Long gone
FEBRUARY 22, 2008 (FRIDAY)
Yesterday I wrote about the baptistry where I was baptized, still standing on a vacant lot (church building burned) when I drove by, years ago. As I drove around that day, eighteen years ago, I went by the house where I was born, a couple of blocks away on Davis Street. It was an upstairs apartment, with an outside stairway. The house was vacant, the roof had fallen through the ceiling, and the floor was half way to the ground, hugging the fallen stairs.
I went by the place about 4 years ago, and it had been demolished, but the lumber had been sorted and was in a neat pile.
There will be no statue commemorating the site as the birthplace of Charles Forest Fake. There won’t be a plaque, or even a poorly painted sign. I didn’t grow up to be the Mayor, or Governor, or President.
I did grow up, however, to become a Baptist preacher. As I wrote a couple of days ago, I didn’t decide to preach as much as I was called to preach. I was trying to decide what I would study when I got to college, and a lot of options were being considered. I had pretty much decided to become an architect, and even took high school courses that would have helped prepare me to do that. In that summer before my Senior year of high school, however, the Lord decided for me. I never heard an audible voice, but in my heart I knew God was calling me into the ministry.
Now, at age 76, I’m still preaching, and thankful for the privilege. Last night at church, my dear friend, Troy Conner, led us in singing, “God Is So Good.” He has certainly been good to me, and I thank Him today for every opportunity of Christian service He has given me. My prayer is for you, whoever you are, to have joy in your life because you know, love and serve the Lord. You don’t have to be a preacher to have such joy. There are many, many ways to serve the Lord. Opportunities present themselves to us every day.