Books

Focus On The Fundamentals Of The Faith

By W. Douglass Harris

Biographical Sketch of the Author

An Incredible Journey

Life for this author has been an incredible journey from the obscurity of being the son of tenant farmer parents to becoming a gospel preacher, elder in the Lord’s church, and editor of a gospel paper. This journey has included preaching for seven congregations in local work, evangelizing in thirteen states of the USA, two tours of Bible lands, teaching New Testament Greek in the Alabama Christian School of Religion (now Southern University), and making fifteen trips to the Caribbean islands for evangelistic efforts and lectureships.

No notoriety is claimed, because there is none, but for whatever credit there is for any humble good accomplished for the Cause of Christ, it is all laid at the feet of Jesus (Author).

Early Years

All of the following paragraphs enclosed in quotation marks are quoted from a biography written by Kenneth G. Chambers for credit in a course at Southern Christian University at Montgomery, Alabama, entitled, W. D. “Doug” Harris. “Doug was born October 25, 1917, to Otey and Dixie Harris, tenant farmers at the time, near Franklin, Williamson County, Tennessee. His mother was a member of the Lord’s church at his birth, but his father was not until a few years later. His grandparents and great grandparents on his mother’s side were also members of the church. Some of his fondest and earliest memories, he reports, are associated with the church, such as attending gospel meetings with his grandparents. His parents were regular attendees at all the services. He tells of their carrying the children to protracted meetings when they were infants –– recalling how his parents would put them on pallets on the floor under the pews during the services. His parents were members of the Riggs Cross Roads congregation located near College Grove, Williamson County, Tennessee (which still existed at the time of this writing).

“In addition to the influence of his parents and grandparents, his early life was influenced by a public school teacher, Miss Agnes Fuller, who was also a member of the Lord’s church. In fact, she was also his first Sunday School teacher. The high school principal, J. L. Nunley, where he attended high school, was also a member of the church. He also tells of a good man, Jordan Riggs, who was one of the leaders of the Riggs Cross Roads congregation, having him up reading scripture at Sunday School before he was baptized. Doug was baptized at the same time as his oldest sister, just before he was thirteen years of age, by Brother John Hayes of Limestone County, Alabama, who was preaching in a meeting at Riggs Cross Roads.

“Times were hard during the twenties and early thirties and money was scarce, and as a result his father was not able to pay much on his debt for the first farm he bought. In spite of the so-called “Great Depression” he managed to keep the farm and eventually paid the debt. Measured by the standards of today, the family was poor but they did not so consider themselves. His father and mother were hard workers and good managers of material things. They labored to give their children every advantage possible in life. It was during this time that they were sent to the Holtland Elementary and High School in the north end of Marshall County, Tennessee, which no longer exists. Their high school education was completed at Forrest High School (named for the Confederate General, Nathan B. Forrest) at Chapel Hill, Tennessee. During these years his brother and sisters were taught the honor of hard work and honesty. They were taught to abhor becoming objects of charity, and the satisfaction of earning what you obtained so as to be able to help others. During his high school days, he was a member of the Better English Club and a cheerleader for their twice tied, but undefeated, football team. In the summers of his high school days, he worked on the farm and did construction work with some local carpenters.

“In 1936, having graduated from high school, he signed up with a first cousin to leave the farm and to sell books for Southwestern Publishing Company of Nashville, Tennessee, which was his first business venture. They were sent to Maryland just out of Washington, D.C. as their assigned territory. This became a valuable experience in salesmanship and learning how to manage his own affairs. He made enough money that summer to help him matriculate at David Lipscomb College that fall.”

College Days

“During his childhood it was planted in his mind by his parents that if he went to college it would have to be a Christian college to have their support. As a result of this teaching he and his oldest sister entered David Lipscomb College in the fall of 1936. Both of them worked on campus to help defray the expense. They graduated with a diploma in 1938. During this tenure Doug had such teachers as E. H. Ijams, the president of the college; John L. Rainey, from whom he learned his first Greek; Batsell Baxter, Sr.; S. P. Pittman; E. W. McMillan, and S. H. Hall. He learned his first rudiments of music under a dear teacher, Miss Irma Lee Batey.

“After graduating from Lipscomb, Dr. George S. Benson, President of Harding College, Searcy, Arkansas, came to the campus and offered Doug a work scholarship to Harding. This he accepted and matriculated in the fall of 1938. While at Harding he had such teachers as J. N. Armstrong, the founder of Harding College; L. C. Sears, the Academic Dean; Johnny Lee Dykes: and B. F. Rhodes. Having preached his first sermon at Chapel Hill, Tennessee, in 1937, as a student preacher he had the opportunity to preach at various places in Arkansas during the years of his training at Harding, where he graduated cum laude with a B.A. degree in 1940, having been selected to Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities. At both Lipscomb and Harding he worked in the college print shops, which enabled him to dabble in printing the rest of his life, eventually owning his own shop.

“Later, after his marriage and move back to Athens, Georgia, he attended the University of Georgia where he received his M.A. degree with majors in English and History.

“Although he confesses that he did not know as much as he thought he knew following these graduations, one thing he said he did learn from his college training was how to study and do research, which has proven invaluable through the years as a preacher, Bible class teacher, and editor.”

His Preaching Days

“Upon completion of his education at Harding, Doug went to Kirbyville, Texas, on recommendation of Dr. George Benson, President of Harding, to preach for a congregation made up primarily of elderly people. They seemed to resent a 24-year-old boy’s trying to teach them how to live, so his stay was for only six months, but was an invaluable experience and he learned more Bible than he had ever known. During that time he met John Stevens, another young man who was preaching at Jasper, Texas, just a few miles from Kirbyville. They became friends, playing tennis, attending gospel meetings, and making trips together. Later John was appointed president of Abilene Christian College, where he remained until his retirement. Their paths have crossed a few times during the intervening years.

“At the request of Brother S. H. Hall, preacher for the old Russell Street church in Nashville, Tennessee, and the West End church in Atlanta, Georgia, Doug moved from Texas to Athens, Georgia to work with the young church there. This was a small congregation of about twenty-five members meeting in the city court room over the city jail, being supported by West End. Doug remained there until the fall of 1941. From Athens he moved to South Georgia, being recommended by L. C. Sears, Dean of Harding, as a teacher to Dasher Bible School (now Georgia Christian School). His support was supplied primarily by the Central Avenue church in Valdosta to teach in the school and to evangelize weekends and evenings in the area. His efforts in evangelizing with a tent included meetings being conducted in Live Oak, Florida; Douglas, Quitman, and Hahira, Georgia. These meetings with the help of others resulted in a congregation being established in each of these cities. It was during a tent meeting at Hahira that he met his wife, Margaret Larue Copeland, where she was teaching school.

“West End in Atlanta and the small church in Athens kept in touch with him and wanted him to return to Athens. They were married June 15, 1942, and moved to Athens, Georgia, where Doug had previously preached and they began their life together. At the time of this writing the relationship exists after more than 57 years. To this union three children have been born: Douglass, Jr., Richard, and Margaret Lee. Doug, Sr. and Margaret were able to provide the children with a good education, all of whom attended a Christian college. In fact, they had all three of them in David Lipscomb College at the same time for a period of two years. All three now have M.A. degrees and are faithful to the church.

“When Doug and his wife moved back to work in Athens, the congregation was still meeting in the city hall. Doug and Margaret pooled their money, rented an apartment, bought furniture, and started house keeping. With the help of the West End congregation in Atlanta, they were able to purchase a large dwelling house which was converted into a suitable meeting place for the church and living quarters for the preacher. They remained there for three and one-half years, with two sons, Douglass, Jr. and Richard’s being added to the family. It was during this time that Doug completed his work for his M.A. degree at the University of Georgia.

“In 1945, the Rose Hill church in Columbus, Georgia, invited them to come and work with them. As they were expecting their third child, his family was moved there before he fulfilled his commitment to Athens, and Margaret Lee was born during the interval. This work had some serious problems caused by an unprincipled preacher. In the preacher transition there were many unchristian things said and done. This resulted in 89 confessions of wrong in one week, following a year’s preaching on love and forgiveness. Among the responses was the sister-in-law of the former preacher and her family.

“Since Rose Hill was the nearest congregation to Fort Benning, they had many military men in attendance during the closing days of World War II. They ranked from privates to colonels. This resulted in Doug’s being asked to perform many weddings for military men. Some of them have contacted Doug during the intervening years. While preaching there Doug, along with Brother A. C. Dreaden and their respective congregations, started congregations in Americus and Dawson, Georgia, and a black church in Phenix City, Alabama. Doug also preached in a tent meeting in East Columbus supported by Rose Hill, which eventually resulted in the beginning of the Edgewood church. This work with Rose Hill was a profitable work spiritually for both Doug and the congregation.”

The Flexible Fifties

“In December 1949, Doug and his family were invited to consider working with the Noble Street church (later Central) in Anniston, Alabama. Although they had had a division, Doug accepted the challenge, after two consultation meetings with the remaining elders and deacons. This division was caused by personality clashes and professional jealousy, and not doctrinal issues. This work was rocky at times, but very profitable. After Doug had been there for a year, Brother Gus Nichols came for a gospel meeting and tried to get the two groups to reconcile and consolidate, which failed, but he did get them to recognize each other and to announce special services. In 1984 with all the personal malice and jealousy now dead, the two congregations were able to re-unite in the Lord’s service. Doug was invited to speak at the merger services.

“In 1953, the Central church in Birmingham was looking for a man to support at Fort Payne, Alabama, where they had started a congregation several years previously. Brother R. D. Jordan, one of the elders at Central, made several trips to Anniston and eventually persuaded Doug and his family to move to Fort Payne. This proved to be a refreshing work as they had no internal problems in contrast to the trouble spots of his last two works. Here Doug was able to concentrate on growth. As a result the work grew and became self supporting in three years. Doug was able to have a daily radio program for seven and one-half years supported by five or six congregations. This program proved to be very helpful, with a good response by mail. Doug and his family stayed with this work for eight years. During this time he helped them to appoint elders and deacons, and assisted in starting congregations at Geraldine and Collinsville, Alabama.

“In 1961, the elders of the Tarrant church in Birmingham, Alabama, contacted Doug about working with them. At first he declined the invitation, because upon visiting them he found the four elders equally divided over the orphan home and cooperation in evangelism issues. Six months later he was contacted again and explanation given that the “Antis” had left. After another visit with them, their invitation was accepted and he and his family moved to Tarrant. This was another trouble spot and the work was rocky at first, but as time passed, it calmed down and began to grow until eight new classrooms had to be added. Being the only congregation in the North Birmingham area that was not of the “Anti” persuasion, Tarrant drew members from the entire North Birmingham area. During this time Brother Harris took an extension course in New Testament Greek grammar from the Harding Graduate School, in Memphis, Tennessee, which was taught once each week in the Central building for nine months. This proved to be invaluable in later years, as he was asked to teach Greek in the Huntsville/Decatur clusters of the Alabama Christian School of Religion (now Southern Christian University). Tarrant supported him in one mission meeting every year, and this took him to Indiana, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Florida.”

Self-Fulfilling Seventies

“Beginning the decade of the seventies, the Harris family moved to the Decatur, Alabama, area to work with the Flint congregation, a suburb of Decatur. Because of a going-away gift presented to them by the Tarrant church, Doug was able to make a Bible Land tour in 1971, during which he visited Rome, Athens and Corinth Greece, Lebanon, Egypt, and Palestine. In 1973 he succeeded in getting enough to qualify for a free trip with the Travel Agency to enable him to take Margaret for a second tour. After flying to Cyprus, this tour became a cruise that included the Grecian Island. They visited Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Tarsus, Philippi, and Antioch in Syria, in addition to Palestine. They remained with the work at Flint for four years, conducting one of the best Vacation Bible Schools they had ever had. Doug was later invited back to preach in a meeting.

“In 1978, Doug and Margaret purchased their first home in Decatur and began work with the Danville, Alabama, church. While preaching here he was able to teach and baptize 13 black people, some of which are now teaching Bible classes elsewhere. Also during this time he was very active in teaching Greek for the Alabama Christian School of Religion. He remained with this work for eight years. In 1986 Doug gave up this work to assist in the care of his in-laws in South Georgia who were very ill. This they did until both of them passed away in 1987.”

The Nineties Decade

“In late 1986 Doug and Margaret started worshipping with the Beech Street church in East Decatur, where he taught two Bible classes, and helped fill the pulpit in the absence of the regular preacher. He later was appointed as an elder and Beech Street relocated and is now Point Mallard Parkway. His tenure as elder was for ten years. From 1978-1986, he served as Associate Editor of the Caribbean Evangelist, a paper edited by Ermon Bain and circulated primarily in the Caribbean Islands. This paper was discontinued in 1986 due to Brother Bain’s failing health, but there was a strong clamoring from the Caribbean Christians for another such paper in the islands. This paper began in January, 1988, by the assistance of the Beltline church in Decatur, Alabama, without which he says it would likely have never been started. It was called the Caribbean Messenger, which is edited by Doug. At the time of this writing (6/99) the paper is in its 12th year of publication, and is circulated in bundles in 24 islands and two countries in South America. Complete files of this paper can be found in the libraries of the Harding Graduate School in Memphis, Tennessee, and the International Bible College in Florence, Alabama.”

Other Highlights of His Work

“Doug has been privileged to preach in over 300 gospel meetings during his preaching life, 50 to 75 of them within fifty miles of his home in Middle Tennessee. He has also made 15 trips to the Caribbean Islands, for work shops, gospel meetings, and lectureships.

“He was involved in the planning stages of Tri-County Bible School in Decatur, Alabama, now called Tennessee Valley Christian. As a result of his and Margaret’s labors for the school, they were given three plaques and a yearbook was dedicated to them. Doug has also been awarded the Diakonia plaque by David Lipscomb University for having preached the gospel for 50 years.

“Brother Harris feels fortunate and privileged to have heard such preachers of the past as G.C. Brewer, Hall L. Calhoun, Horace Busbey, H. Leo Boles, and N. B. Hardeman. But the gospel preachers who had the most influence and provided the most personal help were Gus Nichols and Franklin Camp.

“On his 80th birthday, Brother Harris was honored by Kenneth G. Chambers and the Point Mallard church in Decatur, Alabama, with a day of appreciation, at which he was awarded a plaque for a lifetime of service to churches of Christ, and a book of money donated by his friends in all the places where he had preached to send him and Margaret on a trip. It was a fitting tribute for his years of service in the kingdom of God.

“Through the kindness of J. C. Choate, Winona, Mississippi, a publisher and missionary to India, two volumes of his articles, tracts, and editorials were published in India in 1992. They are First Things First and Sowing and Reaping. He has re-published the latter in a better format. Doug has served as Staff Writer for Words of Truth, Jasper, Alabama, that was started and edited by Gus Nichols, and is now serving as a staff writer for The Voice of Truth International, which is edited by J. C. Choate and Byron Nichols. He has published approximately a dozen tracts through the years and edited many church bulletins, preserving a copy of all of them.

“He attributes all of his accomplishments, which he considers as minimal compared to many others, for the cause of Christ to God’s unfathomable grace, and to the devotion of his wife, family, and many good brethren. And for whatever credit there is, he would like to lay it all at the feet of Jesus, as already stated.

“He is eternally grateful to Brother J. C. Choate for helping to preserve these materials for posterity, without which the materials might have never been published.

“When asked what decision had made the most difference in his life, he answered in some words of verse written by the American poet, Robert Frost:

“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
—The Road Not Taken

Kenneth G. Chambers