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Jake, the rancher, went one day to fix a distant fence.
The wind was cold and gusty and the clouds rolled gray and dense.
As he pounded the last staples in and gathered tools to go,
The temperature had fallen, the wind and snow began to blow.
When he finally reached his pickup, he felt a heavy heart.
>From the sound of that ignition, he knew it wouldn't start.
So Jake did what most of us would do if we had been there.
He humbly bowed his balding head and sent aloft a prayer.
As he turned the key for the last time, he softly cursed his luck.
They found him three days later, frozen stiff in that old truck.
Now Jake had been around in life and done his share of roaming.
But when he saw Heaven, he was shocked -- it looked just like Wyoming!
Of all the saints in Heaven, his favorite was St. Peter.
(Now, this line ain't needed but it helps with rhyme and meter)
So they set and talked a minute or two, or maybe it was three.
Nobody was keepin' score -- in Heaven, time is free.
"I've always heard," Jake said to Pete, "that God will answer prayer,
But one time I asked for help, well, he just plain wasn't there."
Does God answer prayers of some, and ignore the prayers of others?
That don't seem exactly square -- I know all men are brothers."
"Or does he randomly reply, without good rhyme or reason?
Maybe, it's the time of day, the weather or the season."
"Now I ain't trying to act smart, it's just the way I feel.
And I was wondering', could you tell me -- what the heck's the deal?!"
Peter listened very patiently and when ol' Jake was done,
There were smiles of recognition, and he said, "So, you're the one!!"
"That day your truck, it wouldn't start, and you sent your prayer
a'flying,
You gave us all a real bad time, with hundreds of us trying."
"A thousand angels rushed to check the status of your file,
But Jake, we hadn't heard from you in quite a little while."
"And though all prayers are answered, and God ain't got no quota;
He didn't recognize your voice and started a truck in North Dakota!
BETTER KEEP IN TOUCH!
WILL'S WISDOM
A long time ago, there was a man named
Will Rogers
and this is what he said:
Don't squat with your spurs on.
Good judgment comes from experience, and
a lot of that comes from bad judgment.
Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a
whole lot easier 'n puttin' it back in.
If you're ridin' ahead of the herd,
take a look back every now and then
to make sure it's still there.
If you get to thinkin' you're a person of some
influence, try orderin' somebody else's dog around.
After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so
good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter
came along and shot him..
The moral:
When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.
THE SILENT SERMON
A member of a certain church, who previously had been
attending services regularly, suddenly stopped coming
to church. After a few weeks, the Pastor decided to visit.
The Pastor found the man at home alone, sitting before a
blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his Pastor's visit,
the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near
the fireplace and waited.
The pastor made himself at home but said nothing. In the
grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames
around the burning logs.
After some minutes, the Pastor took the fire tongs,
carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed
it to one side of the hearth all alone. Then he sat back
in his chair, still silent. The host watched all this
in quiet contemplation.
As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished,
there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more.
Soon it was cold and lifeless.
The Pastor glanced at his watch and realized it was time
to leave, he slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead
ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire.
Immediately it began to glow, once more with the
light and warmth of the burning coals around it.
As the Pastor reached the door to leave, his host said
with a tear running down his cheek, "Thank you so much
for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon.
I shall be back in church next Sunday."
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© Chip Harding
Site created by:
Twink's Ink
September
1999
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GRAYBEARD'S RUMBLIN'S