Lay It on Me

26 / L AY I T ON M E

Knowledge begets confidence, and I knew that I was in God's will. Had I not known this, I would have fainted. There were many times when I felt like quitting and going back to Moab, defeated by discouragement. Yet, I knew God had called me. D ISCOURAGED BY F AMILY At age 16, I announced to my family that I was called to preach. Nobody was excited but me. No one close to me really believed I was actually called to preach, and I knew why. Friends and family knew me too well. I loved sports. I "cut up" all the time. I was never serious about anything. Granddad said I could have been a comedian. Most thought I was caught up in an emotional moment and after a sermon or two, my desire to preach would subside. My father, who had been in ministry for over 45 years, did more than anyone to discourage me. About a month before I preached my first sermon in his church, Dad became very negative, telling me difficult and discouraging things about ministry. He never said an encouraging word to me. Years later, I asked him why he was so negative. He said he knew if his words could discourage me, then I was never called to preach. If his discouragement did not deter me, however, then he felt I was truly called. Dad's insight and logic was correct. When I asked my grandfather if I could come to his church in Gorman, Maryland, he thought I was coming to play the