Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 23, 2023

Does he own this ranch, or does it own him?”

–Elmer Kelton (Six-Bits a Day)

“There is a severe evil which I have seen under the sun: riches kept for their owner to his hurt.”

–Ecclesiastes 5:13(NKJV)
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I was reading, then started pondering and contemplating this past weekend. The titles of two songs were going through my mind and I started my pea-brain into delving deeper into the words.
“Showers of blessing, Showers of blessing we need…” (Daniel W. Whittle). I began wondering and pondering, do we need or want the showers of God’s blessing? Yes, of course we need, we must have the blessings of His mercy. They are renewed every morning and every morning we need to be showered with them, and throughout the day. We need the showers of His grace, for we can do nothing in ourselves. We need the showers of sanctification, of the growth of the fruit of the Spirit, of His great love. But many things we want showered with are just wants. I want this, shower me with the wealth of the world, I want that, shower me with entertainment, shower me with hyper-pogostick praise. Shower me with pseudo-religion. Shower me with blessings that I really do not need. And, you know what, sometimes out of His great goodness, He does shower us with abundance. However, remember, if the Lord gives us an abundance of something He expects us to use it properly and for the kingdom of God.
I don’t want to belittle that great song. It is a song of refreshing. A song that means much to us right now in the midst of the horrendous heat wave and drought. But we must sing, as we should all songs and hymns, with the right attitude and right motive.
The second song has the chorus”
Count your blessings,
Name them one by one;
Count your blessings,
See what God hath done;
Count your blessings,
Name them one by one;
Count your many blessings,
See what God hath done.
–Johnson Oatman, Jr.
We sing that song, we say we count our blessings, but do we really take the time to thank God for them? Can we even begin to count all the blessings that the Lord has given us? I started doing that on Saturday evening. I became overwhelmed! The blessings of God in our lives are like the stars in the sky. They surmount what we can even begin to count. Do it now, begin to not just count, but ponder the blessings that God has given you.
Life, but physical and spiritual
Salvation
Hope of glory
Fellowship with Him
Fellowship with believers
Assurance
Health
Promises from His Word
Family
Victories in the past
Your heritage, both natural and physical
Comfort
and on and on and on and on and on…
Oh the truth of Oatman’s hymn,
When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

The Saga of Miles Forrest

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 22, 2023

Sheriff Charlie Gold and Mateo Ramirez left Silverton with their prisoner Thurman “Tioga” Cavendish leaving Miles in Silverton. The marshal of Silverton had been running a protection racket, and the first person that Miles had arrested had been shot down by a rifleman on a rooftop which Tioga proclaimed was Smokey Fountain. Miles had hidden himself in the file room of the Wells Fargo office and his plan was to confront and arrest Fountain, and possibly Marshal Johnson. Miles remembered that the Man at his campfire said He was going to stir things up in Silverton. Come, join with me, as we go back to those thrilling days of yesteryear and the Saga of Miles Forrest.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I must have dozed again while sitting in a chair with my feet propped up. The darkness of the night had settled in, and I searched for the clock in the office. The time was ten minutes ’til midnight. It was time for me to be moving out into the town.

In the darkness I checked the Greener to make sure it was loaded, then felt for extra shells in my vest pocket of which there were six. My hand then pulled my pistol and I checked the loads in it. I hoped to pull this off without gunplay and bloodshed, but I wasn’t going among the Philistines unprepared. “Lord,” I prayed, “You’ve got to give me discernment and courage. Guide my steps, and if I have to shoot, may my aim be true.” I picked up my jacket, then placed it on the table. It would be cool outside, but I didn’t want to be hampered in my movements.

My plan was to walk back toward the station a half block then move up the darken street toward the top of Blair Street then work my way down. I had one major problem, I didn’t know what Smokey Fountain looked like. I doubted that Johnson would be on the street this late at night; he would let his deputies take care of the work. But again, with the commotion we caused earlier in the day he might be roaming around.

I had just turned the corner when I heard shots back west of the office. In Silverton that didn’t mean much, but it usually came from Blair Street or the surrounding streets. Suddenly, I knew what the shots were. Johnson was attacking either Appleby or Barnes’ homes. I rushed toward the sound of the firing, not caring if I was seen or not. I had to get there in time to help these two loyal men.

They lived only a block apart, so I headed to Barnes’ which was the closest. I saw movement in the darkness, then a crash as his door was kicked open. I expected to see a flash from the gun of Barnes, but nothing happened. I moved closer, there were three men standing at the doorway. I figured there was a man posted out back in case Barnes decided to run that way.

There was some hesitation with the men, and I didn’t blame them. Shots had been fired, they were entering a darkened house and who knows what could be awaiting them. I saw one start to cross the threshold; I decided it was time to make myself known.

“Throw up your hands! You’re under arrest!” I hollered.

I heard a curse, then one turned trying to locate me in the shadows. “I’m Deputy Mercer with Deputies Fountain and Black. Stay away, this is official business!”

“This is official business too,” I returned, drawing my pistol and firing at the door frame.

Mercer dropped to a knee, while the other deputy pushed inside with the man who had already entered. “This is Deputy U.S. Marshal Miles Forrest, throw down your weapons!”

There was another oath, a shot fired out where they thought I may be, then I heard a shot from inside. Barnes! Another shot, I hollered again, “Throw down your weapons and come out!”

They rushed out, firing as they came, one deputy dragging his leg. The Lord had led Fountain to me, now He needed to help me keep him alive. I only knew where Mercer was. They were shooting trying to make their escape. I took a kneeling position and fired low, at their legs. They were hard to see in the darkness; if they would have kept still they probably would have gotten away. I hit one of them, then my bullet thudded in one of the others and I heard a deep groan. They were hurt, but not out of the play. As far as I know Mercer was the only one unscathed, and I couldn’t locate him.

“Last chance, throw down your guns and raise your hands!”

I heard two guns land on the ground. Either one was hurt too severely or was keeping his gun. “Stand up and move toward me,” I yelled.

One man moved in my direction, limping badly. “Black is down, he can’t move,” the man uttered.

“Are you Fountain?”

“Deputy Fountain, to you,” came his blunt reply.

“Well, Deputy Fountain, you’re under arrest for the murder of Tom Devlin!”

I didn’t want to say more as I kept my ears alert for any sound. Mercer was still unaccounted for. After a few minutes, I moved to handcuff Fountain when there was a shot off to my left and a cry. “Don’t shoot Miles, it’s Barnes. I just took care of Mercer.”

“Go get a lamp, I want to check out their wounds,” I said, stepping forward. I could see that Fountain was bleeding from a wound above his right knee. There was a form on the ground. When Barnes brought out the lamp I knelt to see that Black had bled out from where my bullet took him just below the breastbone.

I would deal with Johnson another time. At least I had Fountain, now to get him to Durango…

Echoes From the Campfire

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 21, 2023

All a man can leave to his children is the little he’s learned, and maybe what he thinks in his mind and feels in his heart.”

–Louis L’Amour (Down the Long Hills)

“Test all things; hold fast what is good.”

–1 Thessalonians 5:21 (NKJV)
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I am going to borrow a story from William Petersen for this portion of Psalm 103. Perhaps you have had a smart-alek teacher in your past. One of those who think they know it all. I had one in seminary who proudly proclaimed that he “doesn’t test the obvious.” I always wondered, “why not?” Are we as students not supposed to know the obvious? Instead he would test the obscure, the captions under photos, things like that.
So on with the story. There was a second grade teacher handing out an arithmetic test to her students. Upon receiving the test the students looked at it in wonder. There were all types of x and y, plus many other symbols. It was a college-level calculus test and they couldn’t understand the symbols much less solve the problems. They were ready for two plus two, or maybe a perplexing, two plus three. One student bravely raised his hand, “Miss, we can’t do these problems.” To which she snapped. “What’s wrong with you? You’re supposed to be smart kids. If you ever want a degree in math, you’ll have to solve problems like this. Get busy!”
Hold on. These are second graders. They need a teacher who understands their level. Now, let’s look at the next portion of Psalm 103.

8 — The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
9 — He will not always strive with us, nor will He keep His anger forever.
10 — He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities.
11 — For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
12 — As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 — As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him.
14 — For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. (NKJV)

God is not overdemanding! He does not insist on perfection, but He does expect to see growth–maturity. He understands our weaknesses and He reacts as a loving Father. He does not treat us as our sins deserve as He sent His Son to take care of that penalty for us. “Infinite and vast is God’s eternal love for His own…. God knows our finite, human limitations and remembers that we are as fragile as dust.” (Steven Lawson)
Let’s look back at what God, our Father has done for us (verses 1-14) (Thanks to George Wood).
1) He forgives all our sins. He forgives sins of omission and acts of commission. “He frees us to start over after failure, cancels all indictments against you, and discharges all our debts.”
2) He heals all our diseases. We must take the long view in regard to this–healing will come even if a person ultimately has to wait in glory. Our definition of disease must be broadened to include any “deterioration which diminishes your well-being and wholeness.” It can mean a bad attitude, an unforgiving spirit… “In Jesus…He works to liberate us from these deformative and degenerative diseases so that on the inside our personality and disposition increasingly resemble that of Jesus.”
3) He redeems our life from the pit. The pit represents the abyss from which you cannot escape. “He reaches His long arm into the pitch-dark hole of depression or despair where you lie helpless and imprisoned, grabs you strongly, pulls you up, and sets your feet on solid ground. in the sunlight of His presence.”
4) He crowns your life with love and compassion. God has good gifts for us, and His gifts are far better than those that the world has to offer.
5) He satisfies your desires with good things. The horror of depression is its lack of hope. “God is committed to bringing good into your life.” There is no disappointment in Jesus.
6) He renews our life like the eagle’s.
He takes care of us. He is our heavenly Father, and He will not only give us good gifts, He will give us better gifts. He has removed our sins, our transgressions from us and we now live in the hope of His return. He will not give us more than we can handle, nor will He allow temptation to overcome us. If we sin, we have an advocate with the Father and we can go to Him with assurance. Oh, what wonderful grace–oh, what a wonderful Father!

“O how in this thy quire of souls I stand–
Propt by thy hand–A heap of sand!
With busy thoughts–like winds–would scatter quite,
And put to flight / But for thy might;
Thy hand alone doth tame
Those blasts, and knit my frame.”
–Henry Vaughan

Coffee Percs

by Ira Paine, Posted on August 19, 2023

Have you crawled out of your bedroll in the chill of a spring
morning with the crisp air fresh in your lungs and the sound of
running water in your ears? Have started a fire and made coffee, and
broiled your venison over an open fire? Have you smelled ironwood
burning, or cedar?”
                   –Louis L’Amour (To Tame a Land)

Ahh, Pard, listen to that sound. No, it’s not a babblin’ brook, yuh
ninny. That’s the sound of pure delight–the sound of coffee perkin’.
But since yuh mentioned it, the sound water cascadin’ over rocks in a
stream does have a nice sound. I remember, it was early in the 1970s,
Annie and I hiked back into the Indian Peaks Wilderness and camped
along a stream flowing from a snowbank. The water actually came from
Blue Lake, but it appeared to be right from the snow. The elevation
dropped quickly so the water rushed down. Our camp was right at
timberline, plenty of wood there, and we stayed for a few days.
      It was a fun trip, but I was always accused of puttin’ the
fryin’ pan in Annie’s pack. However, those days are gone. To camp
fifty yards off the trail is unheard of today, and to make a fire, oh
my, for goodness sakes, NO! Use a back-packin’ stove. Now, Pard,
I’ll admit that there are good reasons for the restrictions; it’s
because of the stupidity of people who camp. People who have no clue
how to treat nature properly.
      Those nights, around the campfire at timberline we could hear
the water rushing by a few yards away. In the silence of the night,
with only the fire for light, we could hear the marmots cry as the
wood crackled and popped in the fire. Pard, we had plenty of good,
strong coffee made right from that rushin’ stream. I’d get up in the
mornin’, get the fire goin’, then go to the stream for water to fill
the pot. Before long the coffee was boilin’ then Annie would start
breakfast. Days, long ago, but still held in the memory.
      Good days, Pard, good memories, but yuh know, those things
won’t matter much when we get on over that Glory Trail. There is
little description of what heaven will be like, but if it’s anything
like that garden God placed in Eden it’ll be somethin’. It’ll have to
be grand to match up with some of the majestic places here on earth.
But we know it will be so, for the Bible says that, “the eye have not
seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the
things which God hath prepared from them that love Him.”
      Think of that Pard! No matter how good the bacon and biscuits
smell, no matter the sound of coffee perkin’, we can’t even imagine
what the Lord has prepared for us. It must be somethin’ special;
well, of course it is. Think ’bout it Pard, yuh won’t have to worry
’bout checkin’ yur cinch up yonder.
Vaya con Dios.