Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on January 10, 2024

It occurred to me how fast things can change in a person’s life.”
–Lou Bradshaw (One Man Standing)

“For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.”
–Psalm 27:5 (NKJV)
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It’s already time for a Midnight Hymn. For the past couple of weeks a couple of songs have continually been going through my mind. When I can’t get them out, I figure it’s time to share them. Actually this one began the last week of December. In the midst of turmoil, whenever the storm rages where do you turn? Hopefully you turn to the Lord; it is He that can help and hide you from the roaring winds and raging waves. But, when hidden in safety with the Lord what is it that you see? Do you still see the storm, do you still see your troubles, or do you, as Fanny Crosby wrote, see “rivers of pleasure”?

“A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
A wonderful Savior to me;
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock,
Where rivers of pleasure I see.”

Do you remember Christian from Bunyan’s “Pilgrims Progress”? Remember how, even those a believer that he continued to struggle with his burden. Are we not often the same way. We continue to carry the burden of the old life. We continue to have and/or find guilt in the deeds of our past. We moan, we cry, yet the Lord wants us to realize that He has given us new life and wants to remove those burdens that we continue to bear.

“A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
He taketh my burden away;
He holdeth me up, and I shall not be moved,
He giveth me strength as my day.”

In this coming year, do not forget all the blessings that the Lord has already given you. Perhaps we seek too much, perhaps we have already forgotten all the wondrous good He has done for us in the past. Every day is a new day with Him; His mercies are new every morning. His grace continues to keep our lives and we live and abide in Him. Just contemplate those, then continue with life, safety, security, food, and on and on and on… Then one day, either by death or in the rapture, we will be transported. We will meet Him in glory and then we will be even more amazed at what He has done for us.

“With numberless blessings each moment He crowns,
And filled with His fullness divine,
I sing in my rapture, oh, glory to God,
For such a Redeemer as mine.

When clothed in His brightness, transported I rise
To meet Him in clouds of the sky,
His perfect salvation, His wonderful love,
I’ll shout with the millions on high.”

As we journey through this wearisome land of life we have Him to turn to. He will be there in every situation, filling us with what is needed for the moment. There is nothing anyone can do to remove us from His love. When we thirst, He pours out the living water. When we are in despair He hides our sorrows and suffering in the depths of His love. If need be, He covers us so that we do not have to see our past, but we look to our future in Christ.

“He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That covers a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life in the depths of His love;
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.”

The Saga of Miles Forrest

by Ira Paine, Posted on January 9, 2024

After dropping around thirty inches the snow had stopped falling. However, the temperatures remained down around zero, so it was still standing and not melted. Hopefully warmer temperatures would soon come, at least before the next storm.

The town was trying to unthaw and move around. Businesses had cleaned off the boardwalk, but there was very little traffic on the streets, a few horse tracks and most of them around the saloons. People could get around though. Crandall’s Grocery and Johansen’s Butcher Shop were busy. People had to eat. The saloons were open and Solly had his tobacco store open. People had to have their booze and smokes.

I walked down with Molly to open the diner. She had sent a message by me to Marta to stay home with the baby, that she and I would open the diner. Emelda had got the message, but Adela had struggled through the snow to come to work. Mateo’s oldest son, Alejo, had taken over Lucas’ job of cutting wood for the various merchants in town. He was doing a good job, and his brother Enrique helped him stack it, but was not strong enough yet to be doing much chopping. They were up early and both Molly and I waved at them as we trudged through the snow.

The boys had already been to the diner and had filled up the wood bin. After Molly unlocked the door, I went in first to get the fire started in the big stove in the kitchen, and then to the stove in the main eating room. Later, I would take some of the wood that had been chopped and make it into kindling for the stoves. Molly started making some custard pies and Adela went to cutting up onions while I put the coffeepot on the big stove and another on the stove in the dining room. Molly had decided that they would only make chili for the day. If someone wanted eggs they could easily be fried up and covered with chili.

I helped the ladies out by sweeping the dining room and straightening it up. I had just sat down after pouring a cup of coffee when to my surprise Doc Jones walked in the door. “What are you doin’ out in in this cold?” I questioned him, and his sanity.

“Saw the diner was open and thought I’d come in for some coffee. I have a message to go see Mrs. McClure. Frank came in frantically earlier and said she was having pains and expecting. I told him to get back to his wife, and I’d be out shortly.”

Molly came into the room, “Sit down Doc, I’ll bring you a piece of fresh pie.”

“Well, I reckon the body could use that extra fuel.”

We chatted for a short while but Doc said he should get his horse out and on his way. Snow was too deep for a buggy, but he would follow Frank McClure’s tracks to the farm; it was only a few miles out of town.

The rest of the day went by slowly. I, along with Molly, drank the pot of coffee on the stove next to me. There were a few customers for lunch, but after lunch, Molly sent Adela home. I stayed around to help if anyone came in during the afternoon or for supper.

A few ventured out for supper and Molly fed a half dozen of the down and out miners. They looked to be more frozen than not. I asked where they stayed during this cold weather and was told that the Parson Chapman let them stay in the church. There were a dozen more still there that had not ventured out. Molly gave them the rest of the pot of chili to take back up to the church and to tell the preacher that she’d pick it up later in the week.

It was almost dark when Molly said it was time to close up. I started going around putting out the lamps, when Edith came through the door. It was easy to see that she was concerned. “Miles, Henry hasn’t come back yet,” she said with alarm.

“I wouldn’t be frettin’,” came my reply. “The kid probably hasn’t come out the chute yet. As soon as Mrs. McClure has that baby he’ll start home. If he’s not on his way now, he’ll probably wait until mornin’.”

Molly had heard her come in and brought a cup of coffee from the kitchen to her. “Here you go,” she said, handing her the cup. “Miles is right. Doc knows the weather and how to take care of himself.”

“No,” she declared. “This is something different. I can’t explain it, I can just feel it. Something…”

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on January 8, 2024

This was a savage land, a lonely land, yet here the foundations of our homes would be laid… We accepted the danger but took no unnecessary risk. It is a fool who invites trouble, a child who is reckless, for life holds risks enough without reaching out for more.”
–Louis L’Amour (Bendigo Shafter)

“And why should I live a life of such hourly danger? I assure you, by the certainty of Jesus Christ that we possess, that I face death every day of my life!”

–1 Corinthians 15:29-30 (Phillips)
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Welcome back to our study in the Psalms for the year 2024. This portion of Psalm 107 is a good way to start. Perhaps you had a rough year; a year of despair, depression, and gloom. That’s where we find ourselves at the beginning of this section. The people had sat in darkness; they were prisoners in a foreign land, held in bondage–the reason, they rebelled against the words of God.

10 — Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons–
11 — Because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High,
12 — Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; they fell down, and there was none to help.
13 — Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses.
14 — He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces.
15 — Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
16 — For He has broken the gates of bronze, and cut the bars of iron in two.
17 — Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted.
18 — Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.
19 — Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses.
20 — He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
21 — Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!
22 — Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare His works with rejoicing. (NKJV)

When the people cried out to the Lord, He heard them and released them from their hard labor. They were encouraged to give thanks unto the Lord. Know that God delivers those who come to Him with a humble and repentant heart. Note, that He will always deliver, but then remember it may be instantaneous or it may be over a period of time. It may take time for us to have a renewing of our mind and not say words of repentance, but actually mean them from the heart.
Verses 15 and 21 tell us a couple of things. At first glance it seems that it is a plea by the psalmist. He is wanting them to give thanks for the Lord is good. He encourages them to remember where they were now compared to the depths of despair from which He brought them. “They grew near to the gates of death” is taken from the Hebrew word meaning “shachah” which means “to fall down in troubles, to sink down in despair, to bow down.” (Steven Lawson) When God lifted them up they should have hearts that overflow with thanksgiving. Their heart should flow with joy.
One more note, in verse 17 there is the word “fools.” “This word does not refer primarily to someone of low intelligence or someone who is ignorant, but rather it refers to someone who is willfully perverse, choosing to adopt destructive behaviors and lifestyles.” (William Peterson) Go to the book of Proverbs for a good study of what a fool is and does. Check back on the notes I wrote regarding “How to Live in a Pagan, Apostate, and Foolish World.” There are many actions of fools, but they all stem from choosing to disregard the Word of the Lord.

“Long my imprisoned spirit lay
Fast bound in sin and nature’s night;
Thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke–the dungeon flamed with light!
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed Thee.”
–Charles Wesley

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on January 6, 2024

They drank their coffee, the wind down the arroyo grew chill. He added wood to the fire, going out into the darkness for branches or roots of dried mesquite and creosote.” –Louis L’Amour (Kid Rodelo)

“Oh, the wayward wind is a restless wind…ohhhh,…” Mornin’ to yuh Pard. Man, I haven’t seen yuh since last year. Hmmm, added a few pounds to yur girth did yuh? Well, let me tell yuh I have diet coffee jist waitin’ for yuh. Yep, no sugar, no honey, nothin’ sweet ‘ceptin’ my smile. Jist the hot, strong, black brew of coffee. Ha, fact is, I’ve never heard of “diet coffee” but who knows.

I’ve been sittin’ here, philosophyzin’ while waitin’ for yuh to show up. With the new year upon us, I wonder which way the wind will blow. Most likely there’ll be some hard blasts that’ll show up this year, but mostly it’ll be a breeze rustlin’ through the tops of the trees. Go ahead, drink that brew whilst I talk. Yuh know that there’s plenty of folk out there jist wanderin’ like that restless wind. They have no clue as to purpose or eternity. They go where the wind blows them, whim by whim. They listen to the lies of the media, graspin’ for hope that is eludin’.

‘Cuse me a minute while I take a swaller or two. Ahh, got to wet the tonsils and make the innards smile. Now, back to what I was a-sayin’, there is another wind. A mysterious wind. We don’t know where it comes from ‘cept from the portals of glory. This winds moves throughout the earth, blowin’ this way and that, touchin’ whomever. We don’t know where that wind is goin’ either, ‘cept back to the place from when it came–heaven. Pard, we need to move along with that “wind” for it is the Holy Spirit leadin’ us.

Now, I’m no scholar, so let me give it to yuh straight from that long ago wanderer, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is goin’. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8, NIV). Pard, let the wind blow yuh where He pleases this year. Don’t yuh be tryin’ to ride against the wind, for that’s futile.

Yep, Pard, let that wind, blow the aroma of fresh coffee to yur nostrils, take a drink, but don’t linger if the wind is tryin’ to move yuh along. Right now, let’s finish this pot, so’s we can get goin’ with the obligations of the day. Pard, with those added pounds to yur girth, be sure and check that cinch for if’n yuh fall the landin’ will be a sight harder.

Vaya con Dios.