Friday, May 15, 2015

The Parting: What Do You Want?


Pastor Bill’s sermon resonated with the congregation. Nancy and Charlotte were determined to fervently pray for Jack’s safety. It is not like they weren’t sincere before but now they had renewed zeal. They even wrote to Jack about the sermon and it was a soothing balm for his tender soul. His prayer life, which had been a smoldering ember, became rekindled.

He prayed for his safety and that of his comrades. He prayed for his mother, brother and Charlotte. He knew his days in Afghanistan were finally getting short. He wanted his heart to be right when he went home.
...
One night as Charlotte looked up at the star where she and Jack promised to meet, she prayed to God for his safety and the strength of their relationship. She mentioned that though she was committed to Jack, something about Bob continued to creep into her consciousness. She wasn’t sure what to make of it.

Bob began to pray in earnest for Charlotte to notice him. He wanted to meet with Charlotte and tell her how he felt but how could he do such a thing and ever come out of it unscathed? If she loved him back, he would be viewed as the guy who stole a girl from a soldier, someone he knew. While they were only acquainted with each other and never were friends, it wouldn’t be right. Still, there was a part of him that dreamed about holding Charlotte in his arms. In his mind, that made it all worthwhile. The thing he feared was if he told Charlotte how he felt, she more than likely would reject him. He knew that would crush him.

Oh God, is there a way I can love Charlotte and she will love me?

Nancy used the pastor’s sermon to renew her commitment to helping others. Therefore, she prayed for many people and their circumstances. Sometimes, she felt a little overwhelmed but she tried to picture a God who is much bigger than all the issues of the world and that He wanted her to pray about these things because they concerned Him as well.

One evening she thought back to the day Bob had been at church rehearsing and how Charlotte looked at him when he left. She felt herself becoming protective of Jack and Charlotte. Even though Bob is well liked in the whole community and loved in the church, she felt an anger. She didn’t want anything interfering with the relationship between her son and the young lady she had come to respect and love. Nonetheless, she felt the need to pray for Bob and for God’s will to be done in his life even if it interfered with what she believed was best for Jack and Charlotte. It didn’t come easy but when she finally surrendered, she felt at peace.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Munich and Romania

This is the first of a multi-part series based on my observations from a recent Eastern European trip my wife and I took. In each I will sh...