In 1832 Houston visited Washington to expose the frauds practiced upon the Cherokee Indians by terrible government agents. He was outraged at how the Cherokees were taken advantage of and lied to. His attention and argument were not welcomed on Capital Hill. While Houston was there in April, a Congressman from Ohio by name of William Stanbery, made accusations about Houston in a speech on the floor of Congress. Stanbery blatantly accused Houston of being in league with several men known to be fraudulent.
Stanbery, who now decided it was smart to carry two pistols and a dirk, refused to answer Houston's letters and this did not set well with Houston. Infuriated, he later confronted Stanbery on Pennsylvania Avenue as Stanbery left a boardinghouse, and beat him upside the head with a hickory cane.
In the fight, Stanbery managed to draw one of his pistols, place it at Houston's chest, and pull the trigger—the gun misfired and Houston poured his wrath out on the coward.
On April 17, Congress ordered the arrest of Houston, who pleaded self-defense, and hired Francis Scott Key, none other than the writer of our national anthem, as his lawyer. Houston was found guilty, but was only lightly reprimanded. Stanbery then filed civil charges and Judge Cranch found Houston liable for $500 in damages. Houston did not pay it, and left the country for guess where? -Texas.
San Jacinto
Four years later, Houston lay on a bloody battlefield having a 2nd horse shot out from under him. A musket ball had torn through his ankle as he rode out front of the army he was now leading as Commanding General. Having studied Alexander’s attack and win over the superior numbers of the Persians, Houston rode out front and specifically attacked toward the personal tent of Santa Anna. Like Xerxes, Santa Anna ran like a scared jack rabbit. It got Houston shot but it also gave him the victory. The battle only lasted for about 15 minutes, but the gunfire continued for more than an hour as the Texans chased the remaining Mexican army into oblivion.
So for a little while, Houston lay there knowing he had won the day and in fact the entire war. His defeat in Washington had brought him to a victory in Texas. His shame in court had brought him to honor on the battlefield. His embarrassment of how he had acted on Pennsylvania Avenue had brought him to be the respected father of our great state and he lay there on the battle field, listening to the gunfire in the distance, knowing everything had changed.
The battle you are fighting
History gives lots of examples like this but let’s talk about your story. God Almighty knows you and He’s really good at turning water into wine. He loves to give beauty for ashes and replace tears with confidence. He won’t drive you anywhere but like a shepard, he will lead you into better and better. You just have to follow Him.
I have seen a lot of transformation in my life. In the very town where I was a boy, God has made me to be a like a father to many people. I have been terribly poor but now I getting to bless and help poor people. He changed me from a young man who loved a good fight, to a peace maker and from shame to honor. He’s still working on me and I have confidence that the finished product is much, much better than the stage I am at right now. God knows how to turn bad things into things that are good. You can go for years in a big mess and then finally in one day everything can change because of Jesus Christ. I don’t know if Houston was a Christian or not, but San Jacinto taught me that.
2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new
Troy Pastors Open Door Ministries near Joshua and can reached at www.opendoorministries.org and troybrewer.com
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