Up for the Task

Pure in Speech

I have been in education for the past twenty-six years, and today I learned a lesson from a 15 year-old student.

Hear the Voice?

"The shepherd always tries to persuade the sheep that their interests, and his own, are the same." -- Henri-Marie Beyle

Life on Earth

"It's not our job to question what He's doing with our lives. He has purpose for it, and we just have to trust Him and know that His plan is the right way." --Sam Bradford

In the Dirt

From Austen Henry Layard's discovery of the winged bulls of Assyria, to the Ben HaCohen HaGadol inscription found recently in Jerusalem, Biblical archeology has served as means to systematically examine the past.

Remembering Ike Hall (2)

Eventually, Ike was evacuated to a military hospital in Great Britain. The doctors treated his chest wound, inflated his collapsed lung, and removed many briar thorns from his body. They also treated two wounds, which he had received before arriving at the hedgerow.

Remembering Ike Hall (1)

Being a veteran teacher, "Ike" was one of my mentors when I arrived at Memphis Harding Academy. If you were on campus between 1966 and 1988, you will remember him wheeling up and down the ramp outside the Guidance Office. Perhaps what you do not know is how he ended up in that wheelchair.

Truth or Consequences

"All truth is God's truth, wherever it be found." -- Arthur F. Holmes

Indian Territory (7)

Through the years in Indian Territory, Robert Wallace Officer's work-load increased, and his health decreased.

Indian Territory (6)

Robert Wallace Officer's Indian mission stirred envy among several of his co-workers. Acknowledging this, he spoke freely ...

Indian Territory (5)

As the Oklahoma Territory was being established, many workers joined Robert Wallace Officer's expanding ministry. Since the population was scattered throughout the territory, Officer had to travel to preach. Traveling among his preaching points, he was able to convert and train several preachers.

Indian Territory (4)

Apart from Robert Wallace Officer's efforts, a second school was established at Silver City (Oklahoma) on September 8, 1889. Silver City was a cow town located on the Old Chisholm Trail.

Indian Territory (3)

Robert Wallace Officer thought it would be late in 1887 before he could move permanently to the Choctaw Nation. In the process of making a decision to live in Indian Territory, he wrote, "I have learned that there is a petition being circulated among the Indians asking me to move into their midst and give my time among them."

Indian Territory (2)

In 1880, he moved to Texas where he began full-time work with the Gainesville Church of Christ. This also marks the beginning of his work among the Indians north of the Red River in Indian Territory...

Indian Territory (1)

Since few permanent records exist, it is difficult to research the methods used in evangelizing Indian Territory. However, the work of Robert Wallace Officer is an exception.

A Ripple from the Past

Think back to your early childhood, and listen. Splash! Do you remember that sound of that pebble hitting the water?Do you remember that ripple extending from beyond the point where it landed, creating larger wavelets until they too soon disappeared?

Messianic Wannabees

After the reign of David, Israel craved for an ideal king to maintain their culture and prestige among the nations. Disillusioned when the kingdom was divided, Israel's hope of a Messiah was projected into the future. Looking toward Bethlehem, they longed for his coming.

"Feast for Princes and Princesses"

In 1989, the Village of Hope was established to care for the abandoned and destitute children of Ghana, West Africa. This orphanage is under the oversight of the elders of Vertical Center church of Christ in Tema, Ghana.

Testudo of Faith

Centuries before armored personnel carriers were invented to transport troops, the testudo military formation was used by the Romans to deploy soldiers into battle. The word testudo is Latin for tortoise.

Philippi, Gateway to Rome

In 42 B.C., Mark Antony and Octavius set out for Macedonia to punish the assassins of Julius Caesar. West of Philippi, they met the armies of Brutus and Cassius. Here, the Roman Republic would became the Roman Empire. Taking a defensive position, Brutus and Cassius occupied the high ground on the Via Egnatia. To outflank this placement, Mark Antony ordered his legions to attack by approaching through the marshes south of the city. ...

Retired Christian?

Accounting for almost 25% of the national budget, Social Security is the largest federally funded program in the United States. Providing financial assistance for more than 46 million retired and disabled workers, Social Security has become the main source of stability for many Americans.

A Lesson in Vigilance

Preparing to attack Corinth, Mississippi, the United States Army bivouacked alongside the Tennessee River, on the night of April 5, 1862. Not anticipating an attack from the Confederates, the unsuspecting Union generals took few precautions to defend their camps. This was a mistake, for within two miles, 44,000 enemy troops were poised for battle. ...

Figurative Language

Raymond C. Kelcy served as the chairman of the Bible Department at Oklahoma Christian College from 1962 until his death in 1986. He had a profound influence on my life. A few weeks ago an individual dogmatically stated, "There's no figurative language in the Bible, for every word is literal." In response to this statement, I thought back to Dr. Kelcy's lecture "The Figurative Language of the Bible". My class notes are now yellow, but here is what he taught: ...

Which Way?

"Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to a garage makes you an automobile." -- Billy Sunday Jesus spent three years preaching, teaching, and healing people throughout the regions of Galilee, Samaria, and Judea....

John's Babylon

"The persecution of Domitian burned itself ineradicably into the memory of history; it may be doubted by the critic, but not by the historian." --Sir William Ramsay Despised and feared by the Roman Senate, Domitian came to power during...

Darius' Babylon

"There are no compacts between lions and men." --Homer Found in the small town of Henderson, Tennessee, on the campus of Freed-Hardeman University, is a ferocious-looking African lion. Just walk through the doors of the Sports Center and peer...

Belshazzar's Babylon

"The conscience of us all, can read without its glasses, on revelation's wall." -- Emily Dickinson Noting that the Euphrates River ran directly under the walls of Babylon, General Ugbaru attempted to enter the city by diverting the river....

Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon (Part 2)

"Well may he smell fire, whose gown burns." --George Herbert After Nebuchadnezzar's first dream was correctly interpreted, the king was so joyful that he fell prostrate before Daniel and said, "Surely your God is the God of gods and...

Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon

"It will never again be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation." Jeremiah During the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (605 - 562 B.C.), Babylon was the most powerful city in the Fertile Crescent./1 Famous for its Hanging Gardens,...

Not In My Bible?

"Speaking without thinking is like shooting without taking aim." --Spanish Proverb Proverbs are expressions of some experience acknowledged to be true. Every culture has some short pithy sayings. They are handed down from one generation to the next. In...

Jesus Had No Closet

Money is a terrible master, but an excellent servant" - P.T. Barnum Since the beginning of time, mankind has traded one item of value for another. Over the centuries nomadic people have bartered cattle for grain, swapped goats for...

A Short History of Christmas

"If a thousand old beliefs were ruined in our march to truth we must still march on." -Stopford A. Brooke The birthday of Jesus Christ has been celebrated on December 25th since A.D. 336. During the first three centuries...

Holiday Email

By now, I'm sure that you've received numerous holiday emails. Here is one that I would like to share with you. It is entitled, "A Letter from Jesus". This fictional letter has come to me in several versions. Here is...

The Rock River

"O Lord, who lends me life, lend me a heart replete with thankfulness." -- William Shakespeare The Rock River is a murky tributary located about two miles from Dixon, Illinois. During one seven-year period, one local lifeguard was credited...

The Greatest Show on Earth

"I am a man, and whatever concerns humanity is of interest to me." -Terence Holding the NCAA single-game regular attendance record, Michigan Stadium is the largest collegiate football stadium in the country. Thousands have passed through its turnstiles to...

Whose Side Are You On?

In the spring of 1861, Southern officials, believing him loyal to their cause, commissioned Alfred Thomas Archimedes Torbert as a Lieutenant in the Confederate Army. However on the day of his confirmation, Torbert was serving as a Colonel in the 1st New Jersey Volunteers. Commissioned to serve on both sides of the conflict, he was whole-heartedly loyal the United States. He was the only officer to have the distinction of serving in both the Confederate and Union armies at the same time.

Milk and Honey

"Every brave man is a man of his word." -Pierre Corneille With your permission, I would like to give you a short Bible quiz. Name the twelve spies that Moses sent into the land of Canaan. Can you do...

Worthless?

"All that I am I owe to Jesus Christ, revealed to me in His divine Book." - David Livingstone Before the Civil War, the United States of America had no national currency. Each state printed and regulated its own...

We Need Each Other

"Everything that happens in the world is part of a great plan of God running through all time." -Henry Ward Beecher I first read the book, God Is No Fool, twenty-eight years ago. It challenged me then, and today I'm...

Bad Advice

"Youth must be led by youth." Adolf Hitler Using charismatic oratory and the symbol of the Swastika, Adolf Hitler became the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party (Nazi) on July 29, 1921. Focusing his propaganda on the...

One-armed Pitcher

"I'll never forget the feeling in the pit of my stomach and in the depths of my heart when I first heard the word cancer. My world ground to a halt." Dave Dravecky David Francis Dravecky was an effective...

Who's Your Hero?

"Of course it's mine, I bought and paid for it." John Wayne Marion Morrison, called "Duke" by his friends, was recruited to play football for the University of Southern California. In exchange for football tickets, he started working in Hollywood....

No Books, No Pews, No Problem

Let your imagination go, and come travel with me. It's Sunday morning as we drive down a deserted street somewhere in the United States. We are strangers to the area, and we want to meet with the local assembly to...

Can You See Me Now?

"The sunrise, of course, doesn't care if we watch it or not. It will keep on being beautiful, even if no one bothers to look at it. It illuminates and blesses our lives, expecting nothing in return." - Gene Amole...

Cherokee Christians (Part 4)

Despite James Trott's effort to raise interest in his work, his expectations were never reached. When fighting broke out between the northern and southern states in 1861, the ministry was interrupted. The Civil War divided the Cherokee Nation as Union...

Cherokee Christians (Part 3)

In 1853, James Jenkins Trott was once again asked to serve as a missionary to the Cherokee tribe. Lacking finances, the actual ministry was delayed for three years. Despite this setback, he traveled three thousand miles through Arkansas and Missouri,...

Cherokee Christians (Part 2)

James Jenkins Trott was the first preacher from the churches of Christ to evangelize among the Cherokees. At the age of fifteen, his parents moved from North Carolina to Tennessee where Trott joined the Methodist Episcopal church in 1821./1 The...

Cherokee Christians

Between 1820 and 1845, the United States Government established Indian Territory. It included all of the area that makes up the present state of Oklahoma except for the panhandle. In 1825, John C. Calhoun, the Secretary of War, recommended that...

Last Year's Nest

"The American robin, the largest of the North American thrushes, is found over most of North America in the summer months ... its familiar song begins well before daybreak and in many regions signals the start of spring." --Chipper Woods...

Navajo Nation

"I am amused to see from my window here how busily man has divided and staked off his domain. God must smile at his puny fences running hither and thither everywhere over the land." - Henry David Thoreau The Navajo...

Before Graceland

"I am following the river down the highway through the cradle of the civil war. I'm going to Graceland. Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee." Paul Simon When we moved into our house several years ago, I was amused when a elderly...

Up Yonder

"But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the east, and Juliet is the sun." William Shakespeare When I lived in Detroit, I remember those wonderful Michiganders smiling at me when I would greet them on the street...

Secret Sauce

"Of course I can keep secrets. It's the people I tell them to that can't keep them." Anthony Haden-Guest It's delicious, it's savory, and it has been delighting folks for decades. It was refined by my grandfather, and it still...

Overnight in Okinawa

Henry Ershine once said, "The rule of the road is paradox quite, for if you keep to the left, you're sure to be right." Okinawa is the largest island in the Ryukyu chain of islands in the East China Sea....

The Luck Stops Here

Thomas Jefferson once said, "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it." Do you remember Li'l Abner, Daisy Mae, and Mammy and Pappy Yokum? If not, they were all...

Long Live the King! (Part 2)

Elizabeth was trained in Greek and Latin, and it was during her reign that the literature of Marlowe, Shakespeare, and Spenser flourished. Her first order of business was to put down the religious unrest that had been inherited from her...

Long Live the King!

"Britain is an island in the Ocean." Bede, A.D. 731. In 332 B.C., Pytheas of Marseilles was the first to write about this island in the Atlantic Ocean. His account was followed by Julius Caesar's spellbinding reports of the Roman...

It Ain't Easy

Catherine Cantwell never received information on how, when, or where her husband died. The country had been at war for only a few months when Abner Cantwell rode off to enlist in Captain Tompkins's Texas Confederate Militia, on September 30,...

Monuments of Stone

"It is proposed that the contemplated monument shall be like him in whose honor it is constructed, unparalleled in the world, and commensurate with gratitude, liberality, and patriotism of the people by whom it is to be erected." These words...

It's No Joke!

"One for you one for me...." On the outskirts of a small town, there was a big, old pecan tree just inside the cemetery fence. One day, two boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the...

The Name

"Some Memphians can thank Mrs. Pauline W. Arnett for saving them from outlandish names that would be a constant embarrassment to them." These words were penned by Eldon Roark, a human-interest columnist who wrote for The Memphis Press-Scimitar in 1945....

Who Told Geronimo?

"In the beginning the world was covered with darkness. There was no sun, no day. The perpetual night had no moon or stars." This quote is the opening to S.M. Barrett's 1907 biography, Geronimo's Story of His Life. Geronimo was...

The Sooner Grill

"He has an engaging, flawless personality, which after you have been exposed to it for a long time, you examine closely for cracks because it seems too perfect. But the cracks are not there." These were the words written by...

The Assasin Waits

The Assassin Waits President Ronald Reagan wrote the following to Timothy McCarthy, "There will always be the special gratitude I feel for your extraordinary heroism on that one cold day in March. It is a gratitude words could never convey."...

Long Division Arithmetic

Growing up near the Mexican border in 1917, Walter Swan had an exciting life. It was filled with adventures on his parents' homestead, which was just south of the mining town of Bisbee, Arizona. He hunted quail and rabbits and...

Uncle Ed's Story

In 1961, Edgar Franklin Loughmiller was buried in Fairlawn Cemetery. To many people, he was just a cowboy, but to my grandmother, he was Uncle Ed. At the age of 24, he stood only five foot, seven inches tall, with...

Chief Micanopy's Surprise

It was a cold day in Florida, when multiple gun shots were fired, sending the blue-coated Federal soldiers scrabbling for cover. Just five days before on December 23, 1835, Major Francis Dade led his men out of Fort Brooke (Tampa)...

Boss Crump

by Paul Goddard Will Rogers once said, "I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts." Edward Hull "Boss" Crump was born on a small farm near Holly Springs, Mississippi, on October 2, 1874. He moved...

Blackberry Capital of the World

by Paul Goddard McLoud, Oklahoma, was established on June 21, 1895. The town was named after John W. McLoud, a railroad attorney for the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf Railway. It was settled by homesteaders who made the Kickapoo land run...