In our book “One Hundred Testimonies,” we have the account of the conversion of Rolly McIntosh, one of the wealthy and powerful chiefs of the Creek Indian nation.  Today’s account is of the salvation and ministry of the man who was instrumental in McIntosh’s salvation.
Joseph Islands was born into the Creek tribe in Georgia.  One night in 1842, his best friend died in a drunken brawl.  With a broken heart, Joseph went to the site where his body was to be buried.  A Christian black man, named Old Billy, probably a slave to the Indians, was responsible for digging the grave. When he saw the grieving young man, he took the opportunity to speak to him about eternal life in Christ.  Later that night, after much Bible instruction, Joseph put his faith in the Saviour.  But McIntosh and the other chiefs had made it a law that anyone accepting the white man’s religion was to be beaten with thirty-nine lashes.  This forced Billy and Joseph to meet together in secret, inviting only trusted friends to join them.  Eventually there were as many as thirty natives and blacks gathering to pray and study God’s Word.  When McIntosh learned of the meetings, he sent spies to find the believers.  They were successful, and the lash was applied to both men and women, who endured their punishment joyfully.  Over time, more and more of the Creeks became believers, including eventually Rolly McIntosh himself.  In 1845, Joseph Islands was ordained by a pair of missionaries to the Choctaw.  Unfortunately Brother Islands had only a few more years to serve the Lord in this world.  He died on this day in 1848, bearing the title, the “Apostle to the Creeks.”
Source – “This Day in Baptist History II” by David Cummins and E. Wayne Thompson