I love this story, because
it reminds me that God will always send
someone to intervene for one of His children, and pick
them up when they are in trouble. He said He would never leave
us nor forsake us.
Well, true to His Word, God rescued me at the tender age of 9, through a man named Jerry Varn. Jerry Varn, now deceased, was an upstanding citizen in the town of Ehrhardt, SC, & later went on to become the Ehrhardt Town Mayor, as well as being a graduate of the Citadel, and a true southern gentleman. He and his wife, Gwen, are owners of "Broxton Bridge Plantation". He died last year, in 2007, and had a "Confederate Funeral", complete with compatriots dressed in their period costumes from the Confederacy, at his funeral.
But let's get to the story! I was about 9 years old, and my Daddy, and 3 of my brothers, and my sister, were all standing around under a huge old pecan tree in our yard, and Jerry Varn and a friend were visiting and talking to my Daddy outside under this tree.
I was on the back screened in porch of our old home place, and my mama was on the porch shelling peas or something like that, and I decided I wanted to go out to where they were all standing. I heard them laughing and so I didn't want to miss out on any fun.
I left our backporch and started to make a beeline toward the old pecan tree where they were, but I was headed off at the pass by no less than one of those snakes that seem to be rolling like a whip. It was rolling around and around and as I got in it's path~it then began chasing ME!
Oh boy did this ever scare me! I then picked up my slow leisurely pace and all of a sudden began running like my life depended on it! I was actually scared and believed, in my little child's mind, that the snake was trying to kill me.. . so then I began to run even harder, and I ran straight toward my Daddy & Jerry Varn. I thought that my Daddy would rescue me somehow, but they were all laughing, seeing that whip snake chase me. However, Jerry Varn saw my streaked face full of tears, and as I ran by, he simply reached down, with his towering 7 foot tall frame, and picked me up, legs kicking and all. He just picked me way up in the air, and the snake ran through the gauntlet, so to speak.
Yes, Jerry Varn rescued me from that snake. I will never forget it as long as I live either. I felt that God sent him to pick me up and save me, and do you know what? God always seemed to send someone to "pick me up" like that, each time I was down, in all aspects of my life. It was a precursor of things to come. Jerry Varn seemed like a giant to me then , with his tall almost 7 foot tall frame, but I was sure glad that he was there to save me. God knew just who to send.
I never got to thank him for saving me from that snake, but I will always remember his kindness to me, and this just goes to show how one random act of kindness can truly change someone's life for the better. It sure did mine!
So, who can YOU "pick up" today, with a smile, a word of kindness, or some piece of your heart~ you can even share words, thoughts, poems, stories, to bless others, or you can bake a cake, a batch of cookies, and take them to someone. There are lots of ways you can "pick someone up".....
So, who will YOU "pick up" today?
Ya'll come back now, ya hear?
Marty Clayton Banfield
email: lastdays@bellsouth.net
Well, true to His Word, God rescued me at the tender age of 9, through a man named Jerry Varn. Jerry Varn, now deceased, was an upstanding citizen in the town of Ehrhardt, SC, & later went on to become the Ehrhardt Town Mayor, as well as being a graduate of the Citadel, and a true southern gentleman. He and his wife, Gwen, are owners of "Broxton Bridge Plantation". He died last year, in 2007, and had a "Confederate Funeral", complete with compatriots dressed in their period costumes from the Confederacy, at his funeral.
But let's get to the story! I was about 9 years old, and my Daddy, and 3 of my brothers, and my sister, were all standing around under a huge old pecan tree in our yard, and Jerry Varn and a friend were visiting and talking to my Daddy outside under this tree.
I was on the back screened in porch of our old home place, and my mama was on the porch shelling peas or something like that, and I decided I wanted to go out to where they were all standing. I heard them laughing and so I didn't want to miss out on any fun.
I left our backporch and started to make a beeline toward the old pecan tree where they were, but I was headed off at the pass by no less than one of those snakes that seem to be rolling like a whip. It was rolling around and around and as I got in it's path~it then began chasing ME!
Oh boy did this ever scare me! I then picked up my slow leisurely pace and all of a sudden began running like my life depended on it! I was actually scared and believed, in my little child's mind, that the snake was trying to kill me.. . so then I began to run even harder, and I ran straight toward my Daddy & Jerry Varn. I thought that my Daddy would rescue me somehow, but they were all laughing, seeing that whip snake chase me. However, Jerry Varn saw my streaked face full of tears, and as I ran by, he simply reached down, with his towering 7 foot tall frame, and picked me up, legs kicking and all. He just picked me way up in the air, and the snake ran through the gauntlet, so to speak.
Yes, Jerry Varn rescued me from that snake. I will never forget it as long as I live either. I felt that God sent him to pick me up and save me, and do you know what? God always seemed to send someone to "pick me up" like that, each time I was down, in all aspects of my life. It was a precursor of things to come. Jerry Varn seemed like a giant to me then , with his tall almost 7 foot tall frame, but I was sure glad that he was there to save me. God knew just who to send.
I never got to thank him for saving me from that snake, but I will always remember his kindness to me, and this just goes to show how one random act of kindness can truly change someone's life for the better. It sure did mine!
So, who can YOU "pick up" today, with a smile, a word of kindness, or some piece of your heart~ you can even share words, thoughts, poems, stories, to bless others, or you can bake a cake, a batch of cookies, and take them to someone. There are lots of ways you can "pick someone up".....
So, who will YOU "pick up" today?
Ya'll come back now, ya hear?
Marty Clayton Banfield
email: lastdays@bellsouth.net
