As a young minister, I was asked by a funeral director to hold a grave-side service for a homeless man, who had no family or friends, in a newly opened rural cemetery. The man would be the first to be laid to rest there,in the potter's section.
As I was not familiar with the backwoods area, I became lost, and being a typical man, did not stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late. I saw the back hoe and the crew, who were eating lunch, but the hearse was nowhere in sight.
I apologized to the workers for my tardiness, and stepped to the side of the open grave, where I saw the vault lid already in place. I assured the workers I would not hold them up for long, but that this was the proper thing to do.
The workers gathered around, still eating their lunch. I poured out my heart and soul. As I preached, the workers began to say "Amen," "praise the Lord," & "Glory," I preached, and I preached, like I'd never preached before: from Genesis all the way to Revelation. I closed the lengthy service with a prayer, and walked to my car.
As I was opening the door and taking off my coat, I overheard one of the workers saying to another, "I ain't never seen nothin' like that before, and I've been puttin' in septic tanks for twenty years."
As I was not familiar with the backwoods area, I became lost, and being a typical man, did not stop for directions. I finally arrived an hour late. I saw the back hoe and the crew, who were eating lunch, but the hearse was nowhere in sight.
I apologized to the workers for my tardiness, and stepped to the side of the open grave, where I saw the vault lid already in place. I assured the workers I would not hold them up for long, but that this was the proper thing to do.
The workers gathered around, still eating their lunch. I poured out my heart and soul. As I preached, the workers began to say "Amen," "praise the Lord," & "Glory," I preached, and I preached, like I'd never preached before: from Genesis all the way to Revelation. I closed the lengthy service with a prayer, and walked to my car.
As I was opening the door and taking off my coat, I overheard one of the workers saying to another, "I ain't never seen nothin' like that before, and I've been puttin' in septic tanks for twenty years."
