MORE SNAKES

I guess every community has a rough family living there. You know the kind I mean. Seems like they are always up to no good and getting in all sorts of trouble with the law, their neighbors, and even each other.

Around Gatorhead we have the Gants. Willard Gant is the daddy and he used to sell moonshine and has been kind of bitter since they legalized alchohol. He says,"There just ain't no way to make money in it any more and a lot of the other bootleggers just went to sellin' drugs. I've done a lot of low down things to make money but even I won't do that."

Willard's wife ran off about five years ago about the time the boys got old enough to start acting like their daddy. I would say he's had to raise 'em by himself but he more or less just turned them loose and let them grow wild. There are three of the boys, Dude and Dub, the twins, and then there is little Willie.Dude and Dub are eighteen an little Willie is fifteen.

Bro. Ben Shorter from the Gatorhead Baptist Church has tried to get them to change their ways. He's invited them to church, he's offered to pray for them and with them and they just treated him rude and sent him on his way.

Dude was out frog gigging and got bit by a cottonmouth. Dub rushed him to the emergency room and the doctors went to work to treat him but they had been way back in the swamp and by the time Dub got him to the truck and then to the hospital Dude was in a very bad way. Dub had called Willard and he and little Willie came right away. When the doctor told them how bad off Dude was they called Bro. Shorter.

Brother Shorter got to the hospital and on the way in he met the doctor in the hall and the doctor told him, "I just checked him and I think he'll pull through but I found out that they had called for you and I thought that I would let you visit with them before I told them. If they thought he was going to be alright they would never let you in to pray with them."

Bro. Ben had been a little concerned about how to approach the situation but he felt much better knowing that they expected Dude to live. He went into the room and Dude was awake but he was mighty sick and the family was gathered around him.

Willard Gant said, probably for the first time in his life, "Preacher will you pray for usWillard Gant said, probably for the first time in his life, "Preacher will you pray for us

Bro. Shorter bowed his head and began to pray, "Oh Lord, you know that I have prayed for this family ever since I moved to this community. I have invited them to church. I have talked to them about their relationship with you, I have offered to pray with them and they didn't have any time for me or for you.All the visits, and praying and pleading with them has not done one bit of good to make them turn to you."
"Lord, I thank you for this snake that you sent to bite Dude. I ask you to help him make it through this and I pray that they will not turn from you again. It took this snake to make them think about spiritual things and to cause them to seek your help. If they turn from you again Lord, I ask that you send more and snakes, at least one for each of them and it wouldn't hurt none if they were a little bigger. Nothing else seems to have worked in making them seek you so if they turn away again please send more and bigger snakes, Amen.

Well, I sure have been thinkin' after hearing that. There sure are a lot of people in the world asking for a heap of hurtin' if hurtin' is the only thing that will make 'em look to the Lord.

I'm Bo Lumpkin and I've been thinkin'
Ya'll e-mail me at bo@bolumpkin.com
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