Before You Were Born

Ps 139:11-12 “If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.”KJV

Our children are grown with children and grandchildren of their own. It is Christmas time and things have been like many others at this time of the year. We are caught up in the spirit of family gatherings, buying a few gifts, attending Christmas events at church, and seeking to make it’s meaning the central core of all we do.

Christmas was always a very important time in our lives. As small children it was always a mixture of good and bad events. The scripture above says that darkness and light are both alike to God. It also presents darkness as symbolic of evil and the light as good. Jesus spoke of Himself in these terms:

Jesus said; “I Am the light of the world: he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Jn. 8:12, KJV

The story begins with something about the relationship with my father, siblings and mother. My sister told me something that at no time in my life was I ever aware of. She said that for some unknown reason, as a small toddler, my father seemed to want to hurt me when in one of his angry, drunken rages. Being much too small to remember all the times my sister and mother hid me, I suppose I closed out much of this behavior from my mind. All of us lived with a great deal of fear. My experiences were not any more serious than any of my brothers and sisters. We often prayed, as mother and children, kneeling around the bed asking for God’s protection and the specific request that he would “not come home drunk “.

My parents have long since gone to be with the Lord. Four of my six siblings, Junie, J.T., Jimmy and Jane have died as well. As children, the turning to God in simple prayers, “God is great, God is Good, God we thank you for this food”, and “Now I lay me down to sleep”, all made a deep impression on me. In my childish mind I truly believed that I was talking to God. I found myself talking to Him about everything. As much as I can remember I did not think about whether he answered my prayers in various experiences along the way.

For me, even as a child, my conversations and prayers were always, to me, having conversations with Jesus.

The thought of having lived in a dysfunctional family never entered my mind. Many children experiences are perceived as normal in the child’s mind. To my thinking, our home life was normal, even though we were often afraid.

As an adult, becoming a Christian, Dad became the first on my list of concerns for salvation. My born again experience manifest itself in seeking to reach all members of my family for the Lord. My father was at the top of my list. I did all I could to help him to know of the love and forgiveness that could be found in Jesus Christ. You will read more about this later.

When Dad grew older someone came and talked to him when he was in a nursing home. He later told me “Bobby. you do not have to worry about me anymore. I now understand what you have been trying to tell me over the last few years. That is why I can now say, It is by Faith in my merciful Savior that I can say “my parents have long sense gone to be with the Lord”.

Being born on the day the stock market fell in 1929, the day that became known as ‘Black Thursday ‘(No connection of course.) October 24 was a tragic day for many. However, for me it was the miracle of my first birth. Yours truly was born in a house on Baxter Avenue, Louisville, Kentucky. Our brothers J.T. and Bill were also born while we lived in this house. J.T. was about 1-year-old when he died.

My sister tells of an experience she had while we lived in this house. “The house next door had a crawl space under it that was large enough at one end for several people to hide in. My father had come home drunk and angry as he often did. Mom and I grabbed you and ran over next door to hide under the house while Bill and Junie were still in the house. They stayed hid until he left and no one was hurt on this occasion.”

The birth order of Willa D and Hubert Sharp ‘s children were Anne, H.A. Sharp, Jr. (Junie), J.T., Bill, Bob, Jim, and Jane. At the time of this writing there are only three of us. (Ann, Bill, and me). The three of us are very close. Poor health keeps us from getting together much. Bill is 86, Ann is 90, and I am 84. (Jan. 2014) The house I referred to belonged to my grandfather Lyons.

Ann reminded me of another experience we had as young children while living in this small shot gun style house. About two or three houses down a family sold poultry, (chickens) retail, dead or alive. Ann jogged my memory about such places when she reminded me of a family that lived upstairs over this poultry house down the street from us. There was an occasion when we had to go there and spend several days with this neighbor in order to hide from my father.

Note* At this time, due to Ann’s health, it is impossible to confirm the things that Ann helped me remember. These were things she told me several years ago and I have no reason not to believe them.