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Around the World in 88 Years -E Book - Arthur Burt

Around the World in 88 Years -E Book - Arthur Burt

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She led me <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong> bedroom where <strong>the</strong>re were shoes, dresses,underclo<strong>the</strong>s, and cardigans spread out on <strong>the</strong> bed. They hadbought her all that cloth<strong>in</strong>g.That was one of <strong>the</strong> <strong>in</strong>cidental benefits of turn<strong>in</strong>g an enemy <strong>in</strong>toa friend — not that I would recommend anybody should do itfor ga<strong>in</strong>. Whatever we do for ano<strong>the</strong>r should be done as to God.That dear bro<strong>the</strong>r went on to build a prosperous bus<strong>in</strong>ess sell<strong>in</strong>gboots, shoes, and Well<strong>in</strong>gtons. Every time I visited him afterwards,he was warm, lov<strong>in</strong>g, and friendly — all <strong>the</strong> old bitterness gone.Jesus had triumphed.God has first called me to Himself.While I was help<strong>in</strong>g to pastor <strong>the</strong> church <strong>in</strong> Kent, I was also support<strong>in</strong>gmy family by work<strong>in</strong>g various jobs. I was deliver<strong>in</strong>g cars,pick<strong>in</strong>g up second-hand cars and deliver<strong>in</strong>g reconditioned vehicles.I went to auctions <strong>in</strong> Brighton and o<strong>the</strong>r places, I ran anursery with three sixty-foot greenhouses, and I sold everyth<strong>in</strong>gand anyth<strong>in</strong>g — from dog leads and biscuits, to cabbages, onions,carrots and tomatoes. I made wreaths, crosses, and bouquets.I mixed cement by hand (<strong>the</strong>re were no cement mixers <strong>in</strong>those days). I sold bedd<strong>in</strong>g plants and fruit. And for a short time,I bought and sold secondhand furniture.Dur<strong>in</strong>g one period, I worked a farm that had over 3,000 trees.The grass was so thick and lush between all those trees grow<strong>in</strong>gon <strong>the</strong> slope, that it was very difficult to cut it. See<strong>in</strong>g this problem,Bro<strong>the</strong>r Archie said to me, “What you need are some ducksor chickens. Let <strong>the</strong>m run wild and <strong>the</strong>y will deal with <strong>the</strong> grass.”We found two ladies who were sell<strong>in</strong>g a farm, who also hadhundreds of chickens for sale. I took a jeep to collect <strong>the</strong> first 50of <strong>the</strong>se poor old hens and noticed <strong>the</strong>re wasn’t a blade of grass<strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> place where <strong>the</strong>y were kept. It was absolutely barren. I put<strong>the</strong>se dilapidated hens with faded white combs, tails down, fitonly for boil<strong>in</strong>g, <strong>in</strong>to <strong>the</strong> lush green grass. With<strong>in</strong> a few days, amarvelous change took place. The hens’ combs turned fiery red,and <strong>the</strong>y began dropp<strong>in</strong>g eggs everywhere!“Look,” Archie observed. “There is revival here. It would be ashame to kill <strong>the</strong>se hens. They’re too good for boil<strong>in</strong>g now that<strong>the</strong>y are lay<strong>in</strong>g eggs. Go buy some more. So I went and bought117

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