SCOTT ALLEN

The son of Salvation Army officers, Scott Allen has been a Salvo all his life. Indeed, even in his teens he felt a strong calling to full-time ministry. However, it was only while at a Salvation Army congress event a few years ago that he came to the determination to listen to that call and respond obediently. Interestingly, his wife Sharon felt that same calling in the same meeting, even though they weren’t sitting together at the time.

Of course, like many people who are officers today, life has taken him down a few other paths too. Among other things, he worked for some time at a bank. Though he was never truly satisfied in that role, it did enable him to discover a lot about his own natural aptitudes. “I discovered that I wasn’t so much a business person, but more of a people person,” he now says. “I would be continually told to stop chatting with the customers and to get on with doing my work.”
That desire to connect with people serves him and his community very well today. “Deciding to become an officer also comes down to having that close walk with God,” he advises. “It’s about discovering how God wants you to serve him. I knew deep down that, for me, it was officership.”

When the lights go on

Today Scott loves to walk with people through their good and tough times – “the ups and downs of life” – helping them to see that God never leaves them. He thinks it is great to spend time with someone talking about life and suddenly see how they come to the realization about God and what He is doing in their life. “When the lights go on”; this is how Scott calls that moment. And being there in that moment is what he thinks is great about his role.
Through his ministry Scott hopes to see people who are totally committed to being followers of Jesus. He is looking forward to helping them discover that their Christian faith is not just another part of their life, but the centre point of it.
When finally asked how God is helping him through this, Scott answers that this is an area where he has to totally rely on God. “He is the one who brings the change in a person’s life - I am just the vehicle that God uses to help someone along that journey.”