MISS MATTIE Chapter 3

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It were another two years before another preacher came through town.

The people had kind of got over the last one although they asked him if he preached with snakes.  He assured the people that he wouldn't bring any snakes to the service.

The guitar players got their instruments fixed although they didn't sound as good.

The preacher had a big tent that he could set up but felt it would be better if he used the school house to see if people was interested in his preaching.

Once again the place was full and he preached about Daniel in the lions den. He told about how he got in there and how hungry those lions were.

He then asked the people to help him out a little for he was short on money. He got a couple of dollars and promised then he would finish preaching not only about the lions den but also about the fiery furnace the next night.

The next night the place was packed and people standing outside. They were taken by his soft approach in preaching. He said it well without all the screaming and hollering.

They decided that they needed to set up his tent. The tent was large enough to sit most of the people who came but it didn't have the sides put on it.

Leaving the sides off let the air blow through and kept things cooler also anyone who was standing around the tent could hear everything. The lumber yard gave them some lumber to make seats out of with the understanding that he would get it back after the preaching was done.

Mattie was eleven going on toward twelve and she was quite interested in the preaching, so she came every night.

More musicians joined in and the music was worth coming to hear the sermons.  It was the last night for the preacher had used up all of his sermons except one. This one was about Lazarus and the lost man.

When it was over the preacher invited everyone who wanted to get saved to come down and pray with him. Mattie was one of the first ones there for she was sitting on the front row.

     
The next day all who got saved were told to come down to the river and be baptized to insure they were saved.  

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Mattie got in line and went under the water in Jesus' name and said; “Yep I got it.”  

 

She was a little embarrassed for her clothes were sticking to her and she felt naked.  

 

She was around twelve when this occurred and she wished she had worn overalls instead of her thin dress.

 

When the preacher was leaving town he gave Mattie an old badly worn bible and told her to read it through.

Her sisters were getting close to marrying age and Pa Mays put up a sign on the feed store where everyone could see it. It read as follows; "Shot gun marriages can be happy marriages even when they are not desired."

For some reason there weren't many suitors coming around the Mays house.

Some blamed it on the dogs.   

 

To be Continued