by Dijorn Moss
Chapter Twenty-one
Quincy took a bite of his grain muffin and one gulp of his orange juice. He was not much of a breakfast person, but the cafeteria gave him ample opportunity to study the interactions of his brethren. Today would be a day full of workshops and interactions with the ministers. This was his best chance to expose Minister Hypocrite.
As fate would have it, Quincy would get an opportunity to talk with Pastor Dawkins face-to-face. Pastor Dawkins entered the room with his entourage and Will. The group made their way through the breakfast station.
“They have a much better selection this year than the year before.” Jamal had just returned from grabbing his breakfast, and took a seat next to Quincy.
“What do you think is the story with Will?” Quincy asked.
Jamal shrugged. “I know too many people like Will in the hood. They consider making it to twenty-one an achievement. I just hope that this weekend sinks in for him and he makes a change for the better.”
“Do you buy the story that he helped Chauncey with car troubles?” Quincy asked.
“Who knows? I wouldn’t put it past Chauncey to invite the Easter Bunny to church.” Jamal’s statement caused both men to laugh.
“Good morning, brethren.” Chauncey arrived at the table with a plate of food.
“Speaking of the devil,” Quincy said.
Chauncey sat down and began to add salt and pepper to his scrambled eggs. He barely got two bites in before his cell phone rang. After a brief pause, Chauncey pressed a button before turning his cell phone off and putting it back in his pocket.
“Who was that?” Jamal asked.
“My brother,” Chauncey replied before scooping some eggs into his mouth.
“I didn’t know you had a brother,” Jamal said.
“That’s because he ain’t saved and I would rather not talk about him.”
“But he’s your brother. It shouldn’t matter if he’s saved or not,” Quincy replied.
“Gentlemen, do you mind if I sit with you?” Pastor Dawkins arrived with his armor bearers and Will.
“Oh, of course we don’t mind, Pastor.” Chauncey got up and started to pull chairs from a nearby empty table. Pastor Dawkins took a seat along with Will and the entourage.
After a brief prayer, everyone resumed eating. Quincy could not have set up this situation any better. He had the pastor sitting across from him at the breakfast table.
“Let me ask you something, Pastor.” Quincy waited for Pastor Dawkins to give him the nod to proceed. “Why do you think Christianity is on such a decline?”
“I don’t.” Pastor Dawkins put his fist over his mouth to cough. “I just think more people desire Christ and less religion.”
“You don’t think the hypocrisy in the church has anything to do with it?” Quincy asked.
“Give an example?” Pastor Dawkins asked.
Quincy thought Pastor Dawkins would never ask. “Well, the Bible talks about the husband being the head, but when you go to church it seems like more emphasis is put on the pastor being the head.”
“The pastor is the spiritual head of the church,” Chauncey said as he gave Pastor Dawkins a wink.
“I know that, but the pastor is projected as the perfect man, and women feel utter contempt to have to go home with their less-than-perfect husbands.”
Quincy generated a bunch of stares from around the table, particularly from Jamal. Of everyone at the table, Jamal was the only one who knew that Quincy’s questions were related to his current situation with Karen.
“I agree with you, Brother Page, and that’s why I’ve never tried to project myself as perfect. That is also why I’ve encouraged women who are having problems with their marriages to try to use more love and less judgment.”
“Yeah, but, Pastor, you have a bunch of women lined up outside your office on Sunday mornings. I mean, that is some influence; you must be tempted.”
“No, because it would cost too much for me to take advantage of the sisters at the church.”
“Brother Page, you have to let Pastor eat so he can be ready for the workshops today,” one of Pastor Dawkins’s armor bearers said.
Quincy was not satisfied with Pastor Dawkins’s answers. The pastor still could be Karen’s lover. The thought alone made Quincy lose his appetite.
“I’ll see you guys at the workshop.” Quincy placed his napkin over his food and left the table.
He did not even bother to respond to the farewells from the table. Quincy made his way up the walkway toward the conference room. He felt the sun pierce through the sliding glass windows and the sun’s rays heat his legs. This workshop would be pointless if Quincy did not get answers.
Minister Perkins walked into the conference room with his hands full of copies. He also had a Bible in his hands.
“Good morning, Brother Page,” Minister Perkins greeted him.
“Good morning, Minister Perkins.”
Minster Perkins had a smug look on his face that made Quincy want to break his nose just for the sport of it. The dark-skinned brother with the fake green eyes had on a Lord’s Gym shirt with Samson pushing away from the pillars.
“How’s your wife?” Minister Perkins asked.
That was a dead giveaway.
“She’s fine. She told me to tell you hello.”
Quincy noticed the awkward look on his face, which was a telltale sign.
He scrambled for an appropriate response. “Well, tell her I said hello.”
“Why don’t you tell her yourself?” Quincy got up and walked toward Minister Perkins. “By the way, do you know what A-MOG stands for?”
“I don’t,” Minister Perkins said curiously.
“Of course you don’t. You’re just an innocent little church boy,” Quincy said.
Quincy got within striking distance. He was one word away from unleashing a merciless assault on the good minister. He just needed a little bit more confirmation. “You know, don’t you?”
“I know about what?” Minister Perkins replied, confused.
“My wife.”
Several of the brothers interrupted the standoff by entering the room with laughter and meaningless chatter. Quincy embraced the missed opportunity and backed away from Minister Perkins. He savored the awkward look on the minister’s face.
“Praise the Lord,” Minister Perkins said, relieved to see the brothers.
Quincy took a seat as Minster Perkins handed out copies of a workshop pamphlet called “Fight for Your Marriage.” Minister Perkins always bragged about being successfully married. That all could have been just a front; Quincy found it hard to believe anyone was that happy in his marriage. Quincy did not see a reason to continue to fight for something that was already dead. The problem with most marriages was that either people married for superficial reasons or they married out of convenience. In essence, Quincy had more respect for two adults who had come to grips with the fact that their love had had a good run, but it was time to go their separate ways.
“When you think about marriage, you have to be honest here. Marriage is a lot of hard work,” Minister Perkins said.
The men started to agree.
“We are constantly at battle. We’re constantly at war. Our flesh craves attention and, honestly, our wives are not always willing to satisfy our cravings.” Minister Perkins started to bounce around like he normally did when he got excited.
Quincy could not believe that he would have the nerve to talk so boldly about his lustful desires and dissatisfaction in a marriage.
Minister Perkins pointed down toward his private. “This piece right here; the Bible is clear that there can be no perversion of this piece right here.”
Minister Perkins paused to let the shock from the guys in the room disappear.
“That’s why when the scripture talks about putting on the whole armor of God, the first thing you are to put on is a belt to hold your pants up. Christian men should never be caught with their pants down. We have to cut off the
door of infidelity and fornication.”
Quincy got a kick out of Christians who talked big, but failed to live up to their own standards. This added to the list of reasons why Quincy was not as committed to church as he used to be.
“If we can be honest with ourselves, then we would admit that sometimes our coworkers make us feel more appreciated than our wives do.”
Minster Perkins had everyone’s attention except for Quincy’s. Despite all of Karen’s faults, Quincy never felt unappreciated by her.
“How do we fight for something when we are constantly questioning our value and worth?”
Most of the men, now, had quizzical looks on their faces.
“The answer is that we remember the sacrifices our wives made to be with us.”
Minister Perkins’s question prompted a brother to raise his hand. Quincy remembered seeing the guy at a Super Bowl gathering at the church. He believed his name was Theo, Theo Garrett, and he usually had a joyful disposition, but not today. Today he seemed perplexed.
“Brother Garrett, you do not have to raise your hand. Go ahead and say what’s on your mind,” Minister Perkins said.
“I hear what you’re saying, but what do you do when you feel like you’re getting abused at home? Now see, my wife, she ain’t giving me no loving at home. She talks about me like a dog. What should I do?”
Quincy thought the prescription required him to develop a backbone. He refused to let a woman talk to him any old kind of way when he paid the bills.
“Brother Garrett, may I ask, how do you treat your wife?” Minister Perkins asked.
“I treat her according to the Bible. I remind her that I’m the head, and she went along with it until I lost my job. Now she talks to me like I’m a joke.”
Brother Garrett’s comments seemed to strike a chord with the married men. When a man hits rock bottom is when he can no longer walk with his head held high in his own home. Quincy understood this concept too well. A man could take on the world so long as he felt like a champion in his own home. When a woman takes that away, she’s dealt a deadly blow to his manhood.
“Brother Garrett brings up an issue that a lot of men struggle with. How do we maintain being the head of our home when our circumstances change, like losing a job? Losing a job is devastating for a man because we take pride in our work.”
James stood up. Quincy barely knew James, but what he did know, he liked. He was a little bit lighter than Quincy, with a similar build.
“Brother Garrett, I just want to say that I feel you,” James stated. “I know what you’re going through. I’ve been there and I’m telling you that no matter how frustrating it may be at home, don’t lose faith. You can call me up anytime, because unlike you, I didn’t have a brother to call on for help. My wife used to say a lot of negative things, and I got so mad at her one time that I hit her, and I continued to hit her until I lost feeling in my arms.” James paused for a moment to regain control of his emotions. His eyes were closed and one could only speculate that the images of his actions were more horrific than what he described. Tears escaped his eyes. “I nearly killed her, man. I nearly killed her. I swore to her that I would never hurt her and here I was praying that she would die. I just didn’t feel like a man, and I wanted to get my manhood back even if I had to take it by force.”
The room was silent and the air was thick. Even Brother Garrett was sitting down.
“I had to pay for what I’d done. I spent three years in prison, but when I got out, God was waiting for me to restore my life, and my wife was waiting for me to restore our marriage.”
“That’s a powerful testimony, Brother James.” Minister Perkins paused long enough the let the claps and praises reign. “It’s important to know that there is no such thing as a Lone Ranger Christian. We’re all battling just to keep from losing our minds. What is also important to remember is what our wives gave up to be with us.”
That statement penetrated the fortress that surrounded Quincy’s heart. Karen had been halfway through an art degree when she’d met Quincy. He convinced her that an art degree was a waste of both time and money.
Quincy vowed to take care of Karen and build her an art studio if she desired. Her parents were furious that she was both quitting school and getting married. Quincy knew that she took solace in the fact that she was marrying the love of her life, and Quincy knew that there was no other woman for him. Those sacrifices seemed like they occurred a lifetime ago, and, over the years, Quincy had tried to be a good man to her.
“Joseph refused to let his fleshly desire prevent him from becoming all that God wanted him to be. We must be the same way. I know that there are some fine sistas at your church and job, but guess what? God isn’t going to stop making them, so we have to learn to master our fleshly desires,” Minister Perkins said.
Lately, Quincy believed that the best way to resist temptation was to yield to it. He did not deny himself any pleasure. Why should he? In fact, from now until they buried him, Quincy was going to live it up like his idol, Sammy Davis Jr.
“I love my wife, but if I’m not careful with my words and my thoughts, I could find myself going down a road that I had never intended going down. Honor your commitment. Keep God first and remember her sacrifice,” Minister Perkins concluded.
Quincy was skeptical about whether Minister Perkins was the actual person who’d had an affair with his wife. He seemed genuine at this moment. His feelings could be a front, but at the same time, admitting that Minster Perkins may not be the one placed him back at square one. Quincy felt his phone vibrate. He removed his BlackBerry from his pocket. There was a text message from his business partner Gregg. The text read:
Call me ASAP. We have a problem.
Quincy stepped outside of the conference room, and upon being greeted by the cool air, he called his partner.
“Gregg, what’s up?” Quincy asked.
“Where are you? We’re on the verge of losing the deal.” Gregg was beyond frantic.
“What do you mean we’re about to lose the deal? It was airtight. We just needed to sign the papers,” Quincy said.
“We’ve been lowballed,” Gregg informed his partner.
Quincy had been afraid that they might be lowballed. Quincy loved money, but he never got greedy. The deal was worth a lot of money, but Quincy believed that if a person wanted the best, then he had to pay for the best.
“I’m on my way; call an emergency meeting.” Quincy hung up the phone and made his way toward his truck.
He would call Jamal later and explain his abrupt departure. Quincy was certain that one of the brothers would offer Jamal a ride home. Quincy did not even bother to grab any clothes. Quincy pushed the Range Rover over eighty-five miles per hour. The leaves on the ground swung wildly in the air as he crushed the open road. He saw a red and blue flash as a police officer on a motorcycle pulled him over.
“Are you kidding me?” Quincy said to himself.
Quincy pulled over his Range Rover and rested his head against the headrest. He was not worried about the ticket, but every second counted. After the officer gave him his ticket for speeding, Quincy received a text message that they had lost the deal.
To lose both his wife and a big business deal all in the same week was inexplicable. $15 million was gone in an instant. Quincy was trying to find out what he had done to put himself on a war path against God.
Jamal always looked forward to the workshops for single men. He knew that there was no stronger battle than the one a single Christian man faced. When Will entered the conference room, it was a pleasant surprise.
“What up, fam?” Will greeted him.
“What up?” Jamal said as he gave Will a pat on the shoulders.
Minister Jacobs walked in with his packets and his black Bible. “Oh, how good it is for men to dwell together.”
All the men stood up and gave a clap for the lecturer.
“Joseph is my hero, because I don’t know about you, but if I stood before a wo
man naked, the last thing that would go through my mind is my covenant with God.”
The men laughed, and, with a smile on his face, Minister Jacobs started to pass out copies of his packet.
Jamal admired and respected Minister Jacobs. He was youthful and practical in his approach. Jamal had learned a lot under Minister Jacobs’s teachings. He taught Jamal how to walk out the principles of the Bible.
“You have to know that you’re the baddest brothers on the planet. You’re strong, good-looking, athletic, and well-educated Christian men. There is no more powerful force on God’s green earth.”
Out of the corner of his eyes, Jamal saw Will nodding in agreement.
“Before we go any further into the lecture, let’s start off with a word of prayer,” Minister Jacobs said as he bowed his head and prayed. “Heavenly Father, bless each and every brother in this room. Look past our faults and see our hearts as we gather together to draw closer to you. Amen.”
Minister Jacobs concluded his prayer and waited until he’d made eye contact with every man before he continued. “Joseph was in our league, and when you’re powerful and have the light of God inside of you, you are a target. What do you do when your light draws a fine sister close to you and she pushes up on you?”
“You hit that!” Will said.
The room went silent before it exploded with laughter.
“Naw, brother, we can’t hit that. That’s for when you’re married,” Minister Jacobs said.
Jamal knew that the phrase “waiting until marriage” was foreign to Will.
“The world teaches us that when you’re a man, you don’t turn nothing down, but we live by the principles of God, and God says that sex is reserved for marriage,” Minister Jacobs continued.
Jamal struggled in this area. He knew what the Bible taught about this subject matter. For the most part he avoided placing himself in compromising situations, but there had been a few times when Jamal slipped up with random women. He prayed for forgiveness and asked God to reveal the strength within him that could cause him to be victorious the next time around.
“You want God’s best for your life and a random girl at the club may not be God’s best. If you allow your animal desires to control you, then you will find yourself in a mess.”