Читать книгу Sitting With The Sages - Clifford E. Mclain - Страница 13

Frederick George Sampson II

I first met Frederick George Sampson II at Bishop College in Dallas, Texas. He was the preacher during the Lacey Kirk Minister’s Institute of 1973. His sermon was entitled, “A Conversation with Mr. Drift Wood.” C. C. introduced me to him; they were classmates at bishop when the college was located in Marshall, Texas. F. G. was a brilliant student with a triple major.

Born in Port Arthur, Texas, F. G. graduated from high school and Bishop College, Howard University of Washington, DC. F. G. studied medicine, sociology, and was ready to quote passages from Shakespeare’s many writings. When I greeted him in Monroe, Louisiana, at the airport to travel to Ruston to begin the 1974 revival, he said to those accompanying me, “You know, when I met this boy, I knew his daddy, so he said, ‘You believe in my father, believe also in me.” After the first hot night, a Sunday, word spread. The faculty members from Grambling College and nearby Louisiana Tech came early to assure themselves a seat. There were people everywhere in the Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church.

F. G. was a master storyteller. He said, “Beautiful letters and pretty pictures” are something. I’ll never forget this story as told by him:

During World War II, an elderly woman lived in a rundown house. The shingles were loose and falling, the paint was undermined by the weather, the lawn was unkept, and the walk up steps revealed cracks in the concrete. The neighbors, concerned and curious about her well-being, called the city health department. A worker came to the house to check on the elderly citizen. Upon entering, she noticed the inside of the home was in the same condition as the outside. The rugs on the floor were worn, wallpaper cracking and falling. The furniture needed repair, and some pieces needed replacing.

The city worker thought to herself, We have to move this poor woman to a home of some kind.

The worker began to talk to the elderly but cheerful resident. “Do you live alone?” she asked.

“Yes,” the elderly woman replied.

“But your attitude doesn’t match your surroundings.”