The Hallelujah Lady Who Could Not Contain Herself

One of the dear old ladies in the congregation was in the habit of expressing her emotions during a sermon by shouting, “Praise the Lord, hallelujah.” The pastor, unaccustomed to such demonstrations, became nervous and during a call at the home of the lady, after telling her that he appreciated her presence at the services, said, “I notice that you frequently become very emotional, and you express this emotion by shouting your praises to the Lord. I know that when you feel happy, you cannot keep from shouting, but for some reason this makes me almost forget what I am about to say. Suppose I make this bargain with you: if you contain yourself, and not shout from now until Christmas, I’ll give you a pair of nice woolen blankets.” The lady agreed to this proposition, and all went well until just before Christmas, when, during a heart-warming sermon, she just could not contain herself, and suddenly shouted to the top of her voice, “Hallelujah,” Praise the Lord, blankets or no blankets.” (Encyclopedia of Illustrations #13159).