Rockingham post-dispatch. [volume] (Rockingham, N.C.) 1917-1965, 1922-07-27
McLENDON'S LIFE.
Story OF How Checkered Career Was Left Behind
and How Cyclone Mack Became Child Of
God. Story Told By Himself in Sermon att
Rockingham, N. G., July, 1922.

a.
! ana rivers to stream, had condo
scended to put his hand on lttl:
insignificant illiterate boy and cal
/ him to preach.
Sat and Trembled.
4 sat and tiembled and shook like
a leaf in the autumn wind. For DAYS
my meals remained dntasted and
my sleep left me, and could see
Dr. Carradinc walking the rostrilm
and singing the Prince OF, Peace is
now passing, Tie light of his face is
on me, and when | was sinking
down and dov.u beneath Gods right
ecus frown, Cslrist laid aside His
.lUwn for NO, would walk the
floor at night and wiring my handa
and beg Tod TO take the cali away
fic.n me. Very often at O'Clock III
the morning would go way out IN
al, did darA orchard and get on NY
II ees ard put tay head against Il,
old peach tree Il at leaned tow ,..'s
the east anG neg t.cd to relieve s,a
oi lie call VI preaching
Then nc told uw he left home 10
git away rom a religious atns.&.
lphere and holy environment - |
deliberately went oft into lifs n!
sin to murd r that monitor that Wne
in his breast; to kill the footprints
of deity, that was in his soul" Here
he described how sin stabbed his
conscience and although he went
north and south and east and west
it made no difference. If he was on
the Bowery in New York, or five
miles under a coal mine or in sa
loon singing stale beer while chips
were rafting and dice q rolling and
beer bottles popping and mon swear
ing and disappearing, God would
speak and say, Mack you are throw
ing away your life. have called
you to preach
Psalm 6G:lG: Come and hear all
We that fear God and will declare
what He hath done for my SOUL /
hadn't been to a church or darkened
the door of any means OF grace in
six years except one. was in
Wadesboro and on one occasion
my wife, who was from Good Pres
byterian stock, persuaded me to go
to q little Presbyterian church, and
n went to sleep on the pastor, much
to her regret and Humiliation and
to my condemnation. | had gone
down the sin line until my brain
was clouded by dissipation; d NOR
al derelict, on the mat ready to take
the count, nothing more than a
danger signal, hung up to warn the
coming generation; home o hell,
mothers heart broken, fathers hopes
blighted.
| think one of the first things that
made me think was this: Brown,
who managed my shop. passed by
my fathers home and my mother
called him in and asked him how
l was getting along. / hadn't been
home for some time, and Brown told
her that I was going at the same old
gait, and he said she looked at him
and the tears ran down her face, and
she sobbed and said: Baxter, Lbe-
lieve, is gone; we have Just aN,ut
given him up and we have held on
to God for him for years and i'll
seems now that he has passed re-
demption.' She said there was go-
ing to begin a revival in Benefits
vile in few days and if that didn't
reach me was gone. Brown came
on to the shop and told me the con-
yersation he had with my mother,
how she wept over my lost condi-
ton. ] told him / had troubles Of
my own and never to mention to
me anything that my people said
about me. But when thought OF
my old broken-hearted mother, with
her tear-stained face, weeping over
my happiness, and what little Joy l
had was turned into wornw0od.
Not Interested.
wasn't interested in the coming |
revival. / cared nothing about the
preacher, nor the promoters; It never
entered my head to have anything |
to do with it, but the day arrived
when they began 10 erect the odd
tent in about IS yards of my place Of
business. can see it going up
around the poles now. That night
they. had their first service. l wasn't
interested; ! had no idea of going
about the place. closed my shop
al s o'clock and none of the local.
talent was on hand for the game. / i
went over to the hotel to see if there
we're any travelling men that could
corral and bring in, but they were
conspicuous by their absence. This
vas the first night in q long time
thc devotees Of the spots weren't 81
lie job. 1 waited d while, hut they L