Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 8, 2018

Every human being had to stand on his feet and reach wisdom by his own errors and tears.”
–Ernest Haycox (Saddle and Ride)

    “So I set out to learn everything from wisdom to madness and folly. But I learned firsthand that pursuing all this is like chasing the wind.”
              –Ecclesiastes 1:17 (NLT)
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                   “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”
                         –Galatians 5:25(NSAB)

Sometimes it is just hard to get away from the influence of the world. Even when the monks and hermits of ages past tried to do it they could not for what was it that drove them to seclusion–the world. Yet at times, we’ve all been there, we get weary and worn with the daily routine. Then we may get attached to things that this world has to offer and we need to break away. Look at the words, no, ponder the words of this hymn by the Irish preacher to the slums of London–George Croly.

                   “Spirit of God, descend upon my heart;
                    Wean it from earth; through all its pulses move;
                    And make me love Thee as I ought to love.”

I’m a simple person, as you’ve come to realize through the years. Simple trust is all I believe we need. I know the Lord is there with me, I don’t need to jump up and do spiritual incantations to get His attention. Yet, I often feel that my soul is dim, that it needs more oil added to the light that is within.

                   “I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies,
                    No sudden rending of the veil of clay,
                    No angel visitant, no opening skies;
                    But take the dimness of my soul away.

                    Hast Thou not bid me love Thee, God and King?
                    All, all Thine own, soul, heart and strength and mind.
                    I see Thy cross; there teach my heart to cling:
                    O let me seek Thee, and O let me find!”

“I believe, help my unbelief!” cried the voice of the father whose son was possessed by and evil spirit. How much should we cry the same? How much should be cry, “Lord, I love You, help me to love You more”? “I trust You, help me trust You more!” We get so frail in our spirits sometime, but He is there to help us through each trial, each woe, and every day.

                   “Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh;
                    Teach me the struggles of the soul to bear,
                    To check the rising doubt, the rebel sigh;
                    Teach me the patience of unanswered prayer.

                    Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love,
                    One holy passion filling all my frame;
                    The kindling of the heaven descended Dove,
                    My heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.”

I truly believe that we do not see the Holy Spirit the way that we should. We do not seek Him in the everyday affairs of our life. He is there working on the inside, but He must have our cooperation. When we get caught up with things of the world, He is shut off. It is imperative, especially in the days in which we live, that we do make our heart an altar.

The Saga of Miles Forrest

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 7, 2018

Merker had just bumped into me. I’m not sure that he recognized me as I was turned slightly away from him. I was slowly taking a step off the boardwalk when I heard Ooverholm hollering at me.
    He was running my way. “Marshal Forrest, you’ve got to come with me!”
    I grabbed him by the shoulder, turned him to go in the direction I was heading. Ooverholm, a tall, skinny man, was red in the face from his exertion. He wasn’t frail, but sure looked like a stringbean. “Walk with me,” I ordered, “and tell me what’s wrong.”
    “They’re fighting!” he exclaimed.
    “Who’s fightin’?” I asked as I directed him toward the telegraph station.
    “Mister Douster and a woman claiming to be Mr. Billington’s daughter. They’re in Mr. Billington’s office, or what used to be his office and are screaming at each other. They’re saying awful things.”
    He was slowly calming down as he began to walk. “Go see the sheriff,” I told him. “I’ll be along, but first I have to send a telegram and see Judge Klaser.”
    Looking at me he nodded and then scurried off toward the jail. I wondered, as I kept moving, what in the world was going on now. Stepping up on the boardwalk I glanced toward the jail and saw Ooverholm rush through the door. Lingering just a minute I watched as he reemerged with Charlie Gold and headed toward the bank.
    “Howdy, Mr. Forrest,” greeted the telegraph clerk as I entered. “What can I do for you?”
    “Need to send a telegram.”
    “Paper is right on the counter next to the wall.” I don’t know why Stan Offut was so formal. I’ve known him since I arrived in Durango. We’ve done some hunting and fishing together over the years. Nice man, has a good wife and young daughter. He almost lost both of them to the diphtheria epidemic a while back, but they both pulled through thanks to the tireless efforts of Doc Jones.
    I wrote out the telegram to Gilford Covney. “Saw Merker in Durango–STOP–Have you had trouble in Frisco?–STOP” As I finished I decided to send the first part of the message to Jens Blasco, the U.S. Marshal for the region.
    “Thanks, Stan,” I said giving the telegram to him and paying him a dollar. “Buy some candy for Beth with the change.”
    Now I hurried over to Judge Klaser’s home. Since he had been hit in the head he had been doing most of his work from his house. I was hoping that perhaps the federal judge would be there also. Knocking on the door there was no answer. He was having trouble moving around since his head injury so I gave him plenty time. I knocked again, then tried the door knob. It was locked.
    Sighing I turned toward his office. It was a couple of blocks from his house, across the street from the jail. The office was outside the courthouse but attached. To enter the courthouse from his office he had to go outside. There was a small chamber in the courthouse behind the courtroom where he could change if needed.
    George Denton, no relation to Billy, was sitting at his desk. He acted as the clerk of the court, the prosecuting attorney, and the judge’s secretary. He was a small man, slightly pudgy but I’ve seen him in action in court. In the courtroom he’s a regular bulldog.
    Looking up, he saw me and smiled. “Hello, Miles. Here to see the judge? He and Judge Broomfield are in his office,” he got up and started toward the door. “I’ll let them know you’re here.”
    He knocked, opened the door and motioned for me to come. As I entered, Judge Klaser greeted me. “Miles, good to see you. This is the federal judge that will try Billy Denton’s case tomorrow, Judge Nathan Broomfield.”
    The judge reached out my hand and I shook it. I was a little surprised for it was callused and he had a firm grip. “Sorry to interrupt you, but I thought you should know that there may be someone out there who might want to take a shot at either of you.”
    I proceeded to tell them of Lillian and the men I saw in town. To my embarrassment I told them of being cold-cocked and then of a man that was of dubious character than I had seen in Denver who had just come to town.
    “I don’t have time to chat,” I informed them. “Sheriff Gold has just rushed down to the bank where it seems our Miss Lillian is having issues with Douster. I told Ooverhold that I’d stop by.”
    The men said their thanks and I headed toward the bank. It had been thirty minutes since Ooverhold had accosted me on the street. I walked in and he was working with a customer. I took a seat by the window wondering where Charlie went. When he finished his business he walked over to me.
    “Strangest thing, Marshal. When Sheriff Gold and I returned it was quiet. We could hear some chatting behind the office door and when it opened they were smiling at each other like they were old friends. She shook his hand, nodded and smiled our direction and walked out.”
    “Where’s the sheriff now?”
    “He said he was going to follow Miss Billington.”
    As those words came out of his mouth there was a gunshot, then another. It sounded like it came from the direction of the jail.

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 6, 2018

I’m in no mood to be pushed into somethin’ by other people, no matter how good their intentions are. Whatever I decide to do…it’ll by because I made up my own mind.”
–Elmer Kelton (After the Bugles)

    “Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established.”
             –Proverbs 4:25-26 (HCSB)
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The Psalms are always great to look at for a morning devotion. The Psalms were a hymnbook for the Israelites. We often look to them when in need of inspiration, but even though they are simple, they contain doctrine and theology. They also contain many human moods and how to deal with them. In the Psalms there is also the activity of God in dealing with mankind, both His enemies and His people.
    The next several Mondays I plan to use the Psalms for the morning “Echo”. Let them resonate in your mind, soul, and spirit. Let them guide you, inspire you, and make you ponder the majestic person of God. The great preacher Charles Spurgeon said, “In the day of his prosperity he sings psalms out of the Word of God, and in the night of his affliction he comforts himself with promises out of the same book.”
    Look at Psalm 1. This is one of my favorite portions of Scripture. This is a guide for life and it is the foundation for the rest of the Psalms. You are on one side or the other: righteous or ungodly. To me, this Psalm needs to be read from the King James. For some reason it is just fitting. This is also one of those portions of Scripture that should be added to memory and meditated upon often. Look at how it starts:

“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” (1)

It makes you think of the Beatitudes, “blessed”, “to be envied.” In this Psalm there is a definite separation between the believer and the person of the world, yet so many in the church today do not want this separation or at least want it blurred.

“But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (2)

We are to meditate on God’s Word. This word means to “think about, recite, contemplate” or in the words of Ira–“ponder.” We are given instructions to meditate/recite God’s Word. Think of it when you get up, think of it in the morning hours, at noontime, and in the afternoon. Ponder them in the evening and as you lay down at night. When you awaken during the night, ponder His Word. Or should I ask, do we have other things on our mind?

“And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” (3)

Obedience to God and His Word and we shall have a stable, secure life that brings us blessings and then we are able to bless others.

“The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.” (4)

There is no nutritional value in chaff. Then I will ask, why do “we” want to be so much like them? There is no root within them in the hard times. They cannot stand against the winds and waves, especially in the spiritual sense. The wicked have no depth of character, there is no substance in their being.

“Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, or sinners in the congregation of the righteous. (5) For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.” (6)

Here are five questions to ask:
    1) Do I walk in the counsel of the wicked?
    2) Do I stand in the way of sinners?
    3) Do I sit in the seat of mockers?
    4) Do I delight in the law/word of the Lord?
    5) Do I meditate continually on His Word?
Let me warn you; answers to these questions determine your destiny. Alton H. McEachern states, “Psalm 1 calls for our responsible obedience to God. It sets in bold relief what matters most: faith and obedience. And it warns the faithless that their life-style leads to failure and destruction.”
    Psalm 1, ponder it for it is a great word. Verses that we should reflect upon over and over and use them to take inventory of our life.

                              “The law of God is my delight,
                               That cloud by day, the fire by night,
                               Shall be my comfort in distress
                               And guide me through life’s wilderness.”
                                     –James Montgomery

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 4, 2018

He wasn’t going to do any shooting until tomorrow anyway. But, if he was going to do that, he’d want some coffee first.”
–C.J. Petit (Ben Gray)

Had trouble throwing my legs out of bed this mornin’, pard. Glad yuh showed up. Don’t yuh go to worryin’, I’m not gettin’ the guns out to do any shootin’, but I see that the mouths are already beginnin’ to shoot their mouths off. Just raises the bile in my ol’ gizzard. One of the best resolutions I’ve ever made was to stay away from the media–quit readin’ that junk they spout off.
    Some call it “spinnin'” but they tell lies, no matter which way yuh go to look at it, an’ it’s just startin’. Yep, elections are about a hundred days off. So right now I’m goin’ to enjoy my coffee, not do any shootin’ and try to ignore all the junk out there. Course I know we should keep up with what’s happenin’, but yuh sure can’t trust the media to be truthful, nor many folk any more either. Don’t yuh worry, my guns will be handy.
    Read where someone the other day was questionin’, “is the media the enemy of the people?” Well, pard, it shouldn’t be, but in these days, the media has their agenda and it sure ain’t Bible-friendly, nor friendly to those who follow Christ and His teachin’s.
    Ahhhh, that soothes the gizzard, sure don’t want actin’ up. Yuh know, I don’t know what’s happened to plain ol’ common sense anymore. Instead of bein’ practical, followin’ God’s rules, people want their own way. Guess it’s always been that way, but more so than ever, and it’s continually in the news. I’m a-thinkin’ that the days are comin’ where the good Lord steps upon His heavenly mount to come back and take His sealed ones on home. Don’t know if He’ll be servin’ steak an’ potatoes, or biscuits ‘n’ gravy, but He’s goin’ to have a grand supper for us. Surely, He’ll have some heavenly apple pie.
    Yep, that time’s here. I mean the time for us to part for the coffee pot’s empty. Sure didn’t waste much time. At least yuh’ve had yur coffee before gettin’ on with Saturday business. Take care, ride tall and straight. Coffee’s in yuh, so if yuh have to do any “shootin'” yur ready. Hey did yuh check yur cinch?