My Dad The Preacher “Never Man Spake Like This Man” As a small boy I remember walking and holding my dad’s hand while going to church. I was so proud to be walking by his side. Sometimes I would pretend to be preaching, just like my dad. To me though it was not pretending, I was getting ready to work with my dad. When I grew up I wanted to be a preacher and work beside my dad, my pastor. That was my dream. I was certainly like any other boy that talked about being a cowboy or a fireman when I got big. But more than anything I wanted to be just like my daddy, a preacher. To me he was not just any old preacher, he was my preacher, he was my dad. I remember my dad taking me to revivals and crusades to hear great men of God. Like Dr. Lee Roberson, Dr. Jack Hyles, Dr. Tom Malone, Dr. John R. Rice, Brother Maze Jackson, Dr. Bob Gray, Dr. Jack Van Impee (before he went astray), Brother John Rawlings, Brother Clifton Stancil, Brother John McCormick, and others. I do remember most of these great men and have heard most of them many times later in years. He wanted me to be around the very best men of God. He wanted them to influence my life for the Lord, and they did, and continue to impact my life and preaching. But my friend I want to introduce you to my Hero, my Daddy, and my favorite preacher in all the world. He is the world’s greatest preacher. “Never man spake like this man,” was said of my daddy from a old time, old fashion, King James, Hell fire and brimstone preacher, by Preacher Clifton Stancil. This is the preacher that is partly responsible for me being saved, for you see. He led my dad to the Lord when he was eighteen years old, who led me to the Lord when I was six. Brother Stancil has been the pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Bath, South Carolina for almost fifty years. My daddy doesn’t know this until now. I talked with Preacher Stancil one day in a Waffle House and thanked him for showing my daddy the way to heaven, for all the love he showed my dad and family through the years. He shared with me these words. “You know Marc; I have heard some of the greatest preachers in the entire world today. I have had many of preacher boy go out from our church and preach. But I have to tell you the honest to goodness truth. I have never heard a man preach with the power of God on them like your dad. I have never heard a man who could preach like him. You could feel the presence of God when he preached. He could hold people’s attention, and quote verses left and right with such ease and influence. The Word of God just flowed from his lips. I have never, even to this day; have never heard a greater preacher than your daddy.” I got up from that table with tears running down my face, saying you haven’t told me anything I didn’t already know. I remember as a small six, seven, eight, nine year old boy listening to my dad preach. He was awesome! Words cannot describe how he preached. Words cannot describe how I felt when I heard my daddy preached the Word of God. As it says in 1 Peter 4:11 “If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” This is the best way that I can describe it. It sounded as the “oracles of God.” It was as if God himself was speaking. Many people call Charles Haddon Spurgeon the “Prince of Preachers.” But in my humble opinion, he hasn’t got anything on my daddy. As any son they should be awful proud of their daddy. I thank God that I have a great reason to be proud of my dad. Many of boys have a drunk for a dad or no dad at all. Boy have I been blessed to have a Preacher for my daddy. I hope that one day to be just a little like my dad when he spoke. To be able to have God’s power on my preaching. If I can be just one tenth of what he is, I’ll be a success for my Saviour. Still to this day when I hear my daddy preach I say, “Never Man Spake Like This Man.”

My Dad the Father.
	MY HERO! There was a Preacher's Son, who loved his daddy a ton. He thought the world of him, because he was his best Friend. Close by his side he would stand, cause everything he did was so grand. Superman, Batman, and Robin were zero's, when compared to his daddy his hero. Greater than any policeman or fireman to me, for he led me to Jesus you see. by Marc Grizzard

King James Bible Defender The Man OF God! I remember when I went away to Tennessee Temple University at the age of seventeen. Being such a young immature young man I didn’t realize how much was wrong with going off to a “Bible” College. Especially, one that did not believe the Bible no longer. I just assumed that its stand on the Word of God was the same as it had always been since its beginning. Boy was I wrong! Like most that go to college, they think that whatever the professor says is the truth or gospel. What do I know? There the ones with the degree. There the ones who have Dr. in front of their name. Who am I to say that they are wrong, or to argue with them? The very first month, Dr. Fred Afman, Dr. Dalphus Price, Dr. J. Don Jennings, and others began to tell me that "the Bible was not the Word of God. Meaning that I should not use the King James Bible. Instead, get me a good NIV or a RSV, or anything as long as it’s not the King James." I was almost made fun of if I carried a KJV, instead of the Modern Versions. At first I did not understand, but who was I compared to them? So I gave in, and bought a NIV. Shortly thereafter, I came home for a few days. I was somewhat proud of what I had learned in such a short period of time, so I began to share some of those things with my dad. The Bible issue came up and I showed him my new Bible. As soon as he saw it, I could tell he was highly disappointed in my decision. He set me down and began to show me with the Word of God, the King James, my error and sin. I would quote some “scholar” at school or some New Age believer like Bruce Metzger but he would always go back to the Bible to refute it. My dad taught me that day, to never change from the King James no matter what. It doesn’t matter what the “scholars” (false teachers) say, the liberals say, the modernist say, my friends say, my church says, my family says, my wife says, my children say, my teachers say, STAND FOR THE WORD OF GOD THE KING JAMES BIBLE. I don’t care what anyone thinks on this issue and what your shallow thoughts are. I want be moved. That day I learned that my daddy knew a whole lot more that Dr. Price, Dr. Afman and , Bruce Metzger. Even though he didn’t have the degree, or have the college education as them, he was wiser. You may ask, “Do you believe in the King James Bible just because your daddy said so?” I believe that is a good enough reason, if I had nothing else to go on. Since that time I have thousands of reasons to believe in the KJV and not the false perverted versions. I thank my God that I had a daddy that taught me right concerning the Word of God. I went back to school with my King James Bible and been carring it for twenty-five years. My dad has been using and standing for the King James Version for over forty-five years. Thanks daddy! I love you!

My Dad's Humor “Did You Hear The One About…?” My sense of humor certainly came from my dad. Not that my mom has no humor, she just doesn’t go around telling jokes. She’s funny and doesn’t know it. Daddy is always cutting up and telling jokes and things like that with us kids. I remember even as a small boy my dad telling jokes and cutting the fool. I still can remember some of the jokes he would tell to different people because I would hear them over and over. He would add sound affects, move his hands or feet, and act out anything that would get your attention on the joke. Before you knew it, he would have you laughing and rolling in the floor. There were times when I would know the punch line and what was about to happen. Sure enough it would, no matter what age, they would die laughing. My dad and I use to work a bus route over in Augusta, Georgia when I was a young squirt. He seemed to be so good with the young and the old. We would hand out bubble gum to the kids and invite them to Sunday school. My dad would talk with the parents and break the ice with a nice joke, or something funny that would get the meanest of people to smile. He is great at that type of thing. He knows exactly what to say at the right time. He’s like an artist at work on his master piece. He’s real quick to think; unlike me sometimes I’m slow. I have a lot to owe to my dad, and certainly one of them is my humor. My girls think I’m the funniest person alive, which doesn’t speak very highly of my daughters, but isn’t that the way it’s suppose to be? That’s exactly the same way I feel about my daddy. I rather sit down and hear my daddy’s jokes than anyone. Even if I have heard them a hundred times, he still makes me laugh at the age of forty. A few years back when we were living in South Carolina, just outside of Augusta, we went to hear Lewis Grizzard speak. When we got there we showed them our id with our last names being the same, and they gave us seats up front. We had a great time listening to Lewis tell jokes, not that I personally appreciated everyone. The main thing was that we were together. I didn’t tell my daddy that night but I thought he was a whole lot better than Mr. Lewis. It’s funny, but I still do some of the same things with my girls, that my daddy did when I was a little boy. I was given a great foundation when it came to being funny or having humor. Even now when I see my dad after a while, maybe when we go home for a visit, he will say, “Did you hear the one about…?”

My Daddy At Christmas Christmas Time! This particular picture was taken in Chattanooga Tennessee. This was mine and Beth's first Christmas together, and away from home. My dad growing up did not get anything normally for Christmas, because his parents didn't buy him anything. All the other kids would get toys and new things to play with, but not my dad. He might get a little car or something very small, while his parents drank their money away. All the while telling him they didn't have the money to buy him any toys. They certainly loved him, but they definitely didn't show it at Christmas. It must have been hard for him to face all the other children and friends in the neighborhood. I can hear them now saying mean and cruel things as kids normally do. How much it must have hurt him to go through that year after year. From my earliest memory I can remember just the opposite on Christmas morning. Never, and I repeat NEVER did I wake up and not get a pile of toys. He never neglected to get us kid’s toys, even though things were tight. One particular Christmas I remember getting an electric race car track. After we opened all the gifts daddy and I set down and played with it. It had two tracks so we could race each other. It was awesome racing against my dad. I remember other great toys such as bikes (just about every year), a skateboard, cowboy and Indians, army men, pogo stick, football, ball and glove, guns, Tonka trucks, swing set, and the list goes on and on. After looking back, and even now, the most important gift I ever received at Christmas was being together as a family. One particular year my dad really went the extra mile at Christmas. I guess I was about eight or nine years old. My dad had red pajamas, so he used it to be his Santa suit, and cotton for his beard. He came into the room on Christmas morning saying, “Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas.” I being so young thought it was Santa Clause himself. Then I realized that it was my daddy, and I thought one more time, “Wow! He’s awesome!” My daddy gave so that we kids could have. When he didn’t have it to give, he gave. He gave till it hurt. He gave sacrificially. He gave because he loved us. One of the greatest things my daddy ever gave to me, other than him leading me to Christ, was when he wrote in a book that I asked him to fill out about his life. The question was asked, “What is the best Christmas present you ever received? Why was that the best?” He said, “The best Christmas present I ever received was nine days late, born on January 3, 1967. My first boy and boy were we glad. We already had a girl and now a little boy that just made everything perfect. I never mind a belated present if it’s this good.” I was that little boy. Marc

My Daddy at the beach. This is my daddy and me at the beach a few years ago. Our entire family and all the kids were there also. We all decided to have a vacation together one more time, before someone goes home to be with the Lord. Growing up as a kid I remember taking many vacations as a family. I believe that every year we went somewhere together as a family. My daddy always made sure that we took time alone away from the normal grind of things. This probably turned out to be more work and tiresome for them than if they had just stayed home. We would go to different places like Washington D.C., The World Series, the mountains, Six Flags, the beach, along with many other places. When we went to the beach we would normally go to Savannah because it was closer and not very populated. My dad being a preacher and everything had some old fashion beliefs and Godly convictions about nudity and mixed bathing (swimming). Thank God for that. Amen! To bad we don’t have more preachers with the same kind of convictions. When we would go to the beach my daddy would always make sure that he found a secluded spot with no one in sight. Then if anyone ever came near we would leave. This is exactly what we should have done. Amen! We would always have a great time at the beach; in fact it is still one of my favorite memories as a child. We would walk up and down the beach picking up shells by the bucket full. We would also play in the water and build sand castles. My mom would make us a great lunch as always and made sure we had plenty. She would normally bring us some extra bread so we could feed the birds. I loved to see my dad and mom on the beach laughing and running. It made me feel loved and secure. I remember seeing my dad hugging my mom and kissing her. I didn’t understand all of that then, but I did know that it meant that they loved each other, and therefore they loved me. My dad taught me to take time with the family and never be so busy that you can’t stop to smell the roses. He didn’t know that he did this but he did. He did it by example, as he was always teaching me, by example. He taught me that the best investment that I can make is not in land, stocks or bonds, but in my family. Money and things I can never take with me, but my family I can. My first and primary reason for being on this earth is to be a Godly husband and father, then a pastor. Everything that I do, is teaching my girls something. I teach them a lot with my words, but I teach them even more with my words in action. Thanks dad for teaching me all the things that you have and still are teaching me everyday.

MY DADDY PRAYING This is a picture of my dad praying before a meal. I know what your thinking what was I doing taking a picture while my daddy was praying? It’s just like when you pray going down the road and you’re driving. Anyway, I remember as a small boy my dad praying before EVERY meal. If we dare touch any food with our lips, we were in for it. Daddy would always stop and thank God for saving us from our sins, for dying on the cross, for the Word of God, for our family, and for the food. Talking to God and thanking Him for what we had been given was more important than eating on time, eating period, even if the food got cold. My dad put God before eating. He put Him first in his life. Daddy taught me to pray before we eat anything. To tell God how thankful you are to Him for giving it to you, for your job, for a body that was healthy enough to work. This may seem like a little thing to some people, but that’s where you’re wrong. Thanking God is not something small to overlook. It amazes me the times I have seen people just start eating without ever thanking God for the food. Sad to say this has been the case no matter where I live, even pastor’s kids. Most people are ashamed to pray in public because someone may see them. The fact is that the reason that they are ashamed in public is because they are not praying in private. My dad taught me to pray in public and private, and if you know my dad his voice caries and he doesn’t pray short prayers. I began doing the same when I was a small boy, because my daddy said so. He also taught me that the Bible said so. When our girls were small babies we began to teach them to pray before they ate anything. Too many parents wait to teach their kids things until they get older, but that’s too late. I’d whip my girls if they didn’t pray before they ate a meal, and still will to this day. My dad was constantly teaching and giving me a sure foundation on how to raise a family, and the things to teach them. I’m proud to say that I have done just that very thing with my family. I owe a lot to my dad when it comes to what I believe and the foundation that I am now giving my daughters. Thanks one more time daddy for all you have given me.

MY DADDY THE JACK OF ALL TRADES. This picture is of my daddy, me and my brother Jason. We are standing in front of a garage that we were building. I was eleven or twelve in this picture and Jason was four or five. I remember as a small boy as early as six and seven helping my dad build things. One thing that I greatly remember him building me personally is a submarine. I was the only kid in school who had his own submarine. It was awesome. You could actually climb into it, and use a real live periscope that turned all the way around. We coved it with some special water proof material. Now how many of you guys out there had your dad build you one of those? I would guess none. My dad was talented in building and working with anything that he set his mind to. At the age of seven or eight he taught me how to use a hammer and chisel. He cut me a two by four and showed me how to carve a boat out. Somewhere around that same age his dad needed a hospital type bed that would raise and lower. They didn’t have the money as a family to afford one so daddy and I stayed up most of the night building him one. One of the least liked things that my dad taught me was how to make cement. Boy was I good at it! He gave me all kinds of experience at it, a whole lot more than I wanted. We built walls, patios, garages, steps, etc. I could make cement in my sleep. I would wake up having night mares about making cement. Ha! Ha! There are many jobs that we did together that I could tell you about, but I’ll only tell you about one right now. When we first moved to North Augusta, South Carolina my dad took me to the back yard and told me he had a small job for me to do. He pointed to the back yard and then took me to the front yard and said, “Put it here.” “What do you want here?” I said. “The back yard.” I thought he was joking, but he wasn’t. You see our front and back yard was a steep slope and he wanted to dig the back yard down and put it in the front yard to make it more level. That’s what he wanted to do, I didn’t. It was just fine with me the way it was. I didn’t see the big deal about the slope. All the other yards had a slope, why couldn’t we have one. I “argued” my point but with no success. Today my parents have a nice level yard in the front and back yard. After hundreds of loads of dirt with a wheel barrel and many days of sweat, I thought we were through. Then we had to build a large retaining wall to keep the hill in the back yard from falling. You guess it, with cement and block, and then brick. My dad always has a project going. I can’t even get him to this day to set down and relax and do nothing. My dad taught me how to work hard, very hard. The other day I had to go get a MRI done on my neck and back. The doctor after seeing the film said that I had a lot of arthritis in my neck and upper back to be my age. He said that I must have worked very hard when I was young. I told him he didn’t know the half of it. I’ve always told my girls that I have never worked so hard as when I worked with my dad. Also that he got the best years of my life as far as physical labor, but I thank God for that. I had rather give to my dad the best years, than to anybody else, or to some company. I have carried on that tradition with my girls, which they regret. I have taught them the same things about work that my dad taught me. I thank God that I had a dad who taught me a Godly work ethic, how to use my mine, how to use tools, how to work safe, and how to get the job done. I am who I am today because of my dad. Many boys in this world would have died to have a dad like mine. To teach them, to train them, to show them, to help them, to spend time with them, to guide them, to assist them, to pray for them, to encourage them, to chasten them, to listen to them, to talk with them, to play with them, and to love them. I have The World’s Greatest Daddy.

If you are interested go to "Sermons by my Dad" and hear some messages that he preached at our church.