Alton Howard had these words on his lips practically all of his life, and he could today undoubtedly say these words written in 1971 have reached their full flower. “I Walk with the King” was something Alton wanted to say about himself, but the way he lived and served in his community must have urged others to do the same. This was something that Jesus Christ’s closest associates, the Apostles, could have also said (See the 15th Century artwork, Calling of the Apostles, by Domenico Ghirlandaio here.), though calling Him ‘king’ would have been a risky proposition; in fact, that issue of Jesus’ kingship was ultimately how His earthly enemies managed to have Him executed. His kingdom was a great offense and never made sense to some, and was the root of why they relegated Him to a grave, albeit only temporarily. But upon His resurrection, His kingdom did not remain a mystery, and indeed became a source of unquenchable power. It was something that reached – and still does today – people like Alton, and probably explains his life that had impact in so many different ways.
Can one accurately count the various ways and the number of people that Alton Howard’s journey with his Lord has affected? Jesus once made a stunning statement to the Apostles -- Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father (John 14:12). How would you feel if God-in-the-flesh told you that you would be outdoing Him someday? Go out and reach the world – that’s the charge that Jesus gave those remaining 11 (soon to be 12) Apostles at the conclusion of His earthly ministry. Perhaps Alton felt the same way, though the method he employed was reaching the world from his home in West Monroe, Louisiana. Alton was a born-and-bred Cajun state resident, and spent most of the eight decades-plus of his life there, including most notably as a church elder, music publisher, hymnist, founder of a church camp and international radio ministry, author, and multi-talented businessman. That’s more than enough for one lifetime! One source indicates that Alton’s published songbooks reached up to three million copies worldwide. How many people did the church in West Monroe, where he served faithfully as an elder for 40 years, ultimately touch? The same question could be asked regarding the church camp and radio ministry, as well the songs and the books that he wrote. One gets the impression that if Alton was walking with his king, that he must have worn out several pairs of shoes in the process! He had business savvy here on earth in so many ways, according to those who knew him, but the words of the song he composed in 1971 showed that that was only the stepping stone to another plane above this planet. ‘I walk with the King to heavenly land’ (v.1), Alton said poetically in the first line, and though his many ventures didn’t always last, one detects little regret about his life in what he wrote. He was an earthly entrepreneur, but the direction was vertical, a trajectory that made his life such a positive influence, as a signpost – indeed, with lots of posted signs wherever Alton journeyed! -- to the One he served.
Not much more could be said about Alton Howard than has already been spelled out in several ways, even if we don’t know specifically what motivated his songwriting in 1971. You can read more about him via the links below. He was carrying out the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20), even as he lived and worked in southern Louisiana. Does that speak to the rest of us? You don’t have to go far from home to serve God and touch many others for Him. Alton was a living testimony to that approach. Some of us write blogs (yes!), or do many other things that transport our words, actions, and passions for God elsewhere, places where we may never go while inhabiting this earth. He can use you wherever you are. So, take a page out of Alton’s playbook, and get out there!
See following links for information on the composer:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Books
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alton_Hardy_Howard
See also “Our Garden of Song”, edited by Gene C. Finley, Howard Publishing Company, West Monroe, Louisiana, 1980.
See information on the artwork here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ghirlandaio,_Domenico_-_Calling_of_the_Apostles_-_1481.jpg … This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. {{PD-1996}} – public domain in its source country on January 1, 1996 and in the United States.
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