Ten Seconds of Terror! Based On a True Story!

THE SHOCKING STORY OF ROSS PURCELL

THE SHOCKING STORY OF ROSS PURCELL

In about five minutes, or maybe even less, Ross Purcell knew that he would be dead.
Most people seem to die from automobile accidents or heart attacks. Many older men and women meet their demise simply by growing old and their bodies ceasing to function the way they have for 70 or 80 or 90 years or so. But here he was, Ross Purcell, or R.P. as many of his friends called him, at the point of death because of some freak accident. Why him, he questioned over and over in his mind? At his prime at 40 years old, Ross Purcell’s name was known in the building industry as the best in the business. Sure, his homes were expensive, but as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for. And these executive types with their fancy wife’s and perfect children didn’t mind handing over a half of a million dollars for one of his finest! The bulky, somewhat overweight man moved slightly as his mind flashed to what brought him to this predicament.
Ross had heard about a great land deal only two counties above where he lived. He could have scheduled an appointment for next week to see the property, but he wanted to take no chance at missing this bargain that could eventually bring him well over a million dollars profit.
So Ross turned down the offer of attending church this morning and decided to drive up and scan the possible investment site. His wife, Maggie, who was quite upset at Ross’ decision, and his 4 year-old daughter Mary, still went however. Maggie had been pestering Ross lately about bringing religion into the family and Ross had grown tired of it very quickly. It was all that fellow’s fault, Mark whats-his-name, that she worked with, who showed up at his house a few Thursdays ago with the preacher of his church. Ross recalled what a sight both of them were; Bibles in hand and everything. They even had the nerve to ask Ross to turn the television off!
Anyhow, Ross remembered it crystal clear. Maggie sat listening to every word and Ross trying to politely ignore the two of them as they quoted Bible verses and talked about Jesus dying for he and Maggie’s sins. Though there was one phrase that the Pastor had said that strangely stuck with Ross since then. “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” The big man normally could only remember the latest sports scores, yet these words kept popping into his head! In fact, even as he was walking the land, those very words seemed to gnaw at him, to haunt him almost.
Anyway, as the important Ross Purcell was happily calculating home sites and how to minimize expenses, he neglected to see the large hole that he stepped into! Of course, part of that was due to the brush that almost camouflaged the entire crevice. Down he went! And a long fall it was, at least to Ross it seemed twenty feet! The worst part of it was that when he dropped he caused many layers of dirt and debris to follow him, trapping the big man, leaving him no way to escape!
That was hours ago and the air was running out! Every breath was a chore! Guessing that he had just a few minutes at the most, Ross struggled again to suck some air into his pleading lungs. His mind racing, knowing the end was coming drastically closer every second, he began to panic. He could barely move as well, which frustrated him greatly and aided in his frenzy. Thoughts that he was sure would be his last came and went. Maggie! No more Maggie! And his little Mary! Too never see them again...for his precious Mary to grow up without a father, what would ever become of her? No more nice cars and name brand living! What does it matter now?
Again, Ross inhaled to the best of his ability but it was only a fraction of a normal breath. Tears formed as he began to cry like a baby.
Suddenly the thought came again. “What shall it profit a man...” Maybe the preacher was right? Surely he was a sinner, Ross decided instantly. Thoughts came to him now as he saw things in a different light. Terrible thoughts! Lying...his drunken binges...his lust...he was lost! It was clear now, he was doomed! There was no hope for him! In mere seconds Ross somehow knew that he would enter that horrible place that he had laughed about for years-that place of blackness and yes...fire! If only he had another chance! Then the big man remembered the words of the preacher. Those words too had new meaning. With every ounce of his strength, Ross Purcell lifted up his eyes to the darkness above him. I will turn to you Jesus, his heart cried out, save me from this death and I will believe on you. There was no more will power, no more time, no more air.  Long seconds, perhaps even a full minute came and went as Ross drifted in and out of consciousness. It was over. Darkness......but then...something...was it...could it be...yes it was! A faint, a very faint light! Then followed noise. A steady, hammering noise! Ross could see, his lungs started filling with air...he could breath! Ross was alive and he was going to be saved! With a fresh energy, Ross kept looking up and was rejoicing! He saw some sort of machine tearing up the soil. They found him!
Just minutes later the shaken man was above ground. Two men had pulled him out and steadied him and in a shorter time than expected, Ross had regained his strength and soon his lightheadedness too, was gone. “They told us you might be up here somewhere sir” stated the taller of the two. Ross looked at both of them. They wore coveralls labeled with a power company insignia. “I thought you would be a rescue team or something, or from the sheriff’s department, you work for the electric company?” Ross questioned. The shorter man employee answered now. “Mister, you were out in the middle of nowhere. You would have been dead by the time anyone got out here. The sheriff called after your wife could not get hold of you. We just happened to be in the area putting some poles in and we saw this notebook...then we saw where we guessed you fell in.” Ross eyed the logbook. It was his for sure. “Well, thanks” He said as he took the journal and shook both of their hands. “Thank you two so much for savin’ my life.” The rejoicing was quick and then Ross turned to walk away. Glancing at the land, monetary figures began speeding through his mind again. Here he was, the Ross Purcell. Good as new and ready to make some money. So he lost a few hours? Suddenly he recalled the pleading he did the last few seconds in the hole...his promise to turn to Jesus. Taking a deep breath, Ross gave a satisfied look as he gazed at the acreage around him. That’ll have to wait, he decided. Maybe later he would let Jesus save his soul. Paying no attention to the screaming voices of the two men behind him, Ross turned and unknowingly stepped onto a live wire and immediately hundreds of thousands of volts went through his body, then he fell to the ground and died.


“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”
Mark 8:36

SOME SAYINGS TO THINK ABOUT

We live in a day where fathers will teach their children to hunt and fish, but will not open the Bible and teach them about Jesus Christ and how to prepare for heaven and hell.

You have only one chance to raise a child.

It is not enough in these wicked days to try to get by with only ten minutes of Bible a day.

If your Christianity did no more for you than give you a place to go to church, then you better check out if you got the real thing.

Do you give the Lord every day the time you used to give the Devil?

You can’t send your children to the world’s schools and expect Godly children.

Some of you women think that God gave you your jobs outside of the home, but the Lord never violates His Word.

Most of God’s people give like they are still making minimum wage.

Are you born again and can you prove it by how you live?

If churches really kept the requirements laid out in the Bible for elders, there would be a shortage

of Pastors in America.

Are you devout enough like Job, that the Devil knows your name.

Not only does HBO stand for Hells Box Office, but ABC stands for Already Been Condemned, CBS stands for Central Blasphemy System and NBC for the Never Been Converted Network.

Though the Bible is available at any dollar store, Wal-mart and K-Mart, we live in a Bible-ignorant society.

Most of you wouldn’t think of throwing away your t.v. set because you just love the world too much.

If some of you ladies spent half as much time in the Word of God as you do in front of the mirror, you just might get an idea of the role God has for Christian women.

If you fathers spent as much time with Jesus as you do your sports teams, you might turn out Godly children.

Godly children or worldly children; whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

Some of you lousy husbands would open the door quicker for a stranger than for your own wife.

The Bible never tells you to pray for a burden for souls.

Most of God’s people would never let a drunkard or a fornicator or a sodomite into their home, but these people are welcomed in every day through the devil-vision set.

If Christians were to give as much towards missions as they do on entertainment, the problem of world evangelization would be solved.

In the pulpits of many of these fancy churches, you hear men like Finney and Edwards quoted. If the godly men of yesteryear were to step into the same churches and preach their same messages, they would be run off within minutes and the “professing” crowd behind them would be shouting “legalist” all the way to the front door.

A church is never stronger than the man behind the pulpit.

The reason why our Christians are so worldly is because most of the men behind the pulpit are.

If you don’t teach that the woman belongs at home, don’t tell me that you believe the whole book!

There will be no revivals as long as the devil-vision stays plugged in.

It used to be a joke to say that someone’s momma wears army boots.

Maybe the reason why you do not have an Acts 20:20 vision for souls is because your spiritual eyesight has been blurred by your love of the world.

The family that ministers together stays together.

Where is the home where God is the Lord

Most Christians will meet Amos in heaven and have no idea what he did.

Most of God’s people will tell the preacher he is wrong at what he preaches, yet they do not even know the Book that God gave us.

100 years ago a Sodomite was unheard of, 50 years ago they were ashamed of themselves, 25 years ago they started creeping out of the closet and now in 2004 if you do not accept that sin,

YOU ARE GUILTY OF INTOLERANCE AND SOON YOU WILL BE GUILTY OF A HATE CRIME!

Live for Christ now while there is still time and live so that you will have no regrets at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

THOSE SHAMFUL EYE-OPENING STATISTICS

“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil”

Ephesians 5:16

“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.”

Psalm 90:12

If an individual spends an average of 2 hours a day watching television that is 730 hours a year. Giving some liberty, let us say that a child begins watching at the age of four. By the time the child reaches the age of 16, ONE FULL YEAR has been devoted (notice the word) to the t.v. Following the same pattern, and again at only an average of 2 hours a day, by the time the same person reaches the age of 76, they have lost 6 years of their life. Now if an individual views an average of 4 hours a day, then the amounts are doubled. By the age of 16, TWO FULL YEARS have been spent watching and by the age of 76, 12 years are gone. I have been very gracious with giving statistics, realizing that in many homes the image box is on 6,7, even 8 hours a day!

Even if the programs were neutral in nature, could a born-again, washed in the blood, Christ-following believer justify such a waste of time. Of course, it does not take a moral genius to recognize that neutral programs are difficult to find these days, even if one had a moral detector.

Now if the majority of these hours were spent viewing harmful or immoral programs, imagine the damage that is being done to our children as well as ourselves! Is it any wonder that even those that profess Christ as their Saviour are not led by the Spirit of God! Is it any wonder that those that take up the pew space in our local churches know so little of the Word of God, that surely it grieves our Lord! Is it any wonder that God’s people do not weep for lost souls and do not witness for the Lord that they profess!

Giving some liberty, I am going to estimate that the average Christian spends 60 minutes a week witnessing for Christ. This works out to be 52 hours a year or 520 hours every 10 years. So, lets say that a person receives the Lord Jesus Christ at 10 years old. Forgetting the normal excuse that they haven’t grown yet to the point of being able to witness and seeing that the redeemed of the Lord should certainly be able to say so, regardless of their age, this young person witnesses for his Lord this 52 hours a year. By the time he has reached the age of 22, he has witnessed the equivalent of 26 days in that 12 years. (Compare that to the statistics above).

If a Christian spends 4 hours a week in church, hopefully receiving biblical instruction and teaching and spends 30 minutes a day doing private bible reading and studying that is a total of 7 ½ hours a week or 390 hours a year. Every 12 years that would mean that the person would spend the equivalent of 195 days studying or reading the most wonderful book that has ever been available to mankind.. (Again, compare with the statistics above)

ONE BOOK

By Hope Lyman

(when she was 15)

Many books have come and gone

since the days of long ago

but one book still remains

It’s the Word of God, you know

The Holy Bible, we call it

twas inspired by God you see

and that is why it has lasted

through all ages of history

Some “scholars” try to undermine

this blest books authority

but God made us a promise

that will last through eternity

Others say you cannot understand

the real meaning true and deep

unless of course, if you can read

the Hebrew and the Greek

Still there are others out there

who claim it’s not for today

“You don’t need to obey what you read

it’s just an ideal” they say

The reason God gave us this book

is plain and clear to see

it tells us all have sinned

and Christ died to pay sins penalty

So believe what you read

in God’s Holy Word

For Christ has promised us

He’ll take us from this world

But God has also said

that those who will not heed

will perish if in the Book of Life

their names He does not read

IMAGINE THE NIGHT

By Hope Lyman

(when she was 15)

Imagine the night so long ago

when God sent us salvation

The child was Emmanuel

the Saviour of the nations

What must it have been like

to see Him lying there

and think that He had come

from heaven’s portal fair

Just think if you had been there

alive and heard Him speak

“come unto me” and I will save

all those who truly seek

Now you were not there

and you might claim

“I never heard His call”

but He still speaks to you today

through the blessed Holy Bible

So if you will obey

what was written by the Lord

some day He’ll come to you

and take you from this world

THE ANSWER FOR ATHEISTS

The atheists believe in everything

except the Bible and the Lord

they think they came from monkeys

or some strange animal horde

because they do not want

God as their solution

they came up with a hair-brained scheme

and called it evolution

so now instead of creation

it is taught that man evolved

but the problem of sin

never does get solved

also there’s the theory

that they named big bang

but as far as the evidence

there’s no proof from that gang

so if you are one of those

who thinks Grandma came from apes

you have been watching

too many Hollywood video tapes

you see, all men are born in sin

especially men like Charles Darwin

the only answer is to REPENT

of all this foolish folly

receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour

and you will not be sorry

believe the Bible, that it’s true

your life will soon be changed

and you will see that evolution

has no thread

on which to hang