019 Dying Is Part of Living

The Watchman discusses why there was no podcast last week. He discusses the death of his brother and the restoration of a nephew. More importantly, The Watchman discusses a lesson that provides emphasis on "just one more".

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Transcript

Dying is Part of Living

Welcome to the Watchman Speaks. I’m your host, Lonnie Richardson.

Last week I dropped the ball. For those of you who have been listening, I did not put up a podcast last week. For the first time since the beginning of this year, since I started this podcast, I failed to produce a weekly episode. There are a couple of reasons for that.

1.     I had taken a week’s vacation for some much needed time to rest and spend some time with my wife and family. However, that didn’t go as planned. I am in the process of finishing up a small wood shop in which I will be doing woodworking projects for my family, friends, and in time, the general public on commission basis. I finished insulating the walls and hanging the wall boards on the walls. With that done, I began adding my collection of hand tools that I had stored in bins to the shrinking floor space within the shop.

2.     It was my birthday week. The previous Tuesday, May 2nd, I turned 61 years old. We celebrated with a birthday dinner the previous Saturday so that we wouldn’t have to rush on a workday and so that my Pastor and his family could come and be with us. I received a couple of old fashioned double edge safety razors, one of which was identical to the one my dad once used, and it was manufactured the same month and year that I was born. So, it turned 61 years old with me. I also received a straight razor, a razor strop, a boar’s hair shaving brush with a mug and some shaving cream from a gentleman’s shaving supply in London. I was presented with a Japanese Ryobi saw and a Japanese rasp to add to my tool collection as well as a few other antique hand tools. My lovely wife then presented me with a brand new #7 Jointing Hand Plane. If you don’t know what that is, then go to my website www.theoldwatchman.com and you can see an article about it.

3.     I was sick. The first day I was off for vacation, Cheryl and I both were attacked with some pretty severe seasonal allergy symptoms. You know, watery eyes, itching ears, coughing, and runny noses. Presently, now that vacation is over, I am faring much better, and Cheryl is beginning to improve.

4.     My half brother, James Hooks, passed away in his sleep at his home in Kilbourne, Louisiana on Friday May 5th.  I made the trip from East Tennessee to Northeast Louisiana to attend his funeral. 

So there you have it. Those are my excuses as to why I didn’t put out a podcast last week. I know that those things that I’ve mentioned are merely excuses and not worth the breath it takes to speak of them. I can only ask that you extend grace towards me and allow me to continue to be a part of your weekly regime.

However, all the activity of being on vacation, having a birthday, being slightly ill, and my brother’s passing got me to thinking about a lot of things. Those things that I thought about are worth sharing with you whether you be young, middle aged, or older like myself. Or, I should say that I believe they are worth sharing with you.

Having had my sixty first birthday, I can say that I probably have more years behind me than I have in front of me. My mother died in 1989 with breast cancer at the age of 63. Dad died in 1993 with colon cancer at the age of 67. Now, my brother has died at the age of 75 years and eleven months with heart issues and bladder cancer. That sets the mind to thinking. How many years do I have to walk this earth and make a difference in people’s lives?

But then I came to the realization. Mom and Dad’s purpose had been fulfilled in getting me raised, grown and teaching right from wrong. My brother’s purpose had been fulfilled in the way the touched the lives of many. He had provided a home for his wife and lived to see a prodigal son return home and do well. Which left me with the question, “What must I do to fulfill my purpose before I depart from this life?”

I believe my brother, James Raymond Hooks, and my Nephew, Jamie Ray Hooks answered that question for me. 

I’d often call my brother, James Raymond or he would call me and we’d talk about the Bible for hours on end. 

My brother would often say, “Baby brother, I don’t got the Bible education that you have.”

My reply was always, “You don’t have to have education. You know the Bible better than most who have educations.”

He’s always quote Hosea 4:1-10

1.     Listen to the word of the Lord, O sons of Israel, For the Lord has a case against the inhabitants of the land, Because there is no faithfulness or kindness or knowledge of God in the land.

2.     There is swearing, deception, murder, stealing, and adultery. They employ violence, so that bloodshed follows bloodshed.

3.     Therefore the land mourns, and everyone who lives in it languishes along with the beasts of the field and the birds of the sky, and also the fish of the sea disappear.

4.     Yet let no one find fault , and let none offer reproof; For your people are like those who contend with the priest.

5.     So you will stumble by day, and the prophet also will stumble with you by night; and I will destroy your mother.

6.     My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

7.     The more they multiplied, the more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory to shame.

8.     They feed on the sin of My people and direct their desire toward their iniquity.

9.     And it will be, like people, like priest; So I will punish them for their ways and repay them for their deeds.

10.  They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the harlot but not increase. Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD.

Brother would always place emphasis on the beginning of verse 6, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge….”. Why do you suppose he would add emphasis on that verse? It was because he could see that everything surrounding that verse is playing out before our eyes today, AND very few see it. Let’s go back to the beginning, to Hosea 4:1

We see that God has a case against the sons of Israel. That’s a legal case. It was a matter of holding court. What was the case about?

In verses 1b and 2 we see that there was no faithfulness, kindness, or knowledge of God in the land. IF that were the case then what was the evidence?

Verse 3 tells us that there is swearing, deception, murder, theft, adultery, and violence bringing bloodshed after bloodshed. That means continual violence and repetitive bloodshed.  

Verse 4 tells us that the situation is so bad that the land mourns and that every living thing in the land languishes. I don’t know how observant you are, but I have noticed fewer birds and fish than there used to be. I have noticed a decrease in the size and vigor as well. Even the Robins do not seem to produce as many fledglings as they once did.  

Verse 5 tells us that the people will stumble by day and that the prophet will stumble with them by night. I don’t really want to get started on these modern day prophets. The first thing is that if they were a prophet, you would know that they were a prophet. They would not have to proclaim themselves as a prophet. As well, God provided for the prophets of old. The prophets of old did not have 501©3 status nor did they have need to ask for contributions or sell their swag. They certainly did not have to do anything to promote their status or their mission. That’s all I have to say about that at this moment.

Verse 6 is the beginning of the decision. “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” There is no knowledge of God or knowledge of His word. There is little acceptance either, or at least to the extent that God expected. Why?

“Because you have rejected knowledge…” God said it. I didn’t. But because America has turned her back on Knowledge, kicked God out of the public school system, and banished His commandments from Court House walls. America, by and large, doesn’t have knowledge of God and, worse yet, doesn’t want it. God has rejected America as His priest and He has forgotten her children. If you don’t believe that then consider all this transgender abomination that is trying to prevail, and succeeding in some places, in our tax paid for public school systems. 

Verse 7 tells us that the more the people multiplied, the more the people sinned against Him. Consider that as America has grown and prospered in all areas, the more America has sinned against God. Homosexuality, Transgender, Asexuality are becoming rampant and shouting down, cancelling out, the voices that speak against such things. God said, “I will change their glory into shame.”

As verse 8 says, “They feed on the sin of My people and direct their desire toward their iniquity.” That’s pretty simple and it is easily observed and recognizable.

Verse 9 tells us it will be the same in people as it is in the priests. The Methodist Church as a denomination has churches leaving by the droves because of woke practices being deemed acceptable. And it’s not just the Methodist denomination either. Andy Stanley has adopted a woke stance in his church in Atlanta. Go and Google how to pray for a loved one who is homosexual or transgender and you will find page after page of church web sites telling you it is okay for those loved ones to be homosexual or transgender. 

Verse 10 tells the story. “They will eat, but not have enough; They will play the harlot, but not increase. Because they have stopped giving heed to the LORD!”

All this is playing out in our time, in our society, before our very eyes. Brother James saw it. I see it. Can you not see it? Do you not know? 

About three years ago, my brother called me and told me that he had a melanoma cancer on one of his eyes. He wanted me to pray for him, and I did. Before we hung up the phone I asked if I could sound a trumpet over the phone for him. 

He got really excited. “Yeah! Do that!”  So, I did. The melanoma was removed, his eyesight improved, and he had no further problems that I know of.

From then on, whenever we would talk on the phone, he would say, “Little brother, I guess it’s about time for me to hush. I got some other calls to make. But before I go, blow that horn for me.”

I’d sound the trumpet for him and when I got back on the phone he’d say, “That’s good! I like that! Now, son, blow it one more time.”

I never understood why he would always ask me to sound the trumpet one more time. That is, until the evening before we buried him.

You see, my nephew, Jamie, is a recovering addict. James and I had been praying for him for years. In July 2022, Jamie hung himself. My brother and sister-in-law found him and cut him down. Thankfully, he survived without any long lasting ill effects. He went into rehab, accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior, and was baptized in a muddy pond on the rehab facility’s property. He got a job. He got an apartment, and he has prospered.

The day before we buried my brother, Jamie preached his first sermon at that same rehab facility and four people surrendered their life to Jesus. On that same day, Jamie received his eleven month sobriety coin. When he returned to the funeral home for the visitation of his daddy, he put that eleven month sobriety coin in his daddy’s hand. Jamie was somewhat distraught that some folks at church had told him that he shouldn’t have been at church or going to preach at the rehab facility afterwards. They told him that he should be with his mother at the funeral home and with his family. 

Jamie’s response? “My daddy knew that I’d be here today. He knew that I was supposed to be here today. He knew what I’m here to do today. He would want me to be here. If what I do today helps to save just one more, just one more, that would make my daddy happy.” 

I believe that those first four that Jamie led to Christ are the first four of many more to come. But his remarks, “if what I do today helps to save one more, just one more….” Struck home with me.

You see my brother James knew that one day he was going to be gone from this world and that he was going to be waiting to hear a trumpet sound that would raise him from the grave. He wanted to know that sound. Another thing is that he understood, as his son had learned, that there was plenty of room in heaven of a lot of “one more’s”. For every “one more” there was an empty parking space in hell.

During the chapel services for my brother, the family had given opportunity for family and friends to say a few words about the impact that James Raymond had had on their lives.  

I spoke briefly. I said that if James were here today he would say, “Hey! You see this joy I’ve got? You want some joy? Let me tell you what Jesus did for me!” Afterwards, he’d say, “Don’t you want some of that joy?

You couldn’t talk to my brother for five minutes without talking about Jesus. The next thing that he’d say is, “Fellas, love your wife and family as Christ loved His church. Live a life of Godly leadership in your home that is worth following. Ladies, submit to your husband as unto Christ. He is there to honor, cherish, and protect you.”

At the grave site, I shared how James would always ask me to sound the trumpet one more time and how Jamie had said, “just one more”. I sounded the trumpets over my brother’s casket and I’m pretty sure he heard.

As long as I have God’s life giving breath in my body I’ll always sound that trumpet “one more time.”.

I wondered aloud to myself as I made the ten hour drive back home. How many weeks, months or years has the Lord ordained for me on this earth? Certainly, there are fewer years ahead of me than there are behind me. What does God want accomplished? 

Whatever the answer to that question is, I’m certain that it’s something that I can’t do on my own. I continue to read, study, and pray. I continue asking Holy Spirit for wisdom and guidance. 

I’m not a pastor. I know that. I’m not an apostle. I know that. I don’t believe that I’m an evangelist or a teacher. Some have referred to me as a prophet but I don’t claim that for myself. I do know, without doubt or hesitation, that I am a watchman. I watch over the apostle, the prophet, the pastor, the evangelist, and the teacher. I watch over my home, my church, my community and my city. I watch over counties and states and regions and indeed over a nation.

I am sending alarms and warnings that go largely unheeded. It is a lonely undertaking and the rejection and ridicule breaks my heart. Not in the fact that I receive rejection or ridicule on my part, but in the demise that I see coming upon the land. I don’t know how the prophets of old withstood the discipline or the responsibility. They said what they had to say and many died for it. 

So, where am I going with all this?

It all leads me around the mulberry bush to where I first started.

At sixty one years of age, God has blessed me with a modest but comfortable home. I love my family and they love me. I know that I don’t have another sixty years ahead of me. I’m believing and claiming thirty more years. But I’ll be happy with what God gives me. I’m reasonably healthy for a man my age. I don’t ask God for Him to bless whatever it is that I want to do. I look to see what God is doing and I align myself with that. I’ll continue to study and pray. I’ll continue sharing Bible study knowledge with whoever will read or listen. I’ll always be ready to sound the trumpet at the appointed times. I’ll always be ready to sound the trumpet “one more time.”

Someday, I’ll be like my brother, James Raymond, and others who have gone on before me. My soul and spirit will rest in the bosom of Abraham while my bones rest in a grave. I’ll be listening for THE trumpet of God. When I hear that, ain’t no grave going to hold me down.

Here’s the question. Is the grave going to hold you down? Do you know Jesus? Have you been faithful to the groom? Or have you played the harlot with the world thinking grace has covered you conscious, repetitive sin?  Have you endured to the end? Have you thought about, prayed about, anguished about “one more”? Or have you been satisfied knowing that you have your ticket and not worried about anyone else?

I didn’t put out an episode of The Watchman Speaks last week. That’s on me. I ask for your grace and God’s forgiveness. Vacation time is a good thing, but I neglected what I’d been given to do. Birthdays are a good thing, but I did not glorify God in my progressing with age. I was somewhat ill. But I languished in that I did not immediately resist the devil and anoint myself or my wife with oil and tell the devil that the Lord rebukes him. 

But I praise God for the lesson that I learned from my brother and my nephew to never give up on acquiring “one more” for the kingdom. 

I am not ashamed of my failure to produce a podcast last week. Although I failed, it was not intentional. I learned a lesson that makes me more determined to not fail in the future. I learned the value of sounding a trumpet “one more time” and the necessity of sharing the full Gospel so that “one more” doesn’t have to suffer for eternity. There’s always room in heaven for “one more.”

I am The Old Watchman, Ezekiel. You have been warned!

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