By the time I got mom awake and cleaned up and halfway ready to try to work, it was almost 6:00 o’clock. I walked over and knocked on #12 and Jake came out. “Are you going to Riverstone tonight?” I asked.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, I love going to the house of God. Ask your mom if it’s OK if I take you.” I ran over and yelled through the half opened door and she yelled something back that I think was an OK. “She said ‘sure’,” I told him as we hopped in his bright red Toyota truck. “Is…uh…what’s her name, Collette, going too?”
“No. She won’t be coming tonight.” I knew he was being nice to her and not telling me why. But I knew.
“She wasn’t very happy with Mr. Jackson today at Dairy Queen, was she?”
“No, she wasn’t. This morning was Colette’s first time to attend church in quite a few years and to be real honest, she wasn’t treated very well. I heard a few unkind comments. Just between you and me, I’m not sure if she claims to be a follower of Jesus.”
“What is that, a ‘Follower of Jesus’? A new kind of church or something? All we have around here is Baptists, Methodists, a few Catholics, and the Goldsteins. They are Jews, but I don’t know where they go to church.”
“What I meant by a ‘follower of Jesus’ is this. In America, many people who occasionally attend church call themselves a Christian. Some believe that just because they are Americans, that makes them a Christian. I like to say either ‘a true believer’ or a ‘follower of Christ’. It makes people think a little harder about how committed they are to Christ,” Jake tried to explain. I didn’t understand it all.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
He took in a deep breath before he started to tell me.
“Randy, sometimes people have a simple idea of what living a Christian life is like. Some say, ‘Just believe. That’s all you have to do. Simply believe. And you know what? I think most Americans do believe in Jesus. Just like they believe in George Washington, or Aristotle, or Julius Caesar. Do you believe in those guys?”
“Yeah. I’ve heard about them in school.”
“But do you call yourself a Washingtonian? Or an Aristotlian? Or a Caesarian?”
I laughed real hard because the names sounded so funny. “Of course not. Jake, you have really lost me.”
“Let me try to explain. Jesus knew that he was God and Creator and Savior of man’s sins. He told people he was ‘the only way’, meaning the only way to forgiveness of sins and the only way to living forever with him in heaven as he had planned it when he created this world. And when he walked on the earth, he told men how to live. Things like ‘love your enemy’, ‘take up a cross and follow me’, ‘don’t be full of hate or envy’, or ‘don’t gossip’. Living like this doesn’t make us a Christian. We can’t be good enough to be a Christian. Only Jesus was sinless. We only can be a Christian by what he did on the Cross. He took our place. Once we become believers, this is how we should live our lives. And sad to say, some of the world’s worst haters and gossipers sit in church week after week. Their lives were never changed by Jesus. Well, we better be going. I want to get there a little early and pray.”
Jake stopped by Dairy Queen and got me an ice cream cone, my third ice cream of the day. I had it finished almost before we got to church. I once heard someone say something once about eating in church so I stayed outside where the smokers stood to finish my cone.
When I got inside, there were only about ten people seated so far. I had no idea where Jake was. I sat in my regular place and kept quiet. I would have sat with Jake on the front, like he did this morning, just to be a little daring, but I wasn’t going to do it by myself.
After a few minutes, Emmy came in to play the piano. She got halfway through the first song and a lady walked up the aisle on my left. I didn’t know her name. She waved real big at Emmy and then walked around the front row toward the piano. When she turned the corner, she stopped suddenly and screeched. She yelled real loud and put her hand to her mouth. She then walked around something like you would a cow-patty in a pasture. All the way to the piano she sort of walked backward looking back to the floor.
I tried to rise up in my seat as slowly as possible to see what was on the floor. I saw the dark blue shirt that Jake had been wearing and realized this was where he went to pray. I don’t think I had ever seen anybody kneel there before. Most people just pray where they are when the pastor asks them to.
A minute later, the lady left Emmy and walked to every body there and pointed toward Jake. By the time church was about to start, the place was about half full. Pretty good for a Sunday night. Jake stood up the very moment Pastor Ron walked by and the two bear-hugged right there in front of the pulpit. The chatter and comments started and lasted till way after Ron stood up and started making a few announcements.
“Guys in farm towns don’t hug. That’s sick.”
“He didn’t have his floosie wife to hug on, so he had to hug the new preacher?”
“Drugs. He’s got to be selling drugs. I don’t like or trust the man.”
Then Margie Scott, who was sitting next to me, leaned over and whispered, “I’m glad he brought you tonight. And I’m glad he is staying there at the Sunset. He looks like a nice, sincere Christian man. I hope the two of you get to be good friends. If more of us would pray like him, this town wouldn’t be so full of people fighting and fussing.”
I smiled. I was glad somebody besides the pastor liked Jake. Inez came in late and sat in her normal seat. She leaned over to Jake and said without whispering, “Do you always sit in the front row because you are hard of hearing, or to make points with the preacher?”
Jake turned around and said, “No ma’am, I usually sit anywhere I want to.” Jake then stood up, walked to the right and scooted all the way down Inez’s empty row and sat as close to her as anybody I have ever seen. She sat up straight and moved away from him like he had a bad disease. Most everybody snickered. I think everybody was enjoying this moment. Usually nobody had the guts to stand up to Inez. Jake looked left and smiled at her as big as anyone could. She turned her head and never looked that way for the whole service. She looked at the organ until the sermon was over.
As usual, I really didn’t pay much attention to the sermon. I was thinking though about what Jake had told me in the ‘Sunset’ parking lot and I was thinking how I should listen more to what the preacher is preaching. I’ll try to listen harder after today. What he said about ‘true believers’ really started me thinking.
Jake got stuck talking to Ron after the service, so I wandered to the door where I always stand and pretend to not know what is going on.
Alice Holman was the first to speak up.
“You know me, I try to support any pastor we have, but I do admit, Brother Anderson has started out his first week, his first day, with a thud. He actually ate lunch with that man and his tramp of a wife. Protocol calls for the new pastor to have lunch with the chairman of the deacons on his first Sunday at a new church. It’s just the proper thing to do.”
“I heard they are not even married,” added Rosanne Scott. I guess they are shack…” She stopped when she looked down and saw I was looking her way. I guess she didn’t think I knew what she meant by ‘shacking up’. I guess she forgot I lived in a motel. She leaned over to whisper to Alice and then she looked back down at me, smiled real sugary, and walked off.
I then saw Mr. Willard James. He was the Chairman of the Deacons Alice mentioned. He was talking to a big fat farmer who wears only overalls, anywhere he goes. Funerals, weddings, football games. You name it, he wears overalls. That’s what I call him, to myself that is. ‘Mr. Jumbo Overalls.’
“So, you and the Mrs. were out of town this morning?” asked ‘Overalls’. So much for ‘new pastor protocol’ I thought and wished I could say to Alice.
“Yes. We had to go see the little grandkids. We got back at about 2:00. And the phone started ringing off the wall. I thought this Brother Ron was going to be the next Billy Graham. Boy, did I get an ear full. Was that lady really that bad?” ‘Overalls’ just nodded.
“I would have to meet her before I passed judgment on her. It would be the Christian thing to do. But I heard plenty about her and ‘him’. What was he doing up there on the floor before the service? Playing marbles, or looking for loose change?” ‘Overalls’ shrugged his shoulders.
“Several people have begged me to call a ‘special called business meeting’ to discuss all that went on today. I’m sorry now I went to see the grandkids.”
For once I got tired of all the talk and I went outside and sat in Jakes truck. Several people stared at me while I sat there to show me they didn’t like me being with Jake. Two ladies walked past me and one said, “I thought those ‘bus kids’ were supposed to come only on Sunday morning?”
Was there a law about when I could come to church, I thought. For several years now I had been coming to Riverstone and just blending in, how do people say it, ‘like a fly on the wall’, and I just had fun listening to all the gossip and fighting. I had even learned to tune out all the ‘bus kid’ comments and those about my mom and the ‘Sunset’.
But today, things were getting a little more than I wanted to deal with. Jake and Collette were real nice people and had done nothing to these people, and all they got was ridicule.
Jake finally came and hopped into the truck with me. He was whistling.
“You kind of stirred things up tonight, praying like that where you did. I don’t think I have ever seen anyone ever do that at Riverstone before.”
“I didn’t mean to cause a stir, little buddy, I was simply praying to my God the way I do every Sunday. There are usually dozens of people at the front of my church every service. I wasn’t trying to make a statement or anything like that.”
We both got out in the parking lot and Jake said he had to get up early and go to his worksite, so he couldn’t stay up and visit with me. He ‘high-fived’ me and I went back to #15. My mom was sitting there staring at the door without the TV on.
“Where in the…” Her curse words were more than usual tonight.
“I was at Riverstone Baptist with Jake, like you said I could. I came in and asked. Remember?”
“No, you little,…” I won’t say what she said. “I do not remember you asking. All I know is I woke up at 6:30 and you were gone. I sat here waiting for you to come back, and I’ve waited a long time. I’ve got to go and relieve Amanda in five minutes and I don’t need to worry about where you are.”
“But Mom, really. I was in the parking lot with Jake and came back in and you said I could go.”
“No I did not. I don’t know what you thought I said, but…go. Get ready for bed. I gotta go to work.”
Mom hadn’t been this mad at me in a long time. She usually lets me wander around town on my own. I’m not sure why she was so upset. I’ve never gotten into any trouble around town. I just stay quiet and listen a lot. And store up a lot of good gossip in my memory.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, I love going to the house of God. Ask your mom if it’s OK if I take you.” I ran over and yelled through the half opened door and she yelled something back that I think was an OK. “She said ‘sure’,” I told him as we hopped in his bright red Toyota truck. “Is…uh…what’s her name, Collette, going too?”
“No. She won’t be coming tonight.” I knew he was being nice to her and not telling me why. But I knew.
“She wasn’t very happy with Mr. Jackson today at Dairy Queen, was she?”
“No, she wasn’t. This morning was Colette’s first time to attend church in quite a few years and to be real honest, she wasn’t treated very well. I heard a few unkind comments. Just between you and me, I’m not sure if she claims to be a follower of Jesus.”
“What is that, a ‘Follower of Jesus’? A new kind of church or something? All we have around here is Baptists, Methodists, a few Catholics, and the Goldsteins. They are Jews, but I don’t know where they go to church.”
“What I meant by a ‘follower of Jesus’ is this. In America, many people who occasionally attend church call themselves a Christian. Some believe that just because they are Americans, that makes them a Christian. I like to say either ‘a true believer’ or a ‘follower of Christ’. It makes people think a little harder about how committed they are to Christ,” Jake tried to explain. I didn’t understand it all.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
He took in a deep breath before he started to tell me.
“Randy, sometimes people have a simple idea of what living a Christian life is like. Some say, ‘Just believe. That’s all you have to do. Simply believe. And you know what? I think most Americans do believe in Jesus. Just like they believe in George Washington, or Aristotle, or Julius Caesar. Do you believe in those guys?”
“Yeah. I’ve heard about them in school.”
“But do you call yourself a Washingtonian? Or an Aristotlian? Or a Caesarian?”
I laughed real hard because the names sounded so funny. “Of course not. Jake, you have really lost me.”
“Let me try to explain. Jesus knew that he was God and Creator and Savior of man’s sins. He told people he was ‘the only way’, meaning the only way to forgiveness of sins and the only way to living forever with him in heaven as he had planned it when he created this world. And when he walked on the earth, he told men how to live. Things like ‘love your enemy’, ‘take up a cross and follow me’, ‘don’t be full of hate or envy’, or ‘don’t gossip’. Living like this doesn’t make us a Christian. We can’t be good enough to be a Christian. Only Jesus was sinless. We only can be a Christian by what he did on the Cross. He took our place. Once we become believers, this is how we should live our lives. And sad to say, some of the world’s worst haters and gossipers sit in church week after week. Their lives were never changed by Jesus. Well, we better be going. I want to get there a little early and pray.”
Jake stopped by Dairy Queen and got me an ice cream cone, my third ice cream of the day. I had it finished almost before we got to church. I once heard someone say something once about eating in church so I stayed outside where the smokers stood to finish my cone.
When I got inside, there were only about ten people seated so far. I had no idea where Jake was. I sat in my regular place and kept quiet. I would have sat with Jake on the front, like he did this morning, just to be a little daring, but I wasn’t going to do it by myself.
After a few minutes, Emmy came in to play the piano. She got halfway through the first song and a lady walked up the aisle on my left. I didn’t know her name. She waved real big at Emmy and then walked around the front row toward the piano. When she turned the corner, she stopped suddenly and screeched. She yelled real loud and put her hand to her mouth. She then walked around something like you would a cow-patty in a pasture. All the way to the piano she sort of walked backward looking back to the floor.
I tried to rise up in my seat as slowly as possible to see what was on the floor. I saw the dark blue shirt that Jake had been wearing and realized this was where he went to pray. I don’t think I had ever seen anybody kneel there before. Most people just pray where they are when the pastor asks them to.
A minute later, the lady left Emmy and walked to every body there and pointed toward Jake. By the time church was about to start, the place was about half full. Pretty good for a Sunday night. Jake stood up the very moment Pastor Ron walked by and the two bear-hugged right there in front of the pulpit. The chatter and comments started and lasted till way after Ron stood up and started making a few announcements.
“Guys in farm towns don’t hug. That’s sick.”
“He didn’t have his floosie wife to hug on, so he had to hug the new preacher?”
“Drugs. He’s got to be selling drugs. I don’t like or trust the man.”
Then Margie Scott, who was sitting next to me, leaned over and whispered, “I’m glad he brought you tonight. And I’m glad he is staying there at the Sunset. He looks like a nice, sincere Christian man. I hope the two of you get to be good friends. If more of us would pray like him, this town wouldn’t be so full of people fighting and fussing.”
I smiled. I was glad somebody besides the pastor liked Jake. Inez came in late and sat in her normal seat. She leaned over to Jake and said without whispering, “Do you always sit in the front row because you are hard of hearing, or to make points with the preacher?”
Jake turned around and said, “No ma’am, I usually sit anywhere I want to.” Jake then stood up, walked to the right and scooted all the way down Inez’s empty row and sat as close to her as anybody I have ever seen. She sat up straight and moved away from him like he had a bad disease. Most everybody snickered. I think everybody was enjoying this moment. Usually nobody had the guts to stand up to Inez. Jake looked left and smiled at her as big as anyone could. She turned her head and never looked that way for the whole service. She looked at the organ until the sermon was over.
As usual, I really didn’t pay much attention to the sermon. I was thinking though about what Jake had told me in the ‘Sunset’ parking lot and I was thinking how I should listen more to what the preacher is preaching. I’ll try to listen harder after today. What he said about ‘true believers’ really started me thinking.
Jake got stuck talking to Ron after the service, so I wandered to the door where I always stand and pretend to not know what is going on.
Alice Holman was the first to speak up.
“You know me, I try to support any pastor we have, but I do admit, Brother Anderson has started out his first week, his first day, with a thud. He actually ate lunch with that man and his tramp of a wife. Protocol calls for the new pastor to have lunch with the chairman of the deacons on his first Sunday at a new church. It’s just the proper thing to do.”
“I heard they are not even married,” added Rosanne Scott. I guess they are shack…” She stopped when she looked down and saw I was looking her way. I guess she didn’t think I knew what she meant by ‘shacking up’. I guess she forgot I lived in a motel. She leaned over to whisper to Alice and then she looked back down at me, smiled real sugary, and walked off.
I then saw Mr. Willard James. He was the Chairman of the Deacons Alice mentioned. He was talking to a big fat farmer who wears only overalls, anywhere he goes. Funerals, weddings, football games. You name it, he wears overalls. That’s what I call him, to myself that is. ‘Mr. Jumbo Overalls.’
“So, you and the Mrs. were out of town this morning?” asked ‘Overalls’. So much for ‘new pastor protocol’ I thought and wished I could say to Alice.
“Yes. We had to go see the little grandkids. We got back at about 2:00. And the phone started ringing off the wall. I thought this Brother Ron was going to be the next Billy Graham. Boy, did I get an ear full. Was that lady really that bad?” ‘Overalls’ just nodded.
“I would have to meet her before I passed judgment on her. It would be the Christian thing to do. But I heard plenty about her and ‘him’. What was he doing up there on the floor before the service? Playing marbles, or looking for loose change?” ‘Overalls’ shrugged his shoulders.
“Several people have begged me to call a ‘special called business meeting’ to discuss all that went on today. I’m sorry now I went to see the grandkids.”
For once I got tired of all the talk and I went outside and sat in Jakes truck. Several people stared at me while I sat there to show me they didn’t like me being with Jake. Two ladies walked past me and one said, “I thought those ‘bus kids’ were supposed to come only on Sunday morning?”
Was there a law about when I could come to church, I thought. For several years now I had been coming to Riverstone and just blending in, how do people say it, ‘like a fly on the wall’, and I just had fun listening to all the gossip and fighting. I had even learned to tune out all the ‘bus kid’ comments and those about my mom and the ‘Sunset’.
But today, things were getting a little more than I wanted to deal with. Jake and Collette were real nice people and had done nothing to these people, and all they got was ridicule.
Jake finally came and hopped into the truck with me. He was whistling.
“You kind of stirred things up tonight, praying like that where you did. I don’t think I have ever seen anyone ever do that at Riverstone before.”
“I didn’t mean to cause a stir, little buddy, I was simply praying to my God the way I do every Sunday. There are usually dozens of people at the front of my church every service. I wasn’t trying to make a statement or anything like that.”
We both got out in the parking lot and Jake said he had to get up early and go to his worksite, so he couldn’t stay up and visit with me. He ‘high-fived’ me and I went back to #15. My mom was sitting there staring at the door without the TV on.
“Where in the…” Her curse words were more than usual tonight.
“I was at Riverstone Baptist with Jake, like you said I could. I came in and asked. Remember?”
“No, you little,…” I won’t say what she said. “I do not remember you asking. All I know is I woke up at 6:30 and you were gone. I sat here waiting for you to come back, and I’ve waited a long time. I’ve got to go and relieve Amanda in five minutes and I don’t need to worry about where you are.”
“But Mom, really. I was in the parking lot with Jake and came back in and you said I could go.”
“No I did not. I don’t know what you thought I said, but…go. Get ready for bed. I gotta go to work.”
Mom hadn’t been this mad at me in a long time. She usually lets me wander around town on my own. I’m not sure why she was so upset. I’ve never gotten into any trouble around town. I just stay quiet and listen a lot. And store up a lot of good gossip in my memory.
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