XXXV

I BEHELD SATAN AS LIGHTNING FALL FROM HEAVEN

(LUKE 10:18)

SEVENIA SALLIE GIRL PROPHETESS

I was at Cotton Creek with Branch the day after Jeremy attacked me there. Jeremy, one of my best friends, had tried to rape me at one of my favorite places on the planet. A special spot where I had shared so many wonderful conversational encounters with numerous brothers and sisters in Christ. Then Jeremy almost ruined my natural sanctuary with one horrific nightmare.

My feelings soared and plummeted as I rode an emotional roller coaster. Ultimately, Branch helped me claim my spot back by sharing his conversion story with me. But even that dipped down after soaring me high. He revealed a dark side of his family background. Not only was his father a Satanist, he supposedly put a curse on Branch after finding out he was becoming a Christian.

“Oh my!” I replied after he told me. “What are you gonna do?”

“What can I do, but ask a blessing for every curse?” he replied with a nonchalant shrug. Then he gave me a half smile that was like a laugh for my sullen serious boyfriend. Yes, he was no longer my friend that was a boy, but my brand new boyfriend. Whatever that meant, I didn’t fully understand yet.

“That’s a great attitude to have,” I said with a sweet smile as I took hold of his hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze as his eyes looked into mine with love and compassion. I felt a sense of shyness I had never experienced with Branch before.

I glanced away from his gaze and my eyes fell on the spot where Jeremy had pinned me. I shuddered as the day old memory arose vividly in my mind. I began to quiver as I remembered how exposed and vulnerable I felt after he bound my wrists together with my own clothing. Branch and I still held hands, and he pulled me toward him in an effort to comfort me. I yanked my hand from his and barked, “No.”

“Sorry,” he said with wide startled eyes as he took a step back as he showed me his hands in a ‘mean no harm’ gesture. Then his countenance became sad and helpless as his stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. My big strong Branch, who had taken many beatings from his stepfather, even as a small boy, knew how I was feeling.

I took three quick steps toward him and wrapped my arms around his center until I grabbed my wrist at the middle of his back. I buried my head in his chest and sobbed. He was so incredibly strong, sturdy and still. Most importantly, he felt safe. Especially when I felt a hand land feather light on my back and gently rub. He quietly waited for my personal storm to pass.

After it did, I leaned back and looked up at him. His shaggy blonde hair framed his handsome face, and tears had streaked down his cheeks in sympathy with my pain. I didn’t understand the in’s and out’s, do’s and don’t of an old fashioned courtship. But I couldn’t help myself with what I did next.

“Branch, I love you so much,” I whispered and then smiled at him.

He must have been overjoyed at my words. He not only gave me a half smile, both corners spread and arose so much his slightly crooked teeth were exposed. “I love you, too. More than words can say.”

I went as high as I could on tip toe with puckered lips, but couldn’t quite connect to his lips. I stood slightly wobbling and feeling foolish for several seconds while he comprehended what was happening. Then he lowered his mouth onto mine and we shared a short, sweet lip lock.

As we smiled shyly afterward, I considered something else I wanted to reclaim. Jeremy may have technically been my first kiss, but he stole it. I recalled how he jammed his tongue in mouth and remembered how vile it felt. The way the combination of the force and the taste of booze made me gag and throw up. I winced and the smile quickly vanished from Branch’s face. I knew he thought it was somehow from the kiss, and there was no question now with what I had to do.

“Branch,” I said quietly. “Just once would you kiss me like they do in France? Then I think we should wait until we are married before kissing becomes a pastime. Are you okay with that?”

Although the kiss didn’t even last a minute, it made me wish we could marry tomorrow. Although I was naïve when it came to the birds and bees, I knew guys seemed to be more passionate about intimacy than girls. So if I wanted to continue, I assumed Branch did. They say a key to a good, solid relationship is communication. So we communicated.

“When we’re married, we’ll have our whole lives to kiss like they do in France and more,” Branch told me. Surprising me again with what one might refer to as an ear to ear grin.

“Are you sure?” I asked with a sweet smile and my best attempt to bat my eyes. “I’ll at least need to wait until I’m out of high school. That’s more than a year, minimum.”

“Who was it that served seven years for his lady?” He asked. “And it seemed like a few days because his love for her was so intense?”

“Rachel and Jacob,” I replied. (Genesis 29:20).

“Right, so I can wait thirteen months,” he said happily.

“I said at least,” I laughed as I shoved him. Then his face became cautious, and he frowned.

“You know how we shouldn’t keep any secrets, right?”

Now I felt cautious as I frowned. What was in addition to curses and occult activity? “Right.”

“I read Captain Kirk’s book,” he told me with serious eyes. “I just finished it before I came to get together with you.”

“That’s it?” I laughed. “Why would you feel the need to divulge that?”

“You said you didn’t like the book. You even told me the Pastor regretted writing it.”

“I never…” I began, but stopped. Did I tell Branch I didn’t like it?

“It was actually instrumental in my decision to accept Christ as my personal Savior,” he informed me.

“It was?” I asked with a frown. “But it was a book all about the war in heaven, and Satan and a third of the angels being cast out (Revelation 12:3, 4). I prefer to focus on Jesus and redemption.”

“But that’s the whole reason of why we need Jesus and redemption,” Branch replied. “That book helped me to understand the situation we’re in here on this fallen planet. I used to blame the condition of the world on God. Yet my father’s ways seemed wrong. All of them. Step, bio and grand. Yet the world is just too marvelous and miraculous to embrace atheism.  Understanding the rebellion in heaven, and the way God’s only begotten Son responded to it, changed me.”

“By Jesus coming here and living as a man. Not only that, living perfectly as a man. Leaving the majesty of heaven to become our Savior. To die a cruel death for the sacrifice of our sins when He didn’t deserve it. Not only that, He couldn’t see through the portals of the tomb. When He died for your sins and mine, there were moments when He thought it was going to be permanent, eternal death! Yet He did it anyway!”

I looked at Branch with open mouth. Not only because of what he had just declared. Which proved to me his conversion was genuine. I had never witnessed him string together so many words in a row. I also recalled speed reading Captain Kirk’s only book, and realized I might not have given it it’s just due. I smiled at him and shrugged, conceding. “Maybe I should read it again.”

“So why does Captain Kirk regret writing it?” Branch asked.

“Well,” I frowned. “It’s been two years since we discussed it, back when we first became close buds. I think he said it caused a real firestorm when it first became popular. He was widely criticized over his theories about different aspects of the war in heaven. Especially when he speculated that a large portion of humanity may have been involved in the rebellion, but became human rather than fallen angels. So then life in this world would be a chance for redemption. As much as I love and respect the pastor, I don’t really understand or agree with that premise. Also, by the theory, he basically insinuated we might have preexisted.”

“I think it makes perfect sense,” Branch said with a shrug. “I mean, look at the free will aspect. If we human beings have free will, how much more the angels, both good and bad. I mean think of the  rebellious angels that were cast out. Obviously, they had free will or they wouldn’t have, couldn’t have rebelled.”

Branch looked at me and waited for a reaction. But I didn’t have one. Were we in the twilight zone? Branch was being talkative and I was almost speechless. “So what’s your point?”

“Actually it was Captain Kirk’s point,” Branch continued. “Look at the various degrees of a person’s thinking, beliefs, views, passions, sins, I could go on and on. There’s so many different levels of where people are at in life’s journey. It’s all free will.

Think about the war in heaven. Lucifer obviously convinced 33% of the angels in heaven to side with him to the point they were kicked out. Of the righteous angels, 67% sided with God. So if we humans have freewill, then how much more the angels? Now take the bad angels. Wouldn’t it be safe to assume that anywhere from, oh, say 5 to 10 percent were not sure they should side with Lucifer, but did?”

“Okay, I think I’m seeing the point,” I nodded.

“And of the good angels,” Branch continued.  “Maybe 33 percent weren’t sure who they should side with. Maybe 5 to 10 percent came awfully close to siding with Lucifer, but ultimately didn’t. Just maybe, those that bought into the being that became Satan, but didn’t rebel needed a test. Thus they became human.”

“And that’s where you lose me,” I said.

“Well, I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree,” Branch replied as he spread his arms and returned his smile to the typical half-mast.

“Agreed,” I said with a grin and offered my hand to shake.

He shook it, and to my relief gave me his new and improved smile that gave a glimpse of teeth.

“I also think we should go see Captain Kirk,” I told him and winked. “It seems we have multiple reasons.”