A couple years ago, Bro. Cecil Robinson, who in my opinion is one of the
greatest God-called preachers of today, preached a wonderful message at
our church.  The message was titled, "One Man Can Make a Difference." Without a doubt, if a person truly believes those few words, lives can be changed.

      All we have to do is just take a positive step in faith and God will be there
to lead and guide our way.
 
     For me, there was one man in particular who made a lasting impression in
my life; that was my daddy, Tulon Jackson.  I will always believe that he was
one of the greatest men ever born.  I know for a fact that he was one of
the most truthful men I have ever known.  Even though he is no longer with us,
his memory and teachings will stay with me throughout my life.

     Daddy taught his six children many different things during his lifetime,
but teaching the value of being honest, was probably one of the things he
considered of the utmost importance to instill inside his children.  I can
recall growing up and realizing that people had a tremendous amount of
trust in my daddy.  I often heard people remark of how they knew that if Tulon
Jackson told them something, they could take it as the truth.

     Now, Daddy was a preacher and we were brought up going to church.  Back
then, as a young child, I thought we went to church just about all the time.  He
also believed in children and adults paying attention during church services. When I say "pay attention," I'm talking about 100% Undivided Attention!

     Daddy sure didn't like people to run in and out of the sanctuary to go to the bathroom or to get a drink of water.  If his children needed to go to the bathroom, it had better be an emergency!  That meant if we wanted to go to the bathroom or get a drink, we had better take care of all that before the church service started.

     I can still recall how, when Daddy was talking to others or if he was preaching, and young children, or anyone else for that matter, started talking and he felt that he was not being heard properly, he would often just stop speaking and wait until he had everyone's complete attention.   You talk about getting the audience quiet, Daddy's unique way of handling the situation just about always took care of any extra noise or talking that should not have been going on!

     Daddy was also a man that many people took advantage of time and time
again.  While I was growing up, many, many times I saw him so willingly lend out valuable equipment for people to use.  Sadly though, very often the
equipment, when returned, would be damaged and require a lot of expense
and work to be repaired.  To my knowledge, I don't guess he ever took any
measures or steps to have anything done to the person who had wronged him.
I guess the way Daddy handled those situations  was usually to lend again.
His actions must have been from the strong belief in 'Turn the other cheek.'

     Daddy loved the Lord and he loved going to church.  I believe one of the
things he probably enjoyed the most was going out into the woods alone to
read his Bible and pray.  During my younger years, in between Sunday church
services, I often saw Daddy get his Bible and walk off into the woods, where
he would spend the afternoon reading and praying.  After the long hours he
worked during the week, I believe he always looked forward to his Sunday
afternoons of spending time with the Lord.

     When I was very young, I had asthma.  Actually, I still do, but when I was a
young child, my asthma was very severe.  I was sickly and, at times, especially during the winter months, I would often be so sick that I was unable to get out of bed. In fact, my mother said that sometimes I had such strong spells of wheezing and rattling (in my chest), that it would look like the bed was almost shaking.  

     Even though those times were not your normal happy memories, I can look back and see that something good did come from that period of my life.  I have memories that I will forever cherish, of how Daddy, time and time again, came and knelt down by my bedside to pray for me before he would go out to work. I believe his prayers were heard and answered, because in time, my asthma became mild and now I only have occasional problems with it.

     Back to us going to church so much... often our means of transportation to
church was just a little unusual.  Evidently, Daddy, through his family/children, was still carrying on some of the older traditions he had grown up with.  I recall going to church many times in one of Daddy's old work trucks that he used at the sawmill.  Those trucks that have the rough wooden sideboards, but no rails or tailgate at the back.  Mother would often bring along a blanket or quilt, which we (the children) would lie down on.  And that's the way we traveled many trips to and from church. If the weather was bad, we often had to all pile into the cab of the truck.  Now, keep in mind, I'm not talking about the nice extended cabs that we have nowadays, but I'm talking about a regular cab of Daddy's old work truck.  I don't know which ride was the most uncomfortable, riding on the back of one of those old trucks or riding (packed in like sardines) in the cab of the truck.  Those rides may have been memorable, but they sure weren't comfortable.
 
     I am so thankful of the valuable lessons I received from such a great man.  I
believe that I was extra blessed to grow up in a home where such good and
important values were taught.  I am so thankful for my Christian Heritage.  My
daddy, Tulon Jackson, was my hero; he most definitely was "One Man Who
Made a Difference!"

     I hope you have a safe and happy month. Until next time, Take care and God
bless!

Editor's Note:  Trudy is a writer, singer, songwriter and Pastor's wife in Booneville, MS, and we are so happy to have her  as a new Contributing Writer for the CCGNews.  All comments and questions can be directed to Trudy at trudyfeatherston@yahoo.com or through the CCGNews.

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