Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on June 6, 2018

For he was a man to stay by his friends for good or bad to the very end of time.”
–Ernest Haycox (Saddle and Ride)

    “And Jonathan made David reaffirm his vow of friendship again, for Jonathan loved David as he loved himself.”
              –1 Samuel 20:17 (NLT)
—————————-
              Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!
       “You are about to embark upon the Great Crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty-loving people everywhere march with you…
        Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. He will fight savagely…
        I have full confidence in your courage and devotion to duty and skill in battle. We will accept nothing less than full Victory!
        Good luck! And let us beseech the blessing of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.”
                        –General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Most of us were not around on that eventful day of June 6, 1944–D-Day. It was a day of triumph and tragedy. It was a day of heroic endeavor and a day of horror.
    Imagine those boys, riding in the landing craft, ready to hit the beaches of Normandy. They knew that as soon as the doors of the landing craft went down they would face a hailstorm of bullets. These were men, mostly young men, who has aspirations, dreams, the hope of a career. They were men who had wives at home, a family; some had only their sweethearts. What were their thoughts as they approached the beach? Today, when we think of a beach we think of fun in the sand, hilarity and laughter. This beach was a beach of death, of terror and fear.
    Take time to ponder the words of their commander as they went out to face the enemy. Look at them carefully. D-Day spelled the end of the might Third Reich. Oh, it would take another year for them to finally crumble, many more battles would have to be fought, many more lives would be lost. But it was this battle that brought about the end. The war would continue, but victory was inevitable.
    I mentioned last week about losing a cousin at Normandy. Of course, I never knew him, but his name was Ralph Fanson. Shauna, our family historian, sought out his picture and found his gravesite at Normandy. There would be 2500 who would die on that day with another 10,000 casualties. And back at home today, 2018, we still have protestors that say life doesn’t treat them right. How dare they say that when there was such a tremendous sacrifice.
    Our lives are similar. The war was won at Calvary with the victory of Jesus over the grave and sin. Yet, we still have our day-to-day battles. There is suffering and terror that takes place, but rest assured the victory is secured. You must continue to do your duty with full devotion until that time when the Lord says, “Well done, good and faithful; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” (Matthew 25:21, NKJV)

The Saga of Miles Forrest

by Ira Paine, Posted on June 5, 2018

  I had decided to pick up the money and get back on the train. That way I would be home sometime the next morning. I still hadn’t seen Lillian; I wondered if she was still in Santa Fe. I didn’t think that Billington and the ruffians that took him would be in Taos until afternoon, unless Billington died along the way. They would have to stop and spend one night on the trail. It was a couple of days ride and with him in that condition I didn’t think they could make it in less time than that.
    Yes, Durango would be a more fitting place to make my greeting, and I would have Charlie Gold there with me. I know that the Lord frowns on us being anxious, but I will have to admit I was a wee bit anxious over Molly and how she was doing.
    The pieces were slowly falling into place. Billington and these men were associates of sorts. It seems as if he was trying to take off with money that they thought should be theirs. Now, where did Lillian fit into the picture? It could be a coincidence that she just happened to be in Durango, but I don’t believe much in coincidences.
    It was a restless night. I reckon I dozed off a time or two, but really couldn’t call it sleep, especially knowing that I had a valise of $25,000 at my feet that belonged to the bank in Durango.
    We arrived on time and I headed straight for the bank. As I walked in one of the clerks waved at me.
    “I need to see Mr. Douster,” I said.
    The clerk went to Billington’s office and knocked on the door. Douster was already taking a step in to banking management. The clerk came back out followed by Douster.
    Holding out his hand, he walked straight up to me. “Good to see you Marshal Forrester.”
    “It’s Forrest,” I corrected. For a man who wants to be a banker he needs to learn his clientele’s names.
    He looked down and smiled, “Ahhh, you found the missing money. Did you get to talk with Mr. Billington?”
    “Nope, but I figure he’ll be along any day now,” and as I spoke his countenance for a brief instance quickened, but then went back to his normal businesslike manner.
    Reaching out he tried to take the valise from me. As he touched it, he looked into my eyes and he removed his hand. “What’s that clerk’s name, Ooverholm, isn’t it?” I asked. “Get him into the office with us.”
    “That would leave only one clerk to wait on customers,” Douster remarked.
    Looking around I saw that there was no one else in the bank. “I think that one man can handle this crowd. Mister Ooverholm, come with us.”
    Walking into what was once Billington’s office I sat the valise down on the desk. Looking at Ooverholm I order, “Start countin’ and place them in stacks of a thousand,” I paused and looked at Douster. “Count out loud and slowly. We will want to see each bill laid down on the table.”
    It took several minutes, but the total came up to $22,800. I had guessed $25,000. “You can go now, Ooverholm,” suggested Douster.
    “Hold on! You need to sign a receipt, both of you and then Mr. Ooverholm, I want to watch you place the money in the safe.” He complied readily, but there was something about this that disgruntled Douster.
    After watching the money safely put away I started to walk out the bank when I stopped and turned back to Douster. “Did you know that Billington had a daughter?”
    He needed to clear his throat then muttered, “No, I didn’t know that.”
    “Hmmm, how long have you worked here with him?”
    Douster replied, “Three years.”
    “Strange that he never mentioned one to you working with him for three years.”
    “Well, we really weren’t that close, and we didn’t talk about our personal lives at work.”
    “Smart,” I said, walked out and headed down to the Diner.
    The breakfast rush was just finishing; Molly was waiting on tables with Marta. She didn’t see me come in so I moseyed on back to my normal table. I had just poured my coffee and sat down when she looked my direction. Rushing over to me she flung herself at me.
    “Miles, oh Miles, I was worried,” she sighed.
    I was holding on to her tight, when wouldn’t you know it. In through the door came…

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on June 4, 2018

When evil takes up to violence, the good have no choice but to defend themselves.”
–Louis L’Amour (Hanging Woman Creek)

    “But you see the trouble and grief they cause. You take note of it and punish them. The helpless put their trust in you. You defend the orphans.”
              –Psalm 10:14 (NLT)
————————
Have you surrendered everything in obedience to the Lord? If He truly is in charge of your life that is not an option, but I will admit that it is not easy. Because of our natural inclination to want to be in charge of our lives, submission to His authority, or any authority becomes a problem. To submit to the Lord is abhorrent to the fallen nature.
    There are three facts regarding submission:
         1) some will hide behind the mask of submission,
         2) some quietly refuse to submit,
         3) some refuse the right to choose the authority to whom they will submit, changing authorities when their wishes are challenged.
    Perhaps you have wondered why things don’t always go smoothly in your life. It seems as if everything you try blows up in your face. It is as if walking through life is like walking through a minefield. You wonder, where do I step? “Obedience to God gives us a Guide to take us across the mine field. Only the very foolish will refuse to obey the Guide.” (Stephen Brown)
    There are several facts about obedience that we must consider. Remember, obedience is being responsible to God. ( “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, And to heed than the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22, NKJV)
         1) Obedience is not an option.
                   Christians are not given an option to obey. Jesus said, “He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me…”. (John 14:21, NKJV) Christians often have their own ideas and plans, despite the fact that the God to whom we owe obedience wants us to go in a different direction. God is not looking for creative people; He is looking for obedient people. “But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well with you.’” (Jeremiah 7:23, NKJV)
         2) In our obedience God gives guidance
                    God shows us His will. “Concerning the will of God, the first prerequisite of obedience is knowledge, and the first prerequisitie of knowledge is desire.” (Brown) If our heart is not willing to do His will, it is a good bet we will never know what His will is. As we go through life there are some things we should never do, and some things we should always do.
                    One thing to learn in life is knowing the difference between facts and problems. A problem is something you attempt to correct. A fact is just a fact. You cannot do anything about a fact except control your attitude toward it.
         3) Obedience is not to make us miserable.
                    In fact, it is quite the opposite. When man submits to God “there is a sense of rightness, a sense of rest, a sense of reality that doesn’t come from any other source.” (Brown)
                    “If you want to be reasonably happy and healthy, then you must do what people have done throughout history: Obey God’s law… To obey God’s law is to live the way we were intended to live in a difficult world…” (Manford George Gutzke)
——————
Ponder This: California has just banned travelers from California to Oklahoma. Hmmmm, how does that work?

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on June 2, 2018

In the kitchen, he poured a cup of still-hot coffee, then strode back out to the rocking chair he often sat in on the porch.”
–C. Wayne Winkle (Frank Bannon–The Fixer)

Good to see yuh this mornin’ pard. I was out on the trail last weekend and missed our little rendezvous. Ate breakfast with some ol’ saddlepards in San Antonio. But, this mornin’, the coffee’s ready, hot, black and strong. Even if yur ol’ starter is gettin’ harder to start this will sure be helpin’ it along.
    I had to “hop upon my pony an’ ride away down the trail to San Antone” twice last week. Went over last weekend as you know since we missed gettin’ together, but then the wife and I went and pulled the rest of our belongin’s from storage. That sort of shut the last chapter of our experience in San Antonio. The friendships and memories are still there, but everything else is moved out. Now, if only the new abode was finished. Doesn’t need much for us to be movin’ in. Can’t wait for the time I can move on out to the porch to enjoy my coffee. Hopefully, anyday now, at least by Christmas.
    It’s time for me to be gettin’ back to writin’ and studyin’. I’ve a few chapters written in a new book, but need to do some research and my books have all been packed. There’s a nice place for us to sit back and enjoy the quietness of God’s great cathedral and ponder His wondrous works. This world, despite all the terror, is charged with the grandeur of God. I may not be in the mountains, but I’ll be in the woods. I want to hear again, the sounds of silence.
    Goodness, we finished that pot and I didn’t even realize it. Guess that means you’ll be wanderin’ out down the trail. I came across some good words last week. I think that we often take things for granted, and that’s not necessarily wrong for there are some things a person just counts on. But the words were by Joseph Alleine, “Let us live this one day well.” No matter what happens this is the day the Lord has made–rejoice in it.
    Hold on, pard. It might not all be well, if’n yuh don’t check that cinch before mountin’ up.