"God is going to strike me dead unless I get two million bucks and I ain't coming down from this prayer tower until one or the other happens."
Yesterday, I was actually thinking about Mr. Roberts and wondering if he was dead or not. Its funny how some things happen when you are thinking about how people are doing or where they are at. Before you know it, they are at your front doorstep. My morbid thoughts were not that, but, rather ----- Oral was just plain old and I wondered. I forgot to Google him yesterday.
This morning I almost didn't go to the early CIC meeting. Woke up late, felt groggy and just went anyway. The one guy I do not really care for in the group brought up the news of Oral's death and I was shocked. Almost started crying during the meeting. I couldn't believe it and I was just thinking about Oral yesterday.
You know, a lot of people will remember him by that goofy fiasco in the prayer tower and that's how it is. I will always remember other things much greater and realize that, sometimes, we are all human and capable of great stupidity. Heck, maybe the tower thing was true- I don't know - but it sure was widespread and goofy. We all do stupid stuff and the higher the profile the worse and bigger things are. Tiger Woods is our latest great example and no one will take his golf prestige and achievements away in the history of it all. This tangent can go on and on with other historical figures but I am here to tell you the great things of Oral Roberts.
This is it - Famous Tower Incident Location!
I went to school at ORU pretty soon after the Tower Incident. Fall of 1990. ORU changed my life directly and Oral indirectly through his instruments. My stay at school was the best. I attended in order to discipline and learn about myself. It was definitely a selfish matter between me and God. I didn't like what I was doing in Colorado and met many ORU graduates whose lives had changed because of their experience. So I went. Tulsa was a journey and it is now in the past.
I stayed in EMR on fourth floor north, Allied wing. I hung out with another wing of guys - Am Herratz. Am Herratz was disbanded after I left because the name fit the description of the guys there and administration didn't like it. It was good fun and, compared to state school, not all that bad. Chapel I always looked forward to on Wednesdays and, out of all the world-renown religious leaders/speakers, the very best sermons I ever received were one from Oral and then Richard and also Larry Lee. Oral was gifted and, I tell you what, he turned that place on.
Small story. Billy Joe has also passed. I had an apartment which bordered his Victory properties. Around 7am many mornings I would see BJ jogging around his land. All dressed in black and just running on his own keeping up the faith in ORU style of mind, body, spirit. I enjoyed waking up and going out to see him digging in out there. I am very sorry to see that he has passed prematurely.
Back to ORU. Had it not been for Oral, my life would probably be extremely different, I don't know. Firstly, I would not have met so many great people in the college experience. Probably never would have worked with Youth for Christ. Actually, Tulsa never would have been on the map for me. My spiritual life would possibly be bereft. Maybe would have never thought of chiropractic as a career. My ex-wife may not have ever been and my son, Josiah, would maybe not exist. Former practice in Tulsa would not have happened and sports teams and families I have had privilege to treat would possibly have never reached the radar of Dr. Scott. Looking at the perspective of things, about fifteen years of my life would have been completely altered had it not been for Mr. Roberts. Thats over 1/3 of experiences in this short thing called my life. I really can't imagine the many different turns that may have been taken in my life had it not been for Oral.
Oral Roberts has touched millions directly, indirectly and all in-between. I know many personally and I also know myself intimately. Its crazy.
Some things I really enjoyed at ORU there in one short semester. With my mom's credit card (got in trouble for using it) I purchased an hibachi grill, love lamp and food. I got people together on the mid-east lawn by the big tree to cook out in the middle of campus quite a bit. We got a lot of looks and made friends. My love lamp was a fancy lantern thing I would hang out with on the front lawns and study or take a girl out and it was a cheap date reading and talking on a blanket. The gardens were a great place for this as well.
On Fridays I figured out that one of my favorite teachers, Mrs. Ruth Sexton, liked to hang out on the steps by the fire fountain leading to the library. The first time I caught her I just kind of watched and figured out that she was just looking at the students and faculty and taking things in. So I joined her every Friday afternoon I could. Mrs. Sexton was a good conversationalist and she gifted me with a "B" in one of her courses.
Many late nights I would go out to the praying hands or by the fountains in front of the City of Faith and just sit silent with no one in sight and nothing else around. There was something I enjoyed while doing this and I do not know what it was that was so enjoyable. It was just the quiet and, at the same time, simply the listening to nothing that may have been there. Can't say if that makes sense. So it goes.
At ORU a large amount of my time was gym time. I worked at the AC, went to class there, and worked out there. I shifted times up in the gym over the semester. Morning workouts I would associate with the swimmers and that got boring real quick. Sometimes would go at night and it was so crowded. I ended up at my standard noonish workouts. I guess it was about halfway through the semester that Oral decided to get in shape and that is also when I decided on the noon hour workouts before and after I was supposed to work and clean the place.
The first time that Oral showed up with his trainer, everyone cleared out of the lifting area as they felt that they were not worthy to be in the presence of the guy. It was nuts. A Wayne's World/Aerosmith/Alice Cooper moment. Oral steps in and ten guys clear out. I thought this was way too good to be true. The whole place to me, Oral and his trainer, Coach Johnson. Too cool, curling, squatting and benching alongside Oral Roberts. WhooHooooo. Totally got me stoked.
Coach Johnson is probably gone now too. But, anyway, I thought Coach was going to kill Mr. Roberts. Johnson was the old basketball coach and had to be at least fifteen years older than Oral. Their training was so sporadic and it looked like some backs were going to break due to totally bad form. Neither one looked like they knew what they were doing and it was so fun to watch these old men trying to heft some weight. Everything was so old school. Something strange I did notice with Oral was that his presence definitely brought something new to the place. An energy which could not be defined. I guess it would probably be called his anointing - either that or the air was being hyper-oxygenated (right). I will never forget lifting with Oral Roberts - even if it was just in the same room.
I am going to miss Oral Roberts. In a way, his passing sort of symbolizes the final closing of the door to my Tulsa adventure - a symbol for me, anyway. Its maybe a closing but its no closing to the seeds planted by many many many deeds/avenues Oral brought into so many lives over years of diligent service in Jesus' name. Oral Roberts is dead and alive.
