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Life and Travels of William Conrad
Chapter VI - His First and Second Call to the Care of Raysfork Church
My first call to preach to the church at Raysfork was about the years 1827 or 1828. It was then called an old church, and had been supplied by Elder John Connor from its origin until near his death, after which Elder Thomas Threlkill was called to preach to the church. He supplied them a few years, afterward moving to the West. Elder Joseph Reading and Elder Biggs both visited the church a few times in Elder Connor's time. But after I had agreed, on the following terms-that I would try to preach to them, provided they used like industry to get another supply as they had with me-I soon found that they had forgotten, at least, failed, to make any effort to obtain another supply, and I began to feel quite sad over the matter, knowing they were in quite a lukewarm state when I first took charge of the church. I remained their supply some years, and did not baptize more than three or four in the meantime. I finally concluded that the Lord would never bless the church with a refreshing from His presence, or send additions to them, while they retained me as their supply, for the simple, and to me, full reason, that I was unworthy, as well as ignorant, and more than all else, a poor, blundering dust of earth; and, although I knew the truth, I could not proclaim it in that soothing and intelligent manner that was fitting for the glorious gospel of God, our Savior, and so always feed, comfort, establish and encourage the feeble and wavering of the household of God. Hence my conviction of incapacity, and the dreadful sin of unbelief that doth beset us (that is me). I soon determined to lay my case before the church in this shape-that, as named above, I felt it was right, for their well-being as a church and the glory of God, that they give me up, and that, in doing so, they could lose nothing, at most, only a poor worm of the dust; and lastly, that they had failed to seek another supply, as promised by the church. Under the above plea, they released me from further care or charge of the church. Here the writer, in his last days, acknowledges his great wrong in using his feelings and convictions, as above, as a reason why he should struggle for a release from being any longer their supply, and a like wrong in giving way to such temptations and the vast amount of unbelief that almost, if not altogether, pressed him down, and, in concluding that the Lord would not bless them with refreshings from His presence and additions to the church. This, although not the last, was a great wrong the writer has long since seen and owned; for, in a few short months, the church at place received a supply for a short time, a few were added by experience and baptism, and then they called another supply in his place. I think the last baptized a few also; but very few of the additions under either of those supplies wore long. The last supply was Elder Tobias Wilhoit, mentioned above, who soon poured out, in his ministry, the Parkerite two seed doctrine among them, which, in a short time, resulted in quite a distress in their midst,, and the exclusion of some. The preacher, being shrewd, succeeded in getting the majority to receive his doctrine, then, of course, the minority of the church fared badly in their state of confusion. Thus, the majority held up strongly for the preacher, through thick and thin, risking their standing in Licking association. But finally a rupture occurred between the majority and their preacher, growing out of a transaction of a pecuniary character; so they dismissed Elder Wilhoit. But, owing to the derangement among themselves, that grew out of the course of the preacher's immorality and the heresy he propagated among them, and the majority of the members adhering to such sentiments, through his walking in craftiness and handling the word of God deceitfully, both the majority and minority, with those excluded because they could not conscientiously receive the doctrine of the two seed heresy, nor its propagator, had finally, under this state of things, some of them, communed with the New School Baptists, and, perhaps, one or two had joined them; and so dwindling away, they remained without a preacher, and, in the meantime, were near being swallowed up, and, to all appearance, would have been caught in the wily fowler's net, had it not been for a wicked man's interference and hard speeches, which the Lord suffered, or caused to stay the hand of the deceitful workers, and the prey thus escaped the fowler's snare. Thus it is seen that "the wrath of man shall praise the Lord, and the remainder of wrath he will restrain." And so great was the departure from the old land-marks that they, too, as well as the church at Raven creek, would lose their visibility, and the Lord would move the candlestick out of his place, and then there would only remain to be seen one more of Zion's desolations. It seemed they had gotten beyond the pity of their brethren of the Old Baptists, that walked in the commandments and ordinances of God, as taught in the New Testament. They seemed not only forlorn, but forsaken, for a time, of all that knew them as professed disciples of Jesus Christ; and the writer himself, for a long time, had not visited them--nor had he yet seen his own wrong, in that he himself should not have asked the church to release him at the time he obtained leave of them to retire from preaching longer to them. Now he sees that he should have borne up as a good soldier of the cross, and continued to wade along with the church at Raysfork, notwithstanding the day was dark and the signs were ominous. The frown of God was on that people, as though God had forgotten to be gracious, and his tender mercies had ceased.
At length Elder William Hume and myself, in a tour through Owen county, KY., the old Elder having sent an appointment to Raysfork Meeting House, I went on to the meeting with him. After he had preached one of his feeling, as well as edifying and encouraging discourses, meeting being dismissed, several of the members entreated him to agree to preach for them monthly. He told them it was too far-some 43 miles-and besides, that his time was so taken up he could not preach for them. They told him they had had no regular preaching for a long time, and that they had acted so badly that the old preachers had all left off coming, and that they felt greatly at a loss and did not know what to do. Soon after his answer to them, while yet in the meeting house lot, old Brother Hume next made inquiry of them why they did not get Brother Conrad to preach for them. They answered, "We want him; he has preached for us several years; but he is not willing to preach for us." After which, dear old Elder Hume turned to me, and, notwithstanding his meek and quiet spirit, such another reproof he gave me as I never before received from any brother-nor from any since. It took hold of and made such a deep impression on me that, although the Lord took him from the evil to come in 1849, and he was interred in the old family cemetery, some sixty yards from his old dwelling, in which he died-having fallen asleep in Jesus' arms--his long sought rest with the redeemed that have gone before, and with those that have gone since to their homes of undisturbed repose--as often as I have visited his bereaved, as well as old companion and son, Jackson Hume and wife, the memory of that strong attachment in the years of our pilgrimage together in the States of Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, in almost every direction over hill and dale, as best we could, to publish the gospel of Christ, quite soon after I began in the ministry, is fresh in my mind. Our attachment for each other grew stronger and stronger. We loved each other in the Lord. We loved not in vain. Hence, at every opportunity, I went to the resting place for his mortal remains, and looking thereon, felt, "he is now at rest, while I am still here in this sorrowful vale," and oft, if not always, in tribulation, traveling in the "valley of the shadow of death," and while I know, or, at least, feel that I am yet far from home and lonely, yet I hope that while in this valley, I shall fear no evil; for Jesus, I feel, will be near, to guide me while my feet shall not slide and my faith fail not. And lastly, I greatly desire to go down to the house appointed for all living as did my loving and beloved brother, William Hume, and others whom I have lived to see go in peace to rest from their labors-and their works do follow them. Though dead, they yet speak to us through our fainting memory, in volumes to follow after them as they have followed Jesus, in the footsteps of the flock; and we should look closely for the footprints of the ever blessed Jesus-the great exemplar of his flock--and walk in those footprints the remaining days of our mourning, as we wend our way to our graves.
We will now return to the effects produced on me by Elder Hume's sharp reproof for my refusing to preach for the remaining members of the church at Raysfork, Scott county, Ky., The effect was such, after a short reflection on the subject, of once more consenting to preach for them. My objections began to give way, and at every remembrance of Brother Hume's reproof given me for refusing to consent to their request, I felt compelled to yield; for all my unwillingness seemed at once to give way under the reproof given me. And more, my mind seemed impressed more and more as it began to open up to my understanding my error in asking for my release, as before referred to, it would occur again and again, "If I had remained, unworthy as I then felt myself to be, and dark and gloomy as were those days in which I obtained my release, they, the members of Raysfork Church, would have escaped the many troubles and sorrows and confusion to which they were so long exposed." Under those reflections-sadness and sorrow filled my heart, for I felt now that I too was a party to the great wrong into which the church had drifted, and that I ought to have remained their supply; that the church should at all times be their judge as to who should go in and out before them. In a short time, I paid the church a visit, talked freely to them of their past, as well as their present condition, and finally, as soon as I could arrange my appointments, &c., I again undertook to preach to them every month, it being the year 1841 or 1842, and never failed to meet with them, whether storm or calm, hot or cold-when able to travel-unless, with their permission, I was off on tours to the West, or to the States of Indiana or Ohio, except the last five years. Then a thought came into my mind that, as I was old, and at that time trying to preach with alike regularity to four churches, Williamstown, Raysfork, Forklick and Twin Creek, it would be best for them and for me to ask Raysfork, and also Forklick church to accept of Elder Billetter for one-half of the time, or every other month of my time. Both churches agreed to accept of Brother Billetter to fill every other month. Two of the four churches were twenty-three miles distant, over rough, bad roads. The brethren felt that it was too much for one of my advanced age, especially during the winter seasons. Forklick, however, was only ten and a half miles from me. But the above request and grant I have lived to learn was a blunder-a wrong on my part-and resulted in an injury to both churches.
And here as my judgment and advice to the Church of Christ, in all its branches, to employ but one regular supply or pastor at the time; such I feel is as proper in this case, as for every "man to have his own wife and every wife to have her own husband."
It was not long after I undertook with Raysfork Church the second time, until peace and quiet prevailed among them, except as it would occur to their minds. That of their treatment toward and exclusion of those whom they had cut off from their fellowship, because they were unwilling to receive the pastor or preachers-two-seed doctrine, as taught by Elder Daniel Parker-which conviction on their part, was heightened when they remembered the questions I put to them on my first visit, which question I feel is proper for me to name, to wit: "Now, as you the Church, acknowledge you excluded those members for refusing the doctrine taught by Elder Wilhoit, and him as their pastor, and I now learn from you that are now claiming to be the Church, that as such, you too have become dissatisfied and dismissed said preacher; now you are alike guilty of the same act of those members you had excluded. Now, pray tell me who is to exclude the rest of you? For, if it was right to exclude them, and you have become guilty of alike or same crime, would it not be right equally so that you should all be excluded too? To which question I obtained no answer from them in word; I could only read their answer to me by their look at each other, and their heads hung down in silence. Hence, there soon appeared a restlessness so manifest, that they could hold no longer, nor refrain from inquiry to know how to restore those they had excluded. And under the blessing of a Covenant, God the way soon opened, and those driven away, as well as expelled, although, if I mistake not, part of them had joined another church, were again restored and seemed to enjoy once more sweet fellowship in the Gospel of Christ. Yet, notwithstanding their numbers had become small, the Lord had removed quite a number to Himself, and their bodies consigned to the House appointed for all living.
After a few short years, the Lord, in the plentitude of His mercy, poured out in their midst a season of refreshing in the years of 1848, 1849, and 1850; not only did the brethren and sisters enjoy the presence of the Lord, but God's grace abounding to poor and apostate sinners of Adam's fallen race was made to rejoice in Jesus, take up their line of march, confess to the Church what great things the Lord had done for them. In that, he had, as they hoped, plucked them as brands from the burning, and were thus added to the Church, so that we often, in those blessed days, met along the water side, and the writer went down with the willing converts into the water to baptize them in the presence of solemn assemblies that attended on the administration of baptism, in those days, when the hearts of God's dear children were made glad in beholding their sons and daughters, neighbors and neighbors' children brought home to God. It was a gradual ingathering, from one up to five or six, at a meeting Saturday or Sunday. The writer yet feels that surly the Lord was in our midst, for it seemed the brethren could scarcely contain their feelings, for the joy that shone forth from their every heart beheld the gracious work of God in their midst. And, after the revival, God's sustaining arm was still manifest, keeping his children from the evil at that place; for, although the additions were few at a time, yet, before it closed there was quite a number added, and yet there was not any drawback among any of them that the writer recollects. Some of them did in after days or years cause the Church some trouble; yet, in the meantime the Lord did still add some from time to time, that we believed should be saved. Although, in some instances, it was quite a wide stretch between those scattering additions; and, during that time the Lord was removing, year after year, the dear sisters and brethren from the evil to come-they bidding a long farewell to their sorrow and toil in this world of woe. They went to join their friends above, so that there were additions sufficient brought in by our Covenant God to fill the seats of our deceased brethren and sisters up to the time I was arrested, being July, 1864, and released from Barracks No. 1, in Louisville, Kentucky, on the 14th day of August following, as recorded in Record Book of this Church. I was still preaching to the four churches when arrested. Thus restored to my former liberty, without any trial or so much as a charge preferred against me, I was soon met with the brethren and sisters at all four of the churches. As their regular meetings came on, there was immediately added to this, as well as the other three churches, a few I remember well that I baptized every month in some one of the churches, and in one of the four, twice for twenty-one months; after which time there was but few added to this Church up to this date, January Meeting, 1874-my last meeting-as I obtained a release of this Church from further pastoral care at their November meeting; their supply at least for every other month for one year, to be commenced at their February Meeting by Brother James J. Gilbert.
It is proper here to state the year this Church was organized, and by whom: Raysfork Church was organized the 29th of November, 1811, by Elders John Conner and Joseph Reading, at the house of Randal Laforce, fourteen in number. Elder Conner preached for them thirteen years.
The writer now leaves the Church at Raysfork to write some things about the Church of Christ-old Baptists at Forklick, from his earliest acquaintance.
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