Lieutenants

It's winter in Zimbabwe, which means you see women wearing white (or green or yellow) socks with their high heeled black shoes and uniform and people putting a bowl of water in front of their electric heater (so that their blood doesn't boil). We're Canadian, so we're not supposed to feel the cold, but we feel very Zimbabwean this winter. Trust me, it makes a big difference when none of the buildings are heated. You're just cold all the time. But I learned a great trick - wearing a sweater under your uniform tunic. Even with the bulkiness, I think it looks classier than the white socks!

I've spent the last two days at a lieutenants' seminar. This territory has 14 lieutenants, who have signed a 3 year term with The Salvation Army. They all want to become officers (full time pastors) but there is a new regulation saying that people need to have 5 O levels to enter training college. This basically means finishing high school. I'm torn on the issue. In spending time with these lieutenants, I was blessed by their passion, their faith, and their desire to serve God. I actually cried during their vocal item last night thinking, "why do you need education to praise God?" but then I also really see the benefits of having some education. I'm actually a HUGE fan of education, and though high levels of education are not for everyone, I definitely see the benefits of having an open mind and some awareness of the outside world - especially in a religious set-up. Sometimes if you only have grade 7 and you're put in a position of power, you tend to be jealous/insecure of those under you, and that can make their life really difficult...