O
n Sundays, they usually went to Abundant Life. Pastor Martin Adams and his wife, Rita, had been pastoring the ministry for the last decade. They had adult children and had come to London from South Africa as missionaries. They had a fairly big ministry, with people coming from all walks of life and backgrounds. Their openness and compassion were endearing. They had overcome the scourges of apartheid.
Tanya looked forward to her Sunday School classes. Her Sunday School teacher, Aunty Fifi, would get them to dance to the Blessings on Blessings (the B.O.B. Bounce) dance right at the start to “wake them up and shake off those heavy bands” she often stated. It was a dynamic class in which there was never a dull moment. The girls were a lot quieter and more mature. Tanya, Caroline (Sharon’s daughter), and Michelle (Aunty Fifi’s daughter) were sometimes asked to briefly take charge of the class when Aunty Fifi or the other Sunday School teachers were busy elsewhere. Like Tanya’s mum, Caroline’s dad was also part of the choir. Tanya would spend a lot of time with the other two girls, although they were slightly older than she was. Destiny, Emmanuel, and Franck would constantly crack jokes and play pranks.
“Would you stop joking around, you three,” said Caroline when they became too disruptive.
“Who do you think you are?” Franck replied.
“Do you want me to report you to your parents?” asked Michelle, who knew his parents and knew how afraid this would make him. He looked at her sheepishly and kept his mouth shut till the end of class, as he did not want to incur his parents’ wrath.
The trio were the clowns of the group. They would often imitate those attending the church, like Deacon Peter or Aunty Fifi’s husband, Assistant Pastor Kweku. Aunty Fifi found a fun way to teach them Bible stories. This week, the Sunday School teaching was based on the story of Jesus when his parents were looking for him after going to the temple in Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.
Destiny liked telling stories of his own. He put his hand up, wanting to share what happened to his little brother, Promise.
“Aunty Fifi, the same thing happened to my brother.”
“Okay, go ahead, let’s hear about it.”
“My brother went out to play. He was lost for several hours and we couldn’t find him. We didn’t know what happened to him. My parents had to call the police. We were all so frightened; my mum was in tears. Pastor Martin prayed with us, and guess what?”
“What happened?”
“My brother was finally found. A lady tried to kidnap him.” Everyone was shocked but relieved at the happy ending. Aunty Fifi managed to keep the class under control and finish the lesson.
Aunty Fifi would often do Bible quizzes or crosswords at the end of the class; she would reward the child with the most correct answers. It forced them to pay attention to the stories if they wanted to win. They would eagerly wait for the surprise gift, which invariably Benjamin or Tanya would get. They would also have arts and crafts projects that the children loved so much. Tanya and her friends felt that there was something for them and not just for the adults in the church. She liked to sit next to Benjamin or “Pastor Ben” as they called him, because he would speak like a preacher and liked to quote the Bible. There was some friendly rivalry between them both, but Ben had a greater knowledge of the gospel.
Tanya once asked him, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
“I want to be like Apostle Paul,” he replied.
“Really? Why?”
“I want to perform miracles like him. He had such a strong faith and brought so many souls to Christ,” he said with an evangelistic passion.
Tanya admired his conviction. She still did not know what she wanted to be; she kept changing her mind. One minute she wanted to be an actress. Another time, she wanted to be a solicitor defending the poor or the less privileged. She sometimes thought of being a missionary among lost tribes. She envied Pastor Ben and wished she knew what life had in store for her.
Meanwhile, the adult service was very emotional. Pastor Martin had an announcement to make:
“My wife and I are grateful for the last ten years at Abundant Life. We see many of you as family. We have gone through ups and downs together. We have prayed, cried, and laughed with you. We also saw some of you marry, have children or grandchildren or go through a divorce. We have grown together. This is why we want to share something really personal with you… My wife Rita has been diagnosed with breast cancer. It’s at an advanced stage. We believe in God for healing and pray for Rita to make a full recovery. We crave your prayers and understanding. I will have to step back for the foreseeable future and give Rita the support and attention she needs. I have delegated my responsibilities to Pastor Kweku, who will take over during this difficult time for my family and me. I have no doubt that he will fulfil his duties impeccably during my absence.”
There was silence and disbelief. Pastor Kweku encouraged the whole church to extend their hands and pray for the pastor and his wife. Some were wiping tears off their faces.
At the end of Sunday School, the children often joined the adults.
“Why is everyone so upset? Why are people crying?”
“The pastor’s wife has cancer,” someone whispered.
***
Later that day, as she lay in bed, Tanya felt really sad about Mrs Pastor Rita, as she liked to call her. The pastors had always been part of her life. Pastor Martin was probably one of the few male role models in her life. When they moved into the house that her mum bought, he was there to help. When they weren’t sure which car to buy, he provided much-needed advice. Sometimes he would kindly send the men from the church to do some DIY. Rita was like a grandmother to her.
She reminisced about how she would watch Rita paint her lovely paintings. Sometimes Rita would take the Sunday School class. She had a stern authority about her that made the kids respect her. Rita was also teaching her how to knit and she was so looking forward to making her first jumper. They could talk about a lot of things and Rita would answer many of the questions that her mother was too embarrassed to answer.
The other day Tanya had asked Rita what the signs were when a woman was pregnant and she patiently explained without rebuffing her. She felt at ease asking Rita about anything. She knew that there was no point going to her mum because she would fob her off. But the questions she had about her family and her own identity, even Rita could not answer.
Tanya prayed that the Lord would heal the Pastor’s wife. That He would take away the cancer. She prayed fervently for a while. She then slowly fell into a deep sleep and an eventful dream.
Twelve-year-old Jesus and his family went to Jerusalem for the Passover. He had been so drawn to the temple that he completely forgot about his parents. They were a big group: some people were playing instruments and singing, kids were running around racing or playing hide-and-seek. Others were selling nice lamb kebabs and snacks of chickpeas, olives, dates, etc. Sometimes they would stop to have some food and drink hot tea. It was a noisy and joyous crowd of people.
Mary and Joseph assumed that Jesus was with some of their other relatives. They often met people from other nations and would ask questions about faraway lands. They traded and exchanged their own products for other exotic goods they had never seen before. They tried mangoes from distant Abyssinia. They would taste spices from remote Asia. They learnt of new agricultural tools from the Greek and Roman empires. It was an opportunity for people to venture into new businesses, as so many people gathered for the feast. The Passover in Jerusalem was one of the highlights of the season.
However, Jesus’s parents were having a hard time and started to panic when they realised that he was nowhere to be found. They went looking for him everywhere and concluded that he must have stayed behind. This was a day’s journey from Jerusalem. Mary was terrified about the fate of her child. Meanwhile, Jesus was in the temple listening to the teachers and asking them many questions. They were amazed at the boy, as he showed great wisdom in his understanding. While this was happening, his parents went combing the streets of Jerusalem, going to the market square, and the various inns and eateries. They were calling him and asking people if they had seen him. The boy seemed to have vanished.
This went on for three whole days. His parents were exhausted and worried. Where was Jesus? The last place they decided to go to was the temple. That’s where they eventually located him. They were expecting to find him in a state, totally freaked out. But on the contrary, he seemed completely at ease with these strangers. Joseph and Mary were so relieved. They had heard the horror stories of children being abducted and sold into slavery, never to be seen again.
His mother asked Him, “Son, why did you do this to us? Look, your father and I have sought you anxiously.”
“Why did you seek me?” he replied. “Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?”
They were completely stunned by his answer. They didn’t have a clue what he meant by that statement. All the same, they were both relieved there was no dramatic end to their journey.
***
The next Saturday, Keisha and Tanya got together with the choir for an open-air picnic in Crystal Park, near the lake. Pastor Ben had come with them.
“Hey, guys, I wanted us to come here together to officially launch our campaign for the gospel competition. As you may already know, the leaders of the church are looking forward to us taking part in the MBN music contest coming up in a few months very much. It’s an opportunity to show the stuff we’re made of and somehow reach out to the world around us. It’s good to leave the four walls of our church and get to know people from different communities. It could open new opportunities or ventures in the area of music ministry. We might even have our own album, who knows? Anything is possible. ‘Dare to dream, dare to be different’ is my motto.”
“How are we going to do that?” Some were slightly sceptical about the whole thing.
“You let me worry about that. I have the roadmap for our success. We just have to follow it and we should be fine. All I require from you is that you let me know who is available. Also, please keep all this in your daily prayers.”
“How long will the competition last?”
“What about the cost?”
“Can we bring our kids?”
“Hey, not everyone at the same time… we can’t hear ourselves. I will send you all an email explaining all the details.”
Suddenly, one of the kids came running towards the group, shouting at the top of his voice, “Mummy, Mummy, Pastor Ben is drowning. Someone pushed him in the lake!”
“What?”
Everything stopped. Then everyone went running towards the lake.
“Where did he fall?”
“Over there. He’s gone under.”
“We can’t see; where is that?”
By the time they got to the scene where Pastor Ben had sunk, the culprits had fled. Zack, who was the most athletic, jumped into the water. After a few minutes, he came back up and went back under again. He did the same for a second time. On the third attempt, he came back with Pastor Ben’s body. Zack was able to swim towards the side of the lake, but Ben’s body looked lifeless. Zack tried to perform CPR on him. Someone was calling the emergency services, explaining what had happened. People started praying for him. Some, like Tanya, were crying. After what seemed like an eternity, he started breathing again.
“Where am I?” he said as he opened his eyes.
“Shhht, stay calm. Don’t move. The ambulance is coming.”
Everyone started clapping and praising the Lord. The choir members were so overjoyed and relieved. They knew that they had just avoided a tragedy. Keisha called Pastor Ben’s parents. It was decided that she would go with him to the hospital. Tanya would stay behind with Zack. While they were waiting for the ambulance to come, which took a while because they had to find the exact location by the lake. Pastor Ben relayed what happened when he was unconscious.
“I saw a great light and I felt drawn to it. The more I went towards it, the lighter and better I felt. It felt so great. But then, just when I was about to reach the centre of the light, I heard a mighty voice. It said, ‘Go back, it is not your time yet.’ Then, I came back to my body at such a high speed. You know, just like when you’re driving a sports car or a motorbike, only faster than that.”
Just then, the ambulance came rushing in.
“Come on, Pastor Ben, I will follow you to the hospital,” said Keisha.
Everyone was shaken by the incident. Zack decided that it was time for everyone to go home. Nobody was in the mood to talk about the competition after Pastor Ben’s near-death experience.
***
At the hospital, Keisha asked Pastor Ben what happened.
“There were two boys. We were telling them about Jesus. They started teasing us. They said to me that if I have faith, I should jump into the water. I said I was not going to do that. They asked me why. And I said because I’m asthmatic. But they wouldn’t take no for an answer. So, they pushed me into the lake.”
“Do you know these boys?”
“No, I don’t, but I could easily recognise them.”
“Good, we’re waiting for your parents. This will have to be reported to the police.”
His parents eventually made their way to the hospital. As Keisha explained everything to them, his mum burst into tears.
“How could this happen? How can a child attempt to kill another child? This is surreal! What has this world come to?” She was hysterical.
“Calm down,” her husband was trying to tell her.
“Don’t tell me to calm down! They tried to kill my baby. Don’t you get it?”
“He is also my son. But carrying on the way you’re doing right now won’t help. We’ve been told that his condition is stable. They will just keep him overnight and carry out the necessary tests to ensure that there are no after-effects. Let’s thank God that our boy is still alive. It could have been another story.”
“I know that. I’m just saying that these kids nowadays are so violent and cruel. I hope they catch them and throw them in jail. I will make sure that they face the consequences of their actions.”
“Well, we’re not sure who they are. We’re hoping that people will come forward and they will be identified quickly,” Keisha said.
Keisha understood their feelings perfectly. This was every parent’s nightmare. But she was grateful that something worse had not happened and thanked God that she was not the bearer of bad news. Pastor Ben was going to be just fine!