Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Boilerplate

I’m Harold Dykstra.  I’m retired, but I go to food bank distributions all over Tracy and talk to people that need someone who will listen to their story.  My time is well spent.  A police lieutenant suggested that I write down the conversations that I had with an angel.  I did not know she was an angel at the time.  The angel, for a little over a year, indwelled a life-sized posable action figure my children bought me, so that I would not be perceived as travelling alone.  And in a way, she was training me for what I do while talking to the needy.  She probed my heart to find out what I believed and how I express love for others.  She changed my life.

In her leaving, she said someone would come.  I had thought that was Jesus, in His second coming, but a new Babs, a little older, the model for the posable action figure arrived.  While I had no desire to start over with romance, Morrie helped her move in, thinking she was the other Babs who had returned.

This Week’s Question

One day last week, we celebrated Babs’ birthday.  It was not her birthday, but it was the only day all of the guests could be there.  There were a lot of guests.

This week Babs was busily working on something.

I was reviewing interview sound bites.  B.B. (Mary Sheltie Jones) had done a lot of our “on-the-street” reports as we have fed the homeless.  Some comments from volunteers.  Some comments from homeless people.  But it was my job to take these disjointed sound bites and create a story, almost as if these people were reading a script.  How do you connect “Wow!  I ate too much!” and “I’m glad they had variety in the desserts” with “TomCat bakes the best hard rolls this side of Germany.”  Or do I forget all three of those?

Babs growled, “I don’t want to look that up!”

I asked, “Babs, what do you not want to look up?”

Babs sighed, “According to Acts 18:2, who was the emperor who expelled the Jews from Rome?”

I smiled, “Babs, ‘There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them,’ (Acts 18:2).  The verse before identifies that Paul has come to Corinth.  The verse after talks of how Paul was a tentmaker, just like Priscilla and Aquila.  So, they welcomed him.”

Babs nodded, “Thank you.  I have so many questions.  Who was the prophet who served after Jerusalem fell, and during the reign of Darius the Great?”

I laughed, “Zechariah.  ‘In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo:’ (Zechariah 1:1).”

Babs smiled, “Thank you again, Harold.  Who prophesied that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem?”

I sighed, “Babs, you know that one.  It’s Micah.  ‘“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”’ (Micah 5:2).  What are you doing?”

Babs smiled, “I’m doing a crossword puzzle.  I was stumped on Claudius and Zechariah, but then it seemed liked fun.  The next one.  Who is the prophet who told Naaman to wash in the Jordan River to cure Naaman of leprosy?”

I replied, “You know that one, too.  Elisha.”

Babs huffed, “What would I do for a buzzer right now!  Contestant, you did not form your answer with a quoted Bible verse.”

I laughed, “You do not know how many irritating people I have known that do not tell you the rules of the game, but they can berate you when you cross a line.”

Babs scrunched her nose, “Please, Harold.  Let‘s play!”

I nodded, “So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house.  (2 Kings 5:9).  He does not wash himself until the 14^th verse, but that verse does not mention who the prophet was.”

Babs sighed, “I will accept that answer.  So far, you are doing quite well, but now I will move on to the category of priests.”

I huffed, “You mean that I cannot say peasants for 600?”

Babs purred, “I already have the other prophet questions answered, and we are not playing for anything monetary.  But if you get all the questions right, I promise you we will have fun tonight.”

There was a knock at the door.

Babs turned to me, “We will have fun once they leave, Harold.”

It was Willie, Jayke, and Janella.

I smiled, “Babs and I were playing a game.  She asks questions, and I have to answer them with Bible verses.”

Babs said, “We got through prophets.  Now we get to priests.  Pake, who is the priest who stayed with David during Absalom’s rebellion?”

I turned to Jayke and whispered the answer.  He said, “Zadok.”  And my Bible search came up with verses about Zadok. I read, “’The king also said to Zadok the priest, “Do you understand? Go back to the city with my blessing. Take your son Ahimaaz with you, and also Abiathar’s son Jonathan. You and Abiathar return with your two sons.’ (2 Kings 15:27).”

Babs laughed, “Z-A-D-O-K.  It fits into the crossword puzzle!”

Jayke and Janella said, “Yay!”  Willie laughed and shook her head.  If she tried something like this, the kids would be bored before it even started.

Babs asked, “Who was the first priest?”

I whispered in Janella’s ear, and she said, “Aaron.”

I said, “We have a lot of verses, but I will give you two of them.  ‘These are the garments they are to make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a woven tunic, a turban and a sash. They are to make these sacred garments for your brother Aaron and his sons, so they may serve me as priests.’ (Exodus 28:4), and ‘“Anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them so they may serve me as priests.’ (Exodus 30:30).”

Babs said, “You got another one.  But who was a grandson of Aaron. And he killed two people who were sinning.  And that stopped God’s judgment?”

I laughed, “This is kind of graphic.  ‘When Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, saw this, he left the assembly, took a spear in his hand and followed the Israelite into the tent. He drove the spear into both of them, right through the Israelite man and into the woman’s stomach. Then the plague against the Israelites was stopped; but those who died in the plague numbered 24,000.’ (Numbers 25:7-9).”

I laughed, “Consider the little ears, Babs.”

Babs laughed, “I still have to finish the puzzle!  Okay, who was the high priest who was in charge of reconstructing the Sheep Gate in the time of Nehemiah?”

I told the children.  “I don’t know this one.  If we search for priest, we get too many possible answers, but Grabbabs said, ‘Sheep Gate.’  So let’s risk it.”  I typed in priest sheep gate.’ ‘Eliashib the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate. They dedicated it and set its doors in place, building as far as the Tower of the Hundred, which they dedicated, and as far as the Tower of Hananel.’ (Nehemiah 3:1).”

Babs smiled, “Okay.  That was a hard one.  Now for two New Testament priests.  Who was the priest who was told by the angel Gabriel that the priest’s wife would have a baby boy, and he would prepare the way for the Messiah?”

I whispered in Jayke’s ear, and he said, “Luke 1.”

I read to them softly until… Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.‘’ (Luke 1:18-19).  And that is not the same Zechariah that was a prophet in the Old Testament.”

Babs scrunched her nose and crossed her eyes. “Do I look stupid or something?” Jayke and Janella laughed.  Babs asked, “It’s my turn to read a verse, but you have to tell me what book, chapter, and verse, and who was the priest that said this? ‘But Jesus remained silent. The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.”’”

I smiled, “Matthew 26:63.  And back a little earlier, ‘Those who had arrested Jesus took him to Caiaphas the high priest, where the teachers of the law and the elders had assembled.’ (Matthew 26:57).”

Babs laughed, “Now let’s do maybe three kings.”

Jayke asked, “Like the song?”

Babs shook her head and laughed, “No, just kings in the Old Testament.  First off.  Who was the king of Israel who built the city of Samaria, and it was said that he had done more evil than all the other kings before him?”

Willie said, “The evil part sounds like Ahab.”

I smiled, “I am going to research Samaria.  Yes, It’s Ahab’s father. ‘In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned twelve years, six of them in Tirzah. He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver and built a city on the hill, calling it Samaria, after Shemer, the name of the former owner of the hill. But Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord and sinned more than all those before him.’ (1 Kings 16:23-25).”

Babs smiled, “Okay then, who defied Assyria and ‘held fast to the Lord?’”

I smiled, “This kind of cheats, but… ‘This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God.’ (2 Chronicles 31:20).  The next chapter is about how Isaiah showed him how to pray and the Assyrian army died as a result.  Now, like you said, one more or the children will get antsy.”

Babs asked, “Who was the king of the unified Israel who was ‘a man after God’s own heart?’”

I whispered in Janella’s ear and she giggled and then said, “man after God’s heart.’”

I read, “’After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.’’ (Acts 13:22).”

Babs smiled, “You got all the answers right.  Now, I have a lot of blanks to fill in.  I hear giggling in the back yard.  It might be little Joe.”

We went out onto the deck.  Joe Painter and Grace Grunge ran up the steps.

Joe said, “Grace and I had a dance lesson, and Grace’s Mom brought us home.  She’s a nurse, and Mama Mary Jo was concerned about Franklyn.  I think she said it was a sinus problem.  If it is a grass allergy, Daddy and his crew will have the shower or change clothes before coming in the house.  Daddy said that he would shower and change in the garage.  The crew rarely came in the house.”

Babs asked, “How are you, Grace?”

Grace smiled, “I am wonderful.  Joe and I learned some new dance moves today.   And I have a lot of fun when I come visit.  I love your dog.”

Babs nodded, “Sugar is special.”

Greta walked around the side of the house and told Grace they had to go.  Joe said his goodbyes and walked home.  Willie and the children stayed another half hour.  Willie was about to fall asleep on the deck, so I suggested they go home.

That left Babs and I alone on the deck behind the house.

I suggested, “Babs, you do realize that I got all the questions right on your game show today.  I am due a big surprise.”

Babs purred, “Go in the bedroom and get ready for bed, I will be there in a minute.”

Okay, it took three minutes, but with what she was wearing, it was worth the extra wait.

Credits

All these conversations remind me of my conversations with my wife.  We would talk about anything and everything.  And most of the time, it sounded like a discussion in a Sunday school class.

These questions, modified a little, were clues for crossword puzzles designed by Darin McDaniel in a Navigators publication in 2021, Bible Crosswords.  When they advertise on the cover that the puzzles will provide “Hours of Fun and Entertainment,’ they never knew Babs would take that literally.

And the jokes about taking Peasants for 600 and such is a play on the TV game show, Jeopardy.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.