<TITLE>05. Par 60-68</TITLE>L-60   So I remember when I first come among the Pentecostal people, years ago, I was in Mishawaka. There was two groups of them. One was called P. A. of W.; another one, P. A. of J. C., I believe. And they had their--their convention in the northlands, because there was segregation, and so the colored brethren could attend the meeting. I watched them all day, how peculiar, no more church-manners. My! I was setting there, and we Baptists, you know, we kind of try to act kind of churchy in church. But these fellows didn't have any Baptist manners at all, or any church manners. They would run, scream, shout, get blue in the face. And I thought "My, my!" And so I begin to notice the way they were carrying on.

L-61 And so he said, "All ministers, on the platform. Every minister, no matter what denomination, come up on the platform for this evening." Was about five hundred of us setting on the platform. So he said, "Just raise up and say your name, set down." I--I come by, mine. I--I said my name, set down. On down. After while, they had a man... They had had some fine preachers that day. Oh, they was really scholars, and real men. And I knowed I had no business up there, with my seventh-grade education, standing before those fellows, when they was going to talk on theology.

L-62   But I thought, "Well, for this evening meeting, they'll certainly have their most foremost speaker for the evening."

L-63 And so, after while, they said elder somebody was going to speak. It was an old colored man, came out. And He looked to be about eighty-five years old. And he had on one of those old long, what we used to call down in the south, preacher coats, you know; kind of a swallow-tail, you know, the strips up-and-down it. A little rim of white hair around his head. And he had to lead the old fellow out, he was so old.

L-64 And he got out there and took his text from over in Job. He said, "'Where was you when I laid the foundation of the world? Declare unto Me where fastened.'" Said, "'When the morning stars sang together, and the sons of God shouted for joy,'" said, "'where was you?' God talking to Job."

L-65   Well, all the brethren that day had been preaching about the Life of Christ, and the coming of John, breaching the way between, and so forth, very scholarly.

L-66 But this old man didn't preach about anything was that going on down here on the earth. He took Him up back yonder about ten million years before the world was ever formed. And brought Him, what was taking on in Heaven, then come down the horizontal rainbow. He done that all in about five minutes, and one breath, looked like. When he got through, he jumped up in the air about three feet, looked to me, like, and kicked his heels together. Come clipping around there. And he had twice as much room as I got. He said, "You just ain't got enough room up here for me to preach," and he set down.

L-67 I thought "That's what I need. If that'll make an old man feel like that, what would it do me if I ever found that fountain of youth?"

L-68 Old man, eighty-five years old, and could act like that! Well, my, he come out there, he was kind of holding. But I noticed when that Spirit struck him, he renewed his youth like the eagle, you know.


<A HREF="P6">Next Page</A>