Stories from Heaven's Library - Vol. 27
For Young & Old
Special Edition: Overcoming Odds
Featuring:
Thirteen to Fifteen
The Secret Garden
Ellsie
Thirteen to Fifteen
Arthur couldn't remember when he first realized he was a bit different from other kids, but it had never bothered him as much as it did now. His parents were the greatest; so were his brothers and sisters. As he lay in the dark on the floor of the living room, he knew that the other 12- and 13-year-olds were laughing and telling jokes together. He and his friends were just about over the phase where boys don't like girls, and were beginning to find out what fascinating creatures they were, with their long eyelashes, shy smiles, and mysterious girl-talk.
Nicolas, Arthur's best friend, was celebrating his birthday today, and their parents had said they could have a party in the living room along with the JETTs they'd invited over from the other Home for a slumber party. They had watched a movie, complete with popcorn and snacks that a few of the girls had made, and then they put cushions all over the living-room floor, and sat around telling funny stories and jokes, all huddled around a flashlight.
Arthur's friends were tops; they had no problem communicating in sign language, and though they weren't deaf like him, they still used sign language with each other when they were together so he would feel included. But now it was bedtime and the lights had gone out, along with the lights in Arthur's heart. He knew the other boys were probably continuing to whisper to each other, and he was beginning to realize that his social life might be slightly different from the others. He stayed awake until he was pretty sure all the others were sleeping, and then finally fell into a troubled sleep.
The next day was free-day and all seven of the JETTs were going out together with Stan, Nicolas' SGA brother, who had kindly arranged for them to spend a couple of hours at the local rollerblading rink for Nicolas' birthday. He had also offered to drive the JETTs there along with his wife, Julia.
Arthur felt better today. After all, it was his best friend's birthday. He carefully combed his hair in the mirror and made sure everything was looking good. Maria, a JETT from the other Home with dark hair and lucid brown eyes, had Arthur mesmerized, and he wanted to look his best for her. They had lived in the same Home a couple of years before, but it had been during the stage when Arthur and his friends didn't take notice of girls.
Glancing at Maria as he situated himself beside her in the 12-seater, Arthur shook his head in amazement that he and his friends had ever been that way about girls. Looking up, he saw Stan wink at him from the driver's seat, and as everyone bowed their heads he silently said 'Amen' to the prayer he knew they were praying for the trip.
Sunday at the rink was predictably crowded, but there was still plenty of room for the team. After a prayer and a bit of ankle warm-up (at Stan's suggestion--he'd pulled a muscle in his foot six months before and assured them all it was an experience worth skipping), they were on the rink!
The manager of the place had been happy to see them again, as always, and he never tired of commenting on how considerate and well-mannered the JETTs were, noting that they never knocked anyone over or hassled others. The JETTs squirmed a bit at how he made them feel like kids, but they knew he was warm-hearted and well-meaning. They had invited him and his niece, who helped run the place, to a Christmas dinner and performance at the Home, and during that same visit he had donated used rollerblades for all the kids and welcomed them to come to his rink any time.
After an hour of energetic skating, the pace began to slow down a little and only partners were allowed on the rink for fifteen minutes; if you weren't holding hands you had to sit on the side. Arthur sat down beside Julia on the side as the others paired off. They chatted for awhile as Arthur watched Maria weaving gracefully in and out with a boy that she had befriended and witnessed to earlier.
The JETTs knew a lot of sheep here, regulars who often came and were for the most part very respectful of the lifestyle they knew their new friends led--and often envious when they heard of the many countries they had been to in such a short space of time. When the JETTs had heard from the Lord with Stan and Julia about whether it was okay to go to the rink regularly--considering the safety factors and also the potential System influence--the Lord had told them in their little prophecy session that as long as they put souls first and made a commitment to witness to those they came in contact with, that He would use their outings to the rink to be a blessing to everyone--to the manager who was giving, to the System teens they would come in contact with, and also to the JETTs, who would have a fun avenue of recreation, fellowship with each other, and also pouring out to peers and winning souls. Arthur clearly remembered Stan's challenge to each of the JETTs from both Homes, to make a pledge before the Lord that they would keep their end of the bargain so that the Lord could keep this door open for them.
Maria sailed by Arthur and Julia, flashing beautiful white teeth as she smiled at Arthur. He smiled back, but couldn't help feeling a little sad as he noted that even if he was skating with Maria right now they wouldn't be able to "talk," since couples on the rink had to hold hands. Julia noticed the look on his face and pulled him up to skate with her.
He remembered one evening a couple weeks earlier, how he and Nicolas had stationed themselves in Stan and Julia's room to ask them some serious questions about how to get a girlfriend. They'd gotten a &&&major "He Said, She Said" deal, with Stan offering tips from his point of view, then Julia piping in with hers. Nick and Art hung on to every word. After all, they told each other afterwards, Julia was quite a gal, so whatever Stan had done was worth knowing!
Arthur remembered Julia saying that little gestures, like doing gentlemanly things for the girls or giving them flowers, just melted them. Stan had offered how girls just loved to talk and that many of the keys to a girl's heart could be found in what she said--thus, it was important to carefully listen to what she had to say (even when it was lengthy). There were other, easier tips, like wearing cologne and of course staying clean, and also interesting ones from Julia about how one reason she grew to respect and love Stan was seeing his respect for the older generation, and how even when he had a strong opinion about something, he was open to hearing another angle; how his strength was not in always having his own way, but rather in coming to an agreement that left everyone happy as much as possible.
Arthur and Julia passed Nicolas and the current object of his devotion, Shaylah. The two friends high-fived as they passed each other, and looking behind him, Arthur noted that Shaylah was happily chatting away with Nick.
He's doin' it right! Arthur thought with a grin, as he looked for Maria again in the crowd of skaters. Instead, he noticed the rink manager's niece, Tania, sitting on the side looking out onto the crowded floor of skaters. The couples were slowing their pace now and moving off the floor, and Arthur knew that the song must be finishing. He glanced around anxiously for Maria; he had hoped he could go with her next. Instead, Tania caught a glimpse of him and began waving enthusiastically. Arthur waved back and was torn between his desire to find Maria and the nudge in his heart that he should go talk with Tania.
Tania at 15 was a couple of years older than the JETTs, but with her blonde hair cropped short, her sparkling eyes and sense of fun, she fit right in with the team and often talked with them. She was also deaf, and she and Arthur had had a special connect right from the start and had hit it off in friendship right away. Arthur had led her to the Lord and continued feeding her with different Living Waters and Mountain Streams that he would bring along whenever they went by the rink. Sometimes her uncle would drive her over to the Home for the Endtime Bible study that Stan gave to many of the teens they had befriended and witnessed to, both at the rink and on other witnessing adventures.
Both being on the naturally quiet and shy side, Arthur appreciated Tania's sensitive, caring ways. Though still young in the Lord, she had already begun learning to witness with Arthur and the others, and had even accompanied them on several visits to their local CTP, performing skits and songs and stories for a deaf kids' orphanage in their city. Being deaf herself as well as orphaned (she lived with her uncle), she had a great rapport with the kids they ministered to, and was already familiar with several of the songs they sang.
Tania's uncle, of course, was thrilled at the change in her since she began fellowshipping more with the Family teens. A few weeks before, he pulled Arthur aside and told him that before they met, Tania felt like she didn't have a friend in the world. She helped her uncle on weekends at the rink selling tickets, but seeing the hordes of young people laughing and talking among themselves there had only made her more lonely--"Until the day that you kids showed up," her uncle had finished. Not very proficient in sign language himself, he depended on Tania and Arthur being able to read lips, which thankfully they were good at.
Arthur skated over to where Tania was sitting and they "chatted" for awhile, watching the couples start up again. This time Arthur noticed Maria was skating with Stan, but he tried his best to concentrate on his conversation with Tania; he knew that people like he and Tania had a keener perception than most of others' emotions and feelings, so he wanted to be happy for her sake. It was too late though; Tania had already noticed that Arthur was distracted, and quickly figured out why.
"You like Maria," she signed.
Arthur smiled at her, feeling a little awkward, and nodded.
Tania nodded understandingly: "She's very pretty." She looked down at her skates, absentmindedly pushing them forward and back.
Arthur had quickly gotten lost in a daydream of watching Maria glide around the rink, mentally agreeing with Tania that yes, Maria was very pretty.
Just then Julia whizzed by with one of the other JETT boys, and flashed Arthur and Tania a smile as she waved. In an instant, Arthur was back to that Saturday night when Nicolas and he had queried Stan and Julia about how to win a girl. Arthur hung around afterwards in their bedroom as Julia was patting their one-year old to sleep. Julia had asked him to stay because she had sensed his discouragement during their conversation, and she told him in no uncertain terms that he was not, as he despaired, as disadvantaged in life as he thought.
She reminded him, as his father so often had, that his lack of hearing was a special talent from God, and that she was sure Jesus had a very special plan for Arthur's life. "Look," she had said, "at the amazing change that's happened in Tania's life through your friendship with her." Her words had encouraged Arthur.
Julia had gone on to remind Arthur that his "talent" was probably one of the main factors in helping him to receive the gift of prophecy quicker than his peers, since obviously he was far less distracted by noises. In a full Home like theirs, one of the biggest obstacles to hearing from the Lord was finding a quiet spot, but Julia looked him in the eyes and reminded him what a gift his lack of hearing was when it came to hearing from God. She looked down silently at her daughter for a moment, and then raised her head and told him that she felt the Lord would greatly use his gift. Although now he was practicing by receiving personal prophecies, she was sure he would use the gift the Lord had given him for far more than that in the future.
Arthur had reluctantly agreed, though he still couldn't help but feel that if he had had a choice he would definitely have chosen to be born with full hearing. But even now he knew that he and Tania wouldn't be having a conversation if they had to rely on speaking to each other; according to the others, the music was pretty loud and some of the others who could sign often used sign language to talk to each other here, even when Arthur and Tania weren't around.
One plus to being good friends with the manager was that often he would play Family music, and the JETTs had made him a fast and slow compiled song tape for just that purpose. He'd also phased out the darker music that was played when they first began going there, after they had befriended him and Stan and Julia had shared with him and his DJ that they might have less problems with rowdiness and mishaps on the rink if that kind of music was dropped. Knowing they were Christians from the beginning, the manager respected their opinions greatly and agreed that if better music made the kids behave as well as the Family kids, then he was willing to try it.--And he hadn't been disappointed. The kids who caused the most trouble complained at first, but gradually they either stopped coming or were won to the Lord and had a major attitude change.
Just then Stan and Maria whizzed up. Stan grabbed Tania's hand with a grin, and Maria pulled Arthur up. They skated in pairs alongside each other several times around the rink. By linking her arm with Arthur's, Maria was able to free her hands and carry on a bit of a conversation with Arthur, telling him about the boy she had just won to the Lord and how this was his first time at the rink. Arthur laughed as she described in animated detail the boy's questions and her responses. Maria grinned as Arthur told her a joke he had just learned. Then she changed the subject.
"How's it going with Tania?"
"Okay. She's a lot happier these days since she started helping us with our CTPs," Arthur replied.
"And just think, if you could hear, we never would have even begun our CTP ministry with the deaf kids because none of us would've learned sign language!"
Boy, that's out of the blue. Arthur thought, how does she know what I've been thinking. Maria had a way of coming right out with whatever was on her mind, and Arthur appreciated her frank ways. Some others said she was a little on the blunt side, but Arthur was happy for that. He could tell when people were just being friendly with him because they felt sorry for him, and though he knew their intentions were good, they often came off as insincere or condescending. Not Maria! She always made Arthur play the "Glad Game;" it was a bit of a standing joke between the two of them.
"Whew, I'm thirsty!" Maria motioned, stepping off the rink with Arthur close behind. They made their way over the carpeted area to the water-fountain by the pool tables, then Maria plopped herself down on one of the circular couches. She pulled off one of her skates and began rubbing her foot as she called Arthur to sit beside her.
"Got a cramp in my foot. Anyway, here, look at this." Maria pulled out a small folded bit of blue notepaper that she had in her pocket.
"I got this for Nick's birthday, but I want you to read it first and tell me if you think it's good."
Maria was always full of surprises. Arthur took the paper blankly, wondering what in the world it might say.
"It's a little tiny prophecy I got for his birthday, like the one you got for me. But I've never done that for anyone before, so can you read it and tell me what you think?"
Arthur held the precious bit of paper in his hands as he scanned the two short handwritten paragraphs. It was a brief, personal birthday note from Jesus to Nicolas.
"It's great!" Arthur motioned, handing the paper back to Maria, wishing with everything in him that she had received it for him and not Nicolas.
"Yeah, well," Maria looked down a little bashfully, "my gift isn't nearly as good as yours!"
She then drew his notebook from her waistpouch. Arthur had lent it to her the day before, at her insistence, but he was surprised to see that she had brought it to the rink. She was the only JETT, besides Nicolas, that he had ever shared his personal prophecies with.
"This one is my favorite--it's so cool how the Lord gives you these word pictures," Maria added, flipping to one of them as she read it again.
Arthur smiled as Maria returned the notebook to him. It felt good to be admired for stepping out to do something that not many of his peers had tried yet. It had all begun with some birthday prophecies that Stan and Julia had gotten and pasted in a notebook for him, with a note encouraging him to continue filling it. It had worked, too. With the regular Endtime classes and Tania's many questions to him, such as, "How can God use a deaf person?" and "How are we going to be useful in the Endtime?" there were plenty of questions Arthur had on his mind to ask the Lord about. He'd begun with some simpler questions, but felt ready to launch out and try one of these "bigger" ones, for his sake and Tania's.
Arthur and Maria headed back to the rink. There were 20 more minutes before they went home, and Maria skated off to find her other friends while Arthur and the other boys skated around together.
On their way out, the team said goodbye to the manager. Tania was sitting at the ticket box near the entrance, so Arthur went over to chat. She asked if he had enjoyed himself, then reminded him that he had promised to find some answers to the questions she'd asked him. Arthur nodded sheepishly. If it was just up to him he knew he'd probably never get down to business about the questions on his heart as well as hers, but since he knew Tania was looking to him, he felt a sense of responsibility. Somehow he had a feeling that the Lord had arranged their friendship at this time in order to stir him up. He found that encouraging her that God had a plan and could use her despite her handicap, encouraged him too.
Tania smiled and shoved a piece of paper through the ticket slot toward him.
"Another question to ask God about."
She waited for his response.
"Okay, I'll read it in the car and next time I see you I'll have something to tell you," Arthur signed to her, and gulped. Now he'd really have to get down to business.
Arthur read the question as soon as he was in the van. The sun had set but there was still just enough light to see Tania's neat printing.
Why did God make us deaf?
* * *
Arthur was jolted from his memories by a lurch and a cloud of dust as the old bus pulled up to another bus stop. He yawned and looked at his watch; still two more hours till they would reach their destination. He looked at the sleeping girl beside him; her head was gently resting against his shoulder, and he didn't want to move and wake her. Still he managed to turn his head and look at Tania sitting four rows back on the left side of the bus. She was looking out the window but noticed him and gave the slightest wink.
They'd decided in advance that they would travel as strangers, for security's sake. Her uncle had kindly provided the necessary papers and legal documents required for crossing the border, and he would try to join them as soon as it was feasible.
Back in memory lane, Arthur remembered that when he'd asked the Lord Tania's question that night long ago, the Lord had told him that their lack of hearing was a special gift to both him and Tania, but that only as they trusted Him and stayed strong in learning the Word and using the new weapons, would they begin to understand the many ways that the Lord would use their "talent."
Thirteen to fifteen had certainly been the toughest years. Arthur knew it wasn't just the fact that he was deaf; Nicolas and his other friends had it pretty rough too, always wondering what they were going to be, how the Lord could possibly use them, when they would finally be old enough to have a little independence and pioneer some exciting field or witnessing ministry like Nicolas' older brother had.
Stan and Julia had felt the call to China a short while later and heeded it, leaving Nicolas and Arthur feeling a mixture of both admiration and devastation. After all, Stan and Julia had been such great people to have around, always taking them on witnessing adventures, fun get-outs, or starting new Word projects with them on the ARC, and being there to lend a listening ear and give some friendly advice.--Just everything.
The final straw had come when Maria's family moved to another field. Arthur was fifteen and still madly in love with her. He remembered feeling as though it couldn't get any worse.
His one lifesaver had been Tania--that is, the fact that Tania needed him and depended on him. She'd had her share of adolescent trials too--the foremost being that although she was dying to serve the Lord full-time and was already a disciple in heart and spirit, she had been too young to join full-time and had to be content to help her uncle at the rink, going over to the Home whenever she could for Bible classes or to help with the kids in the Home or the kids at the orphanage.
She had learned clowning and how to make animal balloons; she and Arthur made a little sign with photos of all the animals they could make and that way the children could simply point to the one they wanted. Her uncle had even donated a whole day at the rollerblading rink for the deaf orphans, and after her uncle saw the delightful animal balloons that they made for the orphans that day, he begged them to do it once a week, to help boost their business.
But despite Tania's pleading with her uncle to let her move in with the Family, he insisted that he needed her help at the rink, and that besides, she was still too young to make such decisions on her own. So she had had to remain a Live-Out for another year before joining--though Arthur often reassured her that she was just as much a disciple as he, noting that it wasn't the location of your body but the attitude of your mind and heart.
There are some advantages to being deaf, Arthur thought to himself, as he came back to the present. It's sure been a help in this situation. They had crossed the border just an hour before, and Arthur remembered it all too clearly. They'd had all but one of the necessary papers, which Tania's uncle had been unable to get. As Arthur had watched the immigrations man come up the aisle of the bus checking everyone's documents, he prayed desperately that the man wouldn't hassle them for the missing paper. To his dismay, and by reading the guard's lips, Arthur noticed that the guard had already kicked an old man off the bus because he was missing that same paper.
When the guard had come to him and scanned over his papers with a furrowed brow, he said something to Arthur. Arthur looked at him blankly, as he handed him another paper stating that he was deaf, but anyone requiring further details about his travel documents could contact the listed number. The guard had stared at it in disbelief, then shoved the paper back at Arthur, muttering to himself, "I don't have time for this!"
To his relief, a similar routine ensued with Tania, sitting a short distance behind him. He didn't dare look back, but silently let out a praise of thankfulness to the Lord for His miraculous protection when he saw the guard stomp back down the aisle alone, and the bus doors close behind him. The driver heaved the ancient vehicle back onto the road and they were through!
Arthur looked again at the small note he had received from Nick and Shaylah--now married at 18 and 17--with instructions for Arthur and Tania to meet them at the bus terminal. It was the most unusual faith trip--taken more out of necessity to leave their ever tightening former country than anything else. Tania's uncle wasn't going to join them at first, despite their cautions that the Lord had warned them to leave, and he had only gotten the hint when his building was condemned by the government on some pretense of a fire hazard, and he lost membership to the golf club he had been part of for fifteen years, for being an active Christian.
It had been difficult for Tania to leave the ministry at the orphanage and the children she had grown close to, but Arthur had encouraged her that the Lord would keep them in His hands, and also that their being minors and dependents protected them in the sense that they would probably not be made to receive the "wonderfully efficient" personal ID number that the newspapers were boasting was soon to come in that country.
Arthur felt himself being lulled to sleep by the rhythmic bumping of the bus, and when he awoke some time later, it was to find that night had fallen and they were pulling into a very crowded bus station. He and Tania collected their bags from the compartment in the bus's side and began scanning the crowds for a familiar face. After awhile, their bus pulled away empty, and another came to fill its place. Different people began shoving and jostling to load their baggage and board, but there was still no sign of Nicholas anywhere. Arthur and Tania moved back, and standing under the awning of a small bakery, they waited, and discussed what they should do if nobody showed up soon. From the looks of the town square and all the gaudy decorations strung everywhere, there was a local festival or holiday going on, and the many people either traveling the buses or shopping left little space for breathing.
Despite the confusion and all the unusual sights and smells of an unfamiliar place, Arthur felt peace inside. He remembered Julia's words so long before, about the gift his lack of hearing would be. Even now as they waited amid this garish scene, Arthur listened for whispers of direction. In his mind's eye, he immediately saw a coffee shop with four round cakes in the window, along with a voice telling him to wait there.
Signing to Tania that he knew where to go, he grabbed her hand and joined the flowing masses around the square, looking in every store. He came to one caf, but there was only one cake along with a few odd looking sweets in the window, so he pressed on. Almost around the whole square, Arthur scanned ahead of him and couldn't see anything resembling a coffee shop.
Something made him look down a narrow side street to his left and his attention was drawn toward a small shop window from which yellow light emanated. Pushing his way through the crowds, Arthur was disappointed to see only three cakes in the window of this tiny caf, when just then the back of it slid open and a person placed a fourth cake, newly made, alongside the others. Knowing that this must be the place, they went inside and sat at the only free table, which lined the wall. They ordered some soda water and Arthur shared with Tania how the Lord had shown him to wait here, since obviously Nicholas was delayed meeting them somehow and would have never found them in the crowds outside. Arthur, facing the entrance, kept his eye open for Nicholas.
In the course of their conversation, Arthur noticed a man at the table closest to the entrance, who seemed to be watching them intently. Arthur prayed a quick prayer that he wouldn't be the cause of any trouble. The man got up after a few minutes and went to make a phone call at the pay phone close to the door. He appeared to be middle-aged, and wasn't dressed very well and had a rather unkempt appearance. After only a minute on the phone, the man went and sat at his table again. By this time Arthur wasn't paying much attention to him, or he would have noticed the uncomfortable, nervous look on the man's face as he got up as quickly as he had sat down, and dragged his feet over to their table. Arthur looked up to see the man, who had a slightly nervous, but eager look in his eyes. He asked them in sign language if they were friends of Nicholas, the young foreigner and his wife.
Caught a little off-guard, Arthur looked at Tania, who looked just as surprised. Not quite sure where this man was coming from, Arthur hesitated, while the man turned around and waved at the shopkeeper, who brought three drinks to the table, whereupon the man proceeded to invite himself to sit down. He motioned that the drinks were for them, then went on to explain himself.
"Because I think that you are their friends. I have seen pictures of you. You see, I'm a friend of theirs as well. In fact, I just saw them yesterday, and Nicholas told me that his best friend, and his best friend's girlfriend"--at this Tania slightly blushed--"would be arriving by bus today. They didn't send me to meet you, mind you, but when I saw you sitting there, your faces looked so familiar that I called Nicholas to ask if it was possible that you were here--in this caf." The man gulped down his drink, looking like he'd had a bit much of this local alcoholic beverage already. He then continued, not giving time for Arthur or Tania to answer. "I often come to this caf," he said, glancing around with a reminiscent look. "I proposed to my wife in this very place, five years ago. She's gone now, but being here somehow brings her back to me."
Arthur felt it was high time to say something himself. "Yes, we are friends of Nicholas. It's nice to meet you. We just arrived this evening, and were supposed to meet him, but I guess for some reason he couldn't make it."
"Yes, that would be because of the traffic," the man interrupted. "It's the busiest time downtown this month with the local festival in the streets, and we just heard on the news that because of the large turnout of people, they have had to close down some of the inner city roads. But you needn't worry, I've called your friends, and they know you're here. They said you could just wait here with me, and that they would try to get here as soon as they could."
Tania and Arthur sighed in relief.
"How do you know sign language? Seeing as you made a phone call I guess you can hear?" Arthur queried.
"I have a small daughter who is deaf.--Nicholas told her you both were coming and she will be so pleased to meet you. We have seen photos and videos of your work with the deaf orphans, the songs and the skits and the balloons, which is how I recognized you--and now my daughter talks of nothing else! She's told all of her friends about you, too!"
Tania smiled. This was her element. She silently thanked God.
Arthur smiled too, as it dawned on him that the Lord had arranged their meeting in His Own mysterious way, and had once again come through for them because of his faithfulness to use the new weapons. He thanked God, too, that life was one great adventure--and it looked like it was only just beginning.
The Secret Garden
Joanie held a letter in her lap as she stared out her window into the tiny backyard of the place she'd called home for the last three years. Outside the bedroom that she shared with another JETT and three OCs, she could hear the toddlers watching a Family Fun video in the next room, and her mother making dinner downstairs. As the last gleam of the setting sun kissed the precious letter from her older sister, Kylie, she read it again:
Dear Joanie,
Hi! I love you so much and miss you! I can't believe I finally made it to India at last!! Everyone here is sooo sweet! We have catacombers coming over to the house every single day, and the show troupe has already begun their rehearsals for a Christmas concert. It's just amazing! People sometimes stare at you when you go out as if they'd never seen a foreigner. There are neat backstreets downtown lined with all sorts of strange food and wares being sold. If you get thirsty you can buy whole coconuts that the man will open with a machete for you, and you just use a straw to drink! On the weekend all six of us teens went to a local university to witness and the students were asking us all kinds of deep questions about God and Jesus and the Endtime and the world economy.
I wish you were here, Joanie. You'd really have a blast! There are other JETTs here and I've shown them your photo and they said they'd really like to meet you
Joanie stopped at that point to wipe a tear that was threatening to drop from her cheek and ruin her nice letter. It had been so fun to hang out with Kylie, to work in the kitchen or go witnessing with her. But when she left for India with two other teens from the area, Joanie wasn't sure how she was going to cope. The week had already not been going so good, and now this letter from Kylie almost made Joanie feel like giving up.
Why can't I go to India also? How come there are so many restrictions on us JETTs, when we have to pull the load in the Home, too? We're so limited because we're never old enough! Why does one year seem like ten whole years? I'll be fourteen in four months, but then it'll be two more years before I'm a senior teen and can go to India to be with Kylie, and by that time
Joanie felt overwhelmed, and it was all she could do to stifle her sobs in her pillow. After a moment she wrung out a plea from her heart:
Jesus, please give me something worth living for! Life as a JETT is so hard! I just don't feel like I can go on another day in this Home!
If Joanie wasn't so sad at this point, she'd probably tell you that life in her Home wasn't that bad. After all, her parents loved the Lord, she lived fairly close to two other Homes that had JETTs also, although she only saw them when she happened to be the rider when going over to their Home to share vegetable pickups and other provisioned items, or at the occasional area fellowship. Once Uncle Marty planned a JETT road trip, when he &&&visited his sister in another city and offered to take all the JETTs with him, and that was really fun.
Often when she'd be musing about life in general, Joanie would wonder about what she was going to become. She often felt like traveling the world, pioneering some closed country with her older sister, or joining a Home of just young people. But then she'd be awakened from her musings by some call to duty in the Home, or be reminded in some way or another that the future had many of her dreams locked away till such a time as she could be free from the travel restrictions due to her age.
After dinner and helping to put her two younger brothers and sister to bed, Joanie pulled out her treasured quote book that was hidden under her bed. Her sister had given it to her before she left to India, and Joanie now ran her hand over the worn cover on which a faded picture of Joan of Arc was pasted. She began to leaf through each page, a pastime she never tired of, to look at each of the quotes that Kylie had written down through the years. For variety, Kylie had used different kinds of handwriting, and also pasted pictures throughout the book.
For feelings come and feelings go,
And feelings are deceiving;
My warrant is the Word of God,
Naught else is worth believing!
Tho' all my heart should feel condemned
For lack of some sweet token,
There is one greater than my heart
Whose word cannot be broken
Joanie noted the beautiful handwriting that Kylie had used to write this poem into her book, as if this poem had been very special to her. The full meaning of the poem escaped her at this moment, but it gave her a kind of warm, steady feeling to read it. One greater than my heart
Joanie continued leafing through the book and came to a single statement, bordered with tiny red roses in the corner of a page:
Be the best that you can be.
Jo stared absentmindedly at it. She had always looked up to her sister--the enthusiasm that she had for life, and her positive outlook. Kylie always tried to do the best that she could, and she had great dreams. Her dream had been to go to India, and now she was there
Jo kept browsing so she wouldn't remember how much she missed her sister.
She flipped to another page that held the tracing of a girl's face looking up. In bold, blue and yellow bubble-style letters, the words "The Pioneer" headed the page, and around the outline of the face was a pioneer's prayer. Joanie turned the quote book sideways to read some very small print--Kylie hadn't wanted to waste any space in her precious book.
The possibilities are as limitless as the kingdom of God, as boundless as the needs of mankind!--I've got to have something I'm willing to die for--something that can change the world, no matter what it costs! Jesus, help me to have a spiritual conviction!
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers; in word, in conversation, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity!
Joanie's reading was interrupted by little curly headed Jason, asking her to turn the story tape over.
"You're not asleep yet?" Joanie rumpled her cute little brother's hair. She turned the tape over and plopped herself back on her mom's bed. It was adult movie night, so her parents wouldn't be upstairs for awhile. That feeling Joanie had felt earlier began creeping back into her stomach--that her life moved too slowly. She sighed and wished she could fast-forward a few years. All my problems would be solved if I was just two or three years older, she thought to herself.
She looked over at Jason; he was asleep now. Picking up her treasured quote book, Joanie crept into the next room and read for a little while longer. Then she went to sleep.
* * *
Joanie woke up in a place she'd never been before. The first thing she noticed was the high stone walls that surrounded this small but sunny enclosure. She felt quite comfortable and dreamy lying on the soft grass in the sunshine, so she kept her position as she inspected this unusual place.
It appeared to be a garden. There was a tall, solid tree overhanging one of the corners. Pleasant white stone pathways criss-crossed throughout. A small stone fountain gave a musical lilt* to the air. There were numerous flower-beds lining the walkways, neat rectangular mounds of rich brown earth that held small green sprouts in neat rows. Here or there could be seen a flower bud with a revealing dash of purple, red, or yellow peeking out from within.
Joanie looked more closely at the walls now. They were stone but not cold looking. The large stones that made up the walls had pleasant- looking moss growing in between the cracks. Several beautiful vines were beginning to hug the wall in different places, promising to turn it to a rich green before long.
Joanie felt a smile beaming on her face as she recognized the place in a funny sort of way. It was almost like a private, personal, secret garden that she'd known she always had. She realized faintly at this point that she must be dreaming, but was too busy soaking up the wonderful mystery of the place, and wondering who would be visiting, for she had just noticed a beautiful, deep brown oak door at the opposite end of the garden, with an antique handle on it, standing open.
A soft, deep voice close by her side spoke just loud enough so she could hear.
"I wanted to show you something in this place."
Without even looking, Joanie knew Who it was. She felt so comfortable, and instinctively leaned her head upon the solid shoulder she knew would be there to support her, as she closed her eyes and directed her face once again to the sunshine.
He continued, "I know you miss your sister, and you wish you could be with her right now. You wonder about so many things and don't understand why life has to be so difficult."
Joanie felt so at peace. Even though Jesus was expressing the deepest questions and fears and longings of her heart, just hearing His voice and knowing that He knew, made it all seem bearable, although she faintly wondered if He would give her a magical answer that would solve all these questions on her mind. She didn't just want Jesus to understand; she wanted Him to make it easier; snap His fingers and transfer her to India; blink His eyes and make her two years older. Joanie knew that tomorrow would be another day, and that she would still have the same questions and trials; she would still be only thirteen years and eight months old.
Jesus smiled, and though Joanie had her head on His shoulder and couldn't see His face, she could feel His smile coming through her shoulders and neck, making them tingle. A butterfly landed on her knee and then climbed onto her outstretched finger. A warm breeze wafted over the wall and with it came a heavenly fragrance that gently surrounded them both.
Jesus suddenly jumped up and met her eyes with a playful smile. "Watch this!"
He leapt into the air and did a handstand. His long hair dangled below His head as He demonstrated His agility with several flips. "Look, no hands!" He smiled, and placing His arms by His side, did a complete flip, landing back on His feet.
Of course Jesus would be wearing pants to do this stuff, Joanie thought to herself, as she noticed His very hip looking pants and a "Much Ado About Nothing" style white peasant-shirt. He kept laughing at the amazement on her face that He would be doing acrobatics for fun.
"Come, it's easy!" Jesus exclaimed, putting out His hand to help her up. "Try the no-hands one with Me! Hands by your side. That's right. Don't think about it--I won't let you fall."
Joanie felt a twinge of something at her own daring to even try this, but with Jesus looking right at her with such love and faith and fun in His eyes, she knew it was all right. He held her arm, more for her own reassurance than to even help her, and in a moment she was back on her feet, dazed at the sensation of flipping in the air. She laughed with both excitement and relief, and Jesus laughed too as He hugged her. "You're a natural!"
They walked over to a swing that Joanie hadn't noticed before, hanging from the great tree in the corner, and both sat down on it. It seated two comfortably. The shade was cool and refreshing, and Joanie noticed some lilies growing between the tree and the wall.
As they swung gently, Joanie snuggled in Jesus' great arm, which He had placed around her. She'd forgotten all her questions and worries, but He hadn't. He addressed them now, quietly, gently, picking up the conversation as if there had never been a pause.
"This garden is yours, Joanie. It's very much like your heart. I gave it to you, and your special garden is like no other."
Jesus wasn't talking now. Rather, as she leaned blissfully on His shoulder, she felt as though she was hearing His beautiful voice in the very center of her mind. As she closed her eyes to soak it up more fully, she felt like the most important person in the world, &&&being told the most secret plan in the world. The illustration of the garden stayed with her, but she felt as though she was now in outer space, looking at the great plan of history from one end of the universe to the other, yet feeling the warmth and comfort of Jesus' shoulder, and His soft, tender, wise and loving words.
She went back in time, to a few moments she had spent in another, much larger garden. Jesus was explaining to her His plan for her life, and asking her if she was willing to accept everything He had in mind for her.
As they strolled through this garden, He was taking her on a stroll through her future life on Earth. It was as if everything was in the present, and Jesus was once again showing His wonderful plan for her.
He explained very carefully and wisely that life on Earth would not be easy. There would be sickness sometimes, there would be trials and battles. She was impressed with His explanation of her youth, particularly the very time she was experiencing in her mortal body. He gently tried to explain adolescence to her, that time when a year seems like ten years and the mind and spirit feel ready to burst out of the confines of their body. He explained to her that the greatest lesson during that time of her life would be patience and perseverance.
Jesus looked into Joanie's eyes with such trust and faith and love. "I know you're going to make it. I'm not worried about you. Sometimes it's harder to wait than it is even to fight difficult battles, but just always remember: These things are from Me. I know exactly what you must be prepared for. The moments and minutes and hours and days and weeks when all you want is action, contain necessary lessons of patience.
"It's like those little buds in your garden " Suddenly Joanie was back in that beautiful little place with the flower-beds and the fountain and the great oak tree. "There are times when you wonder if it's even worth it to water the mounds of dirt--you feel like the flowers will never come, and the Enemy loves to tempt you that you're never going to see the fruit of all your patience and diligence in watering and tending the garden of your heart. You wish you could forget about your garden and just get on with life, enjoying, experiencing and doing."
"Imagine when I was your age "
Now that's a thought! Joanie mused.
"I too was a JETT once. I knew who I was. When I was only twelve, I took on the smartest men of that day. I thought I had all the lessons and knowledge I needed under My belt, and I remember arguing with My Heavenly Father, 'Do I really have to wait until I'm full-grown to begin My work?' After all, wasn't I dazzling people already with all that I knew? But guess what?"
Jesus looked at Joanie with such understanding and compassion. She could just see it, Jesus about her age, ready to take on the world. She allowed herself a moment to imagine what a nice boyfriend He would have made. Jesus smiled at her thoughts and kissed her hand.
"Well, it was hard for Me--believe Me, I tried to talk My Dad out of it!" Joanie let out a laugh at hearing Jesus call His Father "Dad!" He had a twinkle in His eye as He went on. "But He knew that I had a lot to learn still, and one of those lessons was learning patience. Believe Me, I know what suffering is! I felt like I had centuries to wait!"
Joanie smiled again as she applied the verse in a totally different light: And though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things He suffered. She looked at Jesus with adoring eyes. He was so relatable.
They took a turn in His garden. It had so many indescribable wonders which Joanie passed by without a second look; Jesus was absorbing all her attention. He smiled at her with such love that she felt like she could just melt in His arms. She felt as though she would never have another battle again.
But He wasn't done yet. Taking her by the hand, they passed into another world in which visions of the future flashed before Joanie's eyes. Her sister was there and she saw her parents and her friends. She saw many other friends she was going to make as well. She saw children, and for a moment she blinked and looked at Jesus, as she understood they were her very own. She saw, too, amazing Endtime events, happening, alive, and in color.
Even as these things unfolded before her, Jesus let her see an illustration of her precious garden in fast motion. She saw that through the years, as she faithfully tended it and watered it and allowed the sunshine in, that the flowers and plants grew into thick and colorful varieties such as she had never seen. It was a slow process--though seen very quickly at that moment, she knew it spanned years--and she noted too that the growth paused at those times when her vision faded and she neglected it for other interests.
Joanie was watching her garden and future events simultaneously, yet was able to absorb it all so very quickly. She was aware of the answers Jesus was showing her as she viewed all this. He showed her how each painstaking lesson she learned of kindness, perseverance, learning to glory in small tasks; of forgiveness, love, trust and faith; of holding on during dark times and of staying faithful during bright times was applied and put to use in the future, in the great tapestry of life. She saw how the seemingly humdrum events of life had great impact on the future, how every word she spoke to adults and children alike influenced them for the better or the worse.
As she drank in the full meaning of all that Jesus was allowing her to see, she also understood that when she woke up, she would not remember the details of these secrets of the future--they would be a faint shadow of a memory.
The next moment they were back in her secret garden on the swing, and Jesus was holding her affectionately. Joanie's heart was so full of thankfulness. With just one look into His eyes she could see that Jesus was pleased with her and understood how grateful she was for this special gift. As she looked around her at the tiny buds and sprouts, she promised the Lord to do her best to tend her garden well.
* * *
Joanie heard the cheery birds singing in her ears and found herself gazing out the window at a tiny bird in the willow tree nearby. She lay very still as she drank in the sound, feeling very warm and happy. No one else in the house was awake yet, and she struggled to remember why she was so happy, when she had gone to bed feeling so differently. Just then a butterfly flew in the window and landed on the dresser under the sill, and in that moment it all came back--her garden, Jesus' acrobatics, His eyes, the walk in His garden. She faintly remembered what He said, too. She got her beloved quote book, and cracking it open, read:
God's Education and Training.
So let "patience have her perfect work" and "Wait patiently on the Lord," "For ye have need of patience that after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise!"
Joanie gazed at the small graduation cap that Kylie had drawn above the quote, and sealed with a silent prayer the promise she had made to Jesus in her secret garden.
Ellsie
Sometimes things happen in our lives when we least expect them. Everything may be going along just great, and then one day tragedy strikes.
My name is Ellsie, and I was born in Devonshire in 1811. We were a family of 12 children, and life in England at that time was rough.
My dad was a blacksmith and, that being a trade always in demand, our family was well cared for. We were a happy lot, my mum, dad and all of us kids. We got along well. My dad was a God-fearing man, and though he seemed a bit tough on the outside, he had a soft heart and deep love for us children. He worked hard to provide and care for us and our mum.
There were many chores for us girls to do around the house, and upon occasion my dad would call for me to accompany him to his workshop. I would keep him company and assist him in the various jobs he did. A couple of my brothers also worked with my dad, learning the trade.
One of his more frequent jobs was shoeing horses. I used to be amazed at my dad's patience, laboring to shoe the horse just right. He did the same job over and over and over again, and I would wonder if he ever grew bored or tired of it. One day I asked him about it, and he told me that because he knew he was providing a service that helped so many and was important to safety, that although it was a humble and monotonous job, he got great satisfaction and contentment from it.
On one particular day as I watched my dad heat the horseshoe over the fire and take the hammer to it, pounding and pounding it, tempering it just right, my father said to me,
"Now, Ells, you see how I have to pound and pound the shoe to get it just right? A lesson can be learned from this. Sometimes life can be like the pounding on this horseshoe. The things we go through and experience may seem unpleasant to us and hard. But all these experiences make us the way we need to be. It pounds out the imperfections in us. See," he said, as he lifted the red-hot shoe, "now I have a nice, smooth, beautiful shoe fit to wear and walk on, that will serve the horse well. I see it as the way God works with His children. Sometimes things happen in our lives that are like the pounding of the hammer on the horseshoe. It isn't until a little time later that you realize it was for a good purpose, to make you sure and strong, making you just what you need to be."
Daddy drew the horseshoe off the anvil and dunked it into the caldron of water; the sound of the seared iron horseshoe hitting the cold water fascinated me. I saw the steam make an instant little cloud in the air. Then we were off to shoe the horse. As daddy lifted the leg of the horse and positioned the shoe just right on his foot and began to pound the nails into its hoofs, I was amazed at the trust the horse showed in my father. It didn't flinch or move, but stood still and calm. My dad seemed to have a way with him. When he finished the first, he went on to shoe the second and the third foot. Just as he finished putting on the last shoe, placing the horse's leg down, I saw his hammer fall to the ground.
As I went to get it for him, I looked at my father and to my shock I noticed him slouched on the ground grasping his chest with his hand. "Ells! Ells! Get your brother!" he said with a faint voice. Frightened, I ran to get Shawn, my older brother. When we returned I cried out, "Daddy! What's wrong!?" As he lay there, holding my arm, he said to me, "Ells, I think it's my heart." Then he said, "My darling girl, I love you." He closed his eyes, drew a long breath, and he was gone. My head begin to spin, and it seemed that all the words he had ever spoken to me twirled about inside. I began to feel sick to my stomach. I laid my head on his shoulder and cried, "Daddy! Daddy! Please come back!"
* * *
As a grown woman I thought upon this memory of the past, and I realized the wisdom of father's words to me that day, when he explained to me the parallel between things that happen in our life and the pounding and shaping of a horseshoe. I am now thankful, for though you could call my father's death a tragedy in my life, it was a catalyst that changed me from that point forward.
I could have faced this personal loss in different ways. Here was my dad, strong, healthy, in the prime of life with so many children to care for. He loved us all dearly, loved others, and was helpful and humble in his work. He was here one day and gone the next. I could have gotten bitter over having been separated from my dad, who I loved so much and who I know loved me. But I knew that to walk down that road would be the opposite of all he ever taught me. So because of my love and respect for him, I determined to make the best of my situation and go on. Although we all felt the loss deeply, we children pulled together to help our family make it through. Our breadwinner now gone, we had to take on part- time work to support ourselves. The lessons I learned of hard work, making ends meet and learning how to do without, were all needed and an invaluable help to me later on in life.
As a young lady, I married a wonderful man--a Quaker--and we ended up leaving England and travelling to a New England, far beyond our shores across the sea. Life was rough, and pioneering not easy in this new land. We had a new race of people to learn to communicate with called Indians. We not only shared our practical skills with these people, but more importantly, our faith.
It was a difficult life, and trying for the best and strongest of men and women, and were it not for all I had been through as a young girl, I would not have been prepared for the challenges that we met and overcame in those pioneering years. Then I realized that as the blacksmith's hammer pounds the horse's shoe when it is red-hot, and it is shaped and tempered and formed, so the Lord in His love brings things to pass in our lives that shape and form the character that we need in order to help others. When our heart has been broken, then it feels for others and we can be a blessing and comfort to them when their hearts are broken. Though we may look at a time in our life as darkness, there is light to be found, just as you find when you come to the end of a dark tunnel. Passing through these "tunnels" is a part of bringing us along life's journey and helping us to arrive at our final destination--Heaven--where there is always light and no more darkness.
Definitions included in this pub:
*lilt: A light, happy tune or song.
Copyright (c) 1998 by Aurora Productions