God strengthen and bless the ministry of these cadets as they to to their Christmas assignments.

Sincerely,

Lt. Colonel Stephen C. Smith

Secretary for Personnel

We change this from time to time in order to limit abuse of our guest WiFi. The new password will be:

help others

Once again, this is all lowercase and there is a space between the two words.

The change will take place beginning Wednesday evening, October 26, starting at 5 PM Pacific Time and continuing rolling across the Territory as quickly as possible.

This initiative of turning our thoughts and prayers towards the same part of the world at some point in the same week is a beautiful way to unite us as a global Army family and I thank you for the commitment that you each give to this.

The Prayer Focus requests for October 2022. We will be praying for the following territories:

03 – 09 October 2022 Malawi Territory

10 – 16 October 2022 USA Eastern Territory
17 – 23 October 2022 The Netherlands, Czech Republic, and Slovakia Territory
24 – 30 October 2022 India Western Territory

The Youth Department would love to invite all young adults 18-35ish (and their friends) to join us at the Del Oro Young Adult Friendsgiving Dinner on Saturday, November 12th. Friendsgiving will be hosted at Captains O’Briens' house and start at 6:00 PM. The Youth Department will provide the main dishes and sides, but we would love it if those in attendance bring a dessert to share!

Please have those interested RSVP by Monday, November 7th, with their name and how many will be attending. RSVPs can be emailed to katharine.phrasavath@usw.salvationarmy.org or completed by filling out this google form https://forms.gle/Mh1r39gjSnHGqbJJ6 (link will be posted on Del Oro Youth social media pages as well).

Katharine Phrasavath

Del Oro Division Youth Program Specialist

Email: annmarguerite.jones@usw.salvationarmy.org
Website: https://www.SalvationArmyConcordCA.org
Location: 3950 Clayton Road, Concord, CA, USA
Phone: (925) 676-6180
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tsaconcord