the eighth bible (bibles xxi)

I have one bible that is not the king james version. It is the living bible. Not a translation, but a paraphrase so things...i.e. god’s real meaning and points of particular emphasis...could be lost in paraphrase. As long as one understood that, it was ok to use the living bible...seen generally as more hip in language and thus more appealing to jesus people and the new young evangelicals.

The bible joined my quiver last, as I was leaving high school, and was used heavily, though not as a place for collecting inscriptions from teachers as with other bibles. It does have a handmade bookmark made of leather and inscribed with beads, a gift to me. It hung from the rear view mirror of my car for a long time, and was then added as a permanent piece of the bible. It too, speaks the language of the time.

more others (bibles xx)

...and others
who at a point in time,
at a point in space,
spoke to me in a way
that was unlimited
by time or space...

H. L. Fenton, Jr.
Inscription: Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Psalm 16:11


Hatte Frank
Inscription: I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 12:1,2

Jim Kallen
Inscription: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Joshua 1:8


Peter Layford
Inscription: The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him. Nahum 1:7

close, but no billy (bibles xix)

I have always wanted but never gorren the opportunity to ask Billy Graham inscribe my bible. Been close...but no billy...yet.


Torrey Johnson founded Youth for Christ in the mid-1940’s, had a radio show in Chicago which he gave up to a very young Billy Graham, and then hired the young preacher to be YFC’s first full time evangelist.
Inscription: Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. I Corinthians 15:58

So that was close to Billy Graham, but it wasn’t Billy Graham. An even closer connection was his mother.

Three women have inscribed one of my bibles: my mother; Nina Andrews, the junior department sunday school superintendent; and Mrs. W. F. Graham, Billy Graham’s mother, Morrow Coffey Graham. The occasion was not a speaking engagement. She was not preaching, or even offering a testimony as I remember. She was a guest, attending something where I was as well, and we were introduced. I remember thinking she was small, and her inscription was that way, alone on the page, top left corner, as if to be sure to leave room for many others.
Inscription: Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15

cool, famous, funny (bibles xviii)

Ridgecrest was such a gathering of youth. Thousands from all over the south, a southern-baptist-church youth, all knowing the format of assembly and breakouts and gatherings and worship and fellowship. In thee middle of summer, in the middle of the North Carolina mountains, thousands of youth.

It sits just west of the Swannanoa Tunnel, at the top of one of the most dangerous rail road grades anywhere, the Western North Carolina Railroad line running straight up from Old Fort, running right under the continental divide, opening out to sunlight and Ridgecrest, literally at the crest of the ridge.

All the anxieties and peer pressures and consumptive desires and pent up angst is there, but everyone knows how to pray and how to read the bible. Little is shown except devotion. It was a wonderful place because there were so many pretty girls who all had been pre-qualified...they were at Ridgecrest. There were no expressions of passion but there were associations and groups walked together and there was a preferred seating during the assemblies. That was a start. It meant something. And I was there too. We had that in common. It was something to think about as we studied the bible and how to live a righteous life in an unrighteous world.

It was at Ridgecrest that I first heard Gene Cotton. We all freaked out (but did not call it that) thinking he sounded exactly, exactly like James Taylor. Man, a christian guy with long hair and a guitar and sounds like James Taylor. He was cool. We were cool by the most distance association. He was so cool.

MVP at the 1960 World Series when the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Yankees by one run, a ninth inning home run in game seven, was a Yankee, Bobby Richardson. He was also, after a decade with the Yankees, taking on evangelical work full time, using the notoriety to gather an audience so he might share his testimony and then the gospel. His story was largely one of maintaining conviction of conscience in arenas where devotion to ideals is often challenged...and he told lots of out of the dugout stories of baseball, of the Yankees.
Inscription: For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16

Long before Grady Nuttt was the Prime Minister of Humor on Hee Haw, he was doing stand-up at Ridgecrest, couple of shows during the week’s retreat, and then down times lounging around the Commons, chatting it up with youth, baptist youth. He was funny, making jokes about the differences between denominations in some small southern town, poking soft fun at the idiosyncrasies that makes us all charming...to ourselves and to each other. And there would always be a message, an “...all kiddin’ aside...” message, and truth would fall heavy over the humor room.
And then he got on Hee Haw in 1979. His fame rose outside the chapels and fellowship halls and there he was, over a dozen years after I knew him he was on Hee Haw and Reagan was in the White House.

Inscription: And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John 1:14

vance havner (bibles xvii)

Where Stephen Olford was explosive and passionate with a thunderous delivery that proclaimed conviction and confidence in every word he said, Vance Havner softly wove sentences in and out of each other with each word a delicate stitch carefully chosen and delicately placed with conviction and confidence in every word he said. I liked them both. They both inscribed my bible.

Where Olford was from the exotic lands that gave him a colonial English accent, heavy like a Scot, fervent as a Welsh, Havner was a country preacher from one room churches, circuits that had him in each one for once a month meetings, all through the rolling hills of Piedmont, North Carolina. Their message was the same. Their method of teaching was the same. Their delivery was so very different.

Here is one of his most famous sermons: All This and Heaven Too.

Inscription: Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. I Timothy 2:4

the seventh bible (bibles xvi)

Moving from the world of junior to the world of youth was momentous. Just as they were needed the most, opportunities for a social life within the church community boomed, foremost among them was Fellowship, a gathering after church on Sunday nights for snacks and games and sometimes watching some of the Smothers Brothers.

But crossing the threshold into youth also carried a recognition that knowledge should be used to make appropriate decisions and that the bible was the source of trusted knowledge. That’s when my parents gave me the Scofield Reference bible, my study bible. This was the bible of serious scholars, teachers and students of the bible who searched and shared it by means of expository evangelism.

The Oxford Scofield, as it is called by users, is equipped with the most comprehensive system of cross references. It was the "hyperlink" long before the micro-chip. Ministers joked about getting off topic by chasing down cross references through the gospels, the epistles, the histories and all the prophets, major and minor.



And physically, it is a wonderful tool. It’s cover is soft, flexible, easily held in one hand. And every edition the one with standard 9 pt. type, or a larger edition, like my mother’s, with 12+ pt. type, every edition has the same pagination. In a main hall of a bible conference, it was not unusual to hear hundreds of pages turn in unison with the preacher as the chosen scripture wrapped from the bottom of page 1201 to the top of page 1202.

And as a study bible it was with me whenever I worked a passage with a teacher, a preacher, and many of the greatest inscribed my Oxford Scofield. including may parents.
Inscription: Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. Proverbs 3:5-7

the sixth bible (bibles xv)

As we stepped off the bus at school,
The Gideons were there handing each of us
a maroon bound bible,
The New Testament and,
like bonus tracks,
Psalms and Proverbs.

the fifth bible (bibles xiv)

At E.M. Holt School, there in the early 1960's, fourth, fifth and sixth graders had a half hour of bible instruction each week. The only year I remember I remember having the class on Fridays, late in the day, so that it was the last of the last and then it was the weekend. That is where I was when the teacher told us the President had been shot. It may have been the bible teacher who told us.



The class was not indoctrination...not overtly. It was seen as hand in hand with hygiene and geography, New Math and sentence diagramming. It was to be bible as literature, as history...to fifth graders...right.

The bibles used were like textbooks. Bigger than my other bibles, harder hardback, better maps. So when we were told the school was buying new bibles, we were offered the chance to order one as well for our home. I did. As a Christmas gift for my brother. But he’s never needed it, so I have it. It is actually the only bible I have ever bought. A very sturdy book.

the fourth bible (bibles xiii)

The fourth bible has only one inscription, from Mrs. Andrews, Superintendent of the Junior department. it reads: Paul, you are a wonderful boy. Please stay close to the Lord
(Mrs R. H.) Nina Andrews.


As superintendent, her inscription read "Mrs. R. Homer Andrews"; here it was nearly just Nina.

It is a New Testament, thin pages, flexible binding, perfect for the back pocket of jeans. I must have been given the bible when I was in the fifth grade, maybe, but did not use it until I was in high school.


As a Jesus Person, I needed to have the Scriptures with me at all times, and the little New Testament fit perfect. I continued carrying it as I drove a fork truck in the afternoons so I could go to community college in the morning. I carried it when I hitchhiked to the beach to sleep out under the stars, alone, to worship. It took the shape of a well worn wallet, or a flask. From a college bookstore bought book I added the “used” sticker because it really, really was used.

There was a time when this bible was always with me.

following maps (bibles xii)

The third bible, the first with no illustrations, had maps. They were better than illustrations. Maps let me go to lots of places, while listening to a teacher or waiting for an interesting part of a lesson.

I had two favorite maps in the third bible. One was the route of the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, led by Moses and a cloud of fire by day and night...for forty years on a route that took 'em way out of the way. I know all about why and the lessons learned and the nation shaped and defined...but it really was the long way home for them.


The other maps were of paul's travels. Here is the johnny appleseed of the gospel. He travels all over the eastern Mediterranean and then took one long last trip to Rome. All along the way he preached and teached and helped groups of believers shape themselves into fellowships and then churches. All along the way he had tons of adventures, saw many visions, did time in jail more than once, was shipwrecked and even in some places even welcomed. I liked these maps because there were lots and lots to follow. Yep, that paul was certainly well traveled.

the third bible (bibles xi)

Leaving the Primary Department for the Junior Department was a great step. The structure of the classes was different. Boys and girls were separated and men taught the boy’s classes and women taught the girls. There was a general assembly for all the classes and then break out in small groups in rooms separated by accordion folding doors, beige vinyl. We were in the fourth grade and we were each given a new bible. Hard back, no pictures. Qualified for serious study and sword drill competitions. Good maps though, my favorites being the route of the Exodus...seemed so silly i.e. nearest point between here and there...and the four journeys of Paul seemed like cool trips.



Those who signed my third bible we all teachers in successive years in the junior department, including or visiting ministers holding annual revival services or missionaries, home on furlough, preaching on Sunday morning, showing slides on Sunday night offering up reports for offerings.


Mrs. R. Homer Andrews
Superintendent Junior Department
Mr. And Mrs. Andrews sat in front of my family in church, about five rows from the front on the far right side of the sanctuary. We would slide down if others arrived late. Mr. Andrews would not. He would stand up, allow them to enter, and than take his seat, but would not give up his end place on the pew and his ability to lean one are up and over the end, helping to keep him awake. Of course Mrs. Andrews sat with him.

A. Warren Huyck
Inscription: If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. Colossians 3: 1-2

Frank H. Sells
Inscription: Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Philippians 2:12

Bennie Overman
Clayton J. Cammron
Jane McRea
W. Randall Lolley
Robert L. Clegg

some others (bibles x)

There where those
who left an impression
that lasts,
and there are those
who left an impression
which at the moment
seemed no less

Don Kinrey
Inscription: Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3: 5-6

Homer James
Inscription: Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. Psalm 16:11

John Haldeman

Jim Chambers
Inscription: This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Joshua 1:8

Leighton Ford

Sheldon Wellborn
Inscription: Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14

show me a picture (bibles ix)

The second bible had illustrations, eight in all,
all from the major turning points in christianity, good stories.

Some of the illustrations had more action than others...
generally though as I looked at them I had my own thoughts:
- the ark was really big and landed very precariously,
- good thing david got that slingshot shot off just as he did...
- jesus in action in the temple was great, though I worried for the chickens.

wiretapper for the mob (bibles viii)

There was Jim Vaus, the notorious double agent type, who had worked simultaneously for the LA Police department and organized crime, specifically Mickey Cohen who was being investigated by the LA Police Department at the time.

An electronic whiz, he was a master of the wire-tap and all manner of listening devices. The LAPD used him to put bugs in the homes of gangsters. Then, working for the gangsters, Vaus would take the bugs out, or certainly alert his crime bosses know their whereabouts. And he got paid by both sides. Before he got really caught by either side, he got saved at Billy Graham’s first really big Crusade for Christ held in Los Angeles in 1949. He became an evangelist, using his electronic wizard for on stage demonstrations during speaking engagements at churches and conferences. He was completing a weeks of speaking at my family’s church the night I was born. He later went to work in Harlem defusing gangs again using the diversion of electronics to communicate the good news.

in my life early (bibles vii)

Before I was born, my parents and my brothers went on a vacation that included Cherokee and the Great Smokey Mountains, and then Chattanooga for Lookout Mountain, Chickamauga, Rock City and the Highland Park Baptist Church to hear Lee Robertson preach. They had heard him many times, in fact every week, every Sunday night via a live radio broadcast of the church service. Now they were going to visit the church and be a part of the live experience. It was like the Grand Old Opry would be to others.
Inscription: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28



While there they met an older couple, the Pascals, known to all as Gran & Big Dad, who befriended them and invited them home for Sunday lunch. The meeting turned into a family friendship that lasted for years and years with many future visits so that I got to know them as well.

stephen olford (bibles vi)

For those who listen to preachers...do, used to, even may in the future...there is one preacher who is the best preacher you’ve ever heard. Can be lot of reasons, many that have more to do with the preached-to than the preacher, but something connects between the speaker and the listener, the teacher and the student, and it is obvious that this is the best preacher you've ever heard preach.


For me it was Stephen Olford. It was the teaching style, passionately-expository, with a confidence of hard facts delivered with a soft, excited fierceness in his eyes. I heard him as a sat in Ben Lippen's open air pavilion on a mountain overlooked the French Broad River Valley on successive summer nights. I was seven and a half years old and convinced.

Inscription: I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20

The First Commandment a sermon delivered by Stephen Olford

miss ann & dr pricket (bibles v)

a profession of faith was made at Ben Lippen
high above the green valley where lay Asheville,
the words first uttered, clearly, to a teacher,
Miss Ann, and then upon the return to the home church,
Dr. Pricket performed the the sacrament of baptism
that sealed the deal


May the Lord bless you- Miss Ann
Inscription: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28


Carlton S. Prickett, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Burlington, NC
Inscription: I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Philippians 4:13

the second bible (bibles iv)

I was given my second bible at Ben Lippen, a several-week bible conference held on the campus of Ben Lippen School in Asheville. Operated by Columbia Bible College, during the school year the campus was home to several hundred high school students, all children of missionaries of all domination. Their families were in other places around the world and they were perched on an amazing knoll just outside Asheville. In the summer, the students were gone and the campus was used for a bible conference. Strong, scripture rooted evangelists taught at assemblies twice in the morning and twice in the afternoon and once in an evening service. It was possible to hear five sermons, powerful and expository, in a single day.

The campus was cobbled together and included a huge three story brick building that was once the Asheville post office but was moved and transformed into dorms on the upper floors for students and a magnificent dining hall on the first floor. There was a huge font porch with rocking chairs overlooking the Blue Ridge. The main assembly space was a large, covered, but open air pavilion with seating for a thousand, overlooking the French Broad Valley. The view was stunning. It allowed for a sense of removal from the valley, The World, long enough to listen, learn, and celebrate new knowledge.


J. Robertson McQuinkin was head of the Ben Lippen School, what I would call a principal, but he was called headmaster” ... only headmaster I've ever seen, and a fine teacher and preacher as well.

Inscription: But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. II Corinthians 3:18

first illustration (bibles iii)

The first bible was largely ceremonial,
as a gift given and as received,
as a bible to carry on certain occasions,
but not a bible for quickly
finding a passage or pointing out the reference.
It was not a working bible,
but its one illustration worked on me,
was vivid, was consistent and persistent.
Before I could read words
I could read pictures.