There are incidents in
our nation’s history that make for very sad reading. As I was in Wall Drug, SD, I noticed a map of
our Nation but it had Indian tribes distributed throughout it. I also noticed on the roadmap, as we
traveled, when we were in and out of Indian Reservations. My mind thought about an earlier time. The family from which the writer of this hymn
came from was of the Choctaw Indians.
The creator of this hymn’s grandfather, Thomas Bacon, would have been
about 20 years of age during the “Trail of Tears” when the U. S. Government
forced five tribes of Indians off their land and onto the reservation in
Oklahoma with the Indian Removal Act of
1830. Those wishing to become
citizens of the United States could remain; otherwise they were forced to
relocate. The term “Trail of Tears”
originated from the Choctaw Indians which were the first to be forced to move.
They moved from southeast Mississippi to southeast Oklahoma. Some state that the “tears” were from those
who witnessed the forced relocation and not the tears of the Indians themselves
who marched in silence. The Choctaw
Indians served as code talkers for the United States in World War I and World
War 2. Their language was so complex
that the enemy could not break their code.
There were several Indian code talkers who helped our nation in war
including Choctaw, Comanche, Cherokee, Seminole and others.
Wilkin B. Bacon (1908-1981), Lyricist & Composer
The Bacons were a part of
the Choctaw Indians of Oklahoma during the period. Wilkin’s father’s name was Colton Bacon and
is listed in the 1885 census of the Choctaw Nation. Wilkin was born in Talihina, Oklahoma on April
27, 1908. His name appears in the U. S.
Census in 1910 for the first time so apparently his family decided to become U.
S. citizens. Wilkin was affectionately
known as “Big Chief” to those who knew and admired him. On May 23, 1931, he married a school teacher
by the name of Mary Sue Painter. They
had a daughter, Linda Bacon Campbell.
He was a member of the
church being baptized by Burton Coffman in 1937 in Sherman, TX. He studied music and was an accomplished
quartet singer being a member of the Lone Star Quartet which was sponsored by
the Stamps-Baxter Music Company. Some
reports state that he wrote as many as 10 songs, but “Can He Depend On You” is
the one that has remained popular. Bacon completed this song in 1943. Some think that the song came out of a period
of his life when he was conflicted. His
singing career was taking off, but he was concerned about the traveling taking
him away from his family and keeping him from serving the Lord. Apparently in 1945 the crisis came to a
head, and he left this career to preach the gospel full time and lead
congregational singing. He preached in
Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. He also
worked with Lloyd O. Sanderson, Paul H. Epps, Palmer Wheeler and others. There are various newspaper reports of him
leading singing for gospel meetings and he was advertised sometimes as a Choctaw
Indian. There is a newspaper
advertisement in The Tulia Herald of
Tulia, Texas on August 11, 1955, of him and Paul Epps conducting a Music School
from August 15 – 26, Monday through Friday with day and night sessions. Sessions were from 9 AM – 11 AM, 1 PM – 3 PM,
8 PM – 9:30 PM. Classes taught included
Rudiments, Note Reading, Harmony, Song Directing, Music Appreciation, and Vocal
Exercises. There were classes for all
ages and no tuition charge for attending.
He did some quartet singing with the Gospel Hour Quartet for the
International Gospel Hour during the days of V. E. Howard.
Wilkin B. Bacon died on
October 9, 1981 in Talihina, Oklahoma where he was born. His funeral was on
October 12 in the church where he served until his retirement. His funeral was conducted by Cecil Lanning,
Haskell England, and V. E. Howard. His
wife passed away in 2011 at the age of 103 years of age. They are buried in Old Talihina Cemetery in
Talihina, Oklahoma.
Can He Depend On You?
NOT
ON SUNDAY NIGHT” by Gus Nichols
I
love the church that Jesus built,
And
I know that it is right;
I
go every Sunday morn,
But
not on Sunday night.
I
love to sing the songs of God,
Such
worship must be right;
This
I do on Sunday morn,
But
not on Sunday night.
And
may God bless our preacher, too;
And
give him power and might;
But
put a sinner in my place,
I
won’t be there Sunday night.
I
love the hear the Gospel too,
It
gives me pure delight.
I
hear it every Sunday morn,
But
not on Sunday night.
I’d
go thru rain and sleet and snow,
Do
anything that’s right
To
be in church on Sunday morn,
But
not on Sunday night.
I
know I need more hope and strength
To
keep me in the fight;
For
help I come on Sunday morn,
But
not on Sunday night.
Yes,
we all must someday die;
I
hope I’ll be doing right;
So
I might die on Sunday morn,
And
not on Sunday night.
While faithful attendance
is something we all should strive for, what about our faithful work and service
outside of worship services? Can He
depend on you? The song points out the
faithfulness of God and Jesus Christ to His children. This faithfulness was demonstrated in His Son
coming to the earth, dying upon the cross, resurrecting from the dead, and
ascending to Heaven to prepare us a home.
All of this Jesus did in the face of cruel opposition climaxing in the
most heinous forms of execution known to the world. The words of the song include this piercing
questions—“For us He died that for Him we might
live, can he depend on you? Can He
depend on you, His blessed will to do?
Will you be crowned with the faithful and true, can He depend on you?”
--------------------------------------------
SOURCES:
http://drhamrick.blogspot.com/2011/08/can-he-depend-on-you.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choctaw
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trail_of_Tears
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=103763515
http://newspaperarchive.com/us/oklahoma/eufaula/eufaula-indian-journal/1972/08-10/
Gus Nichols, “Not On
Sunday Night,” http://www.flatwoodschurchofchrist.org/id58.html
http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth46266/m1/1/zoom/
John P. Wiegand, Editor, Praise for the Lord, Nashville, TN: Praise Press, 1997.
“Music School is Scheduled,” The Tulia Herald, Tulia, TX: Vol. 49, No. 32, 11 August 1955, p. 1.
Roy McConnell, “Can He
Depend On You?” Lessons in Lyrics,
Memphis, TN: Memphis School of
Preaching, 1998, pp. 515-519.
V. E. Howard, Editor, and
Broadus E. Smith, Associate Editor, Church
Gospel Songs & Hymns, Texarkana, TX: Central Printers & Publishers, 1983.
V. E. Howard, “Obituary
for Wilkin Bacon,” Gospel Advocate, 19
November 1981, p. 695.
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