Marcus Redding: The Lost Episode

Everything was a blur. He was 18 years old and lost. He was barely able to hold down a job, working for Gladebrook Sheetrock during the week and doing his best to imitate the prodigal son on the weekend.

The guilt over Bruce's accident had simmered for a while, then boiled over. Insomnia made it worse. Nightmares made it intolerable. Every time he heard a car come to a screeching halt he would have flashbacks. He grew farther apart from his family. He couldn't even talk to them. Wouldn't answer his dad's phone calls. He was too ashamed. They were good people. He used to be one of them. Not anymore. His tolerance for alcohol increased and his tolerance for people decreased. His temper could be set off with a word or a look or for no reason at all. He was on a downward spiral and he knew it. He felt like he deserved it.

But he wanted peace. That's what he would tell people. Not that they asked. But if anyone annoyed him it was, "Leave me alone. I just want peace." If his boss rebuked him for coming to work hung over, Marcus would say, "Leave me alone. I just want peace." Some guy would set him off and he would throw punches and yell, "Leave me alone. I just want peace." Satan had that kind of hold on him, crying out for peace in the middle of a fight he had started himself.

He really did want peace. He would come home and do Google searches for the word "peace." He kept scrolling down and scrolling down, looking for an answer, until he came across the word "halcyon." He liked history and legends. He read more, "The legendary bird is usually identified with the kingfisher that was also said to nest on the sea and was believed to be able to calm the sea for the seven days before and seven days after the winter solstice." He latched on to the idea. In the back of his mind he could almost hear a scripture that started with "Come to me..." but he pushed it away.

The next day was Labor Day. Since he didn't have to work, he went to get (another) tattoo. He had been saving his left forearm for a good one. He showed the guy a sketch of a stylized kingfisher. He sat for a few hours and forked over a few hundred dollars and now he had a symbol of his spiritual longing permanently engraved on his body.

On the way home from the tattoo place he stopped to get gas in his truck. An old man pulled up to the pump across from him. It wasn't his grandfather, but it looked like him. The man noticed Marcus was looking at him and just said, "Hello, son." Marcus nodded. And now he was thinking of Grandpa Sam and looking down at the nozzle in his gas tank so he wouldn't have to look at the man and be reminded of his saint of a grandfather. He finished filling up the tank and took the receipt and threw it away and jumped up into his truck. He started to pull away but somehow he lost all his energy. He could barely move his arms. He eased over by the side of the gas station and took the keys out of the ignition. A wave hit him. A wave of grief, guilt, and anger. He laid himself down in the cab of his truck and cried for a long time. Then he fell asleep.

When he woke up the sun was going down. His arm hurt where he got the tattoo. He sat up in the truck and remembered where he was. He went into the gas station to get an energy drink. When he came out of the store he looked over at the gas pumps and saw the same old man was still there, looking at him. Had he watched Marcus all this time? Marcus tried not to look at him but the man kept watching him. Marcus stopped and said, "Do I know you?"

The old man called out, "Matthew 8:26" and got in his Oldsmobile and drove off.

Marcus Redding Goes Home

He had his cell phone on silent—the nature of the place required it—but he could feel it buzzing on his belt. A text message from Lauren read “Phil 3:13-14.” He knew the scripture. He wouldn’t leave Bruce’s memory behind but he had resolved to move on. This would be his last visit to his best friend’s grave.

He put his cell phone back, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and looked down at his tattooed arms, at the green grass, at the granite stone. He knelt down and brushed away some dry leaves and plucked the grass that was growing over the edges. Then he placed his right hand flat on the stone and, like he had planned, recited 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14. He spoke to the stone. He spoke to the memory of his friend. He spoke to himself. After he finished, he took one more deep breath, stood up, and walked away. He sent a text message to Lauren, “I’m coming home.”

He got home at about nine in the morning and Lauren met him at the door, Micah in her arms. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and handed Micah to him. He hugged his little son, now six months old, and then hugged Lauren. She held him for a while then said, “Let’s eat and go.”

They were heading into Athens to hike the trail at the arboretum. They planned on coming back mid-afternoon and doing some things around the house. Marcus was making Lauren a rocking chair and Lauren had to cook for the potluck at church tomorrow. And they had to be ready for the Bible study they were hosting at six o’clock that night.

When they got to the arboretum Marcus hoisted the baby-carrying backpack onto his back. Lauren got Micah all settled in the pack, grabbed her camera, laced up her boots, and they were off. They meandered through the flower beds and down across the bridge into the woods. It was warm but not hot as they walked in the shade. Lauren reached over and took off Micah’s little hat. He was looking all around, happy as he could be, riding around on his daddy’s back. Marcus was quieter than usual, understandable since this was the anniversary of the accident, but Lauren didn’t want him to close in on himself. So she asked him the question she always asked to get the conversation going, “What’s been on your mind lately?” Marcus kept looking straight ahead, “You mean besides the obvious?” Lauren said, “Besides the obvious.”

Marcus said, “Justin and Mr. Johnson. I’m just excited for the opportunity. I mean, they are, what fifty years apart, and they both need Jesus, and they are both willing to listen. That’s pretty good.” Marcus seemed to come alive as he talked about it, “I’ve been thinking of different approaches. I think Mr. Johnson has more of a background than Justin, and I think I can be blunt with Mr. Johnson, but Justin is more sensitive. I’ve got those two evangelism studies that I got from John with those illustrations. I’m thinking I’ll just take them through those. What do you think?”

As they walked through the woods they talked about teaching people the gospel and the conversation turned to church and then the early days when they first met. They talked about living in their first apartment and moving to the ranch. Then they talked about ranch dressing and the casserole Lauren was making for the potluck. They talked about how to get Micah eating solid food. (Micah was asleep by now.) They talked about how fast Micah was growing up. They talked about taking pictures of him along the way. They talked about his upcoming doctor appointment and homeschool and saving money and finances and the economy.

Marcus began to feel the weight of the backpack and he checked the clock on his cell phone. “Lauren, it’s one o’clock already.” She looked up at him, “Time flies.” Marcus smiled at her and said, “Let’s make the most of it.”

They turned back, walked out of the woods, got in his truck, and headed home.

More about Marcus Redding's journey of faith...someday.

Written by God…Illustrated by Marcus Redding

He talked to Justin about the gospel, now it was Mr. Johnson’s turn. He knew the old man believed in God and read his Bible and told the truth and treated people right. But that was all he knew. Marcus didn’t know if Mr. Johnson was a Cornelius or a Christian.

So one day when they were putting up a new section of fence and the time seemed right Marcus asked him, “What do you think about Jesus?” Some people would get defensive, others would wax poetic. Mr. Johnson was straightforward. “He is a great man. A great teacher. I like what he says and I try to live a Christian life.” He said all this as he ratcheted a length of barbed wire tighter. Marcus was working a posthole digger into the ground, “So what do you think will happen when you die?” Now Mr. Johnson put down his tools and looked at Marcus. Then he took a deep breath and looked into the distance. Thousand mile stare. “I’ve been thinking a lot about that lately,” Mr. Johnson was a sincere man, “I think that when I die and go to the pearly gates I’ll say ‘I always tried to be good.’ I think that will do.”

Marcus saw the opportunity. He finished digging the posthole and looked up. “Can I tell you a story Mr. Johnson?” The old man said, “Sure, talk while you work.”

Marcus started in. “I ran cross-country for one season in high school. One season was all I could take. It was hard. We’d run four to eight miles every day after school. Every Friday there was a meet. You would run as fast as you could for three or four miles. Running through woods, open pastures, parking lots, into and out of ditches, over tree roots and rocks. It was hard but the challenge made it fun. The best part was reaching the finish line. It was a big relief. Finally I could slow down, catch my breath, and eventually just come to a stop. And rest over the weekend. Until we had to get out and run again after school on Monday in preparation for another meet the following Friday. In which I would run like crazy again and try to do better again.

Here’s the deal, in cross-country, the finish line was in a different place than the starting line, but not far away. It would have been so nice if a race official came and told me I didn’t have to run that whole course. That I could reach my goal if I just trusted him and walked a few steps over there where they had that tape across the finish line. Totally off the course. Just a direct route to the finish. I didn’t have to do all that work.

You are a working man Mr. Johnson. But you can’t work for righteousness. Faith in Jesus Christ is what makes the difference. The word of the race official is like the word of the gospel. It tells you that you don’t have to do it yourself, in fact you can’t really do it yourself anyway. Just believe in Christ and his righteousness and you will have reached the finish line. That is good news. You have to believe in Jesus and submit to his commands and accept his righteousness. That’s how you get right with God. That’s how sins are forgiven. That’s how you get to heaven.”

Marcus finished digging another posthole and he looked up. “What do you think about that, Mr. Johnson?”

Mr. Johnson ratcheted tight another length of barbed wire. “You’ve given me something to think about.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Knows His Lyrics

Last week Mr. Johnson told Justin and Marcus they needed to take a load of cattle to Waco on Thursday. Just the opportunity Marcus was looking for. They had worked together on the ranch for months and they were friends. Some unspoken connection because of Marcus’s past. He knew how to talk to Justin. Now he needed an open door.

On the drive to Waco they had plenty of time to talk. When Marcus talked about his past, Justin opened up. His dad died when he was ten. Sudden heart attack. And he was close to his dad. “He cooked pancakes for us every Saturday morning. It’s been eight years now but every time I smell pancakes I get angry.” Marcus understood in a way. He told Justin how every time he heard the squeal of tires it paralyzed him with fear and regret. With that tragedy in his past Marcus wasn’t surprised at the kind of music Justin liked.

Last weekend Justin went to a concert and he came to work wearing a shirt he picked up there. It had the name of one of his favorite groups. That gave Marcus an idea. He got online and listened to some of their songs and read the lyrics. Then he scrolled through the praise songs on his iPod and picked out one of his favorites. He printed the lyrics of both songs on one sheet of paper and tucked it into the front of his Bible.

After they delivered the cattle and headed back to the ranch Marcus told Justin to get the sheet of paper out of the Bible that was on the seat between them. “There’s a song you listen to—the same stuff I used to listen to—and then there’s a song I listen to now. Tell me what you think.”

I’m growing so disturbed/Nothing makes sense to me anymore/I’m learning to resist/Becoming more than you ever were/Can’t explain what’s come over me/Can’t explain why it’s so hard for me/So hard to see your side/ Projecting all my anger/I can’t seem to get this through to you/The walls are closing in/I dare you to walk in my shoes

I'm forgiven because you were forsaken/I'm accepted, You were condemned
I'm alive and well/Your spirit is within me/Because you died and rose again

Amazing love, how can it be?/That you, my king would die for me
Amazing love, I know it's true/It’s my joy to honor you

Justin read for a while. Then, suddenly, violently, he crumpled up the paper and threw it out the window. He didn’t say anything, just sat stoic, looking out the window. Marcus didn’t flinch. He had been there. “Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ Can I tell you about Jesus?”

Justin snapped, “Sure, go ahead, whatever.” It was a long drive back. Plenty of time. Marcus was driving so he had Justin read the scriptures. Marcus had them all marked in his Bible. Justin didn’t read out loud, but he would read each scripture silently then say, annoyed-sounding, “Okay, I read it.” Marcus took him through why he needed to be saved and how to be saved. He worked in his own story with the scriptures. He pulled up his sleeve and showed him the tattoo of the halcyon. He talked a lot about Jesus giving him rest.

They were getting close to home. Marcus finished. He had one last question, “What decision do you need to make?” Justin didn’t say anything. As soon as they pulled into the ranch, even before Marcus stopped the truck, Justin jumped out and ran to his ‘93 Mustang. He spun out in the driveway, kicking up gravel, and raced down the driveway.

Marcus wasn’t surprised. He was hopeful.

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Gets An Offer He Can Refuse

“Marcus, can you come a little early to services tonight? Ed and I want to talk to you about doing some preaching. We still can’t get a hold of James and we’re in a bind.”

Mr. Walt called him at 3:00 on Sunday afternoon. Mr. Walt was one of the two elders at the little church in Rayville. Ever since Marcus gave an impromptu sermon the night the preacher resigned, he kind of expected this. He was ready to say no, but he agreed to talk with the elders, “Sure, Mr. Walt. See you at 5:30.”

When Marcus told Lauren why they’d have to leave early, she jumped on the idea. “Marcus, you’d be so good at this!” Marcus shook his head, “I serve behind the scenes.” Lauren urged him, “Marcus, don’t blow this off. I know you. I know your heart and you know scripture. You could really do a good job. You could really help this church. And you are young and that might attract more young people. I’d be so proud of you.” She kept up like this while they got Micah into his car seat. And for the entire 15 minute drive into Rayville Marcus gave reasons why he didn’t want to be an “interim” preacher, and Lauren countered with reasons why he should give it a shot. She was really laying it on. And though he didn’t say it, her words made him hesitate.

When they pulled up to the church building, they saw the elders’ two cars already there. Lauren looked at Marcus and sighed a talking-to-a-brick-wall sigh. She got out of the car and opened the back door to get Micah out of his car seat. Lauren was strong-willed and persuasive, but she knew for Marcus’s sake and for the Lord’s sake she had to be supportive. So as the three of them walked into the church building Lauren squeezed his hand and said, “I’m with you. Whatever you decide.” That made Marcus feel better. He gave them both a kiss before he slipped into the office to talk to the elders.

If Marcus thought Lauren was working on him, he didn’t know what was coming. At first they just asked Marcus if he had considered preaching. Marcus just said, “No, it’s not my gift.” Then they built their case. They knew his background. They knew his repentance. They knew his family. They were impressed by what they heard the other night. They suggested maybe his gift was speaking. But the more they talked, the more Marcus was persuaded not to accept their offer. And the more they talked, the more Romans 12:6-7 crystallized in his mind.

When they finished, Marcus said, “Guys, I appreciate the offer. I was glad to help out the other night. But I don’t need to preach in order to serve God.” Mr. Walt came back with, “Maybe the church needs you to preach in order to serve God.” Marcus was getting a little uncomfortable now. Why was everyone putting the heat on him?

Mr. Walt nodded to Mr. Ed, the other elder, and they brought out the big guns. “We could support you a little. $100 for every lesson.” If there was ever any possibility Marcus would accept their offer it disappeared instantly at the mention of money. Marcus quietly opened his Bible to Romans 12 and read out loud, “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving.”

He closed the Bible and told them about building Mrs. Hampel’s barn, about fixing Mrs. Louia’s sink, about repairing Mr. Silves’s lawnmower, about giving folks a ride to the airport, about setting a good example on the job, about doing personal evangelism, about spending time with his wife and his son.

“’If service, in our serving.’ That’s my gift. Preaching is important. But I don’t need to preach in order to serve God. It’s better to have a church full of servants than a church full of preachers, don’t you think?”

Mr. Walt chuckled, “That’s a sermon in itself.” He stood up and shook Marcus’s hand, “We appreciate you Marcus. Maybe you’d take turns preaching with some of the rest of us? Once a month or once every six weeks?” Marcus nodded, “I think that would be good.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding is Attacked by a Lion

Marcus was feeling pretty good about himself. After months out of a job now he lived and worked on Mr. Johnson’s ranch. He was back to 100% after his heat stroke. He helped out at church when they needed an emergency sermon and he did a good job. Everything was going well with him and his family. Things were good. So Monday afternoon when he stopped by the in-store bank to deposit his paycheck, his guard was down.

After his business at the bank he walked across the front of the store, past the rows of checkstands. It was about three in the afternoon. A few lines were open. Mostly older people picking up a few items. Or so he thought. He saw a pile of newspapers and stopped to look at the headlines for a bit. Then he heard a familiar voice call his name, “Marcus!” and someone hugged him from behind. He knew who it was. He knew from her perfume and her voice. It was Kelly. This was not good.

In the years since he had repented and straightened out his life he had gained control over his drinking. One day at a time. Every now and then he was tempted, but he didn’t drink anymore. He could handle that. In the years since he had repented he had gained control over his temper. There was that time he lost his cool at work but that was resolved pretty quickly, and it didn’t happen again. By God’s grace he had made a lot of progress. These struggles were always in the back of his mind. So he was on guard. But this chance meeting with an old girlfriend caught him by surprise. And it threw him into the middle of a battle between the Spirit and the flesh.

And it was a battle. A flood of thoughts competed for his attention. On one hand: late nights and early mornings doing things with Kelly that he should not have done. On the other hand: scriptures, spiritual songs, and a heightened awareness of his cell phone, which he could pull out at any time to call Lauren and say he was on his way home and walk out of the store and leave Kelly and his past behind him. An image of Joseph and Potiphar’s wife ran through his mind. All within the span of about two seconds. How was he going to get out of this?

He turned around. He didn’t want to look at her. But she didn’t cooperate. She held his arm and looked closely at it. Then she looked up at him, “I remember when you got this tattoo.” She smiled and swished back her long black hair. She was still holding his arm. Marcus pulled back so he could put down the newspaper. Something told him to leave but something else told him to be polite. Kelly looked down at six plastic grocery sacks at her feet. “Can you help me carry this stuff?” She looked back up at him, “I haven’t seen you for three years. Where have you been?”

Marcus was thrown off. He stammered something about his new job as he picked up the grocery bags and walked with her out of the store. Two voices shouted back and forth in his mind. One said, “Put down the groceries and walk away!” The other said, “Be polite, maybe you can help her!” Marcus asked about one of their mutual friends and Kelly started talking about other people they used to know. The voices got louder. Kelly walked a little ahead of him. Marcus was trying not to look at her. She got to her car and opened the back door. Marcus put in the groceries. She took out her cell phone and said, “Give me your number so we can catch up. I didn’t know how much I missed you until I saw you.”

Marcus shut the door and there they stood. She had her cell phone out. Ready to punch in his number. She was pretty, but she was bad news. The shouting match hurt his ears: “Walk away!” versus “You can help her!” But he remembered a fragment of a scripture, “the way of escape.” It was a piece of 1 Corinthians 10:13. He remembered his cell phone. He got it out and called Lauren and told her he was on his way home and he turned around and walked away and left Kelly and his past behind him.

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Fills In

His folks came out to the ranch Saturday evening. David and Abigail wanted to help out with Micah a little bit. So for the first time in—they couldn’t remember how long—at least six months Marcus and Lauren got to spend an evening together. But just as they were about to leave Lauren stopped at the door. An invisible force field blocked her exit. It took at least five minutes for Marcus and his parents to persuade Lauren that Micah would be okay. Abigail said, “Sweetheart, we’ve got eighteen years of experience. You two just go and relax and have a good time.” Marcus halfway pulled her through the force field and they were off to Olive Garden.

David and Abigail watched Micah all that night so Marcus and Lauren could get some rest. They all got up and went to services together in the morning. The class was good. The services were fine. The sermon was about Abraham on his journey of faith. They visited some after services and went back out to the ranch to eat lunch and rest all afternoon. At 5:30 they headed back in to Rayville for evening services.

After a prayer and two songs the preacher got up to give his lesson. Or that’s what they thought would happen. Instead everyone got a surprise. As soon as he stepped into the pulpit, the preacher announced he was stepping down. And he did. Literally. Got down from the pulpit, walked up the aisle, met his wife in the foyer, and they walked out to the parking lot, got in their car, and drove away.

The sixty or so members of the congregation sat stunned, looking at each other like, “Did that really just happen?” After some long and awkward moments, the two elders of the church went to the front and spoke privately. Finally they went to the pulpit. One of them grabbed the microphone and cleared his throat and said, “Well, folks, umm, this is a surprise. We didn’t know of any problems with James and Kathy. I guess we’ll try to get a hold of him and see what’s wrong. If you know what’s going on, please let us know after services.” He looked nervously at the other elder, “Well, Walt, in the meantime we have a worship service here.”

Walt was already talking to Marcus’s dad, who filled in preaching every now and then. David nodded and was about to step into the aisle when Marcus put his hand on his dad’s shoulder. David turned around and looked at Marcus, “Dad, let me do it. Mr. Walt, would you mind if I gave a short message on John 16:33?” Walt gestured to the front of the auditorium.

This was the second shock of the evening. Marcus never spoke in church. Never commented in class. Never led prayers. Never even helped out with the Lord’s Supper. He was always involved but always behind the scenes.

He took his Bible to the pulpit. He opened to John 16:33 and read, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” What followed was a fifteen minute sermon in which Marcus used his own journey of faith to illustrate the saving power of Jesus Christ. He finished with words of calm and comfort to the church and issued a simple invitation. Marcus returned to his seat. His family, and most of the church, stared at him in wonder.

After services were over they piled into his truck. His folks sat in the back with Micah in the car seat between them. Lauren got in the passenger seat. As soon as the doors were shut, Lauren said, “Marcus, that was so good. I’m so proud of you.” Marcus shrugged, “I just had something to say from God’s word.”

Marcus glanced into the rearview mirror. His dad smiled. His mom patted his shoulder. Lauren squeezed his hand. Micah burped.

They drove home.

More about Marcus Redding's journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Settles Into A Routine

He had just thrown the last bag of V-28 Rangemaster Beef Feed into the back of his truck when his cell phone rang. Well, it didn’t actually “ring” but he heard his ringtone sound out loud, “I know I am loved by the King and it makes my heart want to sing.” He tapped the screen and said “Hello” as he jumped in the truck. “Hey, it’s me,” Lauren was calling to check on him, “Are you taking it easy?” She was worried he would push himself after his heat stroke episode last month. The macho side of him was a little annoyed that she was checking on him, but deep down he knew she only called because she cared. “Yeah, I am. I’m just coming back from the feed store right now. I’ll be in at 5:00.” Lauren said, “I’ve got fresh squash, purple hull peas, and porkchops tonight, sound good?” Marcus smiled, “Sounds great. Did you get the price on that PVC pipe to Mr. Johnson?” Lauren was on top of it, “Got it taken care of this morning. See you in a little bit.”

They were settling into a routine. Finally. They were all unpacked and moved in to their new place. Micah slept a little more during the night. Marcus had recovered from heat stroke and built up his endurance a little bit. Lauren started working a few hours with Lisa, learning how to keep the books and the website while Micah took a nap or bounced in his swing. It wasn’t every day they could count on a regular schedule, but more often than not he got in at 5:00 and they could have dinner and Bible study and spend the evening together.

Marcus rolled in at 5:02. He could smell the porkchops from the driveway. He kicked off his boots and opened the door and gave Lauren and Micah a kiss before he went to clean up. A few minutes later they sat down to eat and talked about their day. When they were done Marcus brought the dishes to Lauren and said, “That was delicious. Thank you for making dinner.” She said, “You’re welcome. Did you like the squash?” Marcus said, “Sure, I like everything you make, you are a good cook.” Lauren said, “I can do the dishes, go sit down with Micah.” Marcus thought that sounded good so he took Micah out of his little swing. Micah responded by spitting up on his dad’s shirt and laughing about it.

Ten minutes later the dishes and the shirts and the baby were cleaned up. Lauren got her Bible and sat down on the couch. Marcus said, “Go ahead and read John 16.” Marcus told Lauren he wanted them to have Bible study every night after dinner. They had been reading the gospel of John, a few chapters a night. Lauren opened her Bible and was about to begin reading when she looked up and saw Marcus holding Micah.

Maybe it was her still-unsettled hormones or maybe it was the negative memories of her own father that prompted her, but she laid the Bible down on the couch and walked over to Marcus and kissed him on the forehead and gave him a hug. Then she stood next to them, with one hand on Marcus’s shoulder and the other hand stroking Micah’s nearly bald head. Marcus didn’t say anything. After a while Lauren said, “I’m proud of you.” He kept looking at Micah and said, “Are you proud of me or him?” Lauren playfully slapped him on the shoulder, “I’m proud of you, silly.” She looked down at the tattoos that covered his arms: the flames, the crosses, the halcyon bird. “You’ve come a long way.”

Marcus kept looking at Micah, “The Lord has brought me a long way.” Lauren kept up the compliment, “He has. And you let him. I’m proud of you. And you’ve… umm…you’ve stepped up.” That was unexpected. Marcus looked up at her, “What do you mean?” Lauren kissed him on the forehead again and went back to the couch, “You made a tough call for us to move out here. And it’s worked out. You rolled the TV into the closet. You insisted we have Bible study every night. You’ve stepped up.”

Marcus looked down at Micah but spoke to Lauren, “Read John 16:33.” She turned the page and read the verse out loud.

Marcus kept looking at Micah but he was really looking at his past…and his future. He smiled a quiet smile, “Jesus has overcome the world.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding on HDTV

When the nurse came in with discharge instructions, she spoke as one who had authority, “Stay out of the sun. Stay out of the heat. Stay in air conditioned rooms for 48 hours. No more Mr. Tough Guy. Something worse could happen if you push yourself. Do you understand?” Marcus was surprised at how adamant she was. “Yes, ma’am. I understand.” Lauren stood next to his hospital bed, holding Micah in one arm and holding Marcus’s hand in the other. She reassured the nurse, “I will restrain him if I have to.” She gave his hand a squeeze.

When Lauren got him to the ER they washed arms and torso with cool wet rags and put two fans on him to cool him down. They started an IV and replaced the icepacks under his armpits. His temperature came down and his mind cleared up. He was going to be all right. But they kept him overnight to make sure.

They got home around four o’clock the next day. There was a note on the door from Lisa, the office manager. It said, “I saw you leave and came by to see if everything was okay. I turned off the stove.” A few minutes later Mr. Johnson came by to check on Marcus. “I’ve got my own discharge orders,” the old man said. “You are staying out of the heat until Monday week. It will take you that long to get your strength back. Heat stroke is bad that way. Don’t push yourself, you hear?” Marcus said, “Yes, sir. But I hate being laid up for a week. I like to be busy.” Mr. Johnson was one step ahead of him, “I’m giving you a project you can work on inside. I want you and Lauren to work together to redesign the guest cabins. The ones we got now are too old. I’m tearing them down. I want y’all to draw up the plans for three new cabins, interior design, materials, cost, everything. Show me what you come up with next Monday morning and that will be your ticket to come back to work.”

Marcus knew a little about building houses. Lauren knew a lot about computers. So they worked together on the project every morning from nine to noon. In the afternoon Marcus watched Micah so Lauren could catch up on some rest. Monday afternoon he sat down on the couch to watch TV when he noticed the remote was sitting on top of his Bible. He paused. He looked down at Micah. Then he looked at the TV.

He remembered how Lauren told him about the day her mom came in from work and found little Lauren and Eddie watching The Simpsons. To their amazement Ruth opened the front door, unplugged the television, lugged the thing out to the sidewalk, and dropped it with a crash on the pavement. She marched back inside and told her wide-eyed children she was “tired of having the devil in their living room.” Lauren and Eddie whined and complained for three days straight. Then they learned to read books, play games, and play outside. They never missed the television again.

Marcus made a decision. The television was a on a cart with wheels so he just rolled it down the hall and pushed it into a closet and shut the door. He called the cable company and discontinued service. He found a pen and got out a yellow legal pad. He sat down at the table and composed the “Redding Family Television Policy.”

Lauren woke up from her nap and came into the living room. She sat down on the couch to feed Micah and looked at the empty space across from her, “Umm, Marcus, where is the television?” Marcus was ready, “I got tired of having the devil in my living room.” Lauren wondered if the heat stroke had affected his brain. He handed her the legal pad with the television policy. She read it and looked up at him. “What’s gotten into you, Mr. ESPN?”

Marcus said, “Your mom was right. But I’m not throwing the TV out. We can watch up to six hours a week. And we’ll make room for special events. But there are better things we can be doing with our time.” Then he got out his Bible and said, “I was reading something in John I wanted to talk to you about.”

He opened to John 8:31 and they talked about God’s word for the next half hour.

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Feels The Heat

It was 3:45 p.m. on a Thursday in the middle of June. No clouds. Just sun. The heat index had to be over 100. And there was no shade where they were working.

All three of them were in a waist deep hole, tossing muddy dirt up and to the side. Justin was used to working outside in the hot weather plus he was 18 years old. Mr. Johnson, he’d been doing things like this all his life. He had on jeans and long sleeves and a cowboy hat and it didn’t seem to bother him any. But Marcus wasn’t used to this kind of work. He was a hard worker all right, he didn’t know any other way, but he didn’t know how to pace himself, and the 20 ounce Gatorade he brought with him wasn’t quite enough.

That morning Marcus had checked one of the bed-and-breakfast cabins on the ranch, getting it ready for some folks who would be staying the weekend. When he turned on the faucet, there was no water pressure. He called Mr. Johnson who said they replaced a leaky pipe a couple weeks ago outside that cabin, that must be the problem. They needed to fix it now because the cabin had to be ready by Friday morning. So Mr. Johnson brought the tools and the pipe and met Justin and Marcus at the cabin.

They almost had the pipe dug up when Mr. Johnson got a call on his cell. He answered and then jumped up out of the hole and walked away a few steps. He listened for a while and then sighed and closed the phone. “I’ve got to take care of something at the bank. Can you boys finish this up?” Justin said, “Sure, we’ll have it done in a half hour.” Marcus wasn’t so sure, he was starting get a little dizzy and he had a headache, but he didn’t want Justin to know that, so he reassured Mr. Johnson they could take care of it.

Marcus and Justin kept digging. After a while they found the leak and laid the new section of pipe. Marcus needed to walk over to the cabin to turn on the faucet but he barely made it. He was so hot. He turned on the faucet and everything was good. He stuck his head under the water for a while and that helped a little, but then he went back out to help Justin replace the dirt. Marcus was shaking and unsteady by the time they got done. When they got back into Marcus’s pickup, Justin offered him a Pepsi and he guzzled it down. Marcus dropped Justin off at the office then headed back to his ranch house. His calf muscles were all cramped up and it seemed like his heart was racing. He parked the truck and kicked his boots off on the garage floor and kind of stumbled inside the kitchen. Lauren was getting dinner together and Micah was in his little swing. When she saw him she said, “Your face is red as a beet! Are you okay?” Marcus whispered, “Ah juff nee a coo vergotz” and with that he lost his balance and almost fell. Lauren caught him and got him to sit down. His skin was hot and dry and his eyes weren’t really focusing.

Lauren grabbed Micah’s thermometer and put it into Marcus’s ear…104.6! “Marcus, you’ve got heat stroke.” She flew into emergency mode. She took off his shirt and ran to turn down the air conditioning to 60. She tried to get him to drink a glass of cool water but he spit it up after a few gulps. “I’m taking you to the hospital.” In seconds she grabbed her cell phone, grabbed two ice packs out of the freezer, and got Micah into his car seat in the car. She half dragged Marcus to the car and put the ice packs under his armpits. She started the car and sped down the driveway, kicking up a rooster tail of gravel. In her hurry she didn’t remember the pot of water boiling on the stove.

But what hospital? They were closer to Athens than Tyler. But where was the hospital in Athens? She’d never been there before. But she knew exactly how to get to the hospitals in Tyler. She turned and headed west. Micah was crying, her cell phone was ringing, and Marcus was muttering something that didn’t make sense. She was trying not to panic. As she flew down the highway at 85 miles per hour she kept repeating Psalm 86:7 “In the day of my trouble I call upon you, for you answer me.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding: Tired But Happy

Micah was crying and Marcus heard Lauren mumble something that sounded like, “So tired…” He fumbled in the dark for his cell phone and pushed a couple buttons to light it up. 2:41 a.m. Marcus leaned over and said, “I’ll take him.” Lauren mumbled more clearly now, “No, you need to rest too, you are exhausted.” Marcus said, “Yeah, but I’m not recovering from major surgery. Let me take him, 1 Peter 3:7 you know.” Lauren relented, “I feel that scripture right now,” and she turned over and went back to sleep. Marcus wrapped up Micah and took him out of the bedroom to walk him back to sleep. Back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, down the hall, around the extra bedroom, back up the hall. He didn’t mind at all.

He was tired enough to sleep through the night. Mr. Johnson might have been in his seventies but he could outwork Marcus. Just today they cut down a couple pine trees, repaired the a/c unit on one of the cabins, baled hay, and doctored a hurt calf. It was a new kind of work for him and his body was still adjusting.

They couldn’t have made it without Ruth’s help the first week. Marcus took the first few days off then Ruth came and stayed at the ranch house and cooked and watched Micah some so Lauren could rest. Sometimes Mr. Johnson would come in a check on everyone. He met Ruth and they started to talk. Mr. Johnson even called her during the week. When Ruth got off the phone with him she saw Lauren looking at her, “I know what that look means. The man is twenty years older than me. So don’t get any ideas.” Lauren laughed but the laughter hurt her stomach, “Ouch…it’s his ideas I’m worried about, mom.” Lauren laughed some more, “C-section…ha-ha…ow…ha-ha…ouch…”

But now Ruth had gone back home to screen Mr. Johnson’s calls and Marcus and Lauren were on their own. Just the three of them. And they felt like they were really on their own for the first time. It was exciting, even though they were busy and both of them were exhausted. They had a new house, a new baby, a new start…and they were going to a new church.

They didn’t go with the crowd on this one. So many people would drive farther to a bigger church instead of going to a smaller church close by. But Marcus knew the value of a fresh start and even before they moved out to the ranch he told Lauren he was thinking about the little church in Rayville. She wasn’t too sure. She was thinking young families and support and friends their age. They visited a few times before Micah was born. There were only a few people their age, part of three generation families. But the folks were friendly, the preaching was good, they had a couple elders and some deacons. It seemed to be a well-organized and busy group of folks. Maybe they wouldn’t stay there forever, but it was good for now. Marcus had been reading Romans and told Lauren about this verse, “’Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.’ So maybe it’s not about what we can get out of it, but what we can do to help the church.”

Lauren wanted to keep Micah in for the first few weeks so the first Sunday after Micah was born a few of the ladies met Marcus at the door and told him they had food for them in the refrigerator. A nice surprise. But he was more surprised after services when they brought it out to his truck: broccoli and cheese casserole, brisket, big pot of chili, chicken pot pie, sweet potato pie, three kinds of salad, homegrown fruit. And there was a note from a few of the ladies in which they offered to come by and watch Micah for a while so Lauren could get some rest.

Marcus got home and brought in the food and showed Lauren the note. She looked at the food, she looked down at Micah, she looked around the house, and she looked at her husband. “Jehovah Jireh,” she said. “The Lord will provide.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Starts Early

A nurse knocked quietly on the door. Marcus started to get up but she said, “No, you’re okay, just stay right there.” She checked Micah’s vitals. “He’s good. Do you need anything?” Marcus shook his head and the nurse made some notes the chart. She stepped back out and closed the door.

Everything was quiet. Marcus thought about the events of the last 18 hours. Lauren’s water broke at the restaurant, so everyone followed Marcus and Lauren to the hospital, relocating Noah’s graduation party to the waiting room. They called Lauren’s mom and her brother Eddie and they met everybody up there. It was one big family reunion/graduation party/slumber party. But it was no party for Lauren. Ten hours in labor and no progress. The epidural was effective, Lauren was okay—physically—and so was Micah. But he was content to stay right where he was. They waited and waited and looked at the monitor and watched the clock. Finally the doctor came and they wheeled her down to the operating room. They let Marcus come in and snap a picture of the great arrival. Micah swallowed some meconium, creating brief drama, but they took care of it quickly. They monitored his breathing and blood-oxygen levels and he was fine. Everyone from the slumber party took turns walking down to the recovery room to greet Micah and congratulate Marcus and Lauren.

As the afternoon went on they moved to their own room. For a long time Lauren held Micah and looked at him and talked to him. It took a combination of Marcus’ urging and her own exhaustion to persuade her to get her first sleep in 40 hours. While she got some rest, Marcus held Micah—Micah Samuel Redding—in his lap and rocked him in the rocking chair.

Everything was quiet except for the hum of the a/c unit. He watched the Weather Channel for a while but the big “H” was still parked over the South. Their laptop was sitting on the tray that goes over the bed. He held Micah in his left arm and reached out and rolled the tray to him. He arranged things just right and flipped open the computer. They had wireless internet access. Nice. He went to biblegateway.com and did a search for “children” in the Old Testament.

This scripture caught his eye, “He established a testimony in Jacob and appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers to teach to their children, that the next generation might know them, the children yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their children, so that they should set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments” (Psalm 78:5-7).

He thought about his grandfather. He just missed his great-grandson by a few months! Grandpa Sam passed his faith on to Marcus’s dad who passed it on to Marcus. Now it was Marcus’s turn to pass his faith on to Micah.

So he brought up the gospel of John and started reading to his son, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding's Friday Night

Husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way (1 Peter 3:7)

Mr. Johnson let Marcus take off the rest of the afternoons this week so he could unpack. The baby was due soon, within two weeks, so they wanted to get settled before Micah came home. Marcus was making progress, but Lauren would get home from work, exhausted, ready to relax, and see that Marcus had insane ideas about interior design. Hanging pictures for example. Marcus thought their wedding portrait would go nicely in the kitchen. But when Lauren got home and saw this special memory right above the spice rack she asked Marcus what in the world he was thinking. She grabbed a chair and was about to step up on it to take down the picture when Marcus intervened. “Lauren, Lauren, relax. Here’s what we’ll do. You get off your feet and sit down and rest. I get things out of the boxes and hold them up. We’ll talk about the best place for them and I’ll do the lifting and stepping.” This worked out well. And they had most everything done by Friday. Just in time to go to Noah’s graduation.

Rejoice with those who rejoice (Romans 12:15)

Noah was Marcus’s cousin. He was graduating from high school. Everyone in Marcus’s family graduated from high school except Marcus. He dropped out of school after the accident and got his GED when he started to turn his life around. It always brought back bad memories when he heard the word “graduation.” And even worse memories when it was from his old high school. So he had an unusual aversion to graduation. But Noah was his cousin, and Noah was a Christian, and unlike most seniors, he wasn’t going out with his friends afterwards. Noah wanted all his family to get together and go out to Mercado’s and celebrate with him. So Friday night Marcus and Lauren headed into town. It was a perfect evening for an outdoor graduation: sunny day, 72 degrees, slight breeze from the north. Marcus sat next to Lauren in the bleachers and held her hand. He watched the procession, listened to the bland graduation speeches, and clapped for Noah. As soon as the kids all threw their hats into the air. Lauren squeezed his hand. He thought it was like a happy, hooray-for-Noah squeeze, but when he looked at Lauren she was wincing.

you do not know what a day may bring (Proverbs 27:1)

“Lauren, is it time?” She kind of caught her breath. “Um, I don’t know. It might have been a Braxton-Hicks contraction.” She’d been having those on a regular basis, just like the doctor said she should. But she didn’t want to draw attention to herself and away from Noah, especially if she was jumping the gun and this turned out to be a false alarm. “It’s okay, let’s go.” So with concern and excitement Marcus helped her stand up and walk down the steps and back to the car. They met all the family at Mercado’s and Lauren didn’t have anymore contractions. Everyone brought in graduation presents for Noah and they piled these on one end of the table. Chips and salsa and enchiladas and burritos were consumed and everyone was smiling. It was a happy time. After dinner Noah opened his presents one by one and thanked everyone. He asked his uncle, Marcus’s dad, to lead a prayer for him. As soon as he said “Amen” Lauren looked up at Marcus and said, “My water broke.”

More about Marcus Redding’s Journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding Works Security

Mr. Johnson said good night and walked out the door. Marcus slowly closed it behind him. He stood at the door for a moment, looking at the doorknob, thinking. He heard junebugs buzzing outside. He turned off the porch light. He thought, “What have I gotten us into?” He took a deep breath and turned around and walked back to the kitchen table.

Lauren was leaning back, eyes closed, feet propped up on a chair. Marcus took hold of her right foot and gently pressed around her ankle. A little swollen. He sat down and said, “Well, that was interesting.” Keeping her eyes closed, Lauren said knowingly, “You’re not talking about my ankles, are you?”

She opened her eyes. She sat up and looked at Marcus. “What do you think about what he said about giving us the ranch?” Her tone sounded desperate. “I’m thinking about it.” Marcus saw a difficult conversation coming. Lauren went on, “This is a problem Marcus. He told us this ranch could be ours. I mean, that’s nice and I understand about Grandpa Sam and all that, but he doesn’t know us! We don’t know him! We don’t know if this is even going to work out for even a little while! I thought this was going to be a job, a place for us to get started, but he wants us to be the heirs to his kingdom. I don’t know about raising a family out here. There are no neighbors, the church is small, I might be able to handle the books and all that, but you’ve got the hard job working outside all the time. I don’t know about this.”

By now tears welled up in her eyes. She went on, “Look at my ankles. Look at my belly. Look at these boxes. I am due in less than two weeks, we haven’t hardly got settled, and now Mr. Johnson wants us to be 21^st century Jolly Ranchers...I don’t want to be trapped out here.” Now she started sobbing. “Oh boy,” thought Marcus, “now what do I say?” He looked at Lauren: red eyes, round belly, swollen ankles, TJC employee identification card still hung around her neck, shaking with her sobs.

Security. That one word came to his mind. That’s what she needs. Then he thought of Ephesians 5:25, “Husbands, love your wives.” So he stood up and walked to the couch and removed the six boxes that had been stacked there. He found a pillow. He walked back to the kitchen table and took Lauren’s hand. “What are you doing?” she said between sobs. “Come here,” he said, and he pulled her up and led her to the couch. He sat down at one end and put the pillow in his lap. “Lay down,” he said. “What are you doing?” she said, wiping her eyes. “Just lay down.” She sat on the edge of the couch and slowly swung her legs around and laid her head down on the pillow on his lap. He kissed her forehead and ran his finger through her long black hair and they stayed like that for several minutes. Just quiet. No sound except for junebugs and a sniffle or two.

“Lauren.” He just said her name. “What?” she said. And for a fleeting moment she looked up at him like a little girl who needed reassurance. Lauren, who was always confident, always reassuring others. “We are going to be fine. We are going to be just fine. And as far as Mr. Johnson goes…he’s an old sentimental man. He loves this place and doesn’t want to see it split up and sold off. Don’t worry about that. I don’t think he’ll pressure us into it. If he does, I’ll talk to him. Let’s take it one step at a time and see what happens. And these boxes, I’ll ask Mr. Johnson if I can take some time to unpack so you don’t have to. We’ll work it out. One step at a time. We’ll be okay. The Lord has taken care of us up to now, he won’t let us down.”

Lauren took a deep breath. “Okay, I know. You are right. I just want the best for this baby. And for us.” She was quiet for a while, then she looked back up at Marcus. “You know how we haven’t been able to come up with a name? I found one. It’s in 2 Samuel 9:12. Look it up. See if you like it.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.

Marcus Redding's Future?

So Mr. Johnson was telling Marcus and Lauren that he was showing them kindness to honor Marcus’s grandfather. Just like David and Mephibosheth. That was how he started their dinner table conversation on this, the first night they would spend in their new home. But Mr. Johnson had more to say.

“Three months ago Carl said he was leaving. He’s worked for me longer than you two have been alive. Wasn’t sure what I’d do without him. He’s like my right arm. He runs this place. He’s as much a part of this ranch as the trees and the trails and this house. See, I’m an old man. I never married. I don’t have kids. My nieces and nephews are not interested in this place. They live in Austin and they have bumper stickers on their hybrid cars that say ‘Keep Austin Weird.’” All three of them laughed. “So Carl leaving forced me to think about the future. I didn’t want to just sell this place to whoever. I wanted to pass this place on to someone. To a family. So I started to pray about it. Wasn’t sure really what to do, I just prayed and prayed for wisdom. James 1:5 you know.”

Then he reached into his back pocket and produced a piece of paper. It had lines where it had been folded. It was wrinkled and worn. But from the way he handled it, it seemed to be important. He put it down on the table and smoothed it out and looked at it carefully. Then he looked up and out the window for a while. He ran his hand through his wavy, silver hair. He gestured for Marcus and Lauren to look at the paper. They scooted their chairs over to his side of the table so they could read it.

At the top Mr. Johnson had written, “Honest and hard working Christian couple. Strong work ethic. Organized. Self-starters. Eye for detail.” Under that were two lists. Written in pencil. Each list had five items.

“He has to: be self-disciplined, work within a budget, handle physical labor, take care of livestock, willing to learn all aspects of ranch management. She has to: be a good organizer, relate and communicate well, be a good administrator, have above average computer skills, be a good housekeeper and cook.”

“I was hoping for a couple like this. So Marcus when I heard about your name, well I already knew a lot about you. And Lauren, I know Mr. Condlefur up at TJC so I called him to find out about you. Then it turns out my niece went to school with your mother Ruth. And she couldn’t say enough good things about her.”

He hesitated and looked at Marcus, “This might be a little much right now, you might not think of it this way, and I’m not putting pressure on you with this, but I just wanted you to know what was on my mind. If this works out. If y’all like it here…I’d like to honor the memory of Sam Redding by doing something for his family. This place can be yours someday.”

Marcus and Lauren were stunned. Was this really happening? Were they really in their little apartment a few weeks ago? Had Marcus hit dead end after dead end looking for work? Was this man really offering them steady work for Marcus, part-time work for Lauren so she could stay at home with the baby, and what seemed like a pretty secure future?

Marcus spoke up, “Mr. Johnson, thank you for all this. Thank you. It’s a lot to think about right now, especially with the baby coming and all. Let Lauren and I talk about it and pray about it and we’ll talk with you again. We appreciate it very much.”

“I understand.” He stood up and shook Marcus’s hand and put his arm around Lauren and gave her a side hug. “We’ll talk about it more later. See you at 6 in the morning at my house Marcus.”

More about Marcus Redding’s journey of faith next week.