Going Home

An excerpt from a book which I am currently writing. I hope that you all find it interesting and would like to hear the rest of the story. This is first draft so it may still have some rough spots and get adjusted later. Feel free to leave some comments.

God Bless.

Going Home

By Jeremy Johnson

Good to his word, Gale had picked the ‘Rickson’s’ on the way to town. Overall, the morning had been going rather good. The Tormenters had been pleasantly absent and the Rickson’s had seemed to be in a better mood when he had picked them up. Even Axle had been polite and less confrontational to him and his parents. Yes, things are looking up. Now Lord, just please give them time. I’m not sure what is coming for them but give them time to build their armor so that when it catches up with them, they will be ready. As always, I’ll do what I can but I need your wisdom and help and before this is over, I’ll probably be needing your strength also. So, when the time comes, spend me as you will. “Amen,” he said, giving a little nod to the heavens. Lucky, who had begged and somehow convinced his protective parents to allow it was riding shotgun in the passenger seat of his truck with him while the rest of the family followed in their van.

“Were you praying?” Lucky asked, his curiosity perked after hearing the Amen.

Gale arched his eyebrow and gave the lad half of an eye. He wasn’t about to tempt fate by not watching where he was driving. There was something special about this one. “Yes, I was asking God to help me and your family,” he answered truthfully.

Lucky nodded his head at this like it explained some deep secret. “Mom used to pray when I was younger, but after a while she stopped for a long time. Although recently, she has started to pray more again. I think it has something to do with the bad men that are after dad,” he explained. His face took on a worried expression after he said that last part. “That’s a secret. I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone. Please don’t tell my parents. They would get scared and then we would have to move again,” he pleaded, moving was the last thing he wanted to do. If they moved, who would take care of the chickens and pigs and Blaz. They were all just becoming friends. He couldn’t stand the thought of having to move again.

Gale watched the internal turmoil swirl within Lucky and his heart cried out to tell him that everything would be okay. But that was something which he couldn’t assure. But I can let him know that he can trust me. “Don’t worry. I understand. I had secrets that I had to keep as a child also,” he assured while not making any promises that he couldn’t be sure he could keep. “But you might want to be a little more careful in the future. Not everyone who seems like a decent person really is. You have to trust people also. You can’t live in fear of everyone and everything. What I’m saying is be to be wise and guard your tongue for it will always betray you unless it is the tool of God and then it shall speak wisdom for all wisdom comes from God,” he warned.

Lucky leaned back, considering all of Gale’s words. He stayed quiet for a long time before speaking. “I’ll try,” he answered.

Gale smiled. “That is all any of us can do. Try our best and depend on God.”

“That makes sense but I have to ask. Who is God?” Lucky asked, turning serious.

Gale had to sit back and really consider the question. On one level the answer was really simple but it was infinitely complex also. “God is the Father of everything. And he is Love. He is the creator and his son, Jesus is the redeemer. They are both Love,” he answered.

“And we meet him at church?” Lucky asked. He knew that his parents had once gone to church but he couldn’t ever remember going to a church except for one wedding when he was pretty young.

Gale chuckled at the sincerity of the question. “Yes, in a way we meet God at church. We learn about and worship him at church. But God is not just at church. He is everywhere and watching over us always. Trying to lead us down the right paths,” he explained.

“Sounds like a decent fellow but a little bossy,” Lucky quibbled.

“Oh, he can be very bossy but only in the best of ways. He knows what will happen before it does and can see what choices are best for us. So he may be bossy about getting you to make the right choices but he is also leading you to the best choice,” Gale explained. “Sometimes that best choice isn’t the easiest. But in the end, it is the best choice for you and for those around you.”

“I guess that makes sense. But if he already knows the best choice for us, then why does he let us have a choice?” Lucky pressed, trying to wrap his head around the idea.

“Because he loves us and wanted more than robots, he gave us free will to choose to follow him and accept his love. Granted, the alternative to following him is pretty bad in the end but we all get to make that choice,” Gale answered.

“So he loves us but wants us to be able to choose to love him and that means letting us be able to choose not to follow him or love him,” Lucky reasoned. “That sounds like he gets disappointed a lot,” he said, thinking back on his own life, his families, and others that he had seen.

Gale had to nod at this deep observation from one so young. “He does but he already knows how the story ends so I guess he decided that the ones who choose him are worth the disappointment caused by those who don’t.”

Lucky thought that made a good bit of sense and somehow made those who chose to follow more special. “So have you ever met him?” he asked.

“Once,” Gale answered after a moments pause but went no further.

Lucky watched the mix of emotions that crossed over Gale’s face as he answered and wondered what he had seen. It was complex like no emotion he could really understand and after a few quiet moments he realized that Gale wasn’t going to explain further. “Well, I’m looking forward to meeting him,” Lucky decided. “I hope he comes to church today.”

Gale sighed. “Oh, I’m sure he’ll be there,” he assured.

 

Copyright © 2018 by Jeremy Glen Johnson