"'I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord..." Jeremaiah 29:11
E. V. (Ed) Hill,
who pastored Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, tells the story
of how "Mama's" love and prayers changed his life. During the height
of the Depression, Hill's real mother, who had five children of her own, didn't
have enough food to go around, so she sent four-year-old Ed to live with a
friend in a small country town called Sweet Home. Ed just called her Mama. As
he was growing up in Sweet Home, Mama displayed remarkable faith which led her
to have big plans for young Ed. Against nearly insurmountable obstacles, Mama
helped Ed graduate from high school (the only student to graduate that year
from the country school) and even insisted that he go to college.
She took Ed to the
bus station, handed him the ticket and five dollars and said, "Now, go off
to Prairie View College, and Mama is going to be praying for you." Hill
claims that he didn't know much about prayer, but he knew Mama did. When he
arrived at the college with a dollar and ninety cents in his pocket, they told
him he needed eighty dollars in cash in order to register. Here's how Hill
describes what happened next:
I got in line …, and the devil said to get out of line …, but I heard my
Mama saying in my ear, "I'll be praying for you." I stood in line on
Mama's prayer. Soon there was [another new student ahead of me], and I began to
get nervous, but I stayed in line …. Just about the time [the other student]
got all of her stuff and turned away, Dr. Drew touched me on the shoulder, and
he said, "Are you Ed Hill?" I said, "Yes." "Are you Ed
Hill from Sweet Home?" "Yes." "Have you paid yet?"
"Not quite."
"We've been looking for you all this morning," [he said].
I said, "Well, what do [you] want with me?"
"We have a four-year scholarship that will pay your room and board, your
tuition, and give you thirty dollars a month to spend."
And I heard Mama say, "I will be praying for you!"
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