God gave us fair warning
His message He did print,
From the Bible came this message,
"Perish; or repent".

He gave us a commandment 
"Love thy neighbor as thyself"
"Be contented in poverty,
Trust not in thy earthly wealth."

Then came a divine promise,
Jesus came to save the world in sin,
One day without further warning;
He's coming back again.

Now great grand dad told this story
While old folks filled the pews,
There was a stir of slumbering souls;
The ones who believed the story true.

Then came Mom and Dad, and preaching
The sermon the preacher did repeat,
Fewer paid the story any mind;
The more they slumbered in their seat !

The modern preacher covers social woe's
And Hell is just a place of ill content,
The message of the mighty rapture,
Went the way of "perish or repent" !

Now there's another old, old story 
About a shepherd boy who tended sheep,
And whatsoever a person sows,
That also shall he reap !

The shepherd boy was foolish
And many times "wolf" he cried,
People ignored his foolishness;
And he was left to do; or die !

One day the wolf came calling 
The cry went out as before,
But no one came to his rescue;
People just didn't listen anymore !

That shepherd boy learned a lesson
But his learning came too late,
Like that foolish little shepherd boy;
Will many meet that same fate ?

Will preachers turn back to the word
On their lips will these words be found,
"Repent or perish" is the same;
Even when we turn the words around ?

Will men hunger for that old, old story
Will they hasten to fill those empty pews,
Will they learn the things they cling to,
Is not all they have to lose ?

Will the believers sit up and pay heed
And strive a few troubled souls to win,
Will they hear that old, old story, 
And come back to god again?
 

                                              Carl Hempen