George Darling was attracted to Doris, a fine Christian girl. He dated her often, and soon went to church with her at every service. She thought that soon he would be baptized, and made the mistake of marrying him before his baptism. On the first Sunday after their wedding, he asked her to stay home with him. She refused, and went to services alone. He was stubborn (he told me later) and stopped going to church with her completely.

She remembered Peter’s words that if husbands "obey not the word," they "may without the word be won by the" behavior "of the wives" (1 Peter 3:1). So, with a "meek and quiet spirit" she lived with him, with no nagging, and being a good wife in every way.

When their first child was born, she stayed home from services one Sunday, but the next Sunday she arose early, bathed herself and the baby, prepared breakfast, and soon was ready to go to church. George, unknown to her, had gone out to their car in the garage, raised the hood, disconnected some wires, lowered the hood, and returned to the living room.

Doris wrapped the baby, put on a raincoat, and went to the car. It would not start. She got out, and started walking with the baby toward the church building, about a mile away. George looked out the door, opened it, and called to her, "Come back. I’ll fix the car, and take you."

To himself he said, "What a heel I am, treating this precious woman this way." He told her what he had done, apologized, and drove her to services, and stayed. That night he drove her to services and stayed. In three weeks he was baptized.

He became a gospel preacher, and lived long enough to baptize some 3000 souls. When I was in a gospel meeting with him in Jacksonville, Florida, he told me what had happened. Doris loved George, but she loved her Lord even more. Three thousand souls may never have been baptized had it not been for Doris.

5-22-99