When You First Heard Landon Saunders

Preacher Mike posted a request for bloggers to tell about the first time they heard Landon Saunders. I did so.

I first heard Landon sometime in the early 60’s. My earliest memory of him would date to, I think, 1962 when he preached at McDougal, AR before moving on to Corning. My dad held a meeting at McDougal and I recall sitting in the backseat with Dad driving and Landon talking about the personality of someone they were on their way to visit for the purpose of giving them encouragement. There was an intensity and depth in his concern for the person and that grabbed my attention. It taught this 11 year old a lesson in psychology. Experiences and external causes are important to how a person conducts their life and how that interacts with their innate personality. Another memory that surfaces is an area tent meeting somewhere in the Marmaduke or Paragould area about 1967 +/- 1. When I next heard him in my Memphis State days, ‘72-74, he had evolved and progressed to a different style and one I found compelling. Unfortunately the last time was probably when he came here to Knoxville where I’ve spent the last 30 years and spoke at the Laurel Avenue CofC in about 1979 or 80.