Mrs. Belle Rutland owned a house right next door to Red Rock Church of Christ. The preacher for Barton Church of Christ, who had been there just before me, had moved out. Debra and I found out it was vacant and decided it would be good for us to move there. We did. Mrs. Rutland gave us some paint. My brother, Billy, and I painted the house white with blue trim. That was over twenty five years ago. The house is now dilapidated and deteriorated, but the faded colors can still be seen. I spent many hours away at work, school, and preaching. Debra and Michael spent many hours together in that home.
The preacher for Red Rock at that time was very close to one of my past mentors, Don Garrett. Just down the road from the church building is where my Great Grandparents, the Minors, lived. All of my aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mother's side lived only a mile away. I was living right beside my past! Little did I know that in less than fifteen years I would be preaching for Red Rock Church of Christ. Neighbors, such as Thurman Kimbrough, Sally Rutland and her son Darryl, the McWilliams and Daniel families, etc. would all become my closest friends. Many of them, at some point in their lives, actually lived in the house I was living in! I was living right beside my future in a house that was in their past!
Wherever you are and WHENEVER you are, always be the same good person that you are! Never try to be one thing to one person and something else to another. Everyone is connected. No matter where you go, or WHEN you go, everything is connected. Solomon observed it like this in Ecclesiastes 3:15 "That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past." That sounds strange, but its true! The sooner we understand that it is all about God and what He wants, the happier we will be!
The preacher for Red Rock at that time was very close to one of my past mentors, Don Garrett. Just down the road from the church building is where my Great Grandparents, the Minors, lived. All of my aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mother's side lived only a mile away. I was living right beside my past! Little did I know that in less than fifteen years I would be preaching for Red Rock Church of Christ. Neighbors, such as Thurman Kimbrough, Sally Rutland and her son Darryl, the McWilliams and Daniel families, etc. would all become my closest friends. Many of them, at some point in their lives, actually lived in the house I was living in! I was living right beside my future in a house that was in their past!
Wherever you are and WHENEVER you are, always be the same good person that you are! Never try to be one thing to one person and something else to another. Everyone is connected. No matter where you go, or WHEN you go, everything is connected. Solomon observed it like this in Ecclesiastes 3:15 "That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past." That sounds strange, but its true! The sooner we understand that it is all about God and what He wants, the happier we will be!