The Children of Eternity (11 page)

For a moment the boys looked toward Lilly, though she did not return their gaze. Lilly was different, of that much Christopher was certain. What had happened to her on Earth?

There was a pause, as if the Father was awaiting a response. It was Jerry who finally replied.

“Father, I think I was guilty of that, even though I didn’t spend any time on Earth,” said Jerry. “I thought that my eternity would be one filled with fishing and mountain climbing. Now I’m starting to realize that there is more to Heaven than relaxation.” Jerry hesitated. “There is even more to it than praise and worship, though that’s important too. We’ve got to grow. We’ve got to become more like Your Firstborn, Jesus.”

The Father smiled broadly. “Very good, Jerry, you’ve learned the lesson already.” He turned to the others. “You all have. The day is coming when humanity will play a vital role in My plan for the universe. To accomplish that role, you must grow.”

“What is that role, Father?” asked Lilly, her almond eyes growing wide. “I still don’t know.”

The Father laughed good-heartedly. “You will, My dear, and soon, but now is not the time. I promise that the four of you will be among the first to know. But before that happens, there is a task you need to complete. Some might call it a quest, even an adventure.”

That word brought a smile to Jonathon’s lips. “Adventure?”

“Yes, Jonathon,” laughed the Father, His tone bordering on the dramatic, “an adventure, a real adventure. It won’t be easy—adventures rarely are; but it will be exciting and worthwhile, and it involves all of you. The four of you are a team. You must learn to work as a team.”

The Father turned to Christopher. “You and Jerry are particularly fond of the writings of Rudyard Kipling. I too enjoy his words. Though not always spiritually enlightening, they describe very well the struggles and the realities of life on Earth. Here are some words from Kipling to you: ‘For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack.’ Each of you is a wolf in My service. Your strength is in Me and in each other. Singly each of you has a portion of that strength, a special gift, but it is only as a group that you are an effective fighting force capable of warding off even the most powerful aggressor, whether he plays by the rules or not.

“You see, wars are not without their rules. My children, this one is no exception. Satan made many promises to Me before this war started. He agreed to abide by certain rules, and already he has broken many of them.”

“What else can you expect? He’s Satan,” interjected Jonathon.

The Father nodded. “Sadly, that is very true. He had so much potential, yet he has wasted it, wallowing in his own bitterness and envy. However, the age of Satan shall soon come to an end, and the four of you shall be instrumental in bringing about that end.”

“Us?” asked Jerry. “But we’re just kids.”

“Don’t underestimate yourself,” cautioned the Father. “You are My son; you have limitless potential. You simply need to have faith in yourself and in Me. I tell you this—your work is only beginning; in time you will come to do things that you can hardly imagine now…incredible things.”

“But I don’t know what they are,” objected Jerry. “I watched Christopher reduce two demons to ashes in the woods last week. He can lift heavy objects by just thinking about it. Jonathon can read minds and make people do what he wants them to do. I want to be part of this thing, Father…more than anything. I just don’t know what to do.”

The Father smiled. “Jerry, take My hand.”

Jerry reached out. The Father took his hand in His. Their eyes met.

“Jerry, you have a most precious gift,” said the Father. “I Myself have imparted it to you. But you will need to discover it for yourself, and you will. The four of you must learn to work as a team. I shall send you to a place where that will be possible. You will know when it is time for you to begin your ministry. But until then, get to know each other. You have so much in common.”

The Father paused. “I would like to introduce to you your sister Lihua Hue, although she prefers the name Lilly. She is from the nation of North Korea, and she spent over seven years on Earth. The day is coming when her mother will be joining her here, so I have assigned the angels to look after her. But those angels have been taken prisoner by Satan. It is up to the three of you to comfort and protect her now. Likewise, she shall safeguard you.”

The boys gave Lilly a friendly greeting. None could quite get over that smile of hers. It was practically angelic and made her look all the more beautiful.

“Before you leave, I want to give you two pieces of advice,” said the Father, scanning the group. “Mind them well, and they may win the victory for you. Never give into fear, even when your situation looks bleak. If you do you show weakness, you hand the enemy the victory that is rightfully yours. Second, trust and love one another, for the strength of the wolf is the pack.”

The children agreed, promising the Father that they would do as He asked. Then they simply faded from the room—that is, all except Jerry. He looked around to see that he was now alone with the Father.

“I wished to have a word with you in private, away from the ears of the others,” said the Father, leaning forward toward Jerry. “Something is troubling you. It is standing in the way of your ministry.”

Jerry seemed very nervous. “I don’t know if I understand.”

“You do,” insisted the Father. “It is a thing that troubles you more than anything in your life, though you have rarely admitted it.”

Jerry hesitated. “It’s about my birth mother, that is, the woman who would have been my birth mother. I’ve thought about her a lot, especially lately.”

“Why is that?” asked the Father. His voice was not angry, far from it, but it was insistent.

“Lord, You know,” replied Jerry.

“Yes, but do you?” asked the Father.

“I can’t understand why she gave me up,” said Jerry, wetness coming to his eyes. “Why didn’t she love me? Aren’t mothers supposed to love their children?”

“Are you sure that she didn’t love you?” asked the Father.

“How could she?” asked Jerry, the tears now streaming down his cheeks. “I mean, she had a doctor murder me. How can you love someone yet decide to have them killed?”

“You may be surprised by the answer to that question,” noted the Father, rising to His feet. He stretched out His arms to Jerry. Jerry rose to his feet and fell into the arms of his loving Father. “You have lived in darkness regarding this issue for far too long. What you don’t know is poisoning your spirit. You know how to find out the truth, though you have resisted doing so. I leave the next step to you.”

Jerry materialized out of the mists into a field full of green grass and yellow flowers. Before him the others were waiting.

“We thought you may have gotten lost,” said Jonathon, almost jokingly.

“The Father wanted to speak to me about something,” replied Jerry. “Maybe I’ll tell you about it later, but not now, OK?”

“Sure, no problem,” said Jonathon, who really didn’t seem interested in pursuing the issue.

Jerry gazed around him. Behind him, beyond the meadow, was a mighty forest of tall oak trees. Before him the meadowlands sloped slightly upward to meet a beautiful three-story mansion built to Victorian specifications. The white mansion was surrounded by a wide porch supported by ornate columns. “Where are we?”

“Oh, welcome to my home,” said Jonathon with pride in his voice. “This is where I live with my great-grandparents. It’s a really neat place, and we’ve got plenty of room…come on.”

The foursome made their way up the hill toward the house, which appeared to sit on the very crest of a ridge in the meadow. As they reached the ridge, a truly incredible view greeted them. The meadow sloped gently downward, ending at a sheer drop-off that must have plummeted 20 or 30 feet at least. Beyond it, as far as the eye could see, stretched the waters of a mighty ocean.

“The northern shoreline of the Crystal Sea,” said Jonathon. “It tends to be a bit cool even during the summer. Still, there is some seriously great surfing around here. You don’t get super big waves, mind you, but they have just the perfect shape. If you’d like, I could teach you all how to surf.”

Christopher looked over at Jerry, then at Jonathon. “I don’t think surfing is quite what the Father had in mind when He brought us together.”

“You never know,” replied Jonathon. “It builds split-second timing and coordination.”

“You may be right,” said Lilly in a soft voice. “It may be helpful.”

“Right on,” said Jonathon, giving Lilly a thumbs-up sign. “I can show you how to make your own surfboards, or I could make them for you.”

“That would be nice,” said Lilly, smiling ever so faintly.

“I don’t agree at all,” objected Jerry. “God Himself has given us a mission, a quest if you will. I don’t think we can treat it so lightly as to just go surfing. We have to prepare ourselves, come to understand how to best pool our talents.”

“And how do you propose we do that?” asked Jonathon. “How exactly do we prepare for a mission when we don’t even know what it is?”

“By making a surfboard,” said Lilly.

Christopher and Jerry looked at the slight Asian girl incredulously. Her expression was not one that spoke of levity. She was really serious. Christopher’s doubts about this team were growing. He and Jerry seemed to take their commission from the Father seriously. Apparently, the same couldn’t be said about Jonathon and Lilly. He was very tempted to make a comment to that effect, yet he held his peace.

It was then that Christopher noticed a young, blond woman walking from the house in their direction. His God-given vision could distinguish her features in detail even from 50 yards away. She appeared to be in her late 20s, perhaps 30. She was of a medium build with hazel eyes and an expression that was practically angelic. Christopher had rarely seen a more beautiful woman.

Jonathon looked toward Christopher, then toward the woman. He smiled. “Oh, that’s my great-grandmother, Gladys. She looks very good for ninety-five, don’t you think? She prefers the young look. She often goes out surfing with me. She is really good.”

“I’m more accustomed to somewhat older-looking parents,” said Jerry. “My mom and dad prefer to take the appearance of people who are about fifty.”

“I didn’t know that you were back, dear,” said Gladys, placing her arm around her great-grandson. “And you brought friends with you. Maybe they would like to stay for lunch.”

Jonathon took a moment to introduce his friends to his great-grandmother. Then he proceeded to tell her about his adventure and his face-to-face encounter with the Father.

“Let’s talk about it over lunch,” she suggested, leading the group back toward the mansion. The group followed her up a well-worn trail that led past the tennis court and to the front door. They walked across the porch, in through the front door, and toward the dining room. Gladys had her guests sit around the very long dining room table while she headed into the kitchen and out of sight.

“Your great-grandmother seems very nice,” said Lilly. “She has a very bright aura about her. It is very clear that she is a very loving person.”

“I think so,” said Jonathon. “Then again…I’m sort of biased. She raised me from the time I was a baby. She has always been there for me.”

“And she’ll be there for us,” said Lilly. “The hand of the Father is upon her. She is destined to do great things for Him.”

Lilly’s comments struck Christopher as being rather strange. Did she know something that he didn’t? She had a gift all right; but what it was, he wasn’t quite sure.

Only a few minutes had passed when Gladys returned with five grilled cheese sandwiches and five lemonades on a tray. Then she sat with the children at the table. “OK, honey, why don’t you tell me how you met your friends?”

And so he did. His great-grandmother listened quietly to Jonathon’s story. When the telling was done, she was amazingly calm.

“I am so proud of you, Jonathon,” she said. “I am happy for all of you. We have plenty of room. My mansion has twelve bedrooms, more than enough for all of you. I’m so thankful that the Father sent you all here. Bud and I will take care of all of you.” Gladys paused. “Oh, Jonathon, that nice young man David was by yesterday. He brought you something. It’s up in your room.”

Jonathon immediately headed to his room, thundering up the steps two at a time.