February 9, 2015 (Monday)
I discovered songs by Jack Holcomb on You Tube yesterday and shared the reference with Dale Pogue. Many years ago, we both learned to sing, “Ship Ahoy,” by listening to Jack Holcomb’s recording. He had a voice like no one else. I visited his parents in Waco when I was in a revival meeting there around 1951, I think. They were home bound members of the Parkview Baptist Church where I was singing in the revival. Bill Suhr was the pastor and he took me to see them.
I also learned songs by listening to George Beverly Shea’s recordings. His music influenced me in almost all the songs I sang. When I was a student at Baylor, the young Billy Graham team came to our chapel services once, with Cliff Barrows leading the students in singing hymns, Bev Shea singing, and Billy Graham preaching. I don’t recall the exact year, but I think it was around 1950. Don’t know for sure, but it had to be between 1949 and 1953, when I was a student. That means they were quite young with most of their greatest years in evangelism and world wide fame ahead of them. What a privilege that was.
We had a Wednesday evening service on campus called “Baylor Religious Hour,” commonly referred to as BRH. I was asked to lead the singing one Wednesday evening. The speaker that night was Ralph Phelps, who was president of Ouachita Baptist University (where Dale Pogue graduated). We also had Friday night missions, with small groups of students conducting mission services throughout the city, and afterwards we congregated in the Baptist Student Union Building for “Singspiration,” which was a time of singing (mainly choruses), hearing special music and sharing testimonies with hundreds of fellow students while sitting on the floor of a large and beautiful room. One evening I was asked to lead the service. What another tremendous privilege. Every morning we had “Morning Watch,” when we would go to a little chapel in Waco Hall. Someone would play the piano softly while those who came simply sat down, sometimes read Scripture silently, and prayed. It lasted 30 minutes each session. What a great way to start the day.
Once a year we had what was known as “Focus Week,” when a team of pastors would descend on the campus and lead religious studies and worship for five days. I was still a freshman when it was observed in 1950, and one of the visiting pastors stayed with me in my dorm room, which had a private bath (quite unusual) and an empty bunk, because I had no room mate at the time. The pastor was W. O. Vaught, Jr. pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Little Rock, Arkansas. Many years later, he would meet with the governor of Arkansas for Bible study each morning (Governor Bill Clinton). I remember those days vividly, because Dr. Vaught was so sincere, spending time on his knees in prayer, and sharing with me his need of prayer and his desire to say the right things to influence young people with their lives ahead of them.
Much has changed on the Baylor campus in 65 years since I started classes there. But I will always remember my years there. The friends made while there became my friends for the rest of my days.