Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

I’m Jemima L. Yeggs, a.k.a. Stinker.  Pink Lady Apple Yeggs, my landlady and my auntie, has decided that now that I am not off having adventures by chasing storms, warning people about the storm that is coming, and helping the people who are devastated by them, I should write about my Sunday School Class.  She wants to read about how younger people, especially couples, respond to what the Bible says.  And she wants to know how God is at work at Lily the Pink.

I said, “Sure, Aunt Pink.  I am only taking a full load at the university.  I am quickly approaching the last trimester of my pregnancy.  My husband is occasionally working as the driver of the Turtle (the university’s storm chasing vehicle for Team 2), cutting back from it even more as the due date gets closer.  And I do some voice over work for the Storm Chasing Channel.  I also review the episodes that the editors have pieced together and then I send B.B. my comments (B.B. meaning Bossy Boss).”

B.B., Mary Sheltie Jones, and Home Wrecker, Elvira Quinn Casey, both newlyweds, will both be in the Turtle full time this Fall.  I will not be there at all this school year, pregnancy, and then a new mouth to feed.  Easy will be back driving fulltime once the baby is born and a couple of weeks after for paternity leave, sort of.  B.B. graduated and is now a graduate assistant.  She can teach classes and such.  She is now a pretend fulltime employee of the Storm Chasing Channel.  I say ‘pretend’ as the television channel is still under the auspices of the university.  They have not figured out the financial ramifications of having fulltime onscreen television performers working for the channel and paying us equal to other networks.  The advertisements have been advertising the university.  They get a benefit, but it is hard to monetize the benefits.  But really the bulk of our monetary flow is in streaming services and selling our weather support to small markets.  Our little network makes money because the Turtle Team is comprised of students and a faculty member or two.  Only a small stipend for airtime.  But even Kevin and Joseline got a few dollars for the airtime.  In fact, the two episodes of the reality show that they were on were big hits.  Home Wrecker is begging them to take more classes in meteorology just so they can get more ratings, but then again, Joseline is a couple of months behind me with the baby bump thing.

So, that is the status of the Turtle for the Fall semester.  Dr. Quinn will drive when Easy is with me.  B.B. runs the back of the Turtle, with between two students and five, since we have extra capacity.

But here in our apartment, Easy and I are holding a Sunday School Class.  We have an interesting group, and we might expand.  But we may need a bigger room if we do.  Our neighbors, Kevin and Joseline Johnson are key members of the class.  They have recently accepted Jesus.  They are starting school in the Fall.  And Joseline is pregnant.  Then, Tom and Cat ver Waarloosd should be moving across the hall soon.  They are just a year older than the Johnsons, but they have three children already.  Then we have the not-yet-married couples, who will all be in high school this year: Margie and Blaise, Sophie and Emmett, and Menzie and Samuel.  And then when available Mary and Joseph Jones are there.

Then, as if fourteen was not enough in our living room, we invited the Williams.  They are non-church goers who moved to the third floor to get away from all the young couples having children, but then, they are about the same ages as Easy and me.  They went to one meeting before we stopped to go storm chasing, and they said they enjoyed the atmosphere.  They don’t talk much, Blake hardly says anything, and when he does say something, he croaks.  Penny seems okay, but they are both guarded.

And now, when they are available, Ben and Ellie Casey, aka Mama’s Man and Home Wrecker, want to come.  And they would have to bring Michael with them.

But nineteen in a nice sized apartment is doable if you like one another.  And so far, so good.

I have been rather loose on what we study.  It puts Easy and me on the spot, but we have several people who have never been in a Christian family before.  We have several people who grew up in the church, me literally, since I am a preacher’s kid.  But then, we have the ver Waarloosd couple.  Having been in a church that was mostly a cult, they have more to be untaught.  They are rapidly learning, as are the Johnsons, just by reading the Bible on their own.

So, our Sunday School topic is “whatever you know, it’s wrong.”  But really, I want to focus the study on the attributes of God.  We dream up a topic, or someone in the room suggests a topic, and then everyone is challenged to find Scripture on that topic that week.  I would say that any Sunday School teacher that comes up with that idea is crazy.  I should be scared out of my wits, but I trust God.  This is going to work.

Oh, and we may not meet on Sunday morning every week, but we will meet when we can and when the most people can be there.  In meeting early on Sunday morning, Otto brings by some donuts and when we are done, we are ready for Sunday school and church at whatever church we usually attend.  Pink Lady has buses going to all services where apartment dwellers want to go.

But for our first Bible study, I had everyone come up with a Bible verse that related to God knowing things.

Everyone was there since the storm chasers were taking a little break at the beginning of the school year.  Since half the Turtle team or more were going to be inexperienced observers, they had to be careful to do the scheduling.  Almost all the chasing would be close to home.  Hurricane season was cranking into high gear, but that was a different type of storm “chasing.”  Besides, it could strand one team, not allowing the rookies a chance to get back to their other classes.

We started with prayer and then I handed out some sheets with the words of a couple of hymns and a couple of worship songs.  We chose one of each and muttered through them.  Then Mary, in her director voice, said, can we have Menzie lead the singing from now on.  We might have a better chance to figure out what the tune is.  A few laughed, but I replied, “Thanks, girlfriend.  Nice to know who has my back.”  That got everybody laughing, except Menzie.  She had to admit that she didn’t know the tune to a couple of them that I printed.  That part is a work in progress.

I asked, “Does anyone have a Bible verse?”  Since many of them had not taken me seriously, only half of them raised their hands.  One that not only raised his hand, but waved it, was Michael.  He was officially now the adopted son of Ben and Elvira Casey, and his name was officially Michael Rowe Casey.  Since he was a few months older than Blaise, my brother-in-law, I was curious.  “Michael, why don’t you go first.”

Michael said, “I chose Jeremiah 1:4. ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.’  Did that just apply to Jeremiah?  Or did God know me before I was born?  That might explain why you stopped to take video of the flood at just the right time to save me from drowning.  And then, B.B. knew how to do fast water rescues.  And Mom and Dad were going to be married soon.  That made the adoption go through faster.  But I have read the news reports from that flood, and there were children who drowned.  There were parents who drowned and left their children behind.  Did God not know them?”

Home Wrecker saw the puzzled look on my face.  “That’s why his code name is ‘That’s My Boy!’  Okay, teacher, he posed a question.  What’s the answer?”

I mumbled, “Maybe his code name should be ‘Stinker!’”

Everyone snickered, but they kept looking at me for an answer.  I said, “Some theologians think that the concept of the elect, which is often mentioned by Paul in his letters and predestination work great for believers, but for non-believers they do not work so well.  People come into this world and were not predestined to go to Heaven.  That makes God seem to be a bad guy, but each of us having free will, they had the opportunity to accept God.  God is perfect.  He is not bad.  We each are products of our choices.  But why does one person get saved from a flood and others die?  God had the foreknowledge, but each of us have trials in our lives.  I have known some very wonderful God-fearing friends who died way too early.  We do not know if any of these people who died in the flood were Christians.  God knows.  And for those that are about twelve years old and younger, many theologians think that is the age of accountability.  They say thirteen is when the Jewish boys and girls become adults, so if you are younger than thirteen God will accept you into Heaven as not knowing enough.  But that is not in the Bible.  David says that he will be reunited with Bathsheba’s baby that died, and that gives people the idea that babies go to Heaven, not having had the chance to accept Jesus or not.”

I grabbed a couple of breaths before continuing.  “Okay, but let’s see the miracles that you pointed out.  We stopped in the right place.  Mary, B.B., had fast water rescue skills.  Even the fact that we had two strong young men in Easy and Joseph to haul you and Mary on shore.  And then with Joseph and Dr. Ben Casey proposing to Mary and Dr. Ellie, the adoption went through.  There were a lot of places that you being rescued and then immediately finding an adoptive family, and all that points to God loving you.  We can only pray that the other orphaned children from the flood find a home.  The news is great about reporting the statistics, but they don’t say that the children went to live with an aunt or uncle.  But we can pray for them.”

Michael said, “And pray for me, too.  If God went to all that trouble, He must have something important planned for me.”

Home Wrecker gave him a hug, “That’s My Boy!  And, Michael, I want you to have that in your prayers every night.  Never forget that God has a wonderful plan, just for you.”

Penny Williams asked, “But what about someone who cannot get pregnant because the couple cannot do the activity necessary to get pregnant?  Does God turn a deaf ear to their prayers?”  Blake Williams, her husband grabbed her arm and gasped, shaking his head.  “Blake, I think we can trust these people.  We aren’t believers, but I am sensing that there might be something to the Jesus they believe in.  We rarely go to Vespers, but I think this is the place for us.  And I think this is the time we shared our secret.”  There were tears in Blake’s eyes, but he nodded.

Penny looked at the floor before she continued, “Blake and I grew up next door to each other.  Not everyone in the Latvian community is Latvian, so Blake has the name of Williams, one of the ‘outsiders.’  I am a couple of months older, and everyone referred to us as twins all the way through school.  If one of us had something to do, within reason, the other one was there.  But sometimes it was just a girl thing or just a guy thing.  I played basketball for Diet Smith High School when they had two college prospects.  They are both in college now.”  There were murmurs, since most people in the room knew who she was talking about.  “Anyway, I was a year behind them, and I was eager to learn from them.  I wanted to be a better player, but when Blake and I showed up where they told us to go, the two basketball stars were more interested in each other than playing basketball, if you know what I mean.  I was about ready to leave, but then they said if I joined them in what they were doing, they would teach me some drills that would make me a better player.  I would do anything for that extra edge.  They did not like Blake being there, but they knew he liked popping pills.  They had a stash and Blake popped a few pills to get a buzz.  This went on for months.  After a lot of practice with them and Blake taking a variety of different pills, the two of them said that to celebrate the end of the basketball season, they wanted to see Blake and me make love.  Well, Blake and I were great friends, inseparable, but we had never done anything more than just kiss.  Even then it was experimental.  We really weren’t romantic friends.  The two athletes stripped us down, and I noticed that Blake had the start of tiny breasts.  And then, when we tried to do what they wanted us to do, he could not … ummm … rise to the occasion.  Some of the pills he had been taking for months were estrogen, enough other pills to get a buzz.  With that and Blake drinking too much at an early age, the liver could not strip the estrogen away fast enough.  Blake’s parents disowned him, thinking he became a ‘girl’ on purpose.  Blake moved in with me.  The bad thing is that having too much estrogen can prevent you from performing, but it does not prevent the desire.  It drove him crazy living with me and my parents.  We went to a bunch of doctors and most of them said it was not reversible, but we think they were doctors who administered the transition therapy drugs.  This was accidental, sort of.  This was not designed for his body or body size.  We still had hope.  Well, when we graduated the next year, we got married, but with Blake’s depression, he used even more drugs, just careful enough to know he had no estrogen.  My folks wanted us out of the house.  Blake worked construction and we found a tiny apartment.  Blake got fired a couple of times due to failed drug tests and rejected from countless jobs.  We ended up at the mission and then here.  We had one doctor that said he could reverse it, but it would take a lot of work, starting with getting clean, no drugs or alcohol.  Blake had been working out, building up body mass.  Going on a diet that helps the liver.  He attends anonymous meetings for alcohol and drugs, both here at Lily the Pink.  He takes monthly tests for that, on random days.  Blake has been clean ever since we moved here.  But so far, if there is a rise to the occasion, there is no, umm, penetration.  Some improvements but not enough.  Can your God become our God?  Can he help us?  We are the worst of sinners.  I was greedy and ambitious.  I neglected Blake, and then he took the wrong pills.  We don’t deserve God’s love.”  She and Blake hugged each other and wept.

I said, “No, Penny, we are all sinners.  Everyone in this room is, but we have been saved by God’s Grace.  You can accept Jesus if you just believe and trust in Jesus.  God loves you and Blake.  Listen, everybody.  My Dad says that faith healing is not done as it was in biblical times, but we can give Blake a blessing.  Let’s all place our right hand on his shoulders.”

Blake croaked, “But the thing that doesn’t work is lower down.”

I recoiled, “No way am I touching that thing.  No, God knows where the problem is.  The shoulders are just fine.”

We prayed that God would bless them as a couple, that He would come into their lives if they were willing, and they nodded, and that if it was God’s Will that Blake’s problem would be healed, whether God did it or the medical treatment did it, just so they could move on with their marriage.

I suggested that we could meet again the next Sunday because the buses were about ready to take people to different churches.  Tom and Cat ver Waarloosd suggested statements about God’s love that are in the Old Testament, for next week’s topic.  Blake and Penny came with Easy and me on the bus to my Dad’s church, and there was no way I was telling my Dad about having a prayer for faith healing, knowing what he felt about it.  But later when I confessed to it, he said what I had done was the right thing.  He cautioned that God did not heal on demand, but if it was His will, and I was leaving it all up to God, I had done what was reasonable.

A few days later, there was a slip of paper slipped under the door.  It read, “Our marriage is finally consummated.  Thank you for the prayer.”  It wasn’t signed, but it did not have to be.

Credits

I did a lot of research for men who have too much estrogen for one reason or another.  I hope my details on the matter reflect some of the research, but it was hard finding positive results.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.