Elvis Presley’s friends remember
The newspapers are advertising an Elvis impersonator soon to perform in our fair city. Recently seeing the DVD put together by Elvis’ closest circle of friends, there is an inside look at the things they remember that possibly will not be reflected by a few songs sung by this impersonator.
Elvis was brought up going to a Pentecostal church. He sang and danced and praised God with his mother every Sunday. As an adult, he approached one of his friends saying, “Mama taught me about the Holy Spirit. I want more. How do I get that? Mama had something real good.” His friend (who was part of a Gospel quartet) said, “I don’t know. I was taught that God gives you what you need.”
There was evidence that Elvis had been gifted by the Holy Spirit. ‘Jim’ of the Imperials told of a time he was with Elvis and some others. Elvis wanted them to pray together. Jim was thinking that later on he would ask Elvis what he thought about heaven. Elvis commented,”We’ll get to that in just a moment, Jim.” “What?” Jim asked. Elvis said, “You were going to ask me about heaven, weren’t you?” “Yes.” “We’ll get to that in just a minute.” Jim recalls, “That blew me away.”
Another incident described by Elvis’ backup group singer (Sweet Inspirations) showed further evidence of Holy Spirit. One person of the group had been diagnosed with cancer. Appointments were close together, as the case needed to be treated quickly. Elvis took the three singers aside and prayed for ‘God to take away the cancer.’ The next day the diagnosis revealed it was not there.
When two girls held up a sign saying ‘Elvis is king’, Elvis firmly stated that “Jesus Christ is King,” another friend recalled.
Because of Elvis’ popularity, he couldn’t go out in public. He was especially fond of staying up all night after a concert and singing Gospel songs with these quartet friends of his. J. D. Sumner and the Stamps, and the Jordanaires knew Elvis as ‘never wanting to sing Jailhouse Rock, or Hound dog types of songs, but always Gospel. Further, they commented, “He meant every word and it was like church, not just singing words, but praising God.”
”Elvis really loved God.” “He was very generous with people and felt that he got closer to God the more he helped people.” “He wanted to fulfill God’s purpose in his life.” (were a few other comments made by these friends.)
At the time Elvis was popular, prejudice against the black people in the United States was rampant. Elvis hired black singers to work with him. He was pro-racial reconciliation and sometimes had to say, “If they don’t sing, neither do I.” to bigoted club owners.
He had a fight on his hands singing Gospel music. All the managers and promoters wanted rather the naughty Elvis the Pelvis stuff. None the less, he did produce four Gospel albums. This was where his heart was and he said this to his friend. The reply came “Why don’t you just sing Gospel?” Elvis felt that thousands of people would be put out of work if he did. He cared about people.
When we talk of the Christian lifestyle, we often use terms foreign to those not following Christ. So much of these background memories DVD clips spoke to me regarding what it means to ‘invite Jesus into your heart’. It isn’t physical, but rather spiritual— deep inside there is birthed a constant desire to praise Him and mean every word we sing. We want to do what He has created us to do. It’s real good.
Elvis didn’t reckon how strong the opposition called ‘the world’ was and eventually did all that the promoters and managers required.
Non-Christian religious groups bombarded him, promising more of God. Elvis needed a whole lot more prayer support and Godly counsel than he accessed. One of his close friends remembered, “As a friend and a Christian , I felt I hadn’t done enough. I was concerned about Elvis’ health and gave him a Bible. ”
J.D. Sumner tearfully told his regret: “Elvis called me into his dressing room, and said, ‘I want you to come to Memphis. I want to talk to you about something important.’ “I never made it there. We never did talk about it.”
Elvis died young, probably drug related.
We may not struggle with the loneliness of fame or the pressures of employing hundreds of people, but remember to put God first in all decisions. Jesus cited what keeps men from Him is home, family, or jobs. (Luke 14:16-23) As we draw near to God, He draws near to us and helps us overcome the pressures of the world.
An impersonator can show what was seen and heard. Fortunately, God looks at the heart. (1 Samuel 16: 7-13)
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