The Preacher’s Story

By Millie | The Accidental Cook

He was a rather tall man with mostly white hair and a natural smile that would make a person feel better on the worst of days.  He was full of optimism and looked forward to his new field… you see he was our new Pastor.  It’s ironic now one of his very first sermons in our church (he was completely new in the area and you wouldn’t think that he knew much about his new field of service and those who were part of his church family) as best I can remember the sermon went something like this –

He told a story about two women in a church.  It seemed that one woman was always talking, sharing if you will, prayer requests and the like regarding the other woman until one day, the subject of her sharing began to include little what if’s about the Pastor.

Well, the sharing and what if’s soon took on a life of their own.  Somehow it was being shared as facts, facts that were never checked out, never verified. The story escalated, the Preacher’s family was about to split up, not to mention what was happening to the little church and the church family (mind you the Pastor was not speaking about our church), not even about any church he had led.

It seemed that the leadership of the church decided it was time for a meeting with those involved in the talking, the two women, the Pastor and his family, and the leaders of the church.  After much heated discussion and name calling, one woman in the conversation alluded to the fact that there was no evidence it was just what the other woman had said to her and she, without even checking for truth, relayed the information to others.  Finally the women confessed, there seemed to be no basis for the story and so the woman that was first to tell the story confessed and asked the Pastor for forgiveness and this is where it got interesting.

The Pastor stood up to speak and said he would accept the apology on one condition.  When asked what the condition was he instructed the woman to take a pillowcase and fill it with white chicken feathers.  He wanted her to ride down the road while holding the pillowcase of feathers flying out of the window until the pillowcase was empty.  When the pillowcase was empty, the woman was to stop the car and then begin to retrieve every feather that had flown out of the pillowcase and bring them to him.

“Why Pastor” she exclaimed “that’s impossible!  I would never be able to pick up all of those feathers”.  The wise Pastor replied that she indeed was right and that was exactly how hard it would be to repair the damage that had been done, wrong impressions that had been given, relationships that had been broken. 

I am sure if you are reading this that by now we all get the picture just as I did on that Sunday morning long ago. Time has come and gone.  The grey haired pastor has gone on to be with the Heavenly Father he so eloquently spoke of on many an occasion, but the words that he spoke that day have been interwoven into my life, my memory, and I am sure, so many more.

Whether written or spoken, what we say or write never really dies. It is indelibly printed on the minds of many and will either help or destroy. I am reminded of the little song we used to teach our children that went something like this “Be careful little eyes what you see; Be careful little ears what you hear” and so it goes on admonishing the little mouth what you say, the little hands what you do – be careful. 

Why, for The Father above is looking down with love. What we say or relay to others only serves to mirror our own thoughts and faults.  My Mom used to say that when someone was talking about you that meant you were important or else they wouldn’t be talking about you. Most often this was to quell our clothes issues. What would our friends say about what we wear.

I don’t know if the Pastor that was the subject of the story ever forgave the woman who started the story but I do know that the Father above is a forgiving God and stands, I believe, with arms wide open, willing and ready to forgive.

Now child, was that fish really that big? Did it really weigh that much? Were the coffers really that full?  Were there that many kernels of corn on that cob?

Speaking of corn, my recipe is for Mexican corn. Frankly, I love corn so much I really feel like my young great grandson, I could literally eat from the can.  Sometimes though when we want to dress it up, the Mexican corn recipe is great way to add color and taste!

Mexican Corn – Millie’s Way COUNTY Magazine

Ingredients:

  • Two 16 oz cans of yellow corn
  • 4 oz jar of chopped pimentos
  • 1/3 cup of chopped bell pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of chili powder

Drain the juice from the can of corn into a pot and set aside the corn. Add pimentos, bell pepper, and chili powder.

Cook on medium heat for approximately 10-15 minutes; stir in the corn kernels and salt & pepper to taste. Continue to cook for approximately 5 minutes.

Then, this colorful, tasty dish is ready to serve.

Enjoy!

 
Til next time, 

Millie – The Accidental Cook