To destroy is easy, to build is hard. To scoff is also easy, but to go on in the face of scoffing and to do what is right is the way of a man.”
–Louis L’Amour (Bendigo Shafter)
“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.”
–Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NLT)
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Well, spring has sprung–the wildflowers are showing their brilliance here in Texas. I trust that the first day of spring was welcome to you. If you’re up in that snow-country, at least the first day of spring is a promise.
I was doing some research for my next novel. In this novel there will be a character, actually a Methodist circuit-riding preacher by the name of John Lewis Dyer. In his autobiography I came across the following story. The man in the story had an understanding of a real relationship with the Lord. This takes place around 1851, a few years before Rev. Dyer goes to Colorado.
“There was an old Brother Lincoln. He would shout at meeting or at work. Rev. S.C. Thomas, presiding elder, came to the charge to hold quarterly meeting. Brother Lincoln would say, ‘Glory!’ as the service went on. The new presiding elder stopped, and said: ‘If that brother can refrain from shouting, I would be glad; but if he can’t, let him shout.’ The brother said, ‘Glory to God for the privilege of shouting;’ and of course he made use of his privilege. He was a good blacksmith, and every time he laid down the hammer he would say, ‘Glory!’ On one occasion, a man brought a bad horse to be shod. The horse had been tried and given up. He swore he would take him to old Lincoln. Lincoln knew nothing of the horse’s wickedness, took hold of his foot, and was thrown a somersault on some old irons in the corner of his shop. He jumped up, clapped his hands, and said, ‘Glory to God! He didn’t hurt me a bit!’ and took up the horse’s foot, and shod him. The wicked man said Lincoln had a right to shout as much as he pleased. I noticed his obituary; his last word was a shout of ‘Glory!'”
This reminds me of Annie’s Uncle John Swank. When he visited us he might be sitting in a chair, lounging, or resting a tired body. Then there would be a shout of “Hallelujah” followed again by quietness. Sometimes, there gets inside a person an urge. Now, myself, I’m not a shouter, but once in a while I sure get the urge to clog up a spell in the kitchen.
Can you imagine going into Brother Lincoln’s blacksmith shop and listen to the hammer ringing off the anvil along with a shout of “Glory!”? That shop would be a place where revival could happen. Ol’ Brother Lincoln sure didn’t need it, but his shop must have been something else.
How about those last words? Wouldn’t it be great if every Christian, with their dying breath could give a shout of “Glory”? I tell you what, I just might have to do a little clogging thinking of this story.
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Ponder This: “Love implies the crucifixion of self, the absolute putting away and annihilation of self.” -John Daniel Jones