A Testimony from the “Boy From Thomasville”
I was born on December 16, 1940…not in a hospital, but at home in the rural community of Meigs, Georgia (near Thomasville). During my 80-plus years, I have learned to appreciate electric lighting and indoor plumbing…luxuries that rural Meigs, Georgia didn't enjoy when I was born.
I was the 4th child born to my parents, T.J., and Rosa Lee Smith. My older siblings were my brother Jack and my sisters Frances (Nichols) and Margaret (Collins). We were poor; my father was a sharecropper in Meigs. When I was about 3 years old, my parents moved to Thomasville where my younger brother Cecil was born. We then became a family of 7: our parents and 5 children. I began 1st grade, and life began to change for me. However, at such a young age, I had no thought of how expansive and life-altering the change would be for our family.
While living in Thomasville, our family encountered several tragedies. My older brother Jack was killed unexpectedly in a freak accident at the age of 15 years. It wounded our hearts; we grieved. For me as a 7-year-old lad, I lost the Big Brother who I had looked up to. It was a sad time indeed for the Smith family.
The day following the death of my brother, my paternal grandmother suffered a stroke and died about 1 month later. Less than 2 weeks after her death, my paternal grandfather died. Our family was grief-stricken and overwhelmed with sorrow at the deaths of these three family members who died within a period of less than 2 months. As I look retrospectively at this sad time for the Smith family, God was beginning to work.
Our mother didn’t drive, so she and we 4 children attended Sunday School and church locally with individuals who came by to take us to church, as our father didn’t attend church at that time. Approximately 1 year later (as best I can remember), our father decided to move the family from Thomasville to Boston, Georgia where he purchased a country store. We lived in the back part of the store. There were no interior doors, so rooms were separated by hanging cloth curtains over each doorway for privacy. I was about 12 years old when I walked by my mother’s bedroom and saw her on her knees, tearfully and sincerely praying aloud. I heard her tell God “If our family is not living right, please send someone along to show us what is right!” God began working with my heart!
At this time, unbeknownst to us, the Charlie Cogar family had purchased the land directly across the road from our store, with the intention of building their home there. When they began to occupy the house, the 4 Cogar girls (Sarah, Minnie, Ina, and Nettie) began to come over to the store to purchase candy and bubble gum. At this time, Sarah had recently become sanctified and began to frequently witness to our mother. Sarah invited our family to attend the Christ’s Sanctified Holy Church tabernacle at the Five Forks location. My sister Frances and myself began riding to church with the Cogars. Our mother soon wanted to go attend and “see for herself”. She got under conviction and was sanctified there! Others from the community came and were sanctified there also! Thomasville was on fire with new converts, and many CSHC families relocated there!
In 1955, my father sold the country store and we moved from Boston back to Thomasville. I learned there was a CSHC congregation in Albany, Georgia and I was invited to visit, since there was a nice group of young people there. God had been working with my heart for about 4 years. I went to the altar in 1957 while visiting in Albany and received forgiveness of my sins. The following night, I was sanctified at 16 years old in the newly built permanent church in Thomasville!
My life, attitude, and behavior changed! My teachers began to ask me what was different about me…I became respectful of them, lost my desire to fight, and straightened up! I began riding to Feast Meetings with CSHC church members, and I became known as “The Boy From Thomasville” since most people didn’t know my name. Everyone was kind to me! I had found Jesus, true friends, and a church home at CSHC!
Bro. Charlie Smith
