Today I was spending some time in the church auditorium. I was up on the platform, thinking, praying, and straightening. I noticed a small book underneath one of the chairs. I picked it up and looked at it. It was an old book about revival. I like old books, so I opened the cover to see when it was published and to see if the original owner had put his name in it. I found the name of the owner and immediately recognized it as one of Oklahoma's pioneer preachers and pastors. Brother "Doc" Woodell spent his last years at Lakeside, the church where I grew up. I was fortunate to grow up in a church that was populated my many heroes of the faith from his generation. I was overwhelmed as I held the book that had once been in the library of someone I respected so much and realized that it now lay in the church I have been called to pastor. A flood of emotion came over me as I realized that I have now assumed the mantle from those pioneers who paved the way for the great things we are able to do today. A sense of great responsibility washed over me as I realized that I now serve a significant church with a great future that is here today because men like him were faithful when times were hard and progress was slow, but they sowed seed that is still being harvested today.
I took the book up to my office and looked at it further. As I turned a few pages to look at the table of contents there was a stamped message that this book had also been owned by the pastor of my teenage years. Pastor Lacy is a very important part of my spiritual formation and I am forever grateful for his imput into my life. Once again, my pulse quickened to realize the significance of my find. The legacy of these ministers now resides in me, and I have purposed to be faithful with the calling that has been laid upon me.
I don't know who the book used to belong to, but it belongs to me, now.
1 comment:
So that's where I left my book.
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