Reverend Willie’s HorseShoe Nail Sermon

        It was a golden day in the Tennessee hills. After the congregation had sung the last refrains of “Love Lifted Me,” Reverend Willie Coot grabbed hold of his solid oak pulpit and leaned in, his black face shining from the inside out with the glory of God. Reverend Willie’s wiry white hair crowned his head like some kind of afterglow had change the molecular construction of its texture. His contagious enthusiasm panned the room like a lighthouse beacon into the faces of his fold as he eyeballed each member of his flock, taking in the left side of the congregation first, then moving toward the right, Nodding, Reverend Willie said with a deep commanding boom, “Brothers and Sisters, take a seat, but don’t get too comfortable cause I’s got me a powerful message to give you all today, and I wants you to be listenin’ close.”

        As the congregation of the Free Will Baptist Church took their seats, they smiled at their pastor, then each other, speaking momentarily among themselves in whispers. Reverend Willie was hot today. Expectation was in the air.

        Grimacing a bit, he continued, “Now, before I gets all rowled up preachin’ God’s word here, Brother Leroy, would you be so kind as to open a few of them windows facin’ Miller’s Pond over yonder. The Good Lawd done give us some sweet fragrances out doors today, and this stuffy room could use some freshnin’. Way I see it God don’t like stuffy pastors preaching, and no smart pastor of God’s word going t’ be preachin’ in a stuffy room cause folks be fallin’ asleep. Open em wide Brother,” Reverend Willie grinned.

        “Amen Pasta. Consider it done.” Brother Leroy replied, lifting the last of the wood framed windows.

        The congregation laughed. Reverend Willie had a sense of humor that made him down home and comfortable to his people.

        Clearing his throat, Reverend Willie began; “Now that I’s got everybody’s attention here, I suppose you is wonderin’ what I been inspired to speak to you all about today. I bet you all be thinking because I said I was going to get all rowled up that it be something big, but I done fooled you this time because I’m going to be talkin’ about little stuff today…the little things we do and say, and how they affects us and the folks around us. Fact is, when I got to prayin’ and ponderin’ lots of little things here and there, I done decided ain’t nothin’ really little in the end after all. All stuff is big, or ends up that way, so we gotta be careful and think about what we do for we be doin’ it so we can carry on and conduct our life with respect and dignity, doin’ good works and all, but I’s getting’ a little ahead of myself here, so hold on to yo' seats.”

        A few “Amens” and “I’m ready Brothers,” floated across the room toward Reverend Willie.

        “Maybe some of you has heard the story poem in school books about a horse losin’ the nail in his shoe, then fore everone knew it, horse tripped and feel and got killed, then the soldier runnin’ the whole show o’ the army ridin’ him fell too and ‘fore ever’one knowd what happened there, the whole army lost the war and da kingdom itself fell, and it all started with that there nail in the horse’s shoe…jist a little thing, that done sprung up big things into action messin’ everythin’ up.” That’s the way it is when we gets some little thing someone did to us under our craw and harbors it. Stuff just keeps getting’ bigger till we lose it all, includin’ the kingdom, cept this time I’m talkin’ bout the kindom o’ God. Pretty soon we’s all crazy and set on revenge, be gossipin’ to our brother and sisters in Christ ‘bout what our ‘nother brother or sister in the Lawd done did to us, makin’ him look evil as the devil hisself when we be needin’ to rake some leaves in our own back yard first, speakin’ of which; we needs some young men to volunteer to do some rakin’ of them leaves outside on church grounds after services. Do I gots any willin’ servants of the Lawd be volunteering to take on the challenge?”

        Reverend Willie glanced over to where several of Mrs. Murphy’s strong young teens, Daniel, Tim and Matthew, sat by their mama wearing bibbed overalls and bright flannel shirts.

        Daniel put up his hand and said, “Yes sir. I be doing that. I loves to rake leaves. Ask my mama.” Daniel looked at his Mama expectantly.

        “Yes Reverend, he do, as long as you don’t mind him playin’ in em first and messin’ em up first,” Mrs. Murphy said grinnin’.

        “Dat be fine by me Sista’” he responded with a spontaneous smile. “Lawd likes his lambs havin’ cheerful hearts when they serve him and Daniel here gots a right to rake them leaves with a little fun mixed in as long as he do a good job in the end. Don’t you agree folks?” Reverend Willie asked.

        Everybody laughed and said, “Amen”.

        Daniel blushed as his mama grabbed hold of him with her large fleshy arm and gave her eldest son a big squeeze of approval.

        “Now, back to da subject of little stuff. Good example just now is I got myself sidetracked from preaching this sermon this morning, the most important thing going on, over somethin’ little blowing outside them windows, and that be them leaves, cept I ain’t gonna be lettin’ them leaves mess up this sermon. Devil be gone. Nope. I done used them as a little example in a big way here. Don’t you love it folks, when we beats the devil at his own game?”

        A strong chorus of amens floated across the room.

        Reverend Willie sighed.

        “Was out by Miller’s pond the other day with my boy Isaac Elias, fixin’ to catch some catfish. Had my pole in the water and a thermos o’ hot chocolate Sister Coot prepared with her lovin’ hands for us bright and early that mornin’ along with some bakin’ powder biscuits warm from da oven loaded with honey from my own hive sweet as mana from heaven. Had my mind set on what was gonna take place and what I’s gonna be eatin’ that night fer supper. I was full of expectation. Bugs was flittin’ and flyin’ on top of the water and I caught site of a few fish swimmin’ close to the surface when out of the blue, a little white kid whose daddy never taught him no better, threw a rock in the water and it began to ripplin’. Now, that rock was jist a little thing, but it got me goin’ inside, cause my potential supper was scatterin’ in all directions on account of that rock. My boy knows better than to do some fool thing like toss a rock in the water while a man is tryin’ to catch his supper, and ‘fore I could stop him, he done called out to the little kid who throwd the rock and said, “Hey! What you do somethin’ dumb like that for? You went and scared all the fish away.”

        Next thing I knowd, not only was my supper gone over that little rock, but that boy’s daddy, who happened to be fishin’ down the bank, was bad mouthin’ me on account of my boy bad reprimanded his son. I almost lost my tongue, but held back and made Isaac apologize for saying the little boy was dumb, but, to tell you the truth, he couldn’t have been too smart, cause his daddy had him fishin’ with a stick and a string and no hook sittin’ on the bank beside him ‘fore he threw that rock. Shame on me. Devil got my tongue. Be gone in the name of Jesus!” Reverend Willie shouted with authority. Then more softly stated, “Lawd forgive me!” Willie rolled his big brown eyes heavenward in reluctant surrender.

        The congregation roared with laughter.

        “Now, Isaac. That don’t make what you said or did right. Do you hear me Son?” Reverend Willie said sternly, pointing to his five year old son sitting in the front pew by his mother.

        “Yes Sir,” Isaac responded with repentant downcast eyes.

        Sympathetic “awwwhhhs” and one or two “such a sweeet childs” were heard throughout the room.

        “So folks,” Reverend Willie boomed. “Maybe I didn’t catch me no cat fish that day, but I caught me a good sermon from the experience, and I’s here to preach it this morning. God be praised! The message is that the dog may be little but the bite can kill. We gotta be careful with the little things. The wrong spice we put in the pie can ruin the whole thing. My sainted mother, God rest her soul, once threw some mustard instead of cinnamon into a gorgeous pumpkin pie she baked shortly ‘fore God took her home when she was goin’ blind. Believe me, it took a whole lot of prayin’ to swallow each bite in order not to hurt her feelings, and get on with the meal, and that is the way it is with the little things that set us off course of who we is and what we need to be doin’ as God’s chillin’. Sometimes it takes a whole lot of restraint and praying to not say or do them little things and to swallow them and get on with life. Devil is subtle. Someone steps on our little toe when we is bare foot and we knows it and it affects our whole walk. Same thing. Little things can grow and get way outta hand. I heard some fancy city man on the educational channel on television, the only channel, by the way, that I lets my chillin watch on that devil box, say somethin’ I thought was pretty foolish one night. He said some butterfly flits his wings here in Tennessee and it gonna affect somethin’ at the tip of South America. That’s a heap of power to credit some critter with. Sounds crazy to me, but I’s just a mortal man, and now I’s been givin’ some seriouis thought to what that fella was sayin’”. I just know, the good Lawd made me aware this week in a mighty way of how careful we gotta be in givin’ consideration to all we do or say. Is you all in agreement with that?”

        Amens and yes we are brothers filled the room.

        All at once, little Rowena Washington squeeled and pointed toward the window. “Look Pastor! Look what’s comin’ to church.!”

        A monarch butterfuly flitted through the open window and began to hover near the flowers Sister Grace had placed on the old pump organ in the front of the church.

        “I do believe the good Lawd sent us a sign of confirmation folks. What you think!” Reverend Willie shouted, wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

        Applause filled the room. As big hands and little hands clapped, somehow the world became a happier place, as far away as the Cape of Good Hope.

    Jennifer Grant