THE FATHER, THE SON AND THE HOLY GHOST

The General told us that over there near where that old stud horse had nearly killed us there lived a man that had died. He was mean to his family and drank liquor. He never went to church, and when the good sisters would visit with him to talk about the Lord, he’d cuss God. The day he died there were some good Christian people there with him, hoping at the last moment, to save him from the fires of hell. While they were talking, the Devil came for him. He came and sat right down on the end of the bed. The dying man could see him plain as day. The Devil had several helpers and they had hot chains straight from Hell. They’d come for this evil man's soul. He commenced to fight with them trying to keep off them hot chains. Seems they won. He died in the middle of the struggle. A chilled dampness entered the room after it was all over. After telling us this story the General would say, “Now, I do hope that when you die that won't happen to you.”

My Aunt Roxie Moore said over there where she lived that they had a strange thing happen. This smart aleck young blonde, that all the men were crazy about, was taking pictures in front of their store. She only had one snap shot left. Wanting to put the film in to have it developed, she turned it toward heaven and clicked the shutter. “I'll get one of the old buzzard,” she said. Now, there were several witnesses to this event. The blonde beauty then put the film in the local photo shop to have it developed. She passed by on the following Saturday to pick up her pictures. Being very busy, she didn’t look at them until she got to The Carl Moore Store. Then remembering that she had taken a picture of my Aunt Roxie, she opened them up to show her. The first one she came to was the one she had taken of the old buzzard. Looking right at her was Jesus, Himself. The woman started to scream and the last we heard, she was in a mental asylum down in Little Rock.

The General explained to me how the plan of salvation all worked. When the Lord created man, He put him in a big, lush garden with all he’d ever need. He could have anything he wanted except the fruit from this one tree that was growing in the middle of the garden. It was a special fruit that gave knowledge of things that we weren't supposed to know about. Man had his wife there with him and seemed she was a powerful, convincing lady, as she talked him into eating the fruit. The Lord came back, got all mad and threw them out. He told them they’d have to work for themselves and from now on they were on their own. This is when man first learned he was gonna have to die.

The General told me the Lord felt kind of bad about it all and started designing a way to get man back like he was in the first place. Now, being a just God, there had to be a big price paid for their transgression. The Lord designed a way to pay this debt Himself. He became a man and that man's name was Jesus. The way that He decided to pay the debt was by letting some soldiers nail Him to a wooden cross. Now, that was way back in the days of the Roman Empire. But the plan was still in effect these fifteen hundred years later.

The way the General told it to us was that when Jesus was here in the flesh, He had explained who He was, and had told some fellers how it all was gonna work. He said He had to be killed. This would pay for the sin the first man committed by not doing like he was supposed to. We were to accept this as the price for being put back in good standing. We’d need to profess this in public by accepting Him, at His word, as this being the truth. Now, this was going to make the Devil really mad. He was the one that talked the woman into eating the fruit in the first place. We could expect him to tempt us every day in every way. We weren’t to worry about this, as He’d send us the Holy Ghost to help us out.

You remember the General had been commissioned to bring about the public profession in as many people as was possible. She felt the best place to start was right in her own family. She had a good understanding of all this and how it worked with her being an Officer of the Lord and all. The General believed there was a reward and punishment system. When you died, if you were good, you went to heaven. If you were bad, you’d go to hell. Hell means fire and brimstone forever, with no escape. It was right there in the Holy Bible and really pretty simple. Once you got people to profess this in public, they were saved. Then, the Holy Ghost would take over and after that you’d be pretty well on your way to heaven.

We’d moved to the Company Farm and started attending church at the Pruett Chapel. They were a little more relaxed about the Holy Ghost making a sudden appearance than they’d been up at Light. He’d come on people, and make them so happy about this plan that they’d leave their seats and walk up and down the aisles. They’d hold their hands in the air, close their eyes and shout, “Yes, Lord.” The tears would flow down their cheeks in sheer joy. The good brothers and sisters would say, “Amen! Thank you Lord, yes Jesus.” Once they got into it, this could go on for a long time. It took precedence over anything else, including the presiding minister’s sermon. The General being an Officer of the Lord was moved on frequently by the Holy Ghost. My Daddy, he didn't always care for this kind of carrying on. He’d question the General on how this all worked. “I go into a kind of a trance and the Spirit takes over and I really don't know what I'm doing,” she’d say. “Well, I notice you still know enough to hang on to your purse,” he’d answer. The General took a dim view of such a lack of faith. She’d then remind him of her special calling. My Daddy not wanting to offend the good Lord himself, and not being sure if this was true or not, would drop the subject, at least for the moment.

The chapel was where all of our social life took place. We gathered to talk, play and pray. We knew everyone who attended. They were all our neighbors and fellow soldiers of the Lord. They followed all the teachings of Jesus as best they knew how. They’d give you food if you were hungry, water if you were thirsty, visit you if you were sick, and give you comfort in times of crisis, which was pretty much of a daily occurrence around there. We came to these gatherings three times a week in a wagon pulled by two horses. The war was over and tractors were becoming more and more common. It was not unusual to see a tractor that had worked all day in the field pulling a wagonload of worshippers to our little church. Some of the more sophisticated folks had even started showing up in cars.

The Sunday service would begin by singing to loosen us up. Then we’d have Sunday School. This would be followed by a sermon laced with promises of eternal life where we would walk around on streets of pure gold. Hell surely awaited the poor sinner. We’d then have an altar call. Sometimes, when there would be a neighbor who was not a regular attendee, this would go on for quite a spell. The good sisters would sometimes go and talk to the poor soul to help encourage him to come up and be saved. I don't, however, remember anyone ever coming forward. Now, that I think about it, I don't remember them ever coming back to church either. That didn't discourage us none, at least they’d had the chance to save their soul.

Revival! Now that’s to say, we’re going to revive the weak of faith and convert the heathen here about. This was a hard land. People toiled in the fields from sun to sun. The women all had five or six babies and were old by the time they reached forty. Their hair would be gray, teeth missing and backs stooped from the hard work and long hours. The hot, humid weather in summer, and the cold harsh winters, would slowly pull them down. To make matters even worse, the houses gave very little protection. Long hours of washing, cleaning, scrubbing and cooking took its toll. Husbands reigned supreme over their wives and very little joy could be wrung out of this cruel life in these low bottomlands. Life did seem to be getting a little easier. A few folks had electricity for lighting. Some even had refrigerators and electric fans. The dream for their children was to get them grown and out on their own. Hopefully, they could get a good job in a nice, warm, dry factory some place. There was even a chance one could become a clerk in a store. The military was a nice career, too. The war years had lent prestige to the uniform, but few independent-spirited Arkansas men could thrive under such rigid conditions.

The one thing available to us all, rich or poor, was the opportunity to make sure we were going to heaven. Selling golden streets, and eternal life, where no one dies was an easy sell to all of us poor, guilt-ridden sinners. I was trying my best to be good but it seemed the Devil had a special hold on me. I was always a cussing like my Granddaddy Poe. I lied all the time. I’d even tried to kill my brother a couple of times just like that Cain feller in the Bible. All the time the General a praying for me and a asking the Holy Ghost to come down and save my soul. Seemed like the older I got the meaner I was. I hated school and wanted to stay in the woods with Ol’ Pal all the time. The fires of Hell, surely, awaited me. I’d have nightmares about my eternal damnation. In my dreams, I’d be taken before God, and He’d send me off to the fires of hell with the Devil. I’d awaken petrified and in a cold sweat. I’d cry and run to the General. She felt I was being called to conversion and would pray long, tearful prayers over me. There was a great battle going on between the principalities of Heaven and Hell for my soul. The General was determined that the Devil was not going to come into her home and carry off one of her very own children. Seemed a Great War between light and darkness was being waged right there in our own house.

The revival started in July. A preacher came over from Lawrence County. Everyone said he was a man of God and he’d surely lead us into a New Jerusalem. The church parking lot was filled with cars, wagons, tractors and saddle horses when we arrived that first night. Some people living near by had come on foot. I got me a nice seat in the back row. They were singing that old hymn, ‘In the Sweet Bye and Bye’ followed by ‘The Old Rugged Cross.’ Our regular pastor's wife was playing that ol’ piano. It was said that he’d ordered her out of St. Louis from a mail-order catalog. The General said she wasn't much to look at but she was a good Christian and that's just what the preacher needed. I didn’t know about that, but she could sure make that ol’ piano talk. She was a singing right along, as she beat out them old hymns. I’ve got a tell you, it sure was pretty to listen to. People were excited. You could feel the Lord a moving in there that night. First thing, right off, we had a big testimonial service with people telling how they’d found Jesus and how He’d changed their lives and enabled them to quit a sinning. Joyous amens were followed with hallelujahs. We then had another song about how, ‘Won't It Be Wonderful There.’ Then it all stopped and became very quiet. Our regular Pastor stood up, walked to the podium and introduced our visiting evangelist from over in Lawrence County. He told us how we could show our appreciation. He mentioned something about a freewill offering that would be taken up later on in the service. “If you're blessed tonight, put a few dollars in the basket,” he said.

The church was packed. In the back, some were squatting and others were standing. I could see the older boys outside, looking through the windows trying to catch the eyes of the pretty girls from the good Christian homes. They were all sitting together in two rows up near the front. Them young Christian ladies were making a concentrated effort not to look at them ol’ mean boys. Everyone knew that anyone with any decency at all would be inside. The air was charged. I could feel the excitement and see it in the faces of those all around me. This was it, show time!

The visiting minister came forward to the pulpit. He was wearing a blue jacket with a white shirt and blue tie. His manner of dress distinguished him as a very important man. We were all very impressed. Certainly, no farmer could afford clothes like he was wearing. He was about 5 ft. 10 inches tall and looked as if he weighed about 190 pounds. It was a hot night, and he already had his handkerchief in his hand and had commenced to wipe his brow. He started out with the usual greeting, “How are you all this evening? Welcome in the name of the Lord. Pray with me now that someone will be saved tonight.” Then, he launched into a long prayer about the sacrifice of Jesus, the power of the Holy Ghost, and ended by declaring war on the Old Devil, himself. He then opened the Bible, and ceremoniously looked all around the church very slowly. He turned to a place in the New Testament he’d previously marked with a purple marker. He started to read very slowly. Then he’d back up and tell us what it meant. He spoke with a slow, southern drawl, and had a beautiful, melodious voice. After finishing his point, he’d step forward, read, wipe his forehead, step back and explain some more. Each time he’d step back, he’d get a little louder. He started using, and ah this, and ah that, and ah the Lord said, and ah the Lord thy God and ah every other word. It was beautiful, and he was getting warmed up. His shirt by now was drenched with sweat. After a while, he forgot about the reading part. He’d walk up and down on the pulpit and with each step he took he’d raise his voice a little higher. He was preaching about Jesus, the Holy Ghost, and this Great War we had going on.

People were really getting into the message. They were saying, “Yes, Lord, that's right, Amen, brother. Tell them, preacher.” Suddenly, he held his fist in the air, and screamed at the top of his lungs, “The Devil is gonna get a good licking tonight.” Then we commenced to sweat ourselves. We followed him up and down with our eyes and listened to him tell of this great battle going on between good and evil. All of a sudden, the Holy Ghost moved on the General, and she started a dancing in the aisle. Shortly thereafter, two other good sisters joined her. They were a crying, a shaking and a praising the Lord. Without any warning whatsoever, the preacher jumped about five feet straight into the air. Luckily he came down on his feet landing a few feet in front of me. Then he screamed out, “You better get out of here, right now, Old Devil. I bind you in the name of Jesus and the Holy Ghost.” With all the moving of the Holy Ghost and the preacher chasing that Old Devil I knew we were in the heat of a deadly battle. At that point the outcome didn’t seem to be certain. Then, the altar call started.

They came pouring forward. At least fifteen people came up the aisle in almost a dead run. This was met with a whole lot of rejoicing, hallelujahs and amens. This was a sure sign that victory over the Old Devil had tilted in our direction. The new believers were told to kneel and beg the Lord for forgiveness. The seasoned soldiers of Christ were then asked to come forward to pray with these poor sinners. That’s when the real fight started. They were a sweating, a praying and a fighting the good fight that St. Paul from the bible had talked about. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the General a coming for me. “Your under conviction and you’re a being called. You might not live through the night if you deny Jesus,” she told me. I got scared thinking about dying. I started a shaking and a crying. I sure was a feeling something. I was a mean kid alright. Maybe this was my chance to get cured of all this meanness. I went right up there and got myself saved. I did that public accepting thing just like I’d been taught. I was on my way to Heaven.

Funny thing was, the next day I didn't feel any different. I got to thinking that maybe it didn't take. So I went and talked to the General. She said I shouldn't be feeling that way. We’d need to talk to the preacher. We did, too. That very night we went and told him how it seemed that I’d not been delivered. He said I needed to have more faith and pray harder. Tonight, you come forward again. We’ll ask the Lord to loosen the devil’s hold on you. I was saved three times during that revival. Just didn't seem to help me none. I went right back to cussing, lying and trying to kill my brother. The General didn't give up. I wasn't dead yet, and she had just begun her battle.