by Pam Funke
“No, Abdul! Not until you say you are sorry and do whatever it is that needs to be done to go to Heaven and do it now!” shouted Chaim.
Chaim was very afraid, but Abdul did not know why. He also didn’t know why Chaim appeared to believe Sara. They weren’t raised to believe the way she did. His parents would have a fit if they knew, but Chaim didn’t care. He desperately wanted to go to Heaven and be with a loving God the way that Sara had described it to him.
“Thank you, Chaim. All you need to do is repeat the prayer that I will recite for you. You must mean it and believe it in your heart. Trust me, God will know if you don’t. Oh, heavenly most gracious God, I am truly sorry for not believing in You. I believe in You now. I know that your precious Son, Jesus Christ, died on the cross for our sins and rose up on the third day and sits forever on the right hand of God. I also know He did this so that we may enjoy life with You forever. I believe it with all my heart. I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I’m so sorry it took me so long to trust in You. Forgive me of all my sins and help me to live my life serving You and worshipping You. Use me, Lord, to do your will. Let thy will be done in all that I do. Thank you for being a loving and forgiving God. Thank you for giving me a second chance. May all my actions, thoughts, and words be acceptable in thy sight. In Jesus’ holy name. Amen. Amen. Amen,” Sara prayed out loud.
She was silently hoping that her friends had repeated the prayer and added whatever their soul felt to add. She was almost too afraid to look and see what it was that they were doing. But she wanted them to do this for themselves and not for her.
Chaim grabbed his brother’s hand and squeezed. Abdul just stared at his brother while Chaim prayed the prayer Sara was reciting out loud. As Abdul watched a peace seemed to come over Chaim. He couldn’t believe it. Growing up in the Middle East had been hard, scary and terrifying. But Chaim no longer looked terrified as he had only moments ago.
“What is this?” Abdul wondered.
Abdul felt uneasy; something was really wrong, but he knew not what. All he knew was that he wanted the peace his brother seemed to have. He finally made up his mind then prayed the prayer Sara had recited. An incredible peace washed over him, but it was more than that. Abdul felt an incredible love that he had never felt before. He was incredibly happy.
Sara slowly opened her eyes. The thing she had seen in the sky was still rapidly approaching. It’s a lot closer now. Sara knew that they only had a few minutes left if it was what she thought it was. She seriously hoped it was not a missile coming towards them. She sighed. She looked over at her friends and realized that something was different with them.
“Thanks, Sara. I prayed with you like you said. I feel so different now. Like this great weight has been lifted off of me. I have never felt like this before!” exclaimed Chaim.
“I prayed as well. Thank you,” said Abdul. This feels incredible. How could we have been wrong for so long? How could our parents have been so wrong? We’ve got to rush home and tell them all about it. Wait, will they even listen to us? What if they disown us? Abdul was a little sad.
Sara looked over at her best friend, Ahmad. He seemed like his old self still. She slowly shook her head deeply saddened. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.
“Oh Ahmad, are you really that stubborn?” Sara asked, tears streaming down her face. Her heart was heavy.
“Sara, I am not being stubborn. I just do not know about all this stuff that you were trying to shove down my throat. What is wrong with my god? Why is it that it is only your God’s way or no way? My god has always taken care of me before. He will take care of me now.”
Sara started to say something, but just couldn’t find the words to say. Her heart felt as though it was in the middle of her throat. Her heart was so heavy. She felt like Ahmad was not just rejecting God and Jesus, but her as well. She didn’t know how to handle this. Only God can help you now Ahmad. Oh Lord, I have failed you.
“I am sorry, Sara. I just cannot accept this right now. I need to go somewhere by myself and think about this,” said Ahmad turning away from his friends.
“Lord, please do not let anything happen to Ahmad. He’s thinking about making the decision to come to you. You know his heart. Please give him the chance to. Please help his unbelief,” Sara prayed.
The three of them watched Ahmad walk away. They each prayed for him silently. Should they go after Ahmad? Abdul and Chaim looked at Sara pleadingly.
Sara slowly shook her head, “No, he has to make the decision on his own. We can’t force him to believe. It has to be his choice.”
“Is that a missile coming towards us, Sara?” Chaim whispered.
Abdul looked at his brother shocked. “What on earth are you talking about?” Abdul asked.
Chaim pointed towards the thing in the sky. Fear crept across Abdul’s face. So that is what has Chaim so spooked. What do we do? Where are we supposed to go?
CHAPTER sixty
A group of kids nearby were listening to what Sara was saying. What she said really made a whole lot of sense to them. They had heard about God and Jesus before, but had been afraid to ask anyone about them—Christianity is frowned upon in this country. Besides, most of the kids here were either Muslim or Jewish. Neither of these groups would listen to anything that had to do with Jesus, so they had just kept it to themselves. When they heard Sara mention God and Jesus they had walked closer to listen. They each prayed the prayer she had recited. They were so glad that they had. They also prayed for Ahmad. He was one lost kid. They hoped someone would reach him.
Someone touched Sara’s arm gently. She turned around quickly a little frightened. There were a group of kids, whom she had never seen before, standing behind her. The leader of the group, a straggly girl, had touched Sara’s arm.
“We wanted to thank you just now. The prayer helped all of us. Thank you. I am sorry for your friend. We prayed for him as well,” said the girl shyly.
Sara was glad to have helped these kids as well as some of her friends; she only wished that she could have helped Ahmad. Although she knew that she shouldn’t, she turned and ran after her friend.
“Ahmad? Ahmad?” Sara called running after her friend.
Chaim and Abdul stood silently watching the missile grow closer. They were both very much afraid. They weren’t so much afraid of dying, but the pain associated with dying. They knew where they were going after this life and were very anxious to see Jesus’ face.
Abdul hugged his brother fiercely and smiled. “I love you, Chaim. Today we will be with Jesus together.”
“I know. It’s not that Abdul. Unfortunately, we never got the chance to tell mom and dad. Now we will never see them again,” Chaim replied.
“I know. Maybe someone was able to tell them. There is still a chance that we will see them in heaven. Don’t give up, Chaim.”
“Let’s be realistic Abdul. They will never listen to any of this. You know I’m right. I am going to miss…,” Chaim was saying when there was a brilliant flash of light and all was deathly quiet.
The missiles struck their targets with precision. None of the students or anyone else in Haifa had had a chance. No one in a ten mile radius had a chance of surviving the missile blasts. Windows shattered and blew out as massive walls collapsed. Nearby vehicles exploded. The intense heat destroyed everything that tried to survive the blast. Whatever did survive would soon be covered in the BTX spores floating gently to the ground. No one would survive the BTX. It was deathly quiet now. Sara had been unable to catch up with Ahmad before the blast.
****
The man slowly walked through the wreckage. Tears slowly ran down his face. His heart was extremely heavy. He was deeply saddened by the loss of so many. It hurt him to know that so many had died without choosing Christ. It was too late for them now. He glanced back at what was left of the city and then he was gone.
****
Ahmad felt strange; he had seen a brilliant flash and a loud whistling sound. Som
ething hard hit him and he was knocked unconscious.
Fifteen minutes after the missile strike on Haifa, Israel, Ahmad was finally coming to. His ears were ringing and he felt kind of numb. He was lying in the street.
“What happened?” he wondered.
There was a pungent smell in the air as he wrinkled his nose. He slowly opened his eyes a little. The sky looked kind of smoky and something strange-looking was floating to the ground. It kind of looks like those fluffy seed things you see in the Spring. It is so quiet. No noises at all; not even a bird chirping. It was really eerie. What’s going on? Where is everyone?
The dust was finally settling. Ahmad was still trying to figure out where he was. He tried to move and pure pain shot up through his leg and his lower abdomen. He felt terrible.
“Sara? Chaim? Abdul?” he called out weakly to his friends.
There was no answer. He opened his eyes fully and looked around himself. He felt extremely light-headed and nauseous. He quickly shut his eyes again. It was horrible. Just out of reach, he had seen a body lying in a pool of blood….unmoving. In the other direction, he had seen more bodies. Although Ahmad was terrified, he knew he had to open his eyes in order to figure out what was wrong with himself. What happened? Regardless of what it was, this proves Sara was wrong. Allah has saved me again. But why do I hurt so badly?
Slowly Ahmad opened his eyes. He glanced down toward his feet and was horrified by what he saw. Ahmad instantly knew that he wasn’t going to make it. There was a large piece of metal protruding out of an open wound in his abdomen. No wonder his legs and stomach area had hurt when he tried to move his legs. Ahmad was surprised he was still alive at all. He was dying slowly and he knew it. Ahmad rested his head back down on the pavement and closed his eyes. Where are you, Allah? Why did you save me just to allow me to die slowly and in so much pain? Why have you left me all alone? A single tear ran down his cheek. His god was not going to save him after all. He wondered where his friends were and if his family were alright. He hoped they were. He felt scared and all alone. Where is everyone? Surely the medics and firefighters will find me soon. I really do not want to die.
“Why am I still here?” he asked no one. “Why!” he cried, tears streaming down his face. He was scared and in a great deal of pain.
“You have been given one last chance,” said a voice.
Ahmad opened his eyes and saw the man from before standing over him looking down at him sadly.
“The last chance for what?” Ahmad asked the man.
“Your friends all prayed that you be given another chance to pray and receive your salvation. This is the last chance that you will be given. You will run out of breath soon.”
“Sara and them prayed for me? Why? Where are they?”
“They are with the living God forever more.”
Was Sara right about everything? Perhaps I was wrong. How could I have been wrong? Ahmad’s god had not taken care of him like he thought. If he had he would not be here dying alone. In fact, he would not be dying period.
“You are not alone,” the man said. He reached down and wiped the tear away.
Maybe Sara’s God really was the only way. He figured that it could not much hurt him now to believe; what did he have to lose?
“Now how did that prayer Sara said go? Hmmm. Oh yeah, are you there God of Israel?. It is me, Ahmad Caspi. I am not sure how to pray to You so please forgive me if I do not say this quite right. I believe in You. I believe that You sent your Son to die for me. Please forgive me for being so stubborn and denying You for so long. I am truly sorry. I accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Please forgive me of all my sins. I wish to give honor and glory to You, the one true God. Please save my soul. Thank you. Amen.”
The stranger smiled down at Ahmad, “Your sins have been forgiven you. Today you will be with the Master in heaven.”
Ahmad no longer felt alone. The man held his hand for a moment.
“All will be well with you,” he said and then he was gone.
Ahmad felt strangely comforted. He had never felt quite like this before. It was almost euphoric. He was no longer felt any pain; he felt was entirely at peace. It no longer mattered that his life was slowly draining away. His father would have said Ahmad was delirious, but he was not. He was just high on God and enjoying every minute of it. Ahmad looked up at the sky. He stared through an opening in the smoke at the beautiful sky. There were pretty white fluffy clouds floating by. It is amazing that there is still beauty in the world after what just happened. He wondered what it was going to be like in Heaven. As he stared through the opening in the smoke, he saw a very beautiful vision of heaven. He saw his friends smiling and running towards him with their arms outstretched. He saw a man walking behind them glowing with glorious light and smiling. It’s so beautiful. If only my parents could see this! How wrong they had been. I wonder if they know the one true God. Ahmad smiled as he breathed his last breath. He was finally going home.
CHAPTER sixty-one
Present time in the situation room
“Okay everyone, quiet down. Let’s watch this breaking news flash. I want to hear what they have to say,” Nicolaitanes said turning up the volume on one of the flat screens. He leaned forward in his chair; a smile spread across his face. This ought to be good.
“It is 0940 hours in the morning here in Haifa, Israel, where only moments ago missiles rocketed overhead targeting the city. As you can see, not much is left of Haifa. We still have no clue as to who did this horrible thing or why. No one has come forward to claim responsibility as of yet. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is currently meeting with parliament to discuss retaliation. The people of Israel are currently dismayed by what has happened here. Who would do such a thing, the people want to know? How could God allow such a thing to happen here? Why did He not protect them? Others are blaming God for what has happened. I will keep you updated as we find out more about this devastating tragedy. This is Gage Cameron of ICNN news.”
“Not very informative, is it?” said Nicolaitanes pressing his fingertips together.
“I am surprised that they were able to get a broadcast out so quickly,” said Richard.
“Some will do anything to report the news, my friend. Even risk their own lives,” Nicolaitanes replied.
CHAPTER sixty-two
Gage gathered his things together as he thought of ways to investigate what had happened. He knew the Israeli government would not allow the whole truth about the investigation to be broadcast globally. Israelis are very private people. He sent his camera man back to the hotel; he refused to put Byron in any danger. He knew Byron’s wife would kill Gage if he did not return home with Byron safely. Although he did not dislike Karin, he could not understand the closeness of their marriage. It was nothing like his marriage had been to Carol. He was almost jealous.
“Sure. Goodnight Gage. Don’t stay out too late,” Byron said as he placed his things into the truck. “I hope you find whatever you’re going out to look for.”
“Thanks, Byron, I will. See you later.”
Byron got in the truck and headed back to the hotel. He knew better than to hang around when Gage specifically wanted to be alone. He’d made the mistake of not leaving once and Gage had literally had a hissy fit. Besides, he was looking forward to a hot shower and a good meal.
Gage slung his bag over his shoulder and picked up the TV camera. He was not sure where exactly that he needed to go, but he decided he would start by looking through the rubble. He started walking towards what used to be the University of Haifa.
“My God, there is nothing left. All the young people…they are gone. Everyone is gone,” sighed Gage shifting through a pile of rubble.
Dust flew everywhere as he silently searched through the pile. Gage stopped for a moment to tie his handkerchief over his nose and mouth. Gage was not sure what he was looking for, but he knew that he had to look. He could not imagine how those people had felt when they realized that they were going to die. How could
they have possibly felt? How would he have felt? Would he have cared? Did he care now? Would he have thought about his family and friends?
“You need not worry about them,” a voice said startling Gage.
“Wh…..wh…..who said that? Is anyone there?” asked Gage honestly hoping no one would answer.
“You do not have to be afraid. The answers you seek are not here,” the voice said again.
“Who are you? Better yet, where are you?”
“It does not matter where I am, what does matter is that you are in grave danger if you stay here. There are those who wish that you not find the answers to what you are seeking. Ask and you will know; seek and you will find. Beware of the one who claims world peace, but seeks calamity and war in secret. He is like a lion prowling the earth seeking whom he may devour,” the voice said urgently.
“Okay, why should I believe you? I cannot even see you for Pete’s sake. You tell me that I am in danger, but do not tell me from who. Then you tell me to ask and I will know, seek and I will find. Ask what? Seek what? What is it that I need to know and find? Beware of whom? I do not know what you are talking about!”
“I am who I am. I speak only the truth. I am always with you. Seek out the truth and tell only the truth,” the voice said fading away.
“Hey wait! I still don’t know who you are. Where should I go that is safe? What do you mean you are always with me?”
“There is only one place where you will be safe. Remember seek and you will find,” and then the voice was gone.
“I wonder what that was all about.”
Gage shifted through the pile a minute longer. He stopped and looked around him. As far as he could tell, he was alone. He shook his head as a shiver ran down his spine.
“What in the world was he talking about? I really don’t know…but I do know one thing, the man was right about being in Israel. It is really dangerous here, I can feel it. Perhaps we should go back to New York though I do want to know what happened here and why,” Gage said as he headed back to their other rental car.