AT WIT’S END CORNER
At their wit’s end, they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out (Psalm 107:27, 28).
Are you standing at Wit’s End Corner," Christian, with troubled brow?
Are you thinking of what is before you, And all you are bearing now?
Does all the world seem against you,
And you in the battle alone?
Remember — at "Wit’s End Corner,"
Is just where God’s power is shown.
Are you standing at "Wit’s End Corner," Blinded with wearying pain,
Feeling you cannot endure it,
You cannot bear the strain,
Bruised through the constant suffering, Dizzy, and dazed, and numb?
Remember — at "Wit’s End Corner"
Is where Jesus loves to come.
Are you standing at "Wit’s End Corner"? Your work before you spread,
All lying begun, unfinished,
And pressing on heart and head,
Longing for strength to do it,
Stretching out trembling hands?
Remember — at "Wit’s End Corner"
The Burden-bearer stands.
Are you standing at "Wit’s End Corner"? Then you’re just in the very spot
To learn the wondrous resources
Of Him who faileth not:
No doubt to a brighter pathway
You footsteps will soon be moved,
But only at "Wit’s End Corner"
Is the "God who is able" proved.
—Antoinette Wilson
This scripture and poem are from my favorite devotional book, Streams in the Desert, Vol I. I have used this book for many years; it seems that so often a selection comes just at a time when it answers a special need in my life. This scripture — given so clearly, so simply, and so applicable to everyday life — is so like our God. Who of us has not said, "I’m at my wit’s end"? I looked through other books I occasionally use, Awake My Heart, by Dr. J. Sidlow Baxter, and My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers, and found further thoughts on "wit’s end" or ‘tether’s end." Better Bible scholars than I can quote many more I am sure.
We come to this place in life so often. Students attempt to crowd facts into their minds in a brief time of preparing for testing and feel they have reached their wit’s end. A mother called just this week and said, "My child is in her exams and they are so hard, please pray for her." So we did cry unto the Lord on behalf of that one.
As parents rearing our families when the little ones tugged at our apron strings and in later years at our heart strings, we often felt the need to "cry unto the Lord," Oswald Chambers puts it, "There are stages in life when there is no storm, no crisis, when we do our human best; it is when a crisis arises that we instantly reveal upon whom we rely. If we have been learning to worship God and to trust Him, the crisis will reveal that we will go to the breaking point and not break in our confidence in Him." And further, "When a man is at his wit’s end, it is not a cowardly thing to pray, it is the only way he can get into touch with reality. Be yourself before God and present your problems, the things you know you have come to the wit’s end over. As long as you are self-sufficient, you do not need to ask God for anything."
Many years ago in a Sunday morning worship service Granddaddy Waller prayed for a much-needed rain. That afternoon as he tended the livestock a bolt of lightning knocked him down in the hallway of the barn. The next day a gentleman was joking at Mr. G. C. McElroy’s store about Percy Waller praying for rain and lightning striking him. Mr. Cleveland is said to have come from behind the counter, have shaken his finger in the other’s face, and have said, "Now, you listen, young man, we do not make light of praying to God!"
Dr. Baxter states, "The exigencies of modern life tend to engender this ‘end-of-your-tether’ extremity. The pressure of present-day business and domestic problems wears thousands of people down both nervously and spiritually. There are more neurotics and druggists today in this tense, complex, speed-mad, competitive western civilization of ours than ever before. Our forefathers lived by the calendar; today we live by the clock. With measured tread, our grandsires used to go an hour before time for a railway train; today their grandchildren are impatient if a revolving door swings round too slowly."
Perhaps being a farmer’s wife thirty-six years has made me more conscious of the weather and other uncontrollable elements. Three years ago this spring we had rain every day for weeks. Desperation prevailed with all the farmers in our community. During the invitational hymn following a Sunday morning worship service I felt that God wanted us to pray as a congregation that rain would stop. I went down and expressed this to our pastor. He then shared my thoughts with the congregation and we did have prayer. God honored that prayer and the rain ceased. Later Bill Briscoe said, "Miss Patsy, why hadn’t you done that a long time ago?" In sincere honesty I said, "Bill, I only followed what I felt God telling me at the time." If only I could always remember when I cannot cope that He is there. Again, Dr. Baxter says, "It is really a coming to the end of one’s resources with a sense of sickening helplessness and heartbreaking destitution."
My sister Ava asked me recently if I prayed for healing of my inner ear condition. I do. As yet God has not taken this step in my life; however, I am convinced that whatever my problem may be if He does not remove it, He will give me needed strength with which to cope. He is waiting before I reach my wit’s end to carry me through.
Seeking a quiet spot, I sit beneath a huge oak tree in the pasture on a hill overlooking the cropland. As one of the smallest birds perches on a branch, I am reminded that "His eye is on the sparrow and I know He watches over me," when I feel at my wit’s end. Later walking through Clear Creek cemetery I am reminded that for each of these graves there were those left who must surely have felt the end of their world had come. Hopefully they "cried unto the Lord and He brought them out."
We can and should be so sensitive to others that we sense their feelings even before they are at their wit’s end. Each day we encounter those whose burdens are heavy and who need encouragement. We are reminded that we can cry unto the Lord on their behalf and in His way, He will surely bring them out.
When you feel at the end of your tether, remember that Christ is at the other end. (J. Sidlow Baxter)
Don and Patsy Waller Accept Membership into the National Selected Morticians
• National Selected Morticians is an organization of leading funeral directors in more than 800 cities in this country and abroad. Since its founding in 1917, its members have been dedicated to creating and upholding the higher standards of funeral service.
• A primary purpose of NSM is to bring together funeral directors of high ideals to provide the broadest spectrum of knowledge, experience, and skills on behalf of the families and communities they serve.
• Membership in NSM is by invitation and is extended only after meticulous observation of character, service, performance, responsibility, and facilities.
• More than half a century of achievement and strict adherence to NSM’s concept of responsibility gives special distinction to those firms which are members of National Selected Morticians.
MAKING AN INFORMED DECISION ABOUT OUTER RECEPTACLES
In the last issue of SEASONS we discussed the different types of caskets available to the consumer. In this issue we are presenting information to enable you to make an informed decision regarding burial vaults.
A burial vault is the outer burial receptacle. The vault is placed in the grave and the casket is placed inside the vault. The vault protects the casket against the penetration of moisture, the weight of the earth, and the elements in the subsoil.
As with caskets, vaults differ in construction, style and price. The most popular and widely used outer burial container in our area is the concrete vault. These vaults are constructed of high-strength concrete, weighing from 2000 to 3000 pounds and are tested to withstand over 4500 pounds per square inch, The vaults seal with a tongue and groove seal. The tongue and groove are sealed with a specially formulated compound of butyl that merges base and cover to form a sealed single integral unit.
People often have a misconception that vaults are quite expensive. Prices vary according to construction and style. The price of concrete vaults is determined by the amount of concrete used in construction and the material used in lining the vault. Vaults are lined with a specially formulated material with varying degrees of high-impact strength and are completely impervious to water or moisture. Such features as imprinting names and dates on the vault and the availability of color selections to coordinate with the casket selection also affect cost.
Alternative outer burial containers such as concrete and wooden boxes are occasionally used, and information on these is available at the funeral home.
As with the information on casket selection provided in the last issue, this information is offered to help you become more familiar with the merchandise available for a funeral service. We will be glad to discuss details with you at any time.
IN MEMORIAM
We dedicate this issue of SEASONS to those who have died and whose families we have served from February 22, 1988 to May 23, 1988.
Mr. Arthur William "Bill" Gray 2/29/88
Mr. Raymond Carl Bumgardner 3/2/88
Mr. Richard D. Harper 3/3/88
Mrs. Marvel Kisner Sanders 3/5/88
Mrs. Leora Starkey Hewlett 3/8/88
Mrs. Juanita Hardaway Gray 3/9/88
Mrs. Shirley Rogers Stephens 3/9/88
Mr. Wadelow Q. Stewart 3/14/88
Mrs. Ann Marie Mann 3/14/88
Mrs. Ora Rikard Matthews 3/16/88
Mrs. Barbara Teal Vance 3/16/88
Mr. Johnny Wayne Henderson 3/19/88
Mr. Ernest Charles Fogerty 3/20/88
Mrs. Kate Burks Baker 3/22/88
Mrs. Ruby Jennings Harrison 3/23/88
Mr. David Kelly Miller 3/27/88
Mr. Hugh Dean Massey 4/1/88
Mrs. Katie Heard Bell 4/2/88
Dr. William Parks Grant 4/5/88
Mrs. Inez Greer Cantin 4/7/88
Mrs. Verla Mae Carroll 4/12/88
Mrs. Elsie McAbee Beckworth 4/15/88
Mrs. Catharine Saner Fox 4/19/88
Mrs. Ruby Lurline Davis 4/22/88
Mr. Kenneth "Skin" Knight 4/28/88
Mrs. Cordie VanWinkle Harmon 4/30/88
Mrs. Virginia McCarthy Borden 5/2/88
SFC Danny Lee Clemons 5/2/88
Mrs. Gladys Oswalt Wiley 5/4/88
Mr. Christopher M. Elmore 5/7/88
Mr. Robert D. Mitchell 5/10/88
Mr. Robert "Banjo Bob" Simpson 5/11/88
Dr. David Marion Holman 5/13/88
Mr. A. W. DeLashmit 5/18/88
PRE-PLANNING AND PREARRANGING OF FUNERALS
Pre-planning and pre-arranging of funeral services continue, to be strong focal points of funeral services nationwide and at Waller Funeral Home.
Pre-planning consists of making wishes for funeral services known, varying from very brief to very detailed plans.
Pre-arranging is the payment for services and merchandise and may or may not include detailed plans. Pre-payment ensures the purchaser of today’s prices regardless of when death may occur. In light of the prediction made by the largest casket manufacturer in the nation that funeral service costs will triple by the year 2000 (only twelve years away), this benefit merits careful attention.
Waller Funeral Home has pre-payment plans to meet the varying needs of our community. Any member of our staff is prepared to discuss plans in privacy at your home or at the funeral home.
Won’t you take this step now? It might well be the most thoughtful gesture you can make for your family.
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