Author: Ira Paine

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on

But to think and brood and grieve would be fatal. Let him watch and listen. Nothing in that wilderness was trivial.”
                    –Zane Grey  (Stranger From the Tonto)

       “Give ear and hear my voice, listen and hear my speech.”

                    –Isaiah 28:23 (NKJV)
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Are we hearing?  Are we to the point where we are unable to hear?  For many, the ears have grown callused; they are hardened against the Word of God.  Read the letters to the churches in Revelation.  Look at what the Lord says at the end of each letter:  “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
       I hear the cry for revival among some circles, but then I look at other areas and I see the church compromising and being complacent with sin.  A preacher, with some common sense, has said, “Evil preaches tolerance until it is dominant, then it tries to silence good.”  Do you hear the voice of evil, or do you hear the voice of the Spirit?  Are you hard of hearing, or do you hear clearly the Holy Spirit speaking?  It cannot be both.  You cannot be of the world and of the Kingdom.  Let me pass on to you the words of Micah and Nahum.

          “You who hate good and love evil; who strip the skin from My people, and the flesh from their bones…  Then they will cry to the LORD, but He will not hear them; He will even hide His face from them at that time, because they have been evil in their deeds.  Thus says the LORD concerning the prophets who make my people stray; who chant ‘Peace’ while they chew with their teeth, but who prepare war against him who puts nothing into their mouths:  therefore you shall have night without vision, and you shall have darkness without divination; the sun shall go down on the prophets, and the day shall be dark for them.”
                       –Micah 3:2, 4-6 (NKJV)

          “I will cast abominable filth upon you, make you vile, and make you a spectacle.”
                      –Nahum 3:6 (NKJV)

     Do I hear the voice of the prophet, of the preacher?  Where is the cry from behind the pulpit?  Yes, there are those who preach faithfully the Word.  Yes, there are those who are listening to the voice of the Spirit.  But as a nation…as a nation, whose voice is being heard?  We are living in a time where “everyone did what was right in his own eyes,” (Judges 21:10, NKJV) and forsaking the Word of God.  Listen, the precepts, principles, and promises of God are forever, they are absolute, and they are not to be scorned or mocked.
     I believe we are living in the beginning of a time of judgment.  It has not fallen because of the faithful.  I recall the story of Abraham interceding for the people of Sodom, but there will come a time when evil overcomes the faithful.  The cry of evil will be louder, the people will hear and listen to it rather than the voice of the Spirit.  Now is the day of salvation!  People want something new so they are turning to the old ways of evil with a new name–Progressive…Woke.  Read the Bible, often we see that the “silence of God was the judgment of God.” (Wiersbe)  Woe unto us when God no longer speaks.
     “Speak my Lord, speak, and I’ll be quick to answer Thee…” (George Bennard)  “Behold, I am coming quickly!  Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown…  He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Revelation 3:11,13, NKJV)

 

The Saga of Miles Forrest

by Ira Paine, Posted on
Tension was in the air, sparks ready to fly with flames from guns, justice was being tested.  Miles Forrest was taking a prisoner back to Durango when he was faced with the local law officers consisting of five men led by Marshal Todd Johnson.  Any sort of wrong movement could leave men dead.  Would Miles give up his prisoner and return to Durango alone?  Would he face the five men?  Go back with me to those thrilling days of yesteryear with the Saga of Miles Forrest.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
       Out of nowhere a shot rang out.  It was not from the men facing me; a rooftop maybe.  I brought the shotgun to bear, when I saw Johnson with his hands in the air and was hollering, “Don’t shoot!  Don’t shoot!”  
       His quick reaction saved his life, and most likely my own.  The men with him had their hands up, making sure they were away from their guns.  I glanced quickly to the rooftops and saw movement on one to my left.  It was only a blur, I couldn’t tell who it was.  Tom Devlin was lying in the street–lifeless.  I saw Dale Courtney standing on the boardwalk at the corner and motioned with the Greener.  “Check him.”
       I kept my eyes on Johnson while Courtney checked to see if there was any life in Devlin.  “He’s dead Marshal,” came his report.  “Bullet right at the base of the throat and chest.”
       The anger was rising up within me.  To lose a man in my custody rankled me to no end.  To me it was a mockery of justice.  I cocked the hammers of the Greener back, leveled it at Johnson and ordered, “Untie him!”
       “He’s your prisoner, you untie him,” he came back scornfully.
       The blast from the shotgun boomed, the shot hitting the ground to the left of Johnson.  I saw one of his deputies flinch.  Some of the shot must have ricocheted off the ground hitting him.  But it did get the attention of Johnson who motioned for another deputy to help him remove the rope and lift Devlin out of the street.
       I gave Hawk a nudge with my spur.  He started walking down the street while I kept the Greener pointed at Johnson.  Thirty minutes later, with Hawk loaded in the stock car, I sat looking out the window of the passenger car as it headed down the canyon to Durango.  I was fuming inside.  When I had passed Johnson, he mumbled loud enough for me to hear, “Looks like the marshal lost his witness.”  He never looked at me, but I knew it was a barb thrust at me.
       It was all I could do to hold it in.  I began to pray that the Lord would help me to gain control.  I had several hours to think and pray about what happened, and begin to devise a plan for a return to Silverton.
       When the train arrived in Durango, I took Hawk up to the cabin, brushed him down and fed him, then walked on down to the diner.  It was about half-full with Mollie and Adela waiting on tables.  I plodded over to my regular table not even bothering to stop and get a cup of coffee.  I was weary…weary of the inner fight, the war against wickedness, and scum like Johnson preying on innocent people.
       Molly must have noticed my demeanor for she came over placing her hands on my shoulders.  Leaning forward, she kissed me on the cheek.  “How about some pork chops covered with onion gravy with some fried potatoes?”  
       Placing my left hand on top of hers, “That’d be nice.”  It wasn’t until she left that I realized that I still had the Greener in my right hand.  Something was wrong with me, for it dawned on me that I hadn’t reloaded.  I needed to wake up.
       I removed the empty shell, replacing it with a new one, then set the Greener against the wall.  Shaking my head, I got up, grabbed a cup and poured a cup of coffee.  Ahhh, it made me relax and I heaved a deep sigh.  By the time Molly brought my supper most of the crowd had left so she was able to sit beside me.  
       “Take your time–relax,” she comforted me.  “There’s a piece of apple pie in the back.  Do you want to talk about it now or later?”
       “Let me finish my supper and I’ll tell you what happened over the pie.”
       I had plans for Charlie and Mateo…

 

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on

For in a terrible storm each person is alone within their minds, cowering with their own private fears, their uncertainties.”
                    –Louis L’Amour  (Matagorda)

       “The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, And will not at all acquit the wicked. The Lord has His way In the whirlwind and in the storm, And the clouds are the dust of His feet.”

                    –Nahum 1:3 (NKJV)
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Psalm 99 should get our attention!  Someone said that “God is holy, frighteningly holy.  Such a vision of the holy, holy, holy Lord keeps us bowing low before his feet.”  Steven Lawson writes that God is, “Unwavering in carrying out his eternal purposes, unhindered by man’s decisions to the contrary, God reigns supremely in absolute authority, the unrivaled ruler over heaven and earth.”

          1 — The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble!  He dwells between the cherubim; let the earth be moved!
          2 — The LORD is great in Zion, and He is high above all the peoples.
          3 — Let them praise Your great and awesome name–He is holy.
          4 — The King’s strength also loves justice; You have established equity; You have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.
          5 — Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at His footstool–He is holy.  (NKJV)

       The NLT translates verse 1, “The LORD is king!”  No ifs or doubts about it.  He is the sovereign ruler not just of the earth, but of the universe and beyond.  The great writer and preacher Arthur W. Pink said, “Divine sovereignty means that God is God in fact, as well as in name, that he is on the Throne of the universe, directing all things, working all things after the counsel of his own will.”  No matter how much this evil world rocks in chaos and turmoil–God reigns.  No matter how “woke” culture may become, how it tries to dethrone the King of heaven–God will continue to reign.  But note:  because He reigns the people are called to tremble!  Tremble means to “be deeply moved and disturbed, even thrown into commotion.”
       Let me relate a story I read.  King Uzziah had a long and prosperous reign.  He did his best to bring Judah back to the Lord, but there came a time, a time when his throne led to him becoming arrogant and he usurped the duties of the priest.  He burned incense on the altar in the Temple.  As punishment he became a leper.  The great King Uzziah now had to live in isolation.  “In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.” (Isaiah 6:1, NKJV)
The next verse describes the seraphims, then what Isaiah heard, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” (6:3, NKJV)
       Isaiah would have known of the sin of Uzziah and if the king was punished for burning incense, he must have wondered what would happen to him.  Isaiah cried aloud, “Woe is me, for I am undone…” (6:5) and confessed his sins.  Ah, but in the midst of Isaiah’s anguish we see the love and mercy and grace of the great King.  A seraphim picked up a coal from the altar and touched the mouth of Isaiah, “Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is purged.” (6:6)
       He is holy!  Why do we worry when He reigns?  Why do we fret when He rules this earth?  Why do we complain and get anxious about the lack of justice, about evil seemingly prevailing when He is the great equalizer who loves justice?  “Evil human dictators act tyrannically because they separate power from goodness.  God is not a despot.  His deeds are never unjust nor capricious.” (George O. Wood)  In this day when the cry is “relationship” we do not see that in this psalm.  There is no intimacy, there is only the invitation to worship for He is holy.  Yes, we have a personal relationship with the King, but never forget that He is the King and He must be worshiped as such.

               “Holy, holy, holy!  Lord God Almighty!
               All thy works shall praise thy name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
               Holy, holy, holy!  Merciful and mighty!
               God in three persons, blessed Trinity!”
                         –Gerald S. Henderson

 

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on

The water was boiling in the coffee pot, so I dumped a handful of coffee in it and let her cook up real good.”

                         –Lou Bradshaw  (Hickory Jack)
 
Hot ‘nough for yuh, Pard?  Why I thought I’d put the pot on the rocks and see if’n they were hot enough to boil the coffee.  Ha, that was a joke, Pard; don’t be squintin’ like that at me or those furrows on your forehead will be gettin’ deeper.  Supposed to hit triple digits every day next week, say, an’ yuh realize that this is only June.  But on the other hand, we sure did have a nice Spring.
       I saw the other day where a person was speakin’ of coffee and some kind of fancy dessert.  I looked at the photo, an’ sent a message back sayin’ that I didn’t see any coffee.  The reply I received said that it was ice coffee and that it was too hot for hot coffee.  My land, that’s absurd!  Cold coffee taints the taste buds, it numbs the gullet, and the gizzard near goes into shock.  Rain or shine, cold or hot, storm or calm, boil me up some real-to-goodness coffee.
       Pard, go ahead, there’s no ice in that cup, just the true and honest brew of the bean that delights the innards.  Sayin’ that coffee is too hot for the weather is like sayin’ give me a cold steak or not botherin’ to fix supper because of the heat and get a bowl of that breakfast food instead.  Why, I’ve got a hankerin’ for some good ol’ chili right now.  Think I’ll make a pot next week.
       Since I’m a historian, I always think about those pioneers of yesteryear.  Whooeee, they worked right out in the heat.  They didn’t have all the technology or scientific advice, they just knew that the job had to be done.  I”m familiar with the heat.  I had a great grandfather who died of sunstroke workin’ in the wheat fields of Kansas.  Once I had a dose of heat exhaustion–not a fun thing.  This past week, the little one–Julee–had a touch of heat exhaustion.  But think of the cowboy working in the heat, the farmer out plowin’, the townsfolk going about their business with no air conditioner, oh, and by the way, that’s one piece of technology I’m in favor of.  The work had to be done, the chickens had to be fed…well, yuh get the picture.
       Ahh, mighty tasty this mornin’.  But let me tell yuh one other thing.  I’m a sorta theologian, or at least I study the Bible.  Think of the fires of Hades.  Think of the heat of the fiery furnace and the four men walkin’ in it.  There’s comin’ a day when those who don’t know the Lord Jesus will face the fires that are not quenched in the Lake of Fire.
       Sorry Pard, didn’t mean to get so somber, but that’s something we should be concerned about–makin’ sure our loved ones are ready for the comin’ of the Lord, just like you should be checkin’ yur cinch when yuh mount.  Yuh take care this week, stay out of the sun and heat as much as possible–the plan is for the coffee to be ready when yuh come ’round next week.
        Vaya con Dios.