I will address this article later. For the time being take it, read it and think about the implications.
http://www.abpnews.com/culture/social-issues/item/8801-pastor-open-to-same-sex-unions#.Uh7CDcEo7VJ
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Monday, August 19, 2013
Friday, August 16, 2013
A Report from 2013 RBC Youth
Summer Youth Activities @Rockford
Two months ago I gave you a report on our recent
Youth Camp, recording some of the beauty of the concluding service at the
Overlook at Camp Toknowhim in Pisgah, Alabama. (www.camptoknowhim.com) It was truly an awesome experience as we
watched the lightening play across the sky, the wind whip through the
amphitheater and the lights down the mountain and across the Tennessee River of
the City of Scottsboro!
Camp is an experience that some do not
understand. It is a time to get away
from the distractions and debilitating daily lives and find refreshment in the
presence of an awe-inspiring God who desires a close, intimate relationship with
His followers. For those who may have
not found the life changing experience of what the Savior can do in the life of
one that is scared from sin, it is a time to be “still and know God,” entering
into the life changing new life that He freely offers.
Some attendees have described it as “church on
steroids.” Others have come away from
their first time at camp unable to say anything but “WOW!” Still others have spoken in terms of personal
revival, an enriching experience, or deep waters.
It seems that there are still some who do not get
it; they just do not understand camp and what it means to the life of a youth
ministry or a church. Maybe they just do
not want to understand. For those few, I
feel sorry for them, because they are blinded by their own selfish,
self-centered desires. I know of no
other way to get them to understand than to ask the Father of Lights to
illuminate their minds and their hearts.
This year was our fourth youth camp experience. While there are many fine, outstanding camps
to attend for a church youth group, the prices can be somewhat intimidating and
the schedule such that there is little or no time for personal, one-on-one with
the students. Additionally, even with
the big name speakers, the big name recording artist, and the abundance of
activities afforded those who attend these camps in areas such as Panama City,
Destin, Gatlinburg, and other popular vacation spots. We have opted to conduct our own camps,
utilizing a schedule that is both full and flexible, with allows for some much
needed one-on-one time with the students.
In order to accomplish this type of camp for a
church the size of Rockford, it takes a great deal of work, planning, and
raising the necessary funds to support the number of students and sponsors who
will attend. Beginning in August, my wife
who serves as our youth minister, begins the process of planning and promoting
fund raisers in which the students work, serve, and clean up to earn their own
money for camp. Last year, the 2012-2013
year, we raised approximately $8,500!
The average cost for one kid to attend our camp is
$255.00 each. This gives each camper
four nights lodging, food and snacks, a camp T-shirt, and transportation. Before you think that we do not feed them,
you are wrong. I believe that the kids
who attend our camp eat better than others.
Snacks are plentiful, as well.
Each year the T-shirt, designed by Tina Fuller, is
presented on the last day of camp and is always met with rave reviews. It is something they desire to wear to
church, family outings, and even school functions. The design is always a rendering of the theme
for camp and is different each year.
As for camp, the schedule is packed from sun up to
sun down, and even beyond. The day is
filled with swimming, outdoor activities, games and a great deal of fun. Intermingled among that simple fun, is a
Quiet Time, Bible Study, Worship, a movie, and time to reflect on the walk of
Christ.
I have the joy of assembling the materials for camp
each year. This is no small undertaking,
because it takes times to write the Quiet Time material, the Bible Studies and
prepare messages for the worship services each evening. It takes around four months to prepare
everything, then to publish into a notebook form for each student and sponsor
who attends.
In the end it is all worth the effort and time. When you are sitting in the shadows listening
to a student talk to God during a small group time or stand before them and see
the “light come on” as they realize some new truth from God’s Word, the time
and energy is worth it. The icing on the
cake is when you have the opportunity to see a young man or woman bow their
head in prayer and ask for forgiveness and salvation, it is shouting time, for
sure.
Some have asked why we do not do some form of
mission trip for our kids. I have a
ready answer for that: These kids do missions all year long and camp is a time
for them to get away and learn how to be a more effective disciple of
Christ. Missions is conducted by our
youth on a regular basis and we, Tina and myself, teach them that it is
imperative that they keep these acts of kindness to themselves, in order for
God to bless them in His own way.
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of
people, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you will have no reward from your Father
in heaven. So whenever you give to the poor, don’t sound a trumpet before you,
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be applauded by
people. I assure you: They’ve got their reward! But when you give to the poor, don’t let your left hand know
what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your
Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Matthew 6:1-4
(HCSB)
While I am one that does not like to brag on me and
what I have done, and teach others to do the same, for the sake of information,
I want to brag on the kids of Rockford Baptist Church. The following is a list provided to me, which
details the acts of service to the church, the community and others areas where
our students have performed missions.
These include the four years of our youth ministry at Rockford.
§ Holiday fruit baskets to elderly/apartments (an average of 58
baskets X 4 years = 232 baskets) and holiday meal delivery over a two year
period.
§ Prepared and served meals through a soup kitchen in Sylacauga,
Alabama.
§ Assisted with the Town of Rockford Holiday Market and 4th
of July Celebration.
§ Assisted with Relay for Life in Coosa County.
§ Assisted and gathered items for Tuscaloosa Disaster Relief at
RBC.
§ Set up temporary kitchen/prepared and delivered hot meals to
tornado damaged areas in Dadeville/Camp Hill, Alabama. (X2)
§ Assisted with tornado damaged Equality area by serving meals and
helping to remove debris.
§ Volunteered/raised money for Relay for Life.
§ Volunteered/raised money for tsunami victims in Haiti.
§ Volunteered/raised money for the Town of Rockford to conduct a 4th
of July Fireworks celebration.
§ Volunteered/raised money for Oklahoma Tornado victims.
§ Built a live nativity for the Rockford Christmas parade.
§ Set up/take down tables, chairs, stage for most functions held
in the Family Life Center of Rockford Church.
§ Volunteered for “Cruising for our Schools” fundraiser.
§ Cleaned church so custodian could take a vacation. (X2)
§ Assist with 5th Sunday Dinner and Homecoming.
§ Serve on various committees of the church.
§ Delivered food to jail/elderly/others after fundraisers held at
church.
§ Operate sound system on Sundays and for other functions of the
church.
§ Assist with Trunk or Treat at Rockford.
While it appears from this list, our students do not
have a great deal of time for study or discipleship, you have to see something
underneath. These students are active in
the weekday ministries of the church, through Sunday School, Sunday Evening
Discipleship, and Wednesday Evening Bible Study. These activities are geared for them, so that
they might invite their friends. And
they do! We will have 12 to 15 youth on
Sunday morning, with another 15-20 on Sunday evening; but on Wednesday evening
we may see as many as 20-25 students.
On Sunday morning, they stay for the morning worship
service. While we still hold to the old
songs of faith, with a mix of newer contemporary songs, along with the old
country gospel, these students seem to be glad to attend worship and celebrate
along with the older generation.
In conclusion, let me say I am proud of the students
at Rockford. These seventh of twelfth
graders are awesome, amazing kids. They
love God and they love those who take spiritual leadership over them. They desire to walk in the light and spread
the message of Jesus. I pray for them
every day and encourage them to become more like Christ in all that they do.
“For we know that if our earthly house, a tent, is destroyed, we
have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
And, in fact, we groan in this one, longing to put on our house from heaven,
since, when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. Indeed, we who are in
this tent groan, burdened as we are, because we do not want to be unclothed but
clothed, so that mortality may be swallowed up by life. And the One who
prepared us for this very thing is God, who gave us the Spirit as a down
payment. Therefore, though we are always confident and know that while we are
at home in the body we are away from the Lord—for we walk by faith, not
by sight—yet we are confident and satisfied to be out of the body and at home
with the Lord. Therefore, whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to
be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ,
so that each may be repaid for what he has done in the body, whether good or
bad. Knowing, then, the fear of the Lord, we persuade people. We are completely
open before God, and I hope we are completely open to your consciences as well.
We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you an opportunity to
be proud of us, so that you may have a reply for those who take pride in the
outward appearance rather than in the heart. For if we are out of our mind, it
is for God; if we have a sound mind, it is for you. For Christ’s love compels
us, since we have reached this conclusion: if One died for all, then all died.
And He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves,
but for the One who died for them and was raised. From now on, then, we do not
know anyone in a purely human way. Even if we have known Christ in a purely
human way, yet now we no longer know Him like that. Therefore if anyone is in
Christ, there is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new
things have come. Now everything is from God, who reconciled us to Himself
through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that is, in Christ,
God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against
them, and He has committed the message of reconciliation to us. Therefore, we
are ambassadors for Christ; certain that God is appealing through us, we plead
on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.” He made the One who did not know
sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2
Corinthians 5:1-21 (HCSB)
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Is it a place or people?
Church: A Place or a
People
Many will
attribute the word church to a building.
It might be a pristine building, a house of Worship on the court square,
or it might be an old, broad boarded house in the woods, at the end of a
country road. Whatever the building is
or design that it follows, it is not a church.
I have seen
and been in some magnificent buildings were people gather Sunday after
Sunday. I think of Howards’ Chapel,
located on the north side of DeSoto State Park in northeast Alabama. No other place of worship can compare. The old stone building, built into a huge
boulder at one end, with stain hardwoods floors and high vaulted ceiling, with
exposed beams is nothing less than worshipful.
But it was not a church.
In Roswell,
Georgia I sat in the sanctuary of the Roswell Street Baptist Church during a
conference for pastors from around the southeast. It was such a foreboding facility. A balcony encircled the main floor, with a
pulpit, choir loft and orchestra pit at the front of the ornate sanctuary. But it was not a church.
No, no
matter where the building is or how well kept or beautiful the building is, it
is not the church. For the church is not
cold stone, stained glass windows, and studio production lighting. Mortar and wood, marble and hard clay a
church does not make.
A church is
a living, breathing organism. A church
is something that can speak, touch, smell, weep, laugh, and breathe. The church is not the building; the church is
the people that make up the family of God.
We are the
church! Those of us who have received
Christ as Savior. Those who have been
baptized into the body of Christ. The
ones who have joined themselves to the local body of believers. Yes, that is the church in the world
today! We are the visible, change
agents of Christ in the world.
Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the
great God and our Savior Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might
redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous
of good works.
Titus
2:13-14 (KJV)
Tuesday, August 6, 2013
Wandering is something we are prone to do...
Prone to wander
There is a new program coming to Coosa County. The Alabama State Troopers have implemented a
program called Project Lifesaver.
Basically, this is a program designed to attach a small bracelet to
someone who has Autism, Alzheimer’s, Downs Syndrome, and several other
conditions which cause these individuals to wander, get lost or confused. The bracelet has a chip in it that when the
code numbers of matched in a database, will emit a signal to a portable
receiver, either in the Troopers helicopter or in a patrol vehicle.
A receiver on the ground will give you the location
of the person within a two mile radius of the last place they were seen. If the person cannot be found with the ground
receiver, the receiver in the helicopter will enlarge the radius up to
approximately 15 miles, and pinpoint the person to within a 100 yards of their
location.
Pretty cool technology and you will hear me tell
more about it in the weeks to come. But
there is something I am reminded of as I consider this wonderful program.
The Father of Heaven also knows when we wander. He is perfectly aware that we wander, knows
when those times come in our lives, and is kind, loving and compassionate to
draw us back into the fold of the flock.
The old hymn, “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing”
speaks for us all:
“O to
grace how great a debtor
Daily
I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy
goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my
wandering heart to Thee:
Prone
to wander Lord I feel it,
Prone
to leave the God I love;
Here’s
my heart, O take and seal it;
Seal it
for Thy courts above.”
Page 2 of The Hymnal for Praise and Celebration; Word Music; 1986
Text by: Robert Robinson and adapted by
Margaret Clarkson; Music by: Traditional American Melody from John Wyeth’s Repository of Sacred Music; 1813
Wandering is a common problem of believers in
general and a problem specifically related to weak believers. Generally speaking, wandering takes you away
from the Lord, away from the close intimate relationship, away from the
comforts and consolation of home.
Specifically, wandering is a believer who decides they will enjoy the
fruits of the moment, which do not fill or satisfy. It is rebellion and will lead to a hardening
of the heart if it is left unchecked.
Wandering will ultimately leave the believer with a fear of facing the
Father with shame and remorse.
David was one who found this to be true in his
life. We find a humble man, a man chosen
as a shepherd boy to be King over Israel, by God, while a King still occupied
the throne. He is the young man who
would slay the giant with one small stone.
He is the one who would hide in caves for his life, as King Saul and a
few other enemies attempted to hunt him down and kill him. He defeated enemy armies, brought great
blessings upon the people of God, returned the Ark of the Covenant to the
people, and prepared to build a Temple for God.
In all of those things God had his head upon him and desired to use him
in marvelous ways.
Yet, the time came when he, as King, sent his armies
to fight and he took a stroll along the roof of his dwelling and below spotted
beautiful woman bathing on her balcony.
He sent for her, made her his wife, had her husband killed and had a
child by the woman named Bathsheba. Such
a wonderful example of a man chosen by God to be the king?
Bathsheba bore him a male child, but Nathan, the
priest came to deliver a parable (2 Samuel 12:1-4) in which David’s sins were
revealed (2 Samuel 12:5-10), and pronounced troubles upon David (2 Samuel
12:11-12). David responded with a contrite
heart:
David
responded to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” (2 Samuel 12:13 HCSB)
He could have blamed someone else. He could have had the prophet put to
death. He could have ignored the claims
that he and his family would see great struggles because of his decisions. But instead we see him making confession of
his sin.
God’s Word says that confession is good for the
soul. John is his first epistle writes,
“If we confess our sins, he is
faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 KJV)
Earlier, James said that we should, “Confess your faults one to
another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.” (James 5:16 KJV)
When David
responded with confession, Nathan said:
“The Lord
has taken away your sin; you will not die. However, because you treated the Lord with such contempt in this matter,
the son born to you will die.” (2 Samuel 12:13-14 HCSB)
The wandering King has found
forgiveness and favor in the eyes of the Lord.
He is forgiven and will not die…
But the little boy will die. Does that sound fair? Does that make things even? Is it worth the price?
Sin is a choice we make. We can choose to remain in fellowship with
the Lord or we can choose the paths of sin and sorrow for a season. It is a choice we make, but we must
understand that the choice will make will lead us to consequences we must
realize we are going to have to live with.
If a man steals, he will have to
face the consequences of his decision.
If two teenagers desire to have sex outside of marriage, they must be
ready to face the possibility of a child born out of wedlock. There are consequences to every action.
David would have to face his, and it
would be immediate. The scripture reads:
The Lord
struck the baby that Uriah’s wife had borne to David, and he became ill. 16 David
pleaded with God for the boy. He fasted, went [home], and spent the night lying
on the ground. 17 The elders of his house stood beside
him to get him up from the ground, but he was unwilling and would not eat
anything with them. 18 On the seventh day the baby died.
But David’s servants were afraid to tell him the baby was dead. They said,
“Look, while the baby was alive, we spoke to him, and he wouldn’t listen to us.
So how can we tell him the baby is dead? He may do something desperate.” 19 When
David saw that his servants were whispering to each other, he guessed that the
baby was dead. So he asked his servants, “Is the baby dead?” “He is dead,” they
replied. 20 Then David got up from the ground. He
washed, anointed himself, changed his clothes, went to the Lord’s house, and worshiped. Then he
went home and requested [something to eat]. So they served him food, and he
ate. 21 His servants asked him, “What did you just do?
While the baby was alive, you fasted and wept, but when he died, you got up and
ate food.” 22 He answered, “While the baby was alive, I
fasted and wept because I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let him live.’ 23 But
now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I’ll go to
him, but he will never return to me.”
2
Samuel 12:15-23 (HCSB)
His life was difficult from that
moment on, but he knew the grace of God had been extended to him. He knew that the hand of God was still upon
him and that even though there would be various trials and tribulations because
of his choices, he was in a right relationship with the God of heaven.
Monday, August 5, 2013
Happy Birthday Dad
Dad would have been 83 today!
For the last several years I have found that writing is a
way for me to express myself in a way which up until now was unknown to
me. Through my writing I have been able
to work through feelings, stress, grief and frustration. It has become therapeutic for me, in more
ways than I can explain.
Therefore I am sitting down today to do a little reminiscing
and work through some grief.
Today marks my dad’s 83rd birthday. As you know, last November he died after
complications from hip replacement compounded with the dreaded disease of
Alzheimer’s. My brother and I were with
him to the very last moment, as he took his final breathe in his earthly body
and took his first breathe in his glorified body.
Days have passed quickly, too quickly, over the last eight
months. Not a day has gone by that I
have not thought of him or wanted his help, or needed his guidance on some
matter of great importance. We have a
car that is giving me fits and he would know exactly what to do and how to take
care of the problem. There was a
question I was pondering that he would have the answer to, immediately. Then the Sunday evening talks…
I miss him terribly.
Dad was a man that was a jack of all trades. If it could be fixed, he could fix it; if it
needed a boost, he knew how to boost it; if there was a noise in something, he
would listen and think repeatedly until he located the problem and repaired it
to the point there was nothing else that could be done. Nothing would stump him; he would figure it
out one way or another.
Dad was a man that believed in cleanliness. His kitchen was spotless, his bathroom was
disinfected, and his bed was made with precision corners. There was not a speck of dust that could live
in his house; it was not welcomed. Everything
had a place; there was a place for everything.
It would drive him crazy if something could not be found within a
moment’s notice.
Dad believed there was a use for all things. Nothing was thrown away because you might
need it later. I am reminded of so many
things that were salvaged or scraped for use in something else later. That washing machine motor that nearly cost
him his finger, was going to be used for something else. Three lawn mowers he hung on to one time were
for parts. Everything had a use.
He loved the outdoors, working hard and long hours to make a
beautiful lawn for everyone to enjoy. He
was constantly cutting the grass, wedding the flower gardens, pruning the
roses, building a flower bed. He won the
Yard of the Month award-at least one time that I remember-and was so
proud. I was too.
There were favorites in the yard, the plants which seemed to
be of special interest to him. He loved
his roses, both the red and the variegated.
He was able to create one through grafting two different types of roses
together. The result was a beautiful
rose, with a larger than usual bud, which flowered into multiple colors of red,
pink, and white. Another favorite was
his dogwoods, which he had transplanted from the woods across the street from
the house. In the spring these beauties
would “light up” our yard. Then there
were the wood ferns, also taken from various places around the county.
I recall a time that he started “rooting” various
plants. He would find dark bottles on the
side of the roadway, place the stem of some plant variety into the bottle and
before long the stem had a sufficient root system to be planted. He once said that the best bottle was a beer
bottle with just enough left in the bottom that it would speed up the formation
of the roots. At times the windows sills
of our kitchen were lined with various bottles for the plant reproduction
process which was underway.
He worked all the time.
He was a hard worker and took pleasure in doing the job right. But he also enjoyed other things as well.
Dad was a great fisherman.
He loved to fish the creeks, rivers, ponds and sometimes the lakes
around central and north Alabama. The
best place was in Marshall County, on Nelson’s Lake. Standing on the bank one Saturday afternoon
he hooked a large mouth bass that did not want to be caught. He fought with that big boy for almost half
an hour, leading him and letting him run.
By the time the bass made it close enough to the shoreline, both he and
dad were worn out. We mounted that bass
and for several years it was a great conversation piece.
One story that I will never forget had to do with
fishing. Dad and his dear friend, N.L.
Hunter had gone to Weiss Lake for a day of fishing in the boat. They put in at the boat landing, loaded the
boat and headed for deep water. Once
they were out of sight of the shoreline and ready to cast in for a day of
fishing, the motor on the boat choked and sputtered and shut down. They checked for fuel, oil, and made sure all
the plugs and lines were in place.
Trying the motor, there was nothing; no life, no power. “Uncle” N.L said that dad was furious. He began working on the motor, attempting to
get to the carburetor, the spark plugs, the fuel pump; he was taking it apart
in the middle of the lake. Finally, it
was getting late and the best they could do was get back to shore. They paddled the crippled boat in with
nothing to show for half a day on the lake.
Exhausted and madder than a wet hen, Dad started unloading
the gear. When he lifted the cooler, “Uncle”
N.L. heard him from the parking lot where he was retrieving the truck. Dad had found the problem. They had put their cooler on the gas line,
pinching off the supply of fuel to the motor.
Neither would ever admit to what was in the cooler…
At one time he was an avid hunter. While I am not sure of all that he took to
the fields for, I do know that quails and dove were some of the ones he talked
about the most.
While I was in Junior High, the Saturday activity was
cutting wood. We would load up in
whatever was the automobile at the time and go to some spot where dad had
claimed a tree or a group of trees and spend most of the day cutting, stacking,
loading, and unloading cords of wood.
Dad borrowed an old Datsun from Coach Northcutt several
times. It was straight shift, with the
floor board on the passenger side rusted out.
It is amazing how much wood one of those little trucks can haul. He had a Ford full size truck one time,
loaded down and running over. The
Maverick was the car we hauled wood in and that trunk was so full of wood we
could have to tie the hood down to keep it from bouncing all the way back to
Pine Hills.
Those were some days I will never forget. He would get up in the morning, fix breakfast
and while I was eating, he would prepare sandwiches for lunch. I knew it would be a long day then. Those long days were spent with him manning
the power saw, me running with fuel or pulling limbs and stacking brush. Sometimes we would split the biggest pieces
on site. Always without exception we
would hunt for lighter. Somewhere during
the day, we would stop and get a RC Cola and Moon Pie to top off the day.
We all went to the Birmingham Zoo one time. It must have been late summer or early fall,
because it was then that dad had a much darker complexion than usual. We were all walking around the bird exhibits,
with mother holding Jonathan and I was walking ahead of dad. A bird called out, “Hello, Pedro…Hello,
Pedro.”
I heard dad say something, something as a child I was told
never to say. Then he said, in the
direction of the bird, “Who are you called Pedro?” Again the bird said, “Hello, Pedro…Hello,
Pedro.”
He was reaching for his knife, getting ready to end the life
of a bird, who he thought had called him “Pedro.”
Now do not misinterpret this incident was a sign that dad
did not like animals. Dad loved
animals. We always had a dog and cats
running around here and yon. He was
always taking in strays; most of the time they were mutts with mange or some
other ailment. He would get a barrel of
oil, dip the mangy dog and before long that old animal was rubbing up on him
and he was petting and playing with it as if nothing had ever be wrong.
One dog, I think it was “Booger,” was one of Jonathan’s
favorites. He had to be the ugliest dog
you have ever seen. He got in a fight
one time and came home bleeding and torn up.
Dad took him, pampered him and stitched him up and he was as good a new.
As I have mentioned before, church was the center of our
lives. He made sure we were in church
and he was there with us. He was
supportive of anything related to church.
Jonathan has some stories of the mission trips dad went on in the days
that he was in the youth group.
When I was in the youth group, dad was a friend to many of
the kids who attended church with us. He
was an usher and sat with the other seven men on the front row of the
sanctuary. He was always wearing a suit,
dark glasses; mixing that with his dark complexion and dark hair which was
turning to salt and pepper at that time, he looked more like a Mafia kingpin
than anything else. The kids enjoyed
kidding with him about that persona, and he enjoyed it, grinning and smiling
anytime they brought it up.
One Sunday morning, when we began recording the services for
playback later that day on the local cable television station, the studio
lighting which had been installed, malfunctioned. Several bulbs exploded, showering pieces of
glass and fire down on the choir and the ushers.
In the choir loft there was a commotion, as members were
beating other members on the back and chest, where their robes had caught on
fire. It was good that this was going on
in the choir, because Dad jumped up, said one of his favorite words and headed
for the door, to the left of the pulpit, behind the piano.
This particular morning I was sitting in the balcony and
when I saw dad exit the sanctuary, I was worried but he returned, looked up at
me and grinned and returned to his seat.
Things settled down and the service continued to the end.
After the service I caught up with dad as he was getting
into the car. I asked him what happened
and he showed me the small holes which been caused by burning embers. They were on his upper leg, close to his
zipper. No wonder he had rushed out; you
sure do not want to be attempting to put a fire out in the middle church,
particularly when the fire in that area of your clothing.
His faith was what stands out to me today. He believed in a God would could move
mountains, who could do the impossible, who could work out His plans not matter
what seemed to be in the way.
An example of this was when we were living in town in a
three room apartment. We needed a house,
a place to call our own. One day he
announced he had found just the place, on Forrest Avenue. It was an older house in a settled and older
area of Fort Payne. It was three
bedrooms, one bath, kitchen, dining room, living room and a laundry room in the
basement. It was for rent.
We had to drive to Trenton Georgia for dad to take care of
the agreement and we were able to get the keys.
On the drive back, out of nowhere dad said, “Well boys, we
got a house, but we don’t have anything to put in it.” I made some comment that God would take care
of that and he agreed.
The next day he received a call from a lady whose parent’s
house was being emptied out, and wanting to know if we needed anything. Dad asked her how much she wanted for various
items that were on his “wish list”; such as bedroom suite, kitchen accessories,
living room furniture and dining room table and chairs. A deal was made and for $100.00 dad got what
he was looking for and even more.
A couple days later he received the $100.00 bill back and to
this day I do not know where it came from.
His example is what has propelled me. I learned a great deal from my Father. I learned how to work, take care of things, appreciate
the world in which I live, a love for the great outdoors, and so much
more. But I believe that the most
important thing I learned from dad is to love God first, to love my family
second, and to love others. He taught me
that this is not an easy thing to do, because some will not allow you to love
them, but you do it, not for them, but because of your relationship with God.
Finally, I must say that dad was larger than life. Some of the things that transpired in his
life, the stories he regaled us with, and the stories of those who worked with
him are more than one volume would hold.
I am afraid we would need an entire section of the library dedicated to
John Winfred Fuller. You would laugh,
you would cry, you would cheer, and you would learn something. Everything was of importance to him.
I wanted to call him today, to wish him a happy birthday and
to chat for a few moments. Well,
actually, it would have to be an hour or so dedicated to him. I’m sure there would have been a story or
two.
He was a man that I respected, admired and cherished. I still do!
I am more than happy to be his son and I truly hope that I have made him
proud. Happy Birthday, Dad!
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