Burning Bridges

Burning Bridges

The bridge you burn now may be the one you later have to cross.

Romans 12:18 (KJV) If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

Cure of Crime

Cure of Crime

The cure of crime is not in the electric chair, but in the high chair.

Proverbs 22:6 (KJV) Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Standing on the Promises

Standing on the Promises

Too many churchgoers are singing “Standing on the Promises” when all they are doing is sitting on the premises.

Hebrews 6:12 (KJV) That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

A Good Name

A Good Name

It is better to die with a good name than to live with a bad one.

Ecclesiastes 7:1 (KJV) A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.

Character

Person’s true character is revealed by what he does when no one is watching.

Ephesians 6:6 (KJV) Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart;

Ben M. Bogard

I send this not as worship, but as an admiration of the work that those of the past have done. Most of us are recipients of that work whether we admit it or not. We pastor churches and fellowship in associations that others labored and spent much time to organize. I do sometimes hear the complaining voices that try to correct or belittle the early pioneer preachers and the work they have done. Here is a little insight to the life of one man.

This is the memory of L. D. Foreman describing B.M. Bogard.

Life and Works of Ben Marcus Bogard Volume II

I Remember Bogard

L. D. Foreman

As the day draws to a close and shadows lengthen, when the din of typewriter, printing presses and traffic of students is exchanged for the peace and quiet of the evening, I sense the spirit of Ben M. Bogard.

What kind of man was he? He was short – about five feet two inches, of average weight, 185 -” just a little on the heavy side.” He had been bald since in his thirties. Eyes a grayish blue, skin fair. He wore a mustache and was so flat footed, one little boy remarked, “Mamma, Brother Bogard’s shoes look like rocking chairs.”

He stood erect, was quick of step and motion. He was hard of hearing and for about two years, used a hearing aid, disposing of its use about two years before his death.

As a young man, he was athletically inclined. He knew how to box, to run and he took long walks even to the last year of his life.

Those who liked Bogard loved him; those who disliked him, at least for the most part, hated him.

He was a tireless individual – work came natural and easy.

Logical thinking was the only kind he knew. He had no tolerance for ignorance.

He battled hard when engaged in a fight – and he was often in one. “It’s just as much insult to slap a man as it is to knock him down, therefore, when you hit, hit hard,” he told me. For an opponent to hint or suggest really irritated him. “Say what you mean; out wit it, straight from the shoulder, don’t leave people guessing what you mean” was his advice.

On the other hand, his love was as tender as a shepherd. He was loved by children because he loved them. “If you want a front seat at the Antioch Baptist Church, you’ve got to beat the children to it,” and “We love our pastor and teacher too, and to our church we will be true,” the children chorused every Sunday morning. He drilled them week after week.

Then there were his “bugs and worms” parties for the boys and girls. They played games on the church lawn. Assisted by some of the young women, he fed them stick candy with stripes (worms) and gum (bugs), thus “Daddy” Bogard endeared himself to them.

Bogard was a master of condensation. He could say more in fewer words than most people. His opponents in debate often said, “You may not agree with Bogard but you understand what he says.” His expressions were clear and concise. He had the ability to select the right word to give his expressions ease of understanding. “illustrations are the gravy on the strong meat,” he told me. “Gravy makes the meat palatable – use plenty of gravy.” Bogard used illustrations to make people remember the doctrine he taught. They didn’t just hear the illustration, they understood the comparison – it interested them – and so they learned.

Faith was not lacking in him. “Work for God as though it all depended on you and trust God as though it all depended on Him,” was one of his mottoes. A favorite quote from one of the great soldiers of the cross was, “Undertake great things for God, expect great things from God.

WORK

WORK

There is a name for people who are not excited about their work – unemployed.

Colossians 3:23 (KJV) And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Patience

Patience

Patience is a quality you admire in the driver behind you and scorn in the one ahead

Ecclesiastes 7:8 Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.
9 Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.

Up or down, your choice

Up or Down, your choice

Your companions are like the buttons on an elevator. They will either take you up or they will take you down.

Proverbs 13:20 (KJV) He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

Decisions

Decisions

Decisions can take you out of God’s will but never out of His Reach

2 Timothy 2:13 (KJV) If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.