An Appalachian Country Rag-- By Faith Alone

An Appalachian Country Rag-- By Faith Alone
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A Country Rag By Faith Alone

By Eunice Soper

"He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty."
Proverbs 16:32

"The Sharp-Tongued Woman"

The tongue is a movable, muscular organ located in the mouth. It is a matter of only a few inches in length. It is useful for eating and speaking -- but it is in the latter category that it so often gets us into trouble. James observes that man can tame wild beasts, but the tongue he cannot tame. It is "an unruly evil, full of deadly poison." Listen to this story of what an unruly tongue can do.

A famous European surgeon had been brought by wealthy parents to this country to operate on their daughter. During his stay he had been carefully protected and guarded so people would not disturb this doctor whose miraculous surgical skill had helped so many. He was here not only to help this one girl but also to explain his technique to other doctors, and he had to conserve his time, avoiding pleas from many individuals.

But the doctor was used to freedom, and this constant confinement was making him restless. One day he slipped away from his guards to walk by himself in the residential district of the city. A sudden thunderstorm came up, unfortunately, and drove the doctor to seek shelter on the closest doorstep. Thinking that he would ask for protection from the elements until the storm was over, he rang the bell. A woman, clearly upset and very angry, shouted as she opened the door a crack, "Go somewhere else! We have enough trouble here without you!" and she slammed the door almost on his nose.

While the doctor stood still, trying to collect his thoughts and plan his next move, his guards found him and hurried him by car back to his hotel.

The next day the newspapers of the city carried his picture on the front page, telling of his work. In the house where he had tried to take shelter, there was consternation. The woman recognized the man who had been on her doorstep as the famous surgeon, and when she read the story of his work on page 1, she screamed with dismay. For the thing that had been troubling her was the fact that her daughter was ill of the same disease the doctor had cured in the wealthy man's daughter. The woman had written to the doctor, begging him to come to her home and make her child well. But when he had unwittingly come to her doorstep seeking shelter, she had not only angrily refused him but had turned away by her rudeness the very help she wanted so much.

Is an unruly tongue one of your problems? Don't despair, for the tongue speaks only what is in the heart. Give your heart to Jesus. He will cleanse it from evil. Then the tongue will speak words of kindness and love. It will have the bridle that will keep it from speaking the wrong thing at the wrong time.

"They shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels."
Malachi 3:17

"The Dark Pebble"

"When He cometh, when He cometh, To make up His jewels," we used to sing as children. "All the pure ones, all the bright ones, His loved and His own." We sang of the time when Jesus will come again and gather His people, one here and one there, like precious jewels.

One of the loveliest of all jewels is the diamond. The diamond is pure carbon that has been under terrific pressure until it has hardened. In fact, diamond is one of the hardest known substances, and is often used in cutting other hard surfaces. In its rough state it is often uneven and dark, looking very much like any ordinary pebble. A lot of work and skill is necessary to bring out its breathtaking beauty.

A diamond polisher studies the rough gem carefully before he begins his work, for he wants to spot any impurities that might ruin the cut jewel. Each facet must be planned with the greatest precision so that the greatest brilliance may be given to the finished stone.

The actual polishing involves hours and hours of work, the diamond being held against a moving wheel covered with diamond dust. Sometimes even months are spent in polishing one gem. If it is intended for the coronet of a king or queen, then even greater care is used.

God is gathering precious jewels from among His children to shine in his crown. He has many diamonds in the rough. They are potentially beautiful gems, but much work is necessary before their true beauty is revealed.

He has studied us carefully so He knows where the impurities are in our lives. He knows where each facet should be placed to show brilliance. He cuts away the dull edges. It takes much polishing against the wheel of life to bring us to perfection. The trying moments, the hard situations, the times of sorrow -- all of these things are diamond dust on the wheel of life that puts the polish on us. At times we may feel that this grinding process is being overdone, that we will be polished away into nothingness. But we are in the hands of the Master Diamond Cutter, and are safe.

Now, the diamond dust that is used in gem polishing is not coarse. In fact, it is very, very fine, but it is extraordinarily hard. The trials that God uses to polish us to perfection may not be large, either. But oh, how hard they seem to us! If we can only put ourselves into God's hands, He will, with His sensitive, knowing hands, guide that polishing agent so that each little trial will add a bit more luster to our lives. Then we shall be ready when Jesus comes to adorn His beautiful crown.

Widely varied in size and structure, picturesque houses of worship cling throughout generations to the Valley's hills and hollers. There's an echo of faith in everyday conversation and an ancient devotion steels Shenandoah residents in courage, humor and grace as they struggle with weather-related and man-made catastrophes.

Eunice Soper has written many devotional books, mostly for children. Semi-retired from professional service worldwide for the Seventh Day Adventist Church, she and her husband, Francis, radiate peace, strength and practical good-heartedness from their adopted home in the central Shenandoah Valley.

Sister Mary Rose McGeady, administrator of Covenant House, writes a very readable monthly on-line newsletter about her experiences with some of the 44,000 homeless and runaway children CH helps each year. Covenant House offers assistance, including food, clothing, medical aid, educational and vocational training and counseling, through shelters in 15 major cities. Their toll-free NINELINE (1-800-999-9999) connects children to counselors and resources in any area.

"Love is the answer to the final question." -- Unknown.
Spirit Web: Spiritual Consciousness on the WWW, a site maintained in Switzerland with copious worldwide links, introduces alternate and ancient paths of enlightenment which have become increasingly popular throughout this century, including within Appalachia.
The Hindu Tantric Home Page explores the ancient, complex spiritual tradition of India.

"The path of knowledge is that of the occultist and the sage; that of love is that of the mystic and the saint. The head or heart approach is not dependent upon the ray, for both ways must be known; the mystic must become the occultist; the white occultist has been the saintly mystic. True knowledge is intelligent love, for it is the blending of the intellect and the devotion. Unity is sensed in the heart; its intelligent application to life has to be worked out through knowledge." -- Alice A. Bailey, A Treatise on White Magic, page 120 ; quote from The Feather of Maat and other words of wisdom
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn seeks to unite Western abstract and esoteric traditions (e.g. Gnostic, Cabalistic, Masonic, Rosicrucian,...).
"My wish for all of you is that your Light may shine brightly and purely, that your Dark Nights of the Soul may bring you awareness and knowledge. That you may at the last find someone to take on your light and set you free." -- To Serve the Light, an address by Dolores Ashcroft-Nowicki.

Word Preserve -- A Country Rag Index

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