A Letter From Wayne Harrell

P. O. Box 426 Pleasant View, Colorado September 3, 1953 Dear Brother Tant:

I am about at my wit's end concerning the problem facing me. I'm writing in the hope that perhaps you can be of some assistance to me and the work here. I am not at all given to asking for help when I can help myself, but when the time comes for needing assistance, I feel that I must speak out, especially when the good of the church is at stake.

Pleasant View is a small town, about 100 I suspect, in the very heart of the bean and wheat section of southwestern Colorado. There are about 50 to 60 members of the church here, with crowds of from 70 to 80 nearly every Lord's Day morning. Because of the drought a couple of years ago the church isn't yet self-supporting. I came up here in November of last year and got a job to help out with our support and have been working over since. Lest someone get the wrong impression, I don't mind working, but when I see so much work for the kingdom needing to be done on every hand it makes me almost want to live a recluse in order to get it done. I have to work till late ordinarily, though sometimes getting off early, and this throws all my church work to be done at night. This quite naturally leaves almost no time for visiting and teaching, other than during the scheduled meetings of the week. There are extremely good possibilities up here. Farmers are as thick as fleas and every one of them needing to be taught. The church at Cortez, 20 miles to the south, is the only other church of any size close by, and it is about as big as the one here. Brother Dick Case and his wife are doing a wonderful work with the people there, with the Lord's help, and we are being benefited mightily with their presence. I have written once before to several churches for support but they are all doing all they can, one way or another, and I don't know what to do but to appeal to you in the hope that you can help me. The church here pays me $100 a month. It will take a minimum of $200 a month more for my wife and me to live. I'm making much more than that at present, with my other job, but if I could do full-time church work among these good people, I'd gladly live on less and make it do. The cost of living is particularly higher up here than down home in Texas, and for that reason I feel that I must have at least that much to live, though I detest the idea of asking a certain amount for living. Be that as it may, I still would like to interest a congregation or more in helping us out here so that I could devote all my time to the work of preaching. If there is any way you can help I should certainly appreciate it. Anyone interested may write me at the above address, and all may feel free to come and look into the work. With a prayer in my heart for someone to answer the call, I am Yours in Christ Jesus, Wayne Harrell