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A LITTLE TALK WITH JESUS (standard:Inspirational stories, 1926 words) | |||
Author: The Tea Lady | Added: Jun 18 2010 | Views/Reads: 3273/2159 | Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes) |
There's always someone by your side, when you need him. All you have to do is call. | |||
Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story "Oh, yeah Ma," he yelled as the two of them ran out the back door, "thanks for the $20.00. I found it on the dresser in your room." Jerry's mom could only watch in stunned silence as the boys disappeared down the street, laughing. Jerry had taken the grocery money. The two women knelt down to pray for their troubled sons. As they bowed their heads, the lines of worry and frustration were plainly visible on their dark chocolate faces. Tears welled in the red rimmed eyes of Jerry's mom as she pleaded with God to "save our sons from jail or worse." "Amen," whispered Danny's mom, sadly. In February, that next year, Pastor Jones was preaching the funeral of one of the regular 'dues paying' members, when he suddenly grabbed his chest and fell over. He was dead from a heart attack. Mrs. Jones decided to live with her sister in another town. The new pastor, Oliver Edwards and his wife Edna came to the church full of energy. Oliver was 35 years old, and tall, with short black curly hair and a beautiful bronze complexion. Edna was 30 years old, a short, well built woman with long dreadloks. Preparing for their first Sunday, they cleaned the church using their own money for fresh flowers and coffee and cookies, before and after church services. The two mothers attended church and came home full of praises. Every Sunday, from then on, the two women and their younger sons attended church. Jerry's 12 year old brother Joseph sang in the choir. Danny's 14 year old brother Don became a Sunday school teacher. Mother's Day came and Danny had a hard time, but he convinced Jerry to attend church with him as a special gift to their mothers. "All right, man," Jerry said, giving in, "I'll do it for our mothers, but don't expect this often." The boys' mothers and brothers were so proud: they were all in church as a family. For the Sunday school lesson, Don, dressed in a cashmere, light blue sweater and gray slacks, chose the story of the prodigal son. Don was handsome, short and slender, with a positive attitude about life. He coached the church's little league baseball team. Joseph, tall, slender, and handsome in his dark blue Sunday suit, was leading the choir and they all seemed to be singing directly to Jerry. They sang, "Have a little talk with Jesus" three times, with feeling. Jerry was fidgety, his palms were sweaty. "What's wrong, man?" asked Danny. "I don't know, I just feel nervous for some reason," replied a shaking Jerry. By Monday, he was feeling better, when Danny said, "I'm broke and I really need a beer." "You know 'ole man' Mullens won't sell us beers because we're under age." moaned Jerry. Mullens was a tough old Jamaican man with a thick accent. He was 5 ft tall and weighed around 140 pounds. At 5 ft 7 in and 170 pounds each, the two teenagers towered over the little man. What Mullens lacked in size however, he made up in boldness. He stood up to the rowdiest customers, sometimes with his little friend Maude, a metal baseball bat. Mullens was also nearsighted, wearing big, thick glasses, a fact noticed by everyone, especially Jerry. The boys made a plan. With their mothers at work and their brothers at school, Jerry and Danny would rob Mr. Mullens' store. At 11 am, Tuesday morning, the weather was very warm, yet the two boys were wearing long sleeved, hooded black sweatshirts and pants, and carrying realistic looking cap pistols. "Remember Danny," cautioned Jerry, as he put on his brother's Darth Vader mask and hood, "if you got to speak, disguise your voice." As Danny put on his brother's Red Devil mask, he said, "Okay," sounding as bass as he could. The store opened at 10:30 am and at 11:10, the store was empty, except for Mr. Mullens, stocking shelves behind the counter. On the count of three, the boys burst through the door. Jerry yelled, "Gimme all the money!" The jar of pickles Mullens was holding, hit the floor splattering pickles and juice everywhere when he dropped it in surprise. A high pitched male voice called out at the door. "Jerry, take off my mask!" With his cap pistol pointed at Mullens, Jerry turned to see his brother Joseph, at the store's entrance, frowning. At 12 years old, Joseph was nearly as tall as Jerry. Suddenly, Danny yelled at Jerry to duck. Mullens wasn't standing close enough to grab Maude, but he could reach the .38 pistol in the holster, under his jacket. Jerry turned around just in time to see the pistol and duck, before Mullens fired twice, BLAM!BLAM! One shot missed Jerry and hit a wall. The other shot hit Joseph in his shoulder, knocking him to the floor, unconscious. Throwing off the mask, Danny ran out of the store and down the street. Moments later, he was back. "I called 911, man," he said, trying to comfort his friend. "Joseph will be alright." After removing his mask, Jerry sat on the floor, cradling his brother. The blood from Joseph's wound quickly covered Jerry's hands and formed a dark red pool on the floor. Mullens was shaking with excitement. "All I have in the register is $25.00. Why did you guys attack so early!" he demanded. As the police and medics converged upon the area, Jerry was praying, "Jesus, save my brother, talk to me." All night, while in custody, Jery continued asking Jesus to spare Joseph's life and speak to him. That night, Jerry heard someone calling his name. There were only he and Danny in custody, and Danny was asleep. Wiping the sleep from his eyes, Jerry was surprised to see a tall man dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt standing before him. The man had a beautiful bronze complexion, long curly afro, bright brown eyes, and a wonderful smile that seemed to pour out calm feelings. "W-who are you?" stammered Jerry. "Aw, c'mon," said the stranger, "you've been calling for me all day. I had to see Joseph first, but I'm here now. Let's talk." As Jerry felt his knees buckle, the stranger caught him saying, "It's all right, man." "I know," answered Jerry, "now that I know who you are." Later, Mullens pressed charges, but requested leniency for Jerry and Danny. They were placed on two years probation with community service, including helping out in Mr. Mullens' store. Joseph, not only survived, but after three weeks, he was back at school. One night, while his mother was visiting him in the hospital, he told her of a strange dream. "You know, Ma," he said quite groggily, "Jesus came to see me. He put His hand on my shoulder, smiled, and said, 'Now I've got to go talk to Jerry.' When I woke up, my shoulder didn't hurt anymore." Everyone who knew Jerry could see the changes in him. He and Pastor Edwards had a long talk, one Wednesday night. Later that night, Jerry had a little talk with Jesus. That was shy, months later, Danny was in church, fidgeting. Jerry was his best friend and any friend of Jerry's must be a good person to talk to, even in church. "Wait for me after church, man," Jerry told his friend. "We're gonna' have a little talk with the pastor and with Jesus." Jerry's big, toothy grin was infectious. Danny grinned back, "Okay." When church services ended, the two friends entered the pastor's office, to have a little talk with Jesus. THE END. Tweet
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