If you had to tell your story, your testimony, using only the contents of one box, what would be in that box?

As the son of Salvation Army officers, moving was a major part of my growing up. Every couple of years, my parents, my brother, and I would pack up all of our belongings and get ready for the next big adventure. As I got older, the number of boxes for my stuff expanded. My mother would always encourage me to throw away the things I didn’t need – to downsize. And I would. A bit. But there was always more than she thought necessary. That’s because certain items, certain mementos that I had that meant nothing to her. But they meant everything to me.

When we embarked on this project, I had never heard of Charles Jeffries. He’s not a well-known figure, even within The Salvation Army. I had a basic working knowledge of what the Skeleton Army was, but I hadn’t heard about them since I was in Honor Junior Soldier classes. The more I learned of Charles Jeffries, his adversarial beginnings, his transformation, and his work for God around the world, the more strongly I felt that this was a story that needed to be told. With epic songs played by a 30-piece orchestra, all culminating with a Les Miserables style number and at the front, our Salvation Army Jean Valjean stand in, Charles Jeffries, leading the way…

Two actors. Minimal set. Only piano.

The question then became how to tell this story in such a more intimate way without losing the scale and size that the story needs. The answer came quickly. By bringing you, the audience, right into the action. At different moments throughout the show, you may find yourself as a patron of the local pub, as a passerby on the streets of London witnessing an open air, as a member of the Skeleton Army, or as a congregant at the watch night service.

John Copeland and Major Len Ballantine have crafted a beautifully compelling narrative that accomplishes something rather unique – they were able to make the epic intimate and the intimate epic. Contained within his one small box, Charles Jeffries has preserved the entire story of his life. Items that represent moments – good moments, bad moments – that made him the man he was. The brushstrokes that made up the painting of his life. These things may have meant nothing to anyone else. But they meant everything to him.

I have been so blessed to collaborate with John, Major Len, Neil, Carol, and especially Kathryn and Kyle on this story and I am grateful to them all for trusting me on this journey.

Thank you so much for joining with us and being an integral part of our storytelling. I hope that as you journey along with Charles Jeffries, you take the time to think of you own life, your own moments, and how they have led you to where you are, and where God has called you to be.