Dance Into Destiny

by Sherri L. Lewis

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s on me.” Travis gave her a dimpled grin.

  Shara blushed.

  “How are the kids?”

  “Fine. I just left them a little while ago.”

  Shara had brought her group of rowdy teenagers one night to pick out some movies for an all night video night at the church. The kids wanted to get horror movies and movies with adult themes Shara didn’t think appropriate for a church youth group. It almost turned into a riot as they argued with each other and with Shara about what they were going to watch. Finally, Travis came over and convinced them the movies Shara recommended weren’t so bad.

  Shara was so grateful for his help, she came back the next day to thank him. He asked her about the kids and she had explained her track program.

  “Hey, Miss Shara.” He started calling her that after hearing the kids screaming her name across the store that night. “I picked out another movie I think you’ll like a lot. It’s called Finding Forrester. It’s about this young black guy that lives in the ’hood that really has a talent for writing. He’s not doing much with himself or doing well in school until he meets this old white guy . . .”

  Shara wondered if Travis was so nice to all his customers. His special attention made her nervous. She quickly paid for the movie. “Thanks, Travis. See ya’ soon.” He seemed like a nice guy, but then again, so had her ex-boyfriend, Keith. Her smile darkened and she quickly walked out the door.

  Chapter Eleven

  A few weeks later, Shara rushed into Pastor Kendrick’s conference room after track practice with the kids. One of their most promising candidates had flown in from Chicago and Pastor Kendrick had scheduled an evening interview so all the youth leaders could come after work to meet him.

  “Sorry I’m late. I . . .” Shara stood speechless at the sight of the most beautiful man she ever laid eyes on standing to shake her hand. She must have looked like a complete idiot standing there with her mouth wide open.

  Pastor Kendrick stepped up to her. “Shara, this is Quinton Mercer. Minister Mercer, this is Shara Anderson, one of the other youth leaders.” She shook his hand.

  “Hi, nice to meet you.” His smile was warm.

  Shara stood there looking at him.

  Pastor Kendrick motioned. “Come on in and have a seat, Shara, you’re just in time. We haven’t started yet. We’ve just introduced everyone.”

  She looked around at the other youth leaders—Anthony, Tina, Nia, Malcolm, Danielle, and Terrence. A couple were missing. Her eyes settled on Mother Hobbs who had a big grin on her face.

  Shara sat in the empty chair next to her, refusing to make eye contact. She smoothed her hair down, wishing she’d taken the time to brush it back. It was doing that wild thing it did by the end of the day. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mother Hobbs grinning wider.

  Shara glanced down at his resumé on the table in front of her. Bachelors in Finance from University of Arizona. Master’s in Urban Ministry from Moody Bible Institute while serving as a youth leader at True Revival Christian Church. Promoted to youth pastor after he graduated, did that for a year . . . He definitely looked more promising than the other candidates thus far.

  They had interviewed a few church members, but Pastor Kendrick said he wanted to bring in some fresh blood from the outside. They interviewed a few people from other churches in the city, but Pastor Kendrick said he didn’t feel too good about “stealing” someone else’s members. Plus, most of them had traditional views about how to minister to young people and Pastor Kendrick wanted someone with innovative, new ideas.

  Pastor Kendrick took his seat at the head of the large, oval-shaped conference table. “Let’s go ahead and get started. Quinton, we’re not formal around here so we’ll ask you some questions to get to know you and please feel free to do the same.”

  Quinton nodded.

  Pastor Kendrick asked, “What made you interested in interviewing for this position?”

  Quinton sat forward in his chair. “I know God has called me to work with young people. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do with my life. I believe there’s nothing more important than to help a young person discover and pursue their destiny. I’m looking for a position that will allow me to do that.”

  Pastor Kendrick said, “Obviously, it’s what God called you to do, but what makes you passionate about it?”

  Quinton paused for a second. “I grew up in inner-city Chicago. I saw a lot of things growing up that were enough to make me angry and hopeless for the rest of my life. What bothered me most was all the wasted lives and wasted potential. It was like people’s lives were finished before they even started.

  “I decided as a kid I was going to get an education and get out of there and be somebody and then come back and help others become somebody. About a year after I graduated from college, I got saved and acknowledged God’s call for me to help other young people out of that life of despair. I went back to get my Master’s in Divinity so I could be well equipped to do so.”

  Everyone around the table nodded, impressed with his candor.

  “There seems to be a one year gap in your resume here. Can you tell us what happened during that time?” Shara asked.

  Quinton smiled and Shara noticed a deep dimple in his cheek. “Guess you don’t follow sports, huh?”

  Anthony Thompson, one of the other youth leaders, snapped his fingers. “I knew that was you, man!”

  Everyone looked at Anthony and then back at Quinton for an explanation.

  Quinton smiled modestly. “I played basketball while at University of Arizona and then got drafted into the pros when I graduated.”

  Anthony said, “You’re too modest, man. You were at the top of your game, All-American. Yo, man, what happened? You played with Orlando for a year, then just dropped out of sight.”

  Quinton’s smile faded and he looked down at the floor. “My baby brother got killed about six months into my rookie year. I got real depressed and unfocused and ended up getting hurt. I guess more than anything, his death led to me getting saved and really making the commitment to reach out to youth.”

  Everyone was silent.

  Mother Hobbs finally spoke. “We’re sorry to hear about your brother. It seems like you’re using that pain and turning it into something good for the Kingdom of God. Bad things happen to everybody in this life. It’s those who are able to take those trials and use them that rise to the next level in God. That shows a lot of spiritual maturity on your part.”

  Quinton nodded gratefully at her comment.

  Pastor Kendrick said, “Tell us about your vision for working with young people.”

  Quinton explained, “I started quite a few projects at my last church. One of the most popular ones was the midnight basketball program for the young men in the neighborhood. We were in the inner city like you. I also started a mentoring program where we matched young people with adults in careers that the kids were interested in. They got a chance to see someone doing what they dreamed of doing. We also had an intense tutoring program where most of the kids improved to and maintained a B-average. It’s a prerequisite to participate in any other program.”

  Shara stared at Quinton. His programs sounded familiar.

  Quinton continued. “We had also just gotten some grant money to purchase some used computers to do a computer training class.”

  Quinton frowned. “One thing I didn’t get to implement was an arts program. I wanted to get people from the church gifted in music, theatre, dance, and visual arts to start classes for the kids. Kids involved in the arts really perform well in every area of their lives.”

  Pastor Kendrick nodded and looked at Shara. “Your vision lines up with a lot of what we plan to do here. That’s encouraging to hear. We’d be just getting the programs started here so it’s good that you have experience with getting them off the ground.”

  Nia asked about the arts program Quinton was interested in starting. While he explained, Shara could barely fo
cus on his answer. Why was her head spinning?

  After he finished answering Nia, Shara cleared her throat. “Looks like you had a lot of great things going on at your church. Why are leaving?”

  Quinton shifted in his seat and drummed his fingers on the table. “My ideas on how to minister to young people seemed to be a problem for my previous pastor. While they seemed logical to me, they were too ‘radical and worldly’ for the leadership at the church. I guess because I didn’t grow up in the church, I didn’t have the ingrained traditions they had. We couldn’t come to an agreement about a lot of things.”

  Quinton seemed to be choosing his words carefully. “When I first started there, I was so excited about implementing the ideas I felt God had given me. After so many meetings where I was called into the pastor’s office to talk about ‘my methods’, I got burnt out. My ideas were being stifled to death. It was time to move on—hopefully to find a place of like vision and spirit.”

  I knew this was too good to be true. “Can you give us an example of your ‘methods’ that caused such a conflict?” Shara asked.

  Mother Hobbs kneed her under the table, as if to tell her to back off.

  Quinton didn’t appear intimidated. “One of the things I wanted to do was to create a Christian night club for the youth. Instead of them going to the club where there’s drinking, smoking, and fighting, I wanted them to be able have fun in a church environment. You know, throw on some Mary Mary, Tonex, or Kirk Franklin and let them go for it.”

  Shara’s eyes narrowed. Why did it seem as if he had been thumbing through her vision notebook?

  Pastor Kendrick looked at her again and smiled.

  Shara pushed further. “What would you do if you found that your ideas clashed with the vision here?”

  Mother Hobbs didn’t hide her glare this time.

  Quinton answered easily, “I learned from my last position that being on staff in ministry is very different from a secular job. It’s like a marriage. In marriage, the partners have to have like vision and spirit. I would hope that before they committed to one another, they would take the time to explore what they consider to be their purpose and philosophy to make sure they’re a good match. Even after discovering that, they would need to pray to make sure their union is God-ordained. Even if they feel like they’re right for each other, unless God has put them together, it won’t work.

  “That’s how I feel about my next position. I want to make sure I know there’s a common vision and commitment to the things of God. Then I would hope the ministry leaders would pray as I would be praying to make sure it’s the will of God.”

  Pastor Kendrick and Mother Hobbs nodded at each other in approval.

  Pastor said, “Does anyone else have any other questions?” He and the other youth leaders turned to look at Shara. She looked around innocently as if she hadn’t been grilling Quinton.

  Terrence asked for more details on the midnight basketball program. Everyone laughed when Tina asked how soon Quinton would be willing to move.

  Pastor Kendrick looked at Quinton. “Do you have any questions for us?”

  Quinton nodded. “I only know what I’ve read about your ministry on your website. I’m very impressed with the rapid growth of your youth department and I’m interested to know what you attribute your success to.”

  Pastor Kendrick seemed impressed that Quinton had done some research. “I have to say it’s the combination of a lot of hard work and innovation on the part of our youth leaders. Because of their devotion to intercession and their overwhelming commitment of time and energy, the young people have gotten excited and have begun reaching out to their friends. I feel like we’re only seeing the beginnings of a great harvest of youth from this community.”

  Quinton said, “I’m glad to hear you mention prayer as a key. It’s definitely the foundation of any successful ministry. What programs do you already have in place?”

  “As I mentioned, we’re just getting started. One of our most popular programs thus far is our track/tutoring program Shara started almost a year ago. I’ll let her tell you about it.”

  Everyone turned to Shara. Quinton’s eyes were intense. Shara couldn’t help noticing how perfectly chocolatey-brown his skin was.

  Mother Hobbs elbowed her.

  Shara made herself focus on her answer. “We have a track program where the kids run after school and also a tutoring program on alternate days.” She stopped and looked down at her hands. Why were they sweating?

  Everyone looked at her, expecting her to go on and on about her kids as she usually did. After a few moments of silence, Mother Hobbs spoke. “Shara is being far too modest. Her track program sounds a lot like your basketball program. We’ve already noticed beautiful changes in the children’s attitudes about themselves and toward others. Most of them have also brought their grades up considerably. Shara organized both programs in the few extra hours when she wasn’t at school.”

  Pastor Kendrick added, “She’s worked very hard to make it a success. Sometimes I think too hard. I’m sure she’ll appreciate some full-time help. It’s amazing that Shara has a lot of ideas for programs similar to the ones you mentioned. Perhaps she could tell you about them . . .” He looked at Shara who was still dumbstruck, “. . . at another time.”

  Quinton nodded and smiled at Shara. “I’d like that. It’s always good to share ideas with someone of like vision and passion.”

  Shara looked down at the floor and then back at Quinton again. His teeth were absolutely perfect. Her stomach felt funny. Must have been that leftover pizza she had for lunch.

  Pastor Kendrick stood. “Well, Quinton, unless you have any more questions, we’ll have Anthony take you on the tour of our facilities. We have a lot of space here and we’re renovating it room by room. Later I’ll go over the long-term vision with you. I agree with you about making sure our visions match up to make sure this is a good fit.”

  Anthony seemed excited about giving Quinton the tour. As they walked out of the conference room he said, “Man, I remember your championship game against Kentucky . . .”

  Pastor Kendrick shut the door behind them. “Is he perfect or what? God never ceases to amaze me. I ask Him for something and He sends me more than I could have expected. I’m glad we decided to keep looking.”

  The other leaders also gave their enthusiastic assent. Shara was quiet. Mother Hobbs watched her closely, frowning.

  “Well Pastor, I don’t see why we need to waste any time,” Mother Hobbs said. “Why don’t we invite him to stay around for the rest of the week so we can spend a few days with him? He can come to service on Sunday and see what it’s like. I’d be more than glad for him to stay with me. If nothing else convinces him to join us, my home cooking and hospitality are sure to do the trick.”

  Pastor Kendrick looked pleased. “Thank you, Mother Hobbs. I’ll bring him over later if he decides to stay.”

  After everyone left, Mother Hobbs smoothed Shara’s hair down. “Are you okay? You don’t seem yourself.”

  “I think I ate something that didn’t agree with me today. My stomach is a little upset.”

  Mother Hobbs raised her eyebrows. “Oh yeah, you have a real sensitive stomach when it comes to food.”

  Shara frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I don’t think it’s food that has your stomach upset.” Mother Hobbs’ eyes twinkled with mischief as she walked out of the conference room.

  Chapter Twelve

  Keeva leafed through the sale section of the paper and noticed there was a spring sale at Nordstrom’s. She could use a good all day Saturday shopping outing. She needed a couple of pairs of shoes and wanted a couple of new outfits. She thought of calling her friend Jade to go, but wasn’t in the mood for her. She decided to call Shara.

  They had been hanging out a lot over the last few weeks and were becoming friends. They both said it seemed strange because they were so different, but they had enjoyed a lot of good conversations over goo
d food. Keeva had finally gotten Shara to try Thai, Indian and Ethiopian food. She hadn’t quite convinced her on the sushi. Shara had persuaded Keeva her face wouldn’t break out and she wouldn’t gain fifty pounds if she ate French fries and pizza every once in a while.

  Keeva dialed Shara’s number, hoping she wasn’t out running.

  Shara answered after a couple of rings. “Hey, Keeva. You’re up awfully early for a Saturday morning.”

  “The shopping bug bit me and woke me up. Want to go to Perimeter Mall with me? Nordstrom’s is having a big sale.”

  Shara was silent for a moment. “Now, Keeva, why would we want to do that?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Okay, this is how our day would go. We’d go to Nordstrom’s and I’d fuss about how expensive everything is and how stuff is not worth the prices they charge and then you’d get frustrated. Then I’d take you to one of the stores where I shop and you’d try to hide your disdain, but you wouldn’t be able to because your lip would curl up. Then you’d want to shop for ten hours and I’d be ready to leave. Then you’d try to get me to buy a skirt or dress or something girly and I’d get irritated. By the end of the day, we’d both be totally pissed off at each other. Why put ourselves through that?”

  Keeva laughed. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. That would be a disaster.” She thought for a minute. She could go shopping some other time. She really felt like hanging out with Shara. “Want to do something else then?”

  “Like what?”

  “There’s this great pottery place in the Virginia-Highlands area. You pick out a piece of unfinished pottery, like a cup or bowl or something and you get to paint it. They fire it and you can pick it up the next week. It’s real relaxing—puts you in touch with your creative side.”

  “My creative side?”

  “Come on. We’re trying new things, remember? Have I led you wrong so far?”

  “I guess not. All right. Tell me where and when.”

  Shara trailed behind Keeva as they perused shelves of cups, bowls, platters and all sort of unfinished pottery in the small eclectic shop. “My creative side, huh? I don’t know about this, Keeva.”