10 ~ A Preacher So Young, So Earnest
Baylor University, as I have indicated, was my choice as a result of the advice given to me by Miss Sallie M. Duncan. Therefore I finished up the work I had started in College of Marshall and entered Baylor the fall term of 1939. However my life was busy during the summer. I was serving not only Mt. Zion Baptist Church but the Angus church just outside of Corsicana, and just kept busy in revival meetings and in preaching on Saturday night and on Sunday. My ministry came to a close at the end of a revival meeting at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, July 22, 1939. And for a period I pastored at Gresham and Angus, Texas, but the Lord would have other things for me at a nearby church called Noonday, near Gresham. And they called me as their pastor. I preached my first sermon there December 31st, “Following Christ Through 1940,” and also, “New Year’s Resolution: What Kind of a Church Should This Church Be?”
~ What a joy it was to pastor at Gresham and Noonday! I resigned the first church I ever pastored, at Angus, Texas, and took up my work in these communities. The work flourished, and both churches went halftime. The first bulletin I ever published was in March, 1940, and the same bulletin was published for Gresham and Noonday Baptist Churches. I always felt it good for a pastor to express his appreciation, and I did so in my first bulletin. I talked about the blessings of God:
“Since the Lord led your pastor to his present fields of Gresham and Noonday, the Lord has indeed blessed us. Both churches are taking on new life, and there is a spirit of an approaching old-time, heart-felt, and spirit-filled, God-sent revival. This added interest can be accounted for because of the many in both churches that are praying for their pastor and have the interest of the church at heart. May we continue to pray down God’s blessings upon our churches?”
~ In the bulletin I called the fact to mind that the Gresham and Noonday communities had two of the smallest wet votes in the entire county, which made us feel we were pastoring churches in two God-fearing communities, and that Christians in our rural section were going forward for Christ. I closed the bulletin with a corny conclusion: “Be square all week, and come round on Sunday.” Thus my interesting pastoral experience in Noonday and Gresham lasted through 1940 into the early months of 1941.
~ 1941 was to be a more eventful year than I had ever dreamed, for I was to have the joy of pastoring my first full-time church. It happened because I was recommended to the Cayuga Baptist Church, which was located in Anderson County, by John Garry who was the educational director of the First Baptist Church of Tyler. My first message at this church was on a Wednesday night. I wanted to make a good impression because I was going to preach again the following Sunday. Then the church would have the opportunity on the following Wednesday to extend me a call. So I tried my best to put on the best “Dale Carnegie” attitude by remembering names. But what an embarrassment I faced on the first Sunday I preached at Cayuga! On the Wednesday night before, one of the ladies came to church with two children. Before they left the church, I asked the two children what their names were. They told me. I assume they belonged with the person they had arrived with. So the next Sunday I said to the woman as she came in, “So glad to see you Mrs. Cates.” She said, “My name is not Cates.” She was the Sunday School teacher for the little children! I just assumed because they had that name that she was their mother. I tried to be more careful after that.
~ I started preaching when I was fifteen. I was always embarrassed when I faced pulpit committees to tell them my age. I came to the point I would always say I am 16 going 17, and if I am 18 I am going on 19, and so on. I thought I would never grow up, but, do you know, the day I went before the Judson Baptist Church it was my birthday. I had come to the place when I could put away childish things, because I had become a man. They asked me how old I was, and I said, “I am 21 years of age.” That was March 5, 1941. Oh, to be in such good health and have that much energy as I had on that 21st birthday! On the ninth I preached my trial sermon; subject: “The Ultimate Question.” On the following Wednesday night Cayuga called me as pastor, and I resigned as pastor at Noonday and Gresham.
~ Incidentally, the last message at Greshom was “Be thou faithful unto death.” (Revelation 2:10) After the service all the congregation gathered in front of the church building and a picture was taken of all who were present. On the last Sunday night I preached on Jeremiah 8:20: “Harvest has passed: the summer has ended, and we are unsaved.” That day we had three people profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and two came into the church by letter. Those saved were a Spivey girl and an Arnold girl. Mrs. Felix Taylor rededicated her life. Mrs. Jackson brought her letter into the church, and her husband accepted Christ. This was the last time I served as a part time pastor.
~ On the twenty-sixth of March I moved to Cayuga in a downpour of rain. I spoke to the prayer meeting on the subject “There is a Time,” and the church had prepared a surprise shower for us, with an estimated value of thirty dollars. I continued to go to Baylor from Cayuga during the spring term of 1941. The first Sunday I was pastor there, I preached on what kind of a church this church should be. Mrs. Morris and I joined by letter. The Sunday school had 117; the Training Union that night at seven had nine in attendance. And the collection for the day was $25.95.
~ To accept my first full-time church, it was required of me that I drop out of school at the end of the term. One of my friends, J. Melvin Ray, was pastored of a little church just out of Waco then, but later would be pastor at Turner Town in East Texas, and later still at First Baptist Church, Carlsbad, where I helped in a revival meeting. He followed me to the car. I put everything in the car when I told him we were moving and I was accepting a full time church. He kept saying, “You will never finish your education. You will never come back to Baylor.” He was wrong on that account. For the coming war would hurry my educational process.
~ Another thing in addition to moving on the field was the first parsonage we ever had, a beautiful little white cottage with a white picket fence around. I thought I had never seen a prettier home, and on the inside they had freshly painted it. It not only looked good, it smelled good to me. But of course we needed furniture to fill up the house, and I committed a grave error. I used my credit, for I had established it, and now I was going to use that credit, filling up this beautiful new parsonage, which we did, and we paid for it on our charge account. Then sometime later I fancied buying a new car. I bought a sparkling red Chevrolet with a radio and a heater, something I never had in my previous cars. I learned a lesson: never owe so much that your payments are more than you make a week. That has stayed with me through life, and I have always been hesitant to charge. I had heard some of my older ministers say there are two things that a church will not forgive you for. One is women trouble and the other is money trouble. I wanted to keep clear of either one of those problems. One of the reasons I was so free with my credit was because I thought I was making more money than I had ever made in my life. I was getting twenty-four dollars a month at Angus, and now, all of a sudden, the church was going to pay me thirty-five dollars every week. I wondered at first what I was going to do with all of that money. I should have recalled that we had purchased a radio and a magazine rack in Waco for a dollar down and fifty cents a week, which our income allowed us to do, and it was the first piece of furniture that we had. But now in our new parsonage I had a brand new book desk that I never had before, and I thought it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever laid eyes on. What joy I had in fixing up the study for it was the place that I would have my deacons’ meeting; the first deacons’ meeting occurred in my new parsonage April 1, 1941.
~ In addition to my duties at the church, the community kept me busy. I spoke at the PTA the first month on unused diplomas. Since our church was located right next to our high school, we got in on a great many activities there. One of the first happened my first month in Cayuga. The school asked me to auction pies at the school for the junior class. The object was to contribute money and you received a ticket. Of all the things that happened my first month, Mrs. Morris was sitting in the stands, and the auction resulted in her winning one of the pies. When we got home I told her that I didn’t think a minister’s wife should engage in such things lest they accuse of gambling. It was here that I learned another lesson about pies. One day I came in from a busy round of visitation. My wife was out of the house and I was looking for something to eat. I opened the refrigerator door, and there my wife had placed a wonderful lemon pie. It was the kind that I believe they called ice box lemon pie which included vanilla wafers; it was made with Eagle Brand milk. It was very rich but I didn’t realize how rich it was until I had eaten about half of that pie. Do you know that to this good day I haven’t gotten over the sickness that I experienced as a result of gluttony? Perhaps I should learn the lesson about gluttony too.
~ Despite my weakness the Lord continued to bless the services with unusual spiritual power. The first month in the pulpit saw Easter Sunday arrive, and I was prepared for it. I preached on the subject “A Bright Spot into Today’s News.” Three persons were saved, and two came by letter. One day I entertained some Mormon missionaries who came to my house with a slide presentation of Jesus King of Kings. It reminded me of one of the deacons at Cayuga who said they [the Mormons] came to his house and said we would like to leave some tracks. He said, “All right with me, if you leave them pointed in the other direction!” However, I welcomed them into my house and enjoyed the presentation of Jesus King of Kings. I enjoyed it so much that I bought the projector and the film strip! On Easter Sunday night I used the picture Jesus King of Kings and preached a sermon on Heaven. One person was saved. That day we had 129 in Sunday school, we had eighty people in Training Union, and a collection of $29.09.
~ I learned early in my ministry that it seemed those persons outside the church did not know what was going on. One of the best ways to advertise that a church was doing things in the community was to have a building program; most of my churches after my experience at Cayuga had a building program. During the first months at Cayuga Baptist Church, two new Sunday school rooms were added, a kitchen, a baptistry, the pulpit was remodeled, the platform was draped in velvet curtains, Celetex ceiling was put up, and the entire auditorium and vestibule received new lighting fixtures. In the auditorium there were two attic fans placed as a cooling system. New stoves were placed in all the Sunday school rooms. Gigantic spotlights flooded the church lawn to protect churchgoers’ automobiles. The Baptist Standard indicated that at the time Venetian blinds had been ordered for our church windows. These material improvements had been carried on a pay-as-you-go basis. During the first year, in addition to the material improvements to the church plant, we now had running water and a new water heating system added to the church as well as the parsonage. A new piano had been added to our efficient musical program as well as new song books.
~ During the year the church enjoyed a steady growth in membership, with the Lord giving 125 additions to the church family, a large percentage of those coming by baptism. Two revivals were held during the twelve months along with two gigantic training union study courses, a very successful Sunday school course, and an outstanding daily Vacation Bible School. The Sunday school attendance had increased from an average of 105 each Sunday to an average of 135. The Training Union had increased from 50 to 150. During the year we organized one of the largest men’s Brotherhood Organizations in the entire association, with 35 charter members.
~ When I accepted the church at Cayuga, there was no church budget and the highest amount of money to come through the Sunday school was $36. I had the idea of a stewardship campaign. One thing about a young preacher: he does not know that something will fail. I blush when I think of some the things I carried out. For instance, I challenged my people to join together in signing a covenant, trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ. That covenant said “As our Savior, and wishing to be faithful to Him in many matters, we hereby covenant with Him that we will set aside for His holy church at least one-tenth of our income for His work in the world. We agree to try this for at least three months. Those that will join in tithing for at least three months will please sign their names below.” And I put up an eight-by-ten paper with forty-six blank spaces on it. The paper was on the bulletin board where everyone could see it. Forty six members signed up to tithe!
~ On another occasion my inexperience led to something that could have gotten me into trouble. In fact, I found that it was one of the character flaws that existed in me. I loved a good fight, and when I was challenged I verbally fought back. In our community a petition was circulated for a beer election. The election was to be held in the entire Anderson County. I scheduled a big “dry” rally in the school auditorium next door to our church. I was criticized by the “wet” group in Anderson County; they objected to such a meeting being held in the high school. Since the objection was raised, I simply transferred the meeting from the high school auditorium to the auditorium of Johnson Baptist Church. What a great time we had! A great crowd attended. Reverend Felton Griffin, who later moved from our association to Alaska, spoke on the “Blitz from Hell”. We invited Senator Clay Coughin to address the group. One of my dearest preacher friends of that time was the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Palestine, Rev. Calvin Nelson, who had been a leader in dry rallies before. In fact the liquor crowd had shot at his home twice. He had the fear of God in his heart, and the wet crowd feared him. All of these speeches were recorded on my home recording unit. I then decided I would find out who signed the petition in Cayuga calling for beer election. I went into Anderson County courthouse in Palestine, and copied down all the names of the people in my community that had signed the beer election. On the next Sunday I announced that on the following Sunday I would read publicly from my pulpit the names of all the people who had signed that petition. You talk about a community being stirred up! All over the community there was a buzz that the Baptist preacher was going to read the names of those who had signed the beer petition.
~ At the next Sunday evening service, as you can imagine a great crowd was on hand, but my dear wife had better judgment than I did, for she had secured the list of names, had torn them up, and flushed them down the commode. That night I stood to speak without any names. My wife had saved the day, for I think we would have had a community riot on our hands. I’m saying this to indicate how a young preacher realized for the first time that he enjoyed a good fight. It was good news to us when the beer election in Anderson County reported that the “drys” won the election 5 to 1, but more interesting than that to me was that the “wets” got only 13 votes in the community of Cayuga, far fewer than the number of names that were on the beer petition.
~ Perhaps I needed to apply to my life and practice some of the precepts and principles of Dale Carnegie’s book How to Win Friends and Influence People. My cousin had given me that book the first year of my ministry, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Later in the Baylor University chapel I heard him speak in person; he said, “Now I’m going to give you a lesson that will help you the rest of your lives. I’m going to show you how to win more friends and influence more people than you ever imagined. Get out your pens and paper and write this down.” There was a rustle of paper in Waco Hall as we leaned forward to hear what Dale Carnegie would tell us about how to win friends and influence people. Quietly he spoke, “What I’m about to say was spoken over two thousand years ago by the greatest teacher the world has ever known. He said, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ Apply that lesson and you will win more friends and influence more people than you ever dreamed that you would.” I needed that.
~ The year 1941 came to a crushing climax. On November 8 the Texas University football team, which had been featured as the number-one-team of the nation, with all of their players’ pictured in LIFE magazine that week, played Baylor University. The outcome of the game? Baylor tied the number-one football team in the nation! Seven to seven was the final score. That number seven was to play an important part that December, for on December 7 our lives were in for a rude awakening. That morning I preached at our pulpit and then we went home with Mr. and Mrs. Olin Matlock. While sitting at their table we learned of the attack on Pearl Harbor. That night I preached on the subject, “I Shall Not Be Moved,” meaning I shall not be moved in my belief that Jesus is the Christ, I shall not be moved in my belief that the Bible is the word of God, and on and on I declared my beliefs. But while I preached on “I’ll Shall Not Be Moved,” little did I realize that most of us would be moving in this period.