XLIII

MAN THAT IS BORN OF A WOMAN IS OF FEW DAYS, AND FULL OF TROUBLE

JOB 14:1

SEVEN SALLIE (FATHER OF SEVENIA SALLIE GIRL PROPHETESS)

My heart pounded as I peered through the back side of the two way mirror that was between my bedroom and my study room. My daughter and brother settled into chairs. It felt illicit eavesdropping on them. But I simply wanted to know what they would be talking about.

Sevenia had changed out of a fairly form fitting sundress into her usual uniform. A long denim skirt and a light green t shirt that declared that life was good. The color went well with her auburn hair.

“Before we get started, I want to set the record straight,” Six said.

“What record needs straightened?” Sevenia asked innocently.

“Well,” Six sighed. “I was ashamed when it became public knowledge that I allowed my wife to fool around with other men. I’m doubly ashamed that someone like you knows about it.”

“Why me?” She frowned.

“Because you’re sweet and wholesome, and how we lived was, well, strange to most people. And I just wanted you to know that for years I realized this and longed for monogamy with Charley. In the beginning I was head over heels for her. She was such a free spirit. The only way I could have her was to not have her.”

“I’ve always thought that term was counterproductive,” Sevenia said.

“What term?”

“Free spirit.”

“How so?”

“Because it’s not true. We need God’s spirit, the Holy Spirit. A supposedly free spirit would be a Godless spirit, and ultimately a lost spirit that would burn out like a flame. Even if to human reasoning, a free spirited person seems wild and fun. From my viewpoint, not being willing to be monogamous with your spouse is selfish.”

Six nodded and bowed his head. I felt a sneeze coming on and quickly stepped from the closet. After a half dozen sneezes, I blew my nose and returned to my lookout post. I wasn’t gone but a minute or two, so I couldn’t have missed much, but I did.”

“You don’t understand, little girl,” my brother barked.

“Uncle Six, you just admitted your lifestyle was wrong.”

“How dare you judge my wife?”

“I didn’t judge her, you asked my opinion.”

“But you basically said she was lost.”

“I talked to Aunt Charley numerous times about Christ and she pretty much laughed me off,” Sevenia replied. “It was like when Felix said when he had a convenient season.” (Acts 24:25)

“Who’s Felix?” My brother scowled.

“Never mind,” Sevenia replied. “The point is, she wasn’t interested.”

“Why should we be interested? Look at this planet. Where’s is a God in this diabolical world?”

“Why should we?” my daughter inquired with a frown. “I thought Salena made you interested in the Bible.”

“She did, but I lost that interest.”

I felt another sneeze come one and had to flee the closet again. This time I sneezed a dozen times. Maybe I should dust my closet. There was also a high pollen count, so I went to find an allergy pill. I lost at least five minutes of conversation. When I returned to my spy spot, Six was complaining about traffic of all things.

“It always amazed me when I was driving a big rig truck,” Six was saying. “There’s almost always somebody in the city getting on the freeway. And more than half the time you get over for them, and they don’t speed up or slow down so you can get back over. Like yeah, I wanted to stay over in the fast lane and bottle neck traffic. Thanks for dissing me after I showed you a courtesy. People can’t even put their phones down driving in heavy traffic.”

“I for one don’t touch my phone when driving,” my daughter said with a cautious, forlorn expression.

“Good girl,” Six replied. “So your dad never told you we were truck driving colleagues at that food distribution company?”

“No, he did. He just didn’t mention you much.”

“Yeah, he probably wouldn’t have,” he said with a heavy sigh as he leaned back in his chair and looked utterly exhausted. He folded his arms and sighed again. “I only worked there a year before I went into the death business. You know I got your dad on there. I mean at the food warehouse. I think he stayed two or three years, but our time overlapped together only a month or two. I loved it when he used to talk traffic on his podcast.”

“I hated it!” my daughter replied emphatically. I felt rebuked by my little girl, albeit in secret.

“Really? I thought he made great points.”

I felt myself smile at what I felt was a compliment from my brother. Then my daughter’s reply, not only made me frown in consternation, but feel small and shamed..

“Yes, I hated it,” she repeated. “All of the times he referred to the human beings Christ died for as demonic entities out to annoy. I mean a lot of them were simply sweet little old ladies, or heroic old gentleman who probably preserved our freedom during WWII. Being impatient with people in traffic is a YOU problem. It’s no secret even to secular humanists that people are incredibly flawed.  Just say a little prayer when dealing with traffic.”

“Yeah,” my brother replied dumbly with a stunned look on his face.

“Okay,” Sevenia said brightly. “Are you ready to crack open the Word of God.”

“Yeah, right,” Six chuckled tiredly.

“Yeah, right, what?” she frowned.

“I mean you Bible thumpers calling it the word of God.”

“What do you think it is?”

“I don’t know. That’s what I want you to help me figure out.”

“Well, it’s the inspired word of God,” she said with a patient smile, but roughly ran her hands through her ruffled hair.

“Inspired by who?” Six taunted. “Fallen men like David. A man who not only committed adultery, but had the husband killed so he could have his wife? Didn’t he write most of the psalms?”

“He did,” Sevenia replied calmly. “But he repented of his terrible sins. Therefore, many of his psalms teach us how to repent. That’s a good thing!”

“I guess so,” Six said, and then yawned. “But that’s why  when the rubber meets the road, I don’t see my wife and I’s arrangement as that big of a deal.”

“Really?” my daughter asked calmly, and with pure sympathy in her countenance. “But didn’t it actually end in murder?”

Six stared at Sevenia with a stunned expression. Then he sighed heavily and slumped forward.

“Uncle Six, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

“No, you did nothing wrong,” he replied quietly as he held up a hand. “But I am so tired on many levels. I’m sorry, but I don’t feel like studying right now. This world is so diabolically twisted. I mean why were we born to live a difficult life, tempted with so called sin, and then not only to die, but according to you all, die in hellfire.”

“Hell is an event, kind of like Noah’s flood,” Sevenia replied calmly. “But in the future, I believe the near future, God’s going to create a new heaven and a new earth wherein dwells righteousness.”

“But why this mess now?” Six barked. “I don’t get the existence of evil in the first place!”

My stellar daughter remained so amazingly calm, despite the trauma she herself had recently experienced herself in the previous weeks and months. “Uncle Six, this book might help you understand your mindset.”

“Wow,” Six said as he looked at the book my daughter handed him, ‘A Star Fell From Heaven.’ It was about the origin of sin and the remedy thereof, written by Captain Kirk. AKA Pastor Kirk Samson “This is like deja vu.”

“What do you mean?” Sevenia said.

“Brock tried to give me this book a few years ago, and I refused it.” he replied. “Your dad also offered me this same book, and I refused it. Is this 3^rd time’s a charm or 3 strikes you’re out?”

“You’re looking at God all wrong, Uncle Six,” my brilliant daughter replied.

“How’s that?”

“God is all about an honest, pure, loving relationship,” my beautiful Sevenia replied with a sweet smile a father couldn’t resist. “Of commandment keeping people. Ecclesiastes tells us. Let us hear the whole conclusion of the matter. Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. (12:13). Yet obedience needs to be out of love of the purest kind. God is seeking us, but we’re the ones running from Him.”

“We’re running from Him?” my twin brother asked with an incredulous laugh. “You’re the purest human being I’ve ever seen. So if you’re running from God, dear girl. I’m in a top fuel dragster!”