As the Youth and Education Minister at the
Harrodsburg Baptist Church in
Harrodsburg, Kentucky, in the mid-seventies,
I was given the responsibility of delivering
announcements to the congregation.
Although it was a boring responsibility,
I tried to liven it up with the Texas humor that
occasionally is admired in Kentucky,
but in most cases elicited only blank expressions.
I thought
the humor would loosen them up and
make them more receptive to God’s message or
at least thankful the message had finally come.
Often, after the service I was handed a note from a
retired English teacher.
The note pointed out my grammatical
mistakes for the week.
She once gave me a book on grammar
with a note in the front indicating the pages
I should read first,
written in red.
Throughout the book were markings,
underlines, stars and asterisks,
all written in red.
She really didn’t realize how much
of my poor grammar was real and how much
was for her benefit.
(You should have determined by now
it was all real.)
Even though she seemed
somewhat irritated with me,
I think the exchange brought her a little joy.
It was a fun game for me and I think it was for her.
I’m sure Nelva has gone on to be
with the Lord by now.
If she somehow becomes aware of these writings,
I am sure when I enter heaven,
I will be handed a note from Nelva,
written in red ink.
One aspect of this book
which may irritate some is
the centering of every line.
This is my favorite style of writing because it reminds me of the writing style of one of my heroes: Grady Nutt.
Soon, after getting to heaven,
I guess I will need to apologize to him.
If apologies are to be given in heaven,
I will be busy for a while.
Most of the time will be spent
apologizing to my Lord and Savior.
But before I get started,
He will put His finger to His lips,
say a gentle, “shhh”
and hand me a note,
written in red.
Hebrews 9:22 (NLT)
In fact, we can say that according to the Law of Moses, nearly everything was purified by sprinkling with blood. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.
copyright © 2006 by Larry Toller All Rights Reserved
