Revival

Evangelist Otis Chambers liked to pass the time away driving to his next crusade by playing his old Hohner Marine Band harmonica. He loved to play the classic old hymns and reminisce on the days when revivals were anticipated and not endured.

There was a time when churches had a week long fall revival and another week in the spring for revival services. Next to Homecoming services, the revival services were the most anticipated weeks of the church year.

These days, most churches don’t have revival meetings at all. And Otis Chambers’ ministry was suffering for it. He raised his family on love offerings and honorariums from churches all over the country. But the traditional revival service was drying up as was Otis’ bank account.

He was on his way to the last stop on his spring revival schedule at Springdale Baptist Church in Stoneville, Arkansas. It was a good nine hour drive away from his family in Abilene.

The harmonica was good company. His Grandpa Hooper gave it to him when he turned twelve years old. It was a tradition of his maternal granddaddy. He always gave his children and his grandchildren a Hohner Marine Band harmonica on their twelfth birthday. Hohner has been making Marine Band harmonicas for over a century, and Grandpa Hooper gave away a total of 24 before he passed on to glory. Eight went to each one of his children. Fourteen went to grandchildren. His first two great-grandchildren were the final recipients.

Otis often wondered if all 24 harmonicas were ever played. Were they good traveling companions like his or were they stuck in the back of a drawer somewhere collecting dust? He knew one of them was not being played. The one Grandpa Hooper gave to his youngest son, John David, or J.D., for short.

J.D. left home for work on a fall morning in 1954, and he was never seen again. It was a Hooper family mystery. There was a month long search by law enforcement, family, and friends, but ultimately everyone gave up. Even J.D.’s mom, Otis’ Aunt Patricia, assumed he was dead somewhere, somehow.

Otis wasn’t even born when J.D. disappeared, but he’d heard the tales and theories of those who were baffled about it his entire life.

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It was a tradition for Otis to finish up his revival series with a rendition of “I Surrender All” on his harmonica. So, at the end of his Wednesday night message, the final night of Springdale’s revival services, the traveling evangelist pulled the faithful instrument out of his coat pocket and played a moving rendition of the classic song.

At the conclusion of the service, Otis joined the host pastor at the front door and shook hands with the attenders as they marched out the door revived.

“That was some good playin’ on that mouth harp, son,” an elderly man bent over with a cane supporting his right side. He craned his neck up and looked at Otis. “I play mine occasionally when I get lonely.”

“What kind of harmonica do you play?” Otis asked the gentleman.

“I have an old Hohner Marine Band harmonica. My father gave it to me on my twelfth birthday. He used to give one to all of his kids when they turned twelve.”

“J.D.?” Otis asked.

“How’d you know my name?”