Saipan: 17 June 1944

There's a page about my dad that reads in part, in his words:

I was wounded in action 17 June 1944 on the Island of Saipan in the Marianas Islands with 23 Marines (23rd Regiment, Fourth Marine Division). We had landed via amphibious tanks/tractors of of LSTs (Landing Ship Tanks). We received the Presidential Unit Citation and I received a "gunshot wound, left leg" on Saipan--40 percent disability by the Veterans Administration. And ... yes ..I received the Purple Heart.

As the LST's landed on the beach at Saipan, the men were told not to take pot shots, just to take cover. Dad looked over and a man from his little worship group appeared to be praying. Dad put his hand on the Marine's shoulder to comfort him and his head fell back, the whites of his eyes turned red and burst. Blood ran down his face. His fellow GIrene had caught a bullet under his helmet.
I do not recall whether dad went over the side or down the ramp onto the beach but he was in the water receiving heavy fire from machine gun nests from the Japanese. He decided to take cover behind the LST and with all that loud gunfire and bullets whizzing around him, a still, small voice said in almost a whisper, "You'd better move." Dad swam from behind the LST. Just then, the vessel lunged backward and would have turned my pop into hamburger, had he not obeyed the voice.

Three days later, on the island Dad was told to inform the forward positions that chow was on. He proceeded to do so. He went to one group and said, "Chow's on!"
"Go to HELL, Roebuck," came the response.

He went to another, "Chow's one!""Go to HELL, Roebuck!" came the response from the second group. He moved forward and again said,
"Chow's on!" BANG! He saw a flash in front of him and immediately felt led burning its way into the calf of his left leg as he fell to the ground and in my dad's words, "Squeeled like a stuck pig!" He lay there, having told the Lord, "It's You and me from here on out" after God's warning that earlier saved his life. Now, a new conversation, "Well, Lord, I guess this is it..." What seemed like eternity passed and then, in the words of dad, "The most beautiful little corpsman came up and said, 'We're gonna get you out  of here, Marine!' "


Read the whole account, if you wish, at:  http://www.justinmuseum.com/oralbio/roebuckbbio.html

Take the Highway to the End of the Night

In 1967 I was at a point in my life where I knew I had to decide whether I wanted to take my parents' and family's word for what I believe or what often times seemed to be the very opposite of what they said and showed that they believed. In the middle of that profound belly button examining, I came across the Doors...Jim Morrison et al. As I recall, I borrowed my best friend's copy of their first album and began to listen at first to learn "Light My Fire" for the band and discovered the writer of these songs seemed to be where I was...maybe. I listened to "Break on Through" and its words, "You know the day destroys the night...night divides the day..."  Almost Biblical or maybe Biblical but warped. But Jim seemed to be struggling with it all. The dude in other songs definitely had a strange outlook on the world.

In my total naivety, while I fell in love with "Back Door Man" I was clueless as to its more deep sexual reference other than a dude sneakin' in to the back door to see his girl, or someone's daughter. I wished I had such boldness. That's as far as my consideration of the lyric went.

Well I eventually, not long after that, decided not to take either group at their word, but to take God at HIS. Turns out, my parents and family had pretty much been on target, not that anyone is perfect. Today, belief system intact and continuing to strengthen, it's very interesting to observe other rocker's struggles and expressions...John Lennon's famous declarations of noisy UNbelief, Dylan's journey, Barry McGuire's Christian faith and his telling me how he shared it with Bob Dylan, there was Noel Stookey, Paul of Peter, Paul and Mary and Dion and Alice Cooper's faith and God delivering him from almost killing himself with alcohol.

The faith community (church...SOME evangelicals) are very jealous and when BJ Thomas professed faith in the Lord, they'd criticize him when he'd sing the old hits like "Raindrops..." saying, "Sing for the LORD, BJ!" They wouldn't leave the guy alone. Like JD Sumner said, "Ernie Ford sang 'Sixteen Tons' and people thought that was great and they'd marvel at his gospel songs, but let the Stamps back up Elvis and people say 'that that rock'n'roll stuff. I can tell you this, I bet more people came to faith in Christ hearin' Elvis sing 'How Great Thou Art' than all us gospel singers COMBINED."

MayBE. But I get excited when I hear how people are singing, some that you would never suspect of giving spirituality or holiness a thought.

Prayer

I've said on many occasions, as bad and evil as this world has become and as far as our Nation has drifted from its founding principles, it is little ole grannies on their knees before God Almighty that has prevented complete destruction.

But SOME, not all church goers who identify themselves as Christians unfortunately use prayer time as an occasion to GOSSIP. I believe God despises gossip. Its destructiveness cannot be measured. I myself have been described in the midst of such a group as having been "in and out of church." My friends have suffered the same. In my case the Lord told me not to bother offering a defense and I did not. I do not care what people think of me in or out of the church. They will have to answer for their spirit of gossip.

But it is things like this that people outside the flock see and satan uses it to keep them out. With the mega-church so prevalent, it's easy to assume that someone is not in church just because they haven't been there when YOU have. And here's a surprise. I don't think God gives out "browny points" for frequency of attendance. Lord forgive those and deliver them from the spirit of the Pharasee!

MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET

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Million Dollar Quartet

by Johnny Roebuck on Thursday, May 10, 2012 at 6:27pm ·

Some musicals are coming to local venues. There is Jersey Boys, a musical about the Four Seasons, Frankie Valli's group and another is called the Million Dollar Quartet. This, of course is about Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Carl (Lee) Perkins who all got their start at Sun Records, Memphis, Tennessee.

There was a motion picture about Cash "I Walk the Line" that had to minimize Elvis in order to keep the focus on Johnny, so the character who played EP was "cooled down." The same is true of "Great Balls of Fire" which was biographical about Jerry Lee Lewis. Standing next to ANYONE Elvis reigned supreme during his lifetime and ever since. The Beatles visited Elvis because they were fans. Elvis was invited to visit them, but declined...not so he's LOOK too cool, but because he was and IS too cool.

There have been a lot of biographical movies about Elvis...some accurate, some not, some flattering and some with a axe to grind against him. I have never felt the need to see an Elvis "tribute artist" as they are now called. There are some real good ones, granted, but I can still hear and see the real thing. I love SOME of the things they've done with the archive of his music, but I've already complained heavily about unworthy "duet" partners. When Elvis' legacy is left to the hands of those who brought us American Idol, you can expect what you get...using the Elvis name and image to boost some ho hum "artists." Not that Idol hasn't had a few decent ones.

They haven't yet done a biographical piece on Carl Perkins. There are different versions about how he came up with the idea of "Blue Suede Shoes" but the fact remains that that was Carl's tribute to the style of his friend Elvis, and designed especially for him. By the way, the very first album rock song, was Elvis' version of "Blue Suede Shoes" because Elvis wouldn't let RCA release it as a single for the longest time, but after singing it on national TV, audiences demanded to hear it. So, it was played and history was made. They really should do a film about Carl, me thinks.

Million Dollar Quartet is also an album, very rough. As Carl was recording the session with "Matchbox" at Sun, Elvis, who had signed with RCA popped in and the world's most famous jam session occurred. It was mostly gospel music. Johnny Cash, who reportedly was there, was not heard on what went on the album. All that was heard was Elvis and Jerry Lee's vocals, Elvis and Jerry Lee's piano playing and Carl's guitar playing. I'm not sure that there EVER was a time where all four lads played the same show. Perhaps so. But the musical is based on this concept and from what I've heard neither the Elvis or the Lewis character is really believable. So, unless someone gives me a free ticket, I don't plan to go to the show.

There is a good, unofficial biography of Johnny Cash on DVD I found at of all places, the Dollar Store. I enjoyed it. The perspective is from his brother Tommy and band members.

Susan Atkins

Name sound familiar? It should. Susan was a member of the Charles Manson "family." (cult)
In the days shortly after the Tate-LaBianca murders, on a visit to family in Eastern North Carolina I felt as though I was on trial. My hair was long, because that's the way I wanted to wear it and because I sang rock'n'roll.  Today, bald rockers are cool, at least I am...I think. Dunno, being cool is not like my top priority any more.
I had some cousins who didn't want to try to understand all of this as if I represented Charlie Manson and the antics of John Lennon and his new wife that most everyone thought of as a bit strange.

Years later, I read a book called "Child of Satan-Child of God" authored by Susan Atkins who admitted to being the one who killed Sharon Tate in her partly drug-induced fog partly being under the control of Charlie and largely being deceived by the Evil One. Susan  did horrible things unforgivable to the natural born, but not out of the reach of the One Who forgives and casts sins into a sea of forgetfulness, the One Who purchased Susan two thousand years before she was born.

Susan's story is one of an "all American girl" who ran away and got up with the wrong crowd, to say the least. Charlie had signs and wonders in his bag of tricks, including actually walking through her. Yeah, scary. But Susan's story doesn't end with committing murder and going to prison for life. Her story is one of redemption and of ministry in her final days right there in prison.

I, as a young Christian, was impacted greatly by Susan's book and wrote her. I got a hand-written answer from her mentioning that she was married (ha ha) and that she'd be glad to help me in any way with my spiritual walk. Susan passed away from brain cancer, I believe in 2009. Her letter and even more her book inspired me to keep on keeping on.

There are some pretty horrible people in this world that in my SELF, I would be tempted to give up on, but the Word of God says that "His mercy endures forever." If you haven't read Susan's book, I gurarantee it.

(Didn't think about it until after just now looking at her picture, but Susan resembled the first girl who ever really kissed me, Jan (Charli)Schmidt)

At the Risk...

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At the Risk...

by Johnny Roebuck on Monday, April 9, 2012 at 11:47am ·

...of sounding like one of those old timers who "trudged through three feet of snow up hill to and from school," I was talking with Dubbins yesterday, remembering a time when the Easter Season saw radio stations play songs of THAT season, much like they still do at Christmas or "the Winter Break." Yeah, this country has drifted. You'd have to watch a re-run of the Lawrence Welk Show now to hear "The Easter Parade" written, incidentally by a Jewish gentleman named Irving Berlin. The "gentile" holiday didn't seem to disturb him.

Now it's "Turkey Day" for Thanksgiving and at Easter, the Bunny or something, but it wasn't always that way.

Here's Fred Hysterical with a scene from the movie of the same title, circa, 1948

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPbWNiaD_8g&feature=related

PASSION

Were they to TRULY make an authentic film about the Crucifixion, it would have to be rated XXX for violence! When "The Passion of the Christ" came out, a dear friend gave me caution with regard to seeing it, knowing my sensitive nature. It was a great film, but didn't come CLOSE to showing the violence.

Some picture Yeshua (Jesus), meek and mild or hanging on the Cross of Calvery (Golgatha) but my image of Jesus as I've come to know Him is laughing, holding kids on His lap, loving, compassionate, understanding. I can't WAIT for the day I crawl up in His lap, as it were, much like I did my earthly father and His telling me, "It's alright, now. I've got you. No more tears. I'm here with you...FOREVER"

I don't know what it's like not to have had a loving father. Why did I have one, when so many are so much less than that? Some people can't conceive of the love of a father...especially a lot of girls. For some, other men have come in and filled in the gap, and I believe God has special blessing for these. My own son is such, being a very positive role model for a little girl who is in every sense my grand daughter, even though we do not share DNA. My OWN dad adopted my sister, who I share only my mother's DNA with. The story of their love is legendary. He was in every sense her "daddy."

These two great men's love comes from one Source---God through Jesus.

To think that someone so sinless, so misunderstood. Hey, I can't explain the Trinity. But to think that the One Who created this earth, "slain from its foundation," Who was willing to cast aside the "perks" of His diety and live as a mere mortal. With people denying His rightful Sovereignty, calling Him just "a good man" or "a prophet" and then denying His prophetic Word, to put up with all that disrespect, to have His own created beings and subject Himself to the Cross for the likes of a maggot like me is unbelievable...too good to be true. But it IS.

Jesus' back was like hamburger and He suffered so much loss of blood by the time He got to Golgotha, He should have already been dead, but remember, he wasn't a punk. He was a CARPENTER, with arms and strength from learning Joseph's trade. I used to think, "Big deal, He died and rose from the grave. He was God!" See, I misunderstood the limitations he put on Himself, while others have said, "No, he was the SON of God!" He is BOTH! No, I can't explain it, but it was realizing the limitations He put on Himself and having it communicated to me that He would have endured that brutality and died if I was the only person on earth who needed salvation. He loved me that much. Trust me, I can be an unlovely bloke at times...MOST of the time. Yes, He would have done it for me alone, but at the same time...

He died once and for ALL. That includes YOU, my friend and if you don't know Him, you'll never regret having made His acquaintance.

I'm going to do something you may find weird, but you know, we live in weird times. I'm going to invite you to pray a prayer and take Jesus as YOUR Savior and Lord. You can pray this prayer with me. I'll be praying for YOU. You don't have to repeat it if you don't want, but you can if you want to. Fair enough?

Father God, I lift up my friend to You and ask that You would make Yourself real to them at this moment. I know You have prepared someone's heart to pray with me. It doesn't bother me that I may never hear about it until I'm with You in Heaven. I know You have directed me to do this and despite what people may think of me I'm doing it right now.

(If you want, repeat this prayer) Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner and have been doing things that displease You and haven't done things I should have. I'm tired of doing things MY way and want to do them Yours. Forgive me of my sins now and help me to do things Your way from here on out. Thank You, Jesus that You've heard my prayer. Help me to know You better as I read Your Holy Word and find other believers to hang out with, in Jesus' Name. Amen

Happy Easter, my friend. If there's anything I can do to help you get to Heaven, don't hesitate to ask