My maternal great grandfather, Spencer S. Beaver (1845-1921), was a well-known Brethren pastor and evangelist. (Regarding evangelistic work, the October 29, 1921 edition of The Gospel Messenger states that, “in this field of service he was very successful, holding ninety-two series of meetings during his long ministry.”) Great grandpa was sometimes called to do evangelistic work in out-of-the-way places.
On one occasion he was called to preach in a community where they used a one room school as their meetinghouse. On the first night of the evangelistic effort, only one person showed up. So when he got up to preach, great grandpa turned and preached his entire sermon to the blackboard. It is said that the next night the schoolhouse was packed! In every obstacle we find along the pathway of life, there is opportunity for positive thinking and creativity. Great grandpa was indeed creative in his approach to a one person audience!
In ancient times, there was a king who had a huge boulder placed on a well traveled roadway so that it almost blocked the path. Then the king concealed himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the rock. Many people, including some of the king’s wealthiest merchants and courtiers, came to the huge stone and navigated their way around it. Most of them loudly blamed the king for not keeping the roads clear and for having their travel impeded. None of them, however, did anything about getting the huge stone out of the way.
Then a peasant came along, carrying a load of vegetables. On approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded.
As the peasant picked up his load of vegetables to proceed on his way, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse was full of gold coins and a note from the king indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway.
The peasant learned that day what great grandpa clearly understood, in that, every obstacle we find along the path of life presents an opportunity for positive thinking and creativity. What obstacles is the “King” allowing along your pathway? Learn a creative lesson from great grandpa and deal with the obstacle, even if it means preaching to a blackboard.
March/April 2003