THROUGH
MOUNTAIN MISTS
Early Settlers of
Their
Descendants...Their Stories...Their Achievements
Lifting the
Mists of History on Their Way of Life
By: Ethelene Dyer Jones
Recently
off the press is the beautiful book recounting the history of
Serving on the committee to research,
write, design and publish the book were Ed and Doris Durban, Eva
Decker, Mary
Sue Moon, James Hooper, Tina Hourihan, Carol Rabun and Alan Morgan. They readily acknowledge that many more
contributed to the book, making it a compendium of local and area
history as
well as the story of a faithful group of people who have lived and
exercised
faith in this place since at least 1875 or earlier.
It is an unusual book. Seldom
do you see a church history book that
is bound in what I like to call a “coffee table” format, one so comely
and
physically appealing in a book that you will want to place it in a
prominent
place in your home. Cover and contents,
color and design—all invite the reader to enjoy.
The committee could not find an exact
beginning date for
How long before 1875, or just when or
by whom the church was founded has been lost in the mists of time and
the
absence of recorded information. The
committee is to be commended for the sources they consulted to bring as
much
information as possible to readers about the church’s existence,
growth, work
and influence in the community and to the ends of the earth.
Old land deeds of
Early pastors, from a list made from
memory by J. L. “Uncle Boney” Colwell in 1944, provided insight to
first
leaders in the absence of recorded minutes of the church’s first
decades. Thumbnail biographies of these
pastors are
given, together with pictures when available.
The title of the book, How Firm a Foundation: A
History of the
The dust jacket cover has these words
about the book: “This is not your
average church history book. This is a
book about people—Christian men and women who, through dedication and
commitment to God and each other, built the First Baptist Church of
Blairsville. It is a story, not of a
building, but of individual lives bound together within a community of
God.” –
The Book Committee; Ed Durbin and Doris Durbin, Editors and Writers.
As a researcher and writer, I will
return to this book time and again as I seek information about people
whose
brief biographies and remembrances are included in the book. The excellent index makes the book an
easy-to-use reference source. For
inspiration, I will read testimonies and remembrances included in the
book by
various people I have known. In this way
I can reconnect with people who made a difference in my own life.
Thanks are certainly in order to the
church body itself for calling for and voting to publish what Honorable
Zell
Miller calls “a golden treasure-trove.”
Thanks, a thousand-times over, for the persistence, digging, and
hard
work of the committee that brought the book to fruition.
We think of crowns being a reward of our
faithful service and coming after our transition to glory.
But with this earthly work, the compilation
and publication of How Firm a
Foundation, your crown, faithful committee, is in our hands,
ready to
use, a glowing tribute to your efforts.
All who read and appreciate the book will be basking in the glow
of your
shining crown.
Updated October 5,
2009
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