This 10-part series will look at bold written exhortations from William, Catherine, Bramwell, Herbert, and Evangeline. The force of their collective convictions still lands. Often quoted, they have the capacity to pierce straight into the heart of the matter, impatiently swatting aside distractions and equivocations. General John Larsson titled his 2015 book on the clan simply, Those Incredible Booths.  

Booths Writing Boldly: Part 10  

A well-identified commercial pitfall is “the human propensity for bold forecasts and timid actions.” So say corporate strategists McKinsey and Company. In our dreams we can be fearless warriors; in actuality we are too often fainthearted.

Not so with William Booth, who on the 50th anniversary of his conversion penned the words to his flaming song “Send the Fire.” Here, concluding the first verse, is boldness personified, bordering on presumption.

“Look down and see this waiting host / Give us the promised Holy Ghost / We want another Pentecost / Send the fire!”

It is one thing to be bold with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; it is another to be demanding, insistent, and audacious. “We want another Pentecost.” And yet at the same time, we have the real sense that God would want to answer this impassioned heart cry.

Jesus teaches, “Ask and it will be given to you … Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? … How much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” (Luke 11:9–13). The writer to the Hebrews notes unequivocally, “come boldly to the throne of grace” (4:16, NKJV).

Yes, indeed, the God of the Psalmist who “will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4) surely delights in this petition as modest, humble Salvation Army communities of faith around the world sing this on a Sunday morning, and expressive, impassioned young adults do so at annual Youth Councils and retreats.

Elsewhere, Booth wrote about “the tendency of fire to go out; watch the fire on the altar of your heart. Anyone who has tended a fireplace fire knows that it needs to be stirred up occasionally.”

Thank you, bold Booths, for continuing to stir us up.