Chapter 58
But mine enemies are lively, and they are strong: and they that hate me wrongfully are multiplied.
—Psalm 38:19
Pastor Landris went home even madder than he was when he walked out of Reverend Walker’s office. He had called Sherry and told her to cancel any appointments he had for the day. Instead of going to the church to work, he’d opted to go back home. It didn’t take long for Johnnie Mae to discover he wasn’t at work and become worried about him.
Johnnie Mae knew he’d had an appointment with Reverend Walker. She also knew something must have gone terribly wrong if Landris had decided not to come to work and hadn’t bothered to call her to tell her what was going on. She told Angela she was going to go home for a little while as well. That only raised suspicion with anyone in the know that something was wrong, for both of them to be away from the church.
Those on staff also knew not to gossip or speculate about what might be going on. They just decided to pray that whatever was happening, God would step into the midst of the situation and take care and control of it.
When Johnnie Mae walked into their bedroom, she found her husband on his knees in front of their bed in prayer. On the bed was a large white envelope with the words Personal and Private written on it. She didn’t say anything as her husband continued to pray out loud, at times, even in the Spirit. She just quietly went and kneeled down beside him. He opened his eyes and looked at her. She began to pray along with him. He went back to his prayer.
When he’d prayed ten minutes more, Pastor Landris wound it down, ending with his customary, “In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
He got up, sat on the bed, and pulled her up—holding her gently in his arms. “What are you doing here?” he said.
“What I’m supposed to be doing, being by your side,” Johnnie Mae said.
“How did you know to come here?”
“I suppose that’s what happens when you pray. God dispatches His angels, and they begin working on your behalf. I suppose one of your angels, or perhaps it was the Holy Spirit, directed me to come home.”
He hugged her tighter, gently squeezing her before kissing the top of her hair.
“Talk to me,” Johnnie Mae said. “What’s wrong? What’s going on?”
Pastor Landris let go of her. “It was a setup. Reverend Walker and this man named William Threadgill set the whole thing up.”
“Is this about that money you wanted to talk to Reverend Walker about?”
“Yes. And when I walked in Reverend Walker’s office, there was Mister Threadgill. It turns out he’s the source of that twenty thousand dollars I received. It was bribe money or a way for him to blackmail me. I don’t know how I would label what the two of them are up to. And quite frankly, I’m not trying to find out. I told both of them I wanted no part of their scheme or any of their plans.”
Johnnie Mae shook her head. “It’s sad what’s happening these days with preachers and elected officials. Businessmen and preachers making side deals that benefit them, all in the name of the Lord. It’s sad. I don’t know whether it’s arrogance or if these preachers don’t actually believe God is going to do anything about their wrongdoing.”
“Well, I think many of them may have done something at one point and gotten away with it. They believe either God doesn’t really care about that or that God isn’t going to do anything, so they try to get, while the getting is good.” He leaned his head back, then straightened it. “And believe it or not, what’s even sadder is that some of them may actually believe what they’re doing is right. You know—the end justifies the means. They get the money, help out some of the poor along the way; they did something good with it, so that makes what they’ve done okay. I don’t know. But I know I’m not interested in getting tangled up with anything that even remotely gives the appearance of evil. I’m not doing it. Not if I can help it.”
“Okay, so you told them you weren’t interested, and then what happened?” Johnnie Mae took her husband’s hand and weaved her fingers between his.
He looked at her, raised the hand that was now one with hers, and softly kissed her hand. “You know me all too well, don’t you?”
“I know there’s more to this than you’ve told me so far. So what are they trying to do to force you into this? Because I know you gave him that money back.”
He smiled, kissing her hand once more. “They have photos of me seemingly taking the money. If I don’t agree to play along, they plan to put those photos out there and, most likely, team up together to say I knowingly took a bribe. Forget the fact that I’ve not put the money in our bank account.”
“Thank God you listened to the Holy Spirit,” Johnnie Mae said. “Anybody else would have deposited that cash if not spent some of it until they learned differently.”
“Yeah, I thank God for ordering my steps. If I had deposited that cash and then given it back, they would likely have said I’d backed out of a deal I’d originally cut with them. I’m sure the two of them, or however many of them there are, are putting their heads together right now prepared to lie and say I took the cash and got cold feet, which is why I gave it back after keeping it for a little over a week,” Pastor Landris said. “Of course, you and I know I would have given it back the following day had I been able to meet with Reverend Walker. But he was off work. And after that, he went out of town—”
“Landris, you don’t have to explain any of this to me.”
He smiled. “I suppose I’m rehearsing what I might have to say to the Feds or to someone later when they claim my story doesn’t ring true.”
“Well, God knows the truth. And He’s the one who really counts.”
“Yeah, but I don’t want my name dragged through the mud. I don’t want people believing wrong things about me,” Pastor Landris said.
Johnnie Mae laughed. “Landris, people already drag your name through the mud. They’re going to talk about you no matter what. All the good you’re doing and folks are already saying hateful things about you, about both of us. Well, they talked about Jesus.”
“You’re right. Remember in Matthew the eleventh chapter around the eleventh through the nineteenth verses when Jesus was addressing how they talked about John the Baptist as well as Himself?”
“Is that where Jesus was talking about how folks were calling Him a winebibber?”
“Yeah. People had been talking about John the Baptist, saying John came neither eating or drinking because he lived out in the wilderness and ate locust and honey. The people were saying that John had a devil. Then the Son of man came eating and drinking and the people were saying, ‘Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners.’ But then Jesus said that wisdom is justified of her children. Justified here meant vindicated. Those who followed John during his time and teaching and Jesus—their children, so to speak, or disciples as we know them—their decision to listen to this prophet called John and the Messiah named Jesus proved to be well founded. They talked about John and Jesus. Thank you for reminding me of that. I try so hard to walk in a godly way. And when people go out of their way to set you up just to bring you down for their own glorification, I confess, it deeply troubles me.”
“I know,” Johnnie Mae said. “But so far, you’ve done the right thing. You’ve prayed about it. Now you just need to listen to how the Spirit of God is leading you and walk therein.”
Pastor Landris gave his wife a quick kiss on her lips. “God must really love me,” he said. “Blessing me with someone like you.” His eyes danced as he spoke. “Oh, I have got to be God’s favorite, I don’t care what anybody else says.” He smiled.
Johnnie Mae shook her head. “I’m sorry to burst your bubble. But I’m God’s favorite. Look how He blessed me with you, our beautiful children, and the knowledge that no matter what we’re going through, God is right there with us. To know that even though the storm may be tossing the ship to and fro and it may look like we’re going to perish, Jesus is onboard. Jesus
, Who can speak to the winds and the waves and say, ‘Peace, be still.’ Jesus, calling what He desires no matter what things may look like. Teaching us not to focus on or talk about the problem, but to call forth that which we desire, to call those things that be not as though they were.”
“All right now, you’re speaking the Word up in this place. Peace, be still,” Pastor Landris said. He picked up the envelope off the bed and stood up. “Peace, be still.” He kissed Johnnie Mae again. “Have I told you that I love you lately?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Not since”—she looked up at the ceiling as though the answer were written there—“six o’clock this morning.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s almost eleven now.”
He bit down on his lips. “You’d better be glad I’m still on the clock. Otherwise—”
“Okay, Pastor. Let’s keep it holy, now.”
“Always,” Pastor Landris said. “Always. Look, the bride of my affections, I have something I need to take care of.” Pastor Landris waved in the air the envelope he’d received many years ago from Reverend Paul “Poppa” Knight with strict instruction to use if necessary. An envelope that contained enough information inside of it to totally shut Reverend Walker down, if he needed to. “Pray for me,” Pastor Landris said.
“Let the Lord order your steps,” Johnnie Mae said to the man she knew who, like David in the Bible, was a man after God’s own heart, as he strolled out of the bedroom.
Pastor Landris turned back to look at her. “Always,” he said, blowing her a kiss. “Always.”
Chapter 59
And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
—Galatians 6:9
Angela and Gramps got Clarence to sign him out of the nursing home once more, the Saturday after their failed attempt to see Arletha on Thursday. Angela had tried calling Arletha on Friday to talk some sense into her. But Arletha was refusing to answer the phone—punishment to Angela for trying to carry out a stunt like bringing someone to her home when they hadn’t fully discussed it first. Arletha had called Angela at home and left a message on her answering machine, letting her know that she had indeed heard her phone ringing and that she wasn’t answering it on purpose.
Angela knew Arletha could be stubborn when she wanted to be. But she also knew she would never leave her and the children to stand outside and not open her door if the children were with her. So she decided to get Gramps, have him sit out in the car until she could talk to her grandmother, and she would work some plan to bring the two of them together, at least to talk.
Angela had Brent the Second stand where Arletha could see him and know she had the children with her. She rang the doorbell that she’d finally talked Arletha into having installed, since knocking wasn’t always loud enough for her to hear when she was in certain rooms. After Angela rang the doorbell again, she peeked inside to make sure, if Arletha was spying her out, she would also see Shaun in her arms. Shaun had Arletha wrapped around his little finger. Shaun waved as his mother instructed him to do.
Arletha opened the door with a grin.
“I’m sorry. Okay?” Angela said. “I know how you are, and it was wrong of me to have tried bringing someone to your house to see you without us discussing it first or at least giving you more information.”
“Hey, Great-granny,” Brent the Second said. “Give me five.”
Arletha gently slapped his awaiting palm with her hand. “All right!” they said in unison—something the two of them liked to do. She hugged him, then kissed him on his forehead.
“Hi there, Shaun,” Arletha said. He immediately reached for her. “Look at you. You missed Great-grand, didn’t you? Give me some sugar.” She took him. He puckered up in an overexaggerated way and pressed his little lips hard against her cheek while the two of them made their usual “Mmmm-muh!” sound together.
“Grand, you’re not going to speak to me?” Angela said.
“Did I not speak to you? Oh, I’m sorry,” Arletha said, barely looking at her.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I had good intentions,” Angela said after she closed the door and began to trail behind Arletha, who was carrying Shaun and holding on to Brent the Second’s hand as they headed for the kitchen.
“Who wants chocolate milk?” Arletha asked.
“Me,” Brent the Second said, raising his hand in the air and waving it frantically.
“Grand, are you listening to me?” Angela said.
“Of course. You were wrong, and I agree.” Arletha took down the plastic, cartoon-laced cups she’d bought especially for them. The one for Shaun had the extra piece to help him with learning to drink from a cup without spilling liquid everywhere. “You’ve been acting strangely these past two weeks. When I ask you what’s going on, you don’t want to tell me. Well, the other day, I didn’t want you just stopping by and bringing someone, a surprise or not, to my home without me knowing what was going on. It’s as simple as that.”
“Okay, I was trying to surprise you. That backfired royally. I confess, I thought I was doing something that you would be happy about later, but clearly I miscalculated. I brought Ransom Perdue here. And I felt bad having that ninety-nine-year-old man standing out there while I beat on your door only for you to pretend you weren’t in here.”
“You had Ransom Perdue with you?” Arletha tilted her head slightly to the side. “He was here in Birmingham?”
“Yes.”
“Well, why didn’t you tell me that? Wasn’t he an old friend of Mother’s?” Arletha said, referring to her mother, Pearl. “She wrote something about him in that journal—” Arletha stopped for a second. “Is that why you wanted that journal? You were trying to locate him, and you did. Then you brought him by here, and I had the poor man standing outside. I’m so sorry,” she said. “But you should have told me you were bringing an old friend of my mother’s over here. I would have let you in even if I didn’t want to be bothered with company. How old did you say he is? Ninety-nine?”
“In fact, he’ll be turning one hundred on November fourth, with a birthday party being held for him by his family on November the seventh. He’s invited all of us to come—me, Brent, the boys . . . and you. His whole family is going to be there,” Angela said, trying to figure out how to go about this whole thing now. “It’s going to be here in Birmingham . . . at my church.”
“Oh, I don’t really care about his family. But I still would have liked to have met him. So, he’s in Birmingham. Well, maybe you can arrange to bring him over again one day soon.”
“He’s in my car right now.”
“What?” Arletha said, shoving a hand in her waist. “You left a one-hundred-year-old man out in the car by himself? What are you thinking?”
“Grand, he’s a grown man.”
“Yeah, but you have to treat older people, especially when they get up to that age, like they’re children. What if he has Alzheimer’s and he’s wandered off? You know his family will blame you. Go out there and get that man. And I pray that he’s still out there, and that he’s all right.” Arletha started fanning herself with her hand. “Goodness gracious, you young folk just don’t think things through. What on earth were you thinking? Leaving an elderly man that you hardly know out in a car by himself.”
Angela smiled as she hurried outside to her car. “We’re all set,” she said to Gramps with a big grin when she reached him.
“So . . . what all did you tell her?”
“Just your name and that you were sitting out here in my car.”
“All right. I’ll take it from here.” He stood up straight and started up the porch.
Chapter 60
And the people said unto Joshua, The Lord our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
—Joshua 24:24
Sunday morning Gabrielle arose to heavy bass almost shaking her room with hardcore hip-hop music. She scrambled out of bed, threw on her robe, and ran to find the source of the sou
nd.
“Hey, Cousin! What it is?” Jesse said as soon as she burst through the door of the room where he was staying.
“Turn that mess off!” she yelled.
“I’ll turn it down,” he said, pointing a remote control toward the massive stereo system with four-foot, black speakers flanking each side.
“Turn it off!” she yelled again. He complied. “What is wrong with you?” she asked in a quieter voice.
“I just bought it last night, and I was trying it out. My bad. I suppose I should have thought about what time it was. But when you’ve been out partying all night and you haven’t slept and you’re already up, I guess you don’t think straight. I’ll wait until everybody is up and try it out later.”
She smelled bacon coming from the kitchen. She left Jesse and followed her nose.
“Good morning,” Aunt Cee-Cee said. “I see you’re up and at ’em bright and early.”
“That’s because Jesse thought it was a great idea to try to see if he can’t demolish the house merely using sound waves. Didn’t you just hear all that noise blasting?” Gabrielle said.
“Oh, Jesse just bought that thing last night. He didn’t mean any harm. It’s a three-thousand-dollar system, and he wanted to try it out to make sure everything is working right with it.”
“Three thousand dollars?” Gabrielle said.
“Yeah.”
“Did he buy the thing hot?” Gabrielle asked, trying to find out if it was stolen, thereby making him, and possibly her, an accessory to a crime.
“Heavens, no. Jesse knows I don’t play that. Sure everybody likes buying something cheap, but karma will come back and bite you. You likely call it reaping what you sow. You buy something stolen, and someone will steal your stuff and sell it to someone else cheap. Trust me: that’s not a great feeling at all. No, Jesse paid cold hard cash for that mammoth of a thing. I’ll have to go see it, now that he’s put it together.”
The Truth Is the Light Page 25