THE BREAD BASKET

There was once a steeplejack who fell from his lofty perch while on the job and was severely injured. As the ambulance was rushing him to the hospital, the injured man told the attendant that he was definitely switching careers. 'When did you make your decision?" the attendant queried. "About halfway down!" was the quick response.

Such was my own conversion experience. In September of 1954 my dad came down with tetanus and wasn't able to work for a year. But as we came home from school each evening, he'd always give my brother James and me some instructions before we went to the barn to do our afternoon chores.

It was February of 1955, and after school one evening, my dad told me the number of hay bales I was supposed to put down the hay hole for the cows. So, following his instructions, I climbed to the peak of the barn and pulled on my first bale of hay. But wouldn't you know it, the twine around the bale tore, I lost my balance and I fell down backwards to the barn floor! When landing, I took several somersaults backwards and also fell down the hay hole, finding myself in the feeding entry beneath. I got up, and even though I was a bit dazed, I walked away from what could have been serious injury or even death. God had been gracious!

Several weeks later, the late Brother Hartman Rice was conducting evangelistic services at church. Now, for some time God had been calling me to become a Christian, but my resisting heart had been saying No! Well, you can imagine it didn't take me very long at all to make up my mind what I ought to do. On Monday evening, March 7, 1955, during the singing of "Just As I Am," I stepped out into the aisle and went forward to receive Christ as my Savior -and as I looked around, my brother James had come to join me!

When did I actually make up my mind to become a Christian? Actually, it was in the haymow--about halfway down!