How Do Christians “Target” Their Purchasing Power?

    We could debate the effectiveness and even the ethics of boycotts.  By their very nature, boycotts are organized efforts to compel others to do as we wish. In effect, we are saying, “If you don’t stop [advertising on that filthy TV program, supporting that immoral organization, or doing some other objectionable behavior], we will no longer buy your product.  It is a worthwhile discussion whether Christians should participate in efforts that employ economic power to manipulate merchants to do what they would not choose to do otherwise.  In many cases, it boils down to the old argument that the end justifies the means.

Whatever side one might take in that discussion, we all recognize that there are situations where we have to react to the dictates of our own consciences.  A current example would be the support Target stores are giving to the Rainbow Pride movement and especially to an organization called Family Equality Council.  That group’s website states their purpose, “Family Equality Council is changing attitudes and policies to ensure all families are respected, loved, and celebrated – especially families with parents who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.”

While we agree that all families should be treated with love and respect, we have to draw a line when it comes to celebrating behavior that the Bible categorically labels as sinful.  If we take seriously the proposition that the God of heaven has the right to tell us how to act morally, then we have no choice but to accept what his revelation tells us about moral sexual behavior.  Even though it is not a popular idea with a great many people today, the New Testament still says that people “who practice homosexuality” are among those who will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9, ESV).

Target is offering for sale ten tee-shirts featuring rainbows. Most of the shirts say either “Pride” or “Harmony” and some of them include the phrase “Love is Love.”  Along with this, Target has committed to donate 100% of the purchase price of these shirts (up to a maximum of $120,000) to the Family Equality Council.  Most assuredly, my conscience would not permit me to purchase one of those tee-shirts (even though I have nothing at all against the idea of wearing a rainbow … if I could believe that the rainbow represented the promise for which it was intended in the Bible).  I am not jumping on a boycott bandwagon, but I must consider very carefully if I want to spend any of my money at a store that takes such a bold stand in favor of homosexuality and backs it up with a significant amount of money.  Others may make that decision for themselves, but we should be aware of the stand the corporation that runs our neighborhood Target store has taken.

Be aware, however, that Target is not the only business that has partnered with the Family Equality Council. That organization’s website lists other “National Corporate Partners” including Children’s Tylenol, HBO, Capital One, Royal Bank of Canada, and several others.  Foundations that “generously support” the FEC agenda include the General Mills Foundation and PepsiCo.

Eventually, it becomes impractical to refuse to do business with any company that supports sinful behavior. The best advice I can offer is to stay informed about moral (and immoral) stands taken by retailers and take that information into account with your purchasing decisions.

Mysteries of Prayer

 

Mortals cannot understand all the intricacies about how prayer works. James 5:16 tells us that the prayers of the righteous have great power. Yet, we know that our prayers are not always answered in the ways that we hope they will be.

It is very important for us to understand that if prayer does not produce the results we want, that does not mean that it has failed. In the past few days, I have been praying for two young men who both experienced serious head injuries that resulted in life-threatening conditions.  Andrew, who lives here in Washington state, was traveling to back to college in Oklahoma when he was involved in a bad wreck.  His life was hanging in the balance for several days.  Jarred, in Alabama, was the victim of a criminal assault that did serious injury to his brain. Thousands of people joined together praying for both of these young men.  Facebook pages were created where people from many places joined in their expressions of sorrow and heartfelt petitions to the Heavenly Father to spare their lives and help them recover.

In the last several days, Andrew has made remarkable progress. He will have a long journey, but doctors now expect him to fully recover.  Jarred’s condition continued to decline and he passed into eternity last night.

Were the prayers offered for Andrew more effective than those offered for Jarred? On the surface, it might seem so. However, we should not reach hasty conclusions. God hears the prayers of the righteous and in both cases there were certainly many righteous people joining their hearts and voices in prayer. The x-factor in all this is that God is omniscient. He sees in the future and understands how each possible result will work out over time.

None of us can say with certainty why our prayers resulted in Andrew’s survival and not in Jarred’s. That may forever be one of the secret things that belong to the Lord our God (Deut. 29:29), but if we believe in a loving Heavenly Father, we must also believe that he works in our lives in the way that is always for the best ultimately.

The “why?” questions are always so painful on a day like this, but we need to try to accept by faith things that we cannot fully understand in the here and now. Our God is a gracious and loving Father. He always wants what is best for us and, in some way, that is what is going to come to pass.

Act IV – And a Girl Will Lead Them

This post is Act IV of the play And a Girl Will Lead Them.  It should be read in order. Click here to read the first act.

ACT IV

Scene 1

 Brecks’ living room  (Richard, Margaret, Mike, and Gina are sitting when Sarah walks in)

 RICHARD:  Pumpkin, I understand that you and Mike have been having some Bible studies with Kenny.

SARAH:  Yes, Daddy

RICHARD:  And you’ve been studying about baptism?  Sarah nods.  What did you learn?

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

 He didn’t seem mad; actually, he seemed interested. I said a quick silent prayer for the Lord to give me strength and good sense and ran to get my Bible.  With help from Mike, I led everybody through the verses we had studied. Mike and I both explained as well as we could the reasons why we had reached the conclusion that baptism is necessary for salvation. I added that I did not understand what baptism was for when I was baptized. I had thought I was already saved so I was not baptized to wash away my sins. So, I explained, I did not have any assurance that I was really saved. I had wanted to do right, but I had not been taught the right thing to do. If Daddy took that as an accusation against him, so be it.

RICHARD:  Don’t you think we are saved by God’s grace?

SARAH:  Absolutely, I do!  Baptism is not some kind of work you do to earn salvation. Baptism is just what we do to accept the gift God has for us. Daddy, when you give me my Christmas present, I will have to take it, won’t I?  (he nods)  If I don’t take it and unwrap it, you would just put it back under the tree. It wouldn’t do me any good as long as it remained wrapped up under the tree. Do you see what I am saying?

RICHARD:  I think so.  You’re comparing your salvation as a gift to the present under the tree.

SARAH:  Right. Baptism is like unwrapping the present. It lets the Lord give us the gift of grace.

RICHARD:  So the Church of Christ doesn’t say that you earn salvation by being baptized?

SARAH:  No, sir.  You don’t earn salvation by being baptized. You receive salvation by being baptized, but it is a free gift from God through the blood of Christ.

RICHARD:  So, according to these verses you’ve shown me, our sins are washed away at baptism. Which leads you to the conclusion that you have to be baptized before you can be saved. Is that right?

SARAH:  Yes, sir.

RICHARD:  Is that what you think, too, Mike?

MIKE:  Yes, sir, I agree with everything Sarah has said.

RICHARD: (Quiet for several moments as he thinks over what Sarah has said):  I don’t see anything wrong with that. It isn’t what I’ve always believed about salvation, but Sarah, you have given me clear Bible teaching for everything you’ve said.  I can’t see where you’ve said one thing wrong.  I’ll tell you something else, Pumpkin.  I am so proud of you that I’m about to burst.  I don’t know if there is another 15-year-old girl alive who would have the gumption and the intelligence to stand up to her daddy and defend her position from the Bible the way you have tonight.  You’re clearly old enough and smart enough to make your own decision about something that affects your own soul. If you want to be baptized and be a Church of Christ member, then you have my blessings. I’m not ready to go with you yet, but you have given me a lot to study and pray about. Who knows, I might be going with you someday soon!”

MARGARET (flabbergasted):  Richard?

SARAH (falling to her knees at her daddy’s feet) Oh, Daddy. I love you!  Thank you so much!  Will you come see me be baptized tomorrow night.

RICHARD (after a slight pause):  Of course, Pumpkin. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

After that, Daddy took Mama into their bedroom. I’m sure he had some explaining to do to help her see what he saw. It must have worked because Mama came out almost an hour later with a smile on her face. She hugged me and told me that I had her total support. She said she just wanted me to live a good life and serve the Lord. If this was the way I needed to do that, then she was all for it.  That got me started crying again. I thanked the Lord for my parents and prayed that I could influence them in the right way for Him.

MIKE:  Well, I’m ready too, Sarah.  I’m going to be baptized tomorrow night, too, and I promise I’ll see that you have a way to church every Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night.

GINA:  What about me?

MIKE:  Well, I want you to go to church with me all the time!  I thought you knew that.

GINA:  But at the Church of Christ, not at First Community any more?

MIKE:  Yes, at the Church of Christ.

GINA:  So I have to either give up you or give up my church?

MIKE:  No, honey, I didn’t say that. I love you; I’m not breaking up with you.  If you still go to First Community, we’ll still be going out together. We just won’t get to go to church together.

GINA (pausing to think for a moment):  Okay, Mike, I love you too. Let’s agree first that we are not going to let this affect the love we have for one another.

MIKE:  Absolutely, agreed.

GINA:  Let me think a little more.  (She walks across the room and stands looking out the window).

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

Gina stood looking out the window for a good ten minutes while Mike and I sat looking at one another. I hoped things worked out for Gina, too, but I was so excited for myself that I could barely contain myself. My first instinct had been to call Kenny and tell him the wonderful news, but then I thought about what a delicious surprise it would be to spring it on him at church the next night. It would just be the greatest thing ever for him to start down the aisle Wednesday night, and then for me to grab his hand and go down with him to be baptized.

GINA (returning to Mike and Sarah):  I still have so many questions. There are lots of things I don’t understand.

SARAH:  Me too, Gina. I can’t tell you much more than I’ve already said. Would you talk with Kenny’s mama if I get her on the phone? (Gina nods).

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

Gina and Mama Kate talked for hours. It was a little after midnight before Gina felt all her questions had been answered satisfactorily. She wanted to be certain she was doing this for all the right reasons and not just to please Mike.  But finally she was convinced about what the right thing to do was.

Scene 2

Hillview Church of Christ on Wednesday night

 VOICE OF KENNY AS NARRATOR:

I was disappointed not to see Sarah when we got to church. However, after class started, in walked Sarah, Mike, and Gina.  I was delighted, but not too surprised because I knew Sarah was going to pull out all the stops to get somebody to bring her since she knew I was going to be baptized again. I was surprised to see eleven-year old Bree trailing along behind her brother and sister.  Sarah squeezed into the one empty seat beside me and favored me with a radiant smile. The others sat on the back row of the classroom.  When we went back into the auditorium, I was shocked to see both Sarah and Gina’s parents sitting on the pew beside Mom and Dad.

Sarah, Kenny, Mike, Gina, and Bree sit in the seats in front of their parents.  The invitation song starts.

Kenny steps out to go forward. Sarah grabs his hand, and starts to go with him.  He looks at her and gives her a puzzled look. She nods and smiles a beaming smile. They walk down the aisle hand in hand.  After Kenny and Sarah are seated, Mike and Gina come forward.  Kate (Kenny’s mom) comes forward to be restored.  Henry (Kenny’s dad) comes forward to be baptized.

VOICE OF KENNY AS NARRATOR:

Dad said he was 70 years old and had never been baptized but he wanted to go to heaven when he died and he knew he had to give himself to the Lord and have his sins washed away.  A few minutes later a blonde and a redhead both had wet hair, as did two teenaged boys and an old gray-haired old man. All were rejoicing that their sins had been washed away . . . as was one happy mom and wife who rejoiced over her own restoration and the joy of seeing the ones she loved born again in Christ.

Scene 3

Kenny and Sarah walking, holding hands

KENNY:  How does it feel to be my sister?

SARAH:  It feels great to finally be your sister-in-Christ, baby!  But don’t get carried away with this brother-sister deal. That’s not the only relationship I have in mind for the two of us!” Sarah winks at Kenny; he winks back.

KENNY:  When did you know this was going to happen?

SARAH:  As far as me, about 30 minutes after we got off the phone last night.  Daddy was really good about everything. I think we can win him for the Lord because he is really interested and not defensive about the Community church at all.  Not anything like Gina’s parents were.

KENNY:  How did you convince Gina?  She didn’t seem all that close the last time we talked to her.

SARAH:  I didn’t convince her.  Your mama did.

KENNY:  What, when?

SARAH:  Oh, Mama Kate was on the phone studying with Gina most of the night last night.  Maybe you get a star in your crown for me, and maybe I get one for Mike, but Mama Kate gets the star for Gina.

KENNY:  So she knew all about this, too, and didn’t tell me?

SARAH: Yeah, I made her promise not to tell. All I could think about was how great it would be for me to surprise you by taking your hand and walking down with you when you started out tonight.

KENNY:  It was that!  It was the greatest surprise of my life.  At least, until I saw my Dad coming forward. That was an even bigger surprise.

SARAH (pretending to pout):  You mean it was a better surprise for him to be baptized than for me to.

KENNY:  Aw, you know what I mean. I knew you were going to be baptized; I just didn’t know when.  But I had no idea under heaven that Dad was going to do it. Tonight was the first time I ever remember him even going to church.  That was surprise enough, but I had no idea that he was going to come forward.

SARAH (grinning):  I’m just playing with you, baby. I’m as happy as I can be about your Daddy. (she gives Kenny a quick kiss).

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

Daddy met Wilton Henning, Katie’s father and one of the elders at Hillview, the night I was baptized. What he didn’t tell me was that he had started meeting Mr. Henning once a week for lunch where they studied the Bible together as they ate.

Several weeks later, on Sunday morning January 18, Daddy resigned  as a deacon at First Community. I spent the afternoon with Kenny so I didn’t see my parents until after church that night. Or rather during church. They came in late and sat in the back, but during the invitation, Daddy went forward to be baptized at Hillview. Mama followed his example a week later.

Kenny said his Daddy going forward to be baptized the same night we did was the biggest surprise of his life. My biggest surprise was also seeing my Daddy walk down the aisle, confess his faith in Christ, and be baptized to wash away his sins!

Copyright 2011 by John Gaines. The author will give permission
for this work to be used or duplicated, but reserves the right
to approve any changes to the script.  
Photo Copyright (c) www.123rf.com

Act III – And a Girl Will Lead Them

This post is Act III of the play And a Girl Will Lead Them.  It should be read in order. Click here to read the first act.

ACT III

 Scene 1

 Brecks’ living room

 VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

 Kenny was at my house the next Saturday night when it started snowing very heavily.  We both came up with the idea that this might give him a good excuse for him to spend the night at my house. My parents said OK, if he got his folks’ permission.  Kenny called home. His mom said that was a good idea since she didn’t want him driving on slick icy roads.

KENNY:  Mr. Breck, I want to thank you for letting me stay tonight. I know if would have been easy for you to have said I had to go home, even though it was snowing.

RICHARD:  Nonsense, Kenny. We like having you here.  You seem to fit in with our family just like you’ve always belonged. Plus that one over there sitting so close to you gets kinda moody when you’re not around.

SARAH:  Not just kinda moody. If you hadn’t let Kenny stay, I would have been a horror to have around all weekend.

RICHARD:  She means it, too. It would have been ugly.

SARAH:  Are you calling me ugly, Daddy?

RICHARD:  No, pumpkin, you’re never ugly in my eyes. (Getting up and walking over to look out the window) The snow’s really coming down now. This looks like it could be a big one. You might be stuck with us for a couple of days, Kenny.”

KENNY (squeezing Sarah’s hand):  Fine with me!

(Everyone except Kenny and Sarah exit. Kenny and Sarah sit very close together, his arm around her shoulder, whispering to one another. Mike enters bringing sweat pants and sweatshirt.)

MIKE:  Kenny, I brought you some sweats to sleep in.

KENNY:  Thanks, man. I didn’t know I was going to be spending the night so I didn’t come prepared.

SARAH:  You could sleep with me!  I’d be glad to share body heat with you.

KENNY: You know I’d love that, but your Daddy might not be so happy to have me here if he found me in bed with you.

SARAH:  Aw, I guess you’re right. (Sarah sits in Kenny’s lap and gives him a kiss)

MIKE:  C’mon, you two, hose it down.  My girlfriend’s out of town this weekend, so if I don’t get any lovin’, I’m not going to be happy watching the two of you make out.  (Kenny and Sarah keep kissing, ignoring Mike. He stomps off angrily)

*Kissing is optional and can be eliminated, according to director's preferences.

SARAH:  I’ll have to go to bed too in a minute, but let’s lie together on the floor and look out the window at the snow coming down. (She gets a blanket and spreads it on the floor. Kenny and Sarah lie in one another’s arms, talking about how pretty the snow is.  They drift off to sleep.)

 Lights dim, then come back on as Mrs. Breck enters:

 MARGARET:  What are you two doing here?

SARAH:  Mama, we’re so sorry. We were just lying here watching the snow and we went to sleep. I had meant to sleep in my own bed, I promise.

MARGARET:  That’s what I figured, Honey.  Understand that I’m not a fool.  I don’t put it past the two of you to do things you ought not do because young kids in love do some foolish things. But I don’t think you’re dumb enough to misbehave with your Daddy and me sleeping in the next room with our door open. You’re both still in the clothes you wore yesterday.  I’m not encouraging you to do this again, you understand, but I don’t see any harm in what happened.

SARAH:  Thanks, Mama. I love you!

MARGARET:  You’re welcome. Now, you might want to get that blanket folded up and put away before your Daddy gets up. He might not be as understanding as I am.

RICHARD (entering, to Sarah and Kenny):  Well, the two of you are up bright and early.  (Phone rings, Richard answers it and talks quietly for a moment)  Well, the deacons decided we’re not going to try having church today. The roads are too bad for people to get to church.  I guess we could go ahead and have our own service here at home.

(Mike and Bree enter. Sarah gets songbooks and hands them out to everyone)

RICHARD (chuckling):  I guess we’ll have Church of Christ singing this morning, Kenny, since we don’t have a piano.

SARAH:  Oh, that reminds me.  Can we have the Lord’s Supper?

RICHARD:  Why do you want to do that today?  It isn’t the Sunday we would have had communion at church.

SARAH:  I’ve been reading this tract about worship and it says the early Christians took the Lord’s Supper every week. I’ve been thinking about it. Why wouldn’t we want to celebrate the meaning of Christ’s death as often as we can?

RICHARD:  Well, I don’t know any reason why we couldn’t have our own communion time this morning. Do we have the grape juice and stuff that we would need, Honey?

MARGARET:  We have some grape juice. I don’t know about the bread. Will regular crackers be all right?

SARAH:  Let me call Mama Kate and ask her.

(Sarah runs to phone and speaks briefly)

SARAH:  Mama Kate said her grandmother used to make the communion bread for church. She said you just need to mix up a little flour and water and bake it for a few minutes.  I’ll do that while you guys start singing.

Sarah exits, as the group starts singing a hymn.

MIKE:  If we sound this good singing, why do we need a piano?

Sarah returns with six small glasses of grape juice and a plate of bread on a tray.  All bow their heads for a prayer, then eat a piece of bread. They bow their heads again and drink the grape juice.

Scene 2

Brecks’ living room

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

Kenny and I played out in the snow most of the day. We built a great big snowman and had snowball fights with Mike and Bree.  We walked down to Kenny’s sister’s house and ate big bowls of homemade vegetable soup with her. When we got back to my house, we learned that Daddy had been called in to an emergency shift at work.

Mike, Sarah, and Kenny are in the living room.

SARAH:  Hey, guys, why don’t we go ahead and start the Bible study about baptism?

MIKE:  No, I think we should wait until Gina gets home so she can be part of it.

SARAH:  Aw, Mike. I want to study now. We can help Gina catch up.

MIKE:  All right, I guess we can do that.

SARAH:  Kenny, I wrote these four verses in the back of my Bible when I heard Brother Banks use them. They seem to say that you have to be baptized to be saved. Can you help me understand them?

KENNY:  Okay, what verses are you talking about?

SARAH:  Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16, and 1 Peter 3:21

KENNY:  All right, we’ll start with Mark 16:16.  What does Jesus say that you have to do to be saved?

SARAH:  Believe and be baptized.

MIKE:  Wait a minute. He said that people who do not believe will be condemned, but he did not say anything about what happens to people who are not baptized.

KENNY:  But why would anybody get baptized if they don’t believe?

SARAH:  They wouldn’t.  If they didn’t believe in Jesus, they would just be going swimming if they got baptized.

KENNY:  So, Mike, what did Jesus say you have to do to be saved?

SARAH:  Believe and be baptized!

KENNY:  Do you agree with that Mike?

MIKE:  Yes, that’s pretty obvious. But it still doesn’t say that people who are not baptized are lost.

SARAH:  I think it does, in a way.  Jesus gave two things here in this verse that we have to do to be saved. If we just do one of the two things, I don’t think we’re saved yet.

MIKE:  Okay, I guess I see that.

SARAH:  I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. I am convinced that if I had died in that time after I thought I was saved but before I was baptized, then I would have still been lost. I wasn’t saved until I was baptized.

MIKE:  Well, we’ve been baptized now, so it doesn’t really matter, I guess.

SARAH:  Yeah, but I think our church is teaching people wrong about baptism and that’s not good.  Other people might die because they wait so long to baptize them, and I believe those people would be lost because they were not baptized.

KENNY:  Let’s move on to the second verse you wrote down, Sarah. Here Peter preached for people to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.

SARAH:  Here it says to repent and be baptized. In Mark, it said to believe and be baptized. So do we put them together and get three things we have to do – believe, repent, and be baptized?

MIKE:  Or is it either/or?  Could it be that we can choose either to believe and be baptized or repent and be baptized since different answers are given in different places in the Bible?

SARAH:  I don’t think that’s the way it is. These are both commands in the Bible. I don’t think we get to choose which ones we obey. We have to obey them both, so we believe, repent, and are baptized.

KENNY:  So would you be saved if you didn’t believe?

MIKE:  No, we’ve already studied that those who do not believe will be condemned.

KENNY:  Right, now would you be saved if you do not repent?

SARAH:  No, there is a verse in the Bible somewhere that says something like repent or perish. (Sarah goes to the bookshelf and brings back a big concordance. She looks up repent)  Here it is, Luke 13:3. (Each one turns to the verse and reads silently)

MIKE:  Hey, it says the same thing again in verse 5. Jesus really wanted the people to know they had to repent.

SARAH (with a puzzled expression):  You know, I remember Pastor Tim saying lots of time that all we have to do to be saved is believe in Jesus. But here Jesus is saying that we have to repent. That’s something different from believing, isn’t it?

KENNY:  I think it is.

SARAH:  Let me write this down. (Sarah writes Luke 13:3-5 in the back of her Bible.)

KENNY:  Well, we’ve said we have to believe and we have to repent. What about being baptized?  Would you be saved if you are not baptized?

SARAH:  No!

KENNY:  Mike, what do you say?

MIKE: I have to agree. The Bible commands us to be baptized. If we don’t obey that command, I can’t see how we could be saved.

KENNY:  What is the reason people in the Bible were baptized?

SARAH:  Here in Acts 2:38, it says to be baptized for the remission of sins.  I think remission means forgiveness, doesn’t it?

KENNY (pointing to concordance):  Look it up.

SARAH:  Yes, the Greek word is aphesis which means freedom, pardon, deliverance, forgiveness, liberty, remission. So Acts 2:38 says we are baptized to get freedom from our sins.

MIKE:  Yeah, it’s pretty clear that we are baptized to get forgiveness.

SARAH:  Here in Acts 22:16 it says arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.  It couldn’t be much plainer, could it?  Be baptized and wash away your sins!

Sarah stares at her Bible for the longest time. She starts shaking her head and tears flow from her eyes.

SARAH:  Mike, they didn’t teach us right!  They didn’t teach us what the Bible says!

Sarah grabs her Bible and runs from the room.  Kenny follows her and finds her sobbing loudly. He tries to hug and comfort her, but she pushes him away.

 SARAH:  I know you want to help me, Honey, but I’ve got to work through this one by myself.  Can you leave me alone for just a little while?

Kenny returns to the Brecks’ living room, where Mike is still poring over his Bible. He looks up at Kenny.  Kenny shrugs his shoulders and says nothing.  Mrs. Breck comes in.  She hears Sarah crying.

 MARGARET:  What’s wrong with Sarah?

KENNY:  We were studying the Bible together . . .

MIKE (interrupting) She decided that we have been taught wrong about baptism, Mama.  I kind of agree with her. What the Bible says is different from what I’ve always been taught.

MARGARET:  Well, Sarah is very tenderhearted, and she is serious about her religion. When your Daddy gets home, we’ll get him to explain all this to us. He can make her see what’s right.

MIKE:  I don’t know, Mama. Look here what Acts 22:16 says . . . .

MARGARET:  I don’t have time for that right now.  I couldn’t explain it anyway, but your Daddy can set you straight.

Mike looks at Kenny and shakes his head in resignation.

Scene 3

Kenny and Sarah walking in the snow

SARAH:  I’m sorry, baby, for acting so weird, but I’m really mad at all these people at my church for teaching wrong about baptism. I’m not any kind of Bible scholar at all, but it’s easy for me to see.  All you have to do is read the Bible and it’s right there, plain as can be. These preachers and Sunday School teachers should know better.  Heck, my Daddy should know better!  I’m not going to excuse him either. He shouldn’t have let me go all that time before I was baptized.  Then another thing I’ve been worrying about today, Kenny.  We read where baptism is for the remission of sins. We are to get baptized and wash away our sins. That sounds like being saved is the reason you do it.  But Kenny, I thought I was already saved when I was baptized.  In my mind, it didn’t have anything to do with salvation. So I wasn’t baptized for the right reason, was I?

KENNY:  I don’t know. I was baptized at the Church of Christ, which teaches just what you’ve been saying about baptism.  But I didn’t pay much attention to all that before I was baptized.  Honestly, I was baptized just because I was old enough to do it and it was kind of  expected of me. Other kids were getting baptized and I knew it was what I was supposed to do.

SARAH:  I guess we are pretty much in the same boat.  Neither of us was baptized for the right reason

KENNY:  So what does that mean?

SARAH (starting to cry again):  I don’t know whether we’re saved!

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

 Kenny warned me that Mama had not been very sympathetic when Mike had tried to show her the verses in the Bible about baptism. He said she had told Mike that Daddy would set us straight when he got home. I wasn’t intimidated by the threat in that. I figured that it might as well be me who was setting Daddy straight. At the least, I was going to let him know how disappointed I was that he had let me be taught wrong and that he had let me wait so long before I was baptized. The worst thing you can do to anybody is give them a false sense of security. To let somebody think they are saved when they are lost is a terrible thing to do. Then it hit me hard – if I was not saved, that meant that Daddy and Mama were not saved either. They had followed the same kind of wrong beliefs I had. But I had learned better just by reading the Bible for myself. Why couldn’t they have done the same thing?  I wasn’t ready to let them off the hook.

I was afraid that my parents would try to blame Kenny for getting me all “confused” about my religious beliefs, but that was not fair at all. I would not have ever gone to the Church of Christ and heard those lessons about baptism if it had not been for Kenny. But otherwise, he had not had all that much influence on me. He had asked me some questions and using the Bible to find answers to those questions is what helped me learn. But it was me studying the Bible for myself that changed my thinking.

I’d gone to church all my life. My daddy had been a deacon there as long as I could remember. I was feeling really conflicted about church right then. I had already admitted to myself that I would change over to the Church of Christ if Kenny wanted me to. I didn’t think which church we went to mattered as long as we went to church. If he would come with me, fine. Otherwise, I would go with him. But now I was questioning things on a deeper level. On the question of baptism, the Church of Christ was clearly right and my church was clearly wrong. This had me thinking that maybe I needed to be a member of the Church of Christ, not because of Kenny, but because it was right with the Bible.

Scene 4

Kenny and Sarah talking on the phone

VOICE OF KENNY AS NARRATOR:

I heard Mom talking on the phone a little while later. I listened enough to figure out that she was talking to Sarah and encouraging her. Mom didn’t have the best track record herself about putting the Lord first all the time, but she was really trying now. I realized that Mom was the only woman Sarah could turn to for spiritual support. Her mother had made it clear she wasn’t going to be much help. My mom was going to have to fill a crucial role for Sarah.  After twenty minutes or so, Mom called for me to pick up the phone.

SARAH:  Thank you so much, Mama Kate.  You’ve made me feel a lot better about things.

KENNY:  Hi, baby.

SARAH:  Sugar, I love you!

KENNY:  You sound like you’ve taken a happiness pill.

SARAH:  Yeah, I guess you could call it a Mama Kate upper.  Kenny, your mom is wonderful. She understands me exactly. She knew just what I needed to hear.  I see now where you got your talent to say just the right thing at the right time!

KENNY:  What did she say?

SARAH:  Oh, she told me things I already knew, but just needed to hear again from somebody older and wiser. She said that pleasing the Lord is more important than pleasing my Mama or Daddy or anybody else. Then she said I have to be patient with them and not demand too much from them too quickly.  I’ve got to handle this so maybe I can save their souls as well as my own.

KENNY:  That makes a lot of sense.

SARAH:  Kenny, you know how I’ve told you that I would go to church with you if I couldn’t get you to come with me. I meant that because I didn’t think it really mattered where we went to church.  But I was still praying that you would come with me to my church. It’s not that I thought that First Community was better than the Church of Christ, but I knew it would hurt Mama and Daddy a lot for me to leave and go with you. I was going to try my hardest to convert you to being one of us. I’ve prayed for that, but the Lord isn’t going to answer that prayer, Kenny.  I don’t want that any more either. I can’t ask you to leave something that is right for something that is wrong.

KENNY (softly):  It sounds like you have decided what you are going to do.

SARAH (after a pause):  I have.  You know, I haven’t admitted it quite that plainly even to myself until now, but I have decided. There might be ears listening to me so I’m not going to say it out loud right now, but you know what I am going to do.

KENNY:  When are you going to do it?

SARAH:  I haven’t figured that out yet.  I’ve got to try to work it in a way that doesn’t upset things for us any more than necessary.  But I have to think about my own soul, too.

KENNY:  Me, too.  Sarah, I’ve been thinking about what we talked about – about my baptism.  You said we’re in the same boat, and I think you were right.  Brother Banks said the right words when he baptized me. I don’t have any doubt about that, but I didn’t understand what I was doing any better than you did.  I think I need to be baptized again just to be sure that I am really saved and right with God.

SARAH:  Oh, baby, that makes me so happy!  I’ve been worried about you, too, and I didn’t know how to bring it up.  I was afraid I’d make you mad at me.

KENNY:   I don’t think you could do that, baby. I’m thinking about getting baptized tomorrow night, but I’ll wait til Sunday if you want to be there to see it.

SARAH:  Kenny, I would love for us to get baptized together, but you know the situation I’m in.  If it was just me, I’d be on the phone trying to get it done tonight. I’m ready now.  I don’t have any doubts. It feels so good to be clear in my thinking about what I need to do. But I still have to try to deal with my family to make things turn out good. I hate the idea of putting off something that makes the difference between heaven and hell, but I’ve got to try to get Daddy and Mama on board with what I’m doing.  Everything will be so much easier that way.  But I absolutely do not want you to wait for me.  There is no reason for you to risk your soul one extra day!  (almost shouting)  Do you hear me, Kenny?

VOICE IN BACKGROUND:  Pumpkin, can you hang up the phone and come in here please?

SARAH:  Pray for me, baby.  I don’t know what that’s about. I can’t promise, but I’ll be there tomorrow night if there is any way I can.

Act IV of this play will follow in the next installment of this blog.

Copyright 2011 by John Gaines. The author will give permission
for this work to be used or duplicated, but reserves the right
to approve any changes to the script.  
Photo Copyright (c) www.123rf.com

Act II – And a Girl Will Lead Them

This post is Act II of the play And a Girl Will Lead Them.  It should be read in order. Click here to read the first act.

ACT II

Scene 1

Sarah attends Hillview Church of Christ for the first time. She meets other teenagers there – Heidi Jackson, Trent and Kathy Parker (brother and sister), Katie Henning, Linda Bradfield, Mike McCoy and his 8^th grade girlfriend, Zoey White.

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

            I was worried that I was wearing too much makeup or that my skirt was too short for the way the other girls would dress at Kenny’s church. Kenny assured me that I would fit right in and I did. The girls were dressed about like I was, and they were all really friendly to me. My daddy was a deacon at the Community Church and Kenny told me several of his friends were the children of elders at the Church of Christ. Kenny told me that Elders were leaders, just like Daddy was, so Heidi, and Trent and Kathy, and Katie, and Mike all had that in common with me.  C-L-K’s, he called it – church leaders’ kids.  I guess there are worse things to be, but it made me nervous because I didn’t want to do something to cause people think I wasn’t behaving right or letting my light shine like Daddy said I always should.

 Teenagers sit in a row at church.  Mike McCoy has his arm around Zoey’s shoulder. Kenny puts his arm around Sarah.

 SARAH:  Is it alright for you to do that?  We’re in church.

KENNY (pointing to Mike & Zoey):  He’s an elder’s son!

Brother Banks, preacher at Hillview Church of Christ is preaching. Sarah listens very carefully and writes some notes in her Bible.  After church, she spends several minutes talking to the other girls and exchanging phone numbers with them.

 Scene 2

Kenny and Sarah, with Kenny’s mother, in the car taking Sarah home

KATE:  What time do you have to be home, honey?

SARAH: I promised Daddy I’d be back by 9:00 at the latest.

KATE:  Fine. That gives us plenty of time if you two want to stop by Dairy Queen for a milkshake.

Sarah nods.

 KENNY:  That sounds great, Mom.

KENNY (to Sarah):  Okay. I’m dying to know how you liked going to church with me.

SARAH:  I loved it, Honey Fly.  Your friends were wonderful. I really like Katie; she’s sweet. Heidi was kind of quiet so I didn’t get to know her much. Kathy was a chatterbox, but I liked her.  The only one I didn’t like was that Linda girl; she seemed stuck up.   I liked the church service, too. I didn’t know what the singing was going to be like without a piano, but I really loved it. All the people just singing their hearts out was great.

KENNY:  I noticed that you were really singing out. You have a beautiful voice!  I love to hear you sing.

SARAH:  Thanks, Baby.  I’ll have to sing you to sleep sometime.

KATE:  Clears throat disapprovingly

SARAH:  Oops!

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

After we got our milkshakes at Dairy Queen and were back in the car, I asked Kenny’s mother why they didn’t use instrumental music in the Church of Christ.  She said that the church in the New Testament did not use instrumental music so they were trying to follow that example. She said we need to have Bible authority for everything we do in worship and that the New Testament does not tell us to use musical instruments when we worship.  I told her that the New Testament might not mention instruments in the church, but that the Old Testament talked about them using trumpets and harps. I remembered Pastor Ted, my preacher, preaching from Psalms about that just a few days ago.  Mrs. Little – I soon came to call her Mama Kate – explained that the Old Testament law was just for the Jews and that it ended when Christ died on the cross. We went on talking for quite a while.

SARAH:  All right, I get you.  Just because they used instrumental music in the Old Testament does not mean we can use it in the church today, right?

KATE:  That’s right, Sarah.

SARAH:  Well, I can’t say I’m 100% convinced that we’re wrong to have a piano at church, but I do see how you’re looking at it, and that does make sense.  I’ll have to think about it more.

KATE:  That’s fine, honey.  The right thing for you to do is take your time and study your Bible.  You have to be convinced yourself. Don’t accept anything just because somebody tells you something.

SARAH:  You’re right about that. I don’t need to take what Pastor Tim or Brother Banks, or anybody else says without studying the Bible for myself.

Scene 3

Kenny and Sarah talking on the phone

SARAH:  Hey, baby, isn’t it great that we have a short week of school. I love Thanksgiving!  Do you think you could come over to my house after school Wednesday?

KENNY:  Sure, I’d love to.  I could stay and go to church with you Wednesday night.

SARAH:  Well, Daddy said they are not going to have Wednesday night church this week because it’s Thanksgiving.  Is your church going to meet Wednesday night?

KENNY:  Oh, yeah. We don’t ever call off church for anything.

SARAH:  I wish I could come over there and go to church with you, then.

KENNY:  You could come over to my house afterwards and have a sleepover with me!

SARAH:  I wish, but I don’t think any of our folks would go for that.

KENNY:  No, I guess not.  Man, I sure do wish I had my car so I could just come get you.

SARAH:  There has to be some way for me to get there. (Suddenly excited):  Duh, I don’t know why I didn’t think of this earlier. I’ll get my brother Mike to bring me. He owes me lots of favors. Anyway, I think him and his girlfriend Gina might like to visit at your church.  First Community isn’t meeting Wednesday night so nobody should object that we’re missing our own church.  I’ll go talk to him and call you right back.  Bye, Honey Fly!  (hangs up phone)

Lights blink, then phone rings.  Kenny picks up phone.

SARAH:  Mike thought it was a great idea. I’ve already been talking with Mike about how me and you go to different churches and what that would be like after we get married. We agreed that either I’ve got to convert you to our church or you’ve got to convert me to being a Church of Christ, because we need to go to the same church.”

KENNY:  Being a Christian

SARAH: What?

KENNY:  If I convert you, you’ll be a Christian. The church is the church of Christ, but the members are called Christians.

SARAH:  But I’m already a Christian. I don’t have to be converted to be a Christian!”

KENNY:  Maybe so.  I’m just telling you that we are called Christians, just like you are called . . . .  uh, what do people who go to the Community Church call themselves, anyway?

SARAH:  (laughs) Community Churchers, I guess. Anyway,  that’s interesting.  I guess I still have a lot to learn, huh?   And Mike says he wants to know about the Church of Christ, too.

 Scene 4

In Mike’s car taking Kenny home (Mike & Gina in front seat; Kenny & Sarah in back seat)

VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

After Bible class, we went back into the sanctuary where Brother Banks gave an invitation, much like he had at the end of his sermon Sunday night. I listened carefully to what he said. It wasn’t an “altar call” like we have, but he called for unsaved people who believed in Christ and who were ready to repent of their sins to come forward and confess Christ, then be baptized right then. It was a couple of months after I accepted Christ and was saved before I was baptized. But if I understood Brother Banks right, if anybody came forward to be saved, they would have baptized him right then and there.  Sunday night, I had written some Scriptures – Mark 16:16 and Acts 2:38 in the back of my Bible. He used two more tonight which I also wrote down – Acts 22:16 and 1 Peter 3:21. I could tell that this question about baptism was an important difference between the Community Church and the Church of Christ. We didn’t seem to give the importance to baptism that the Church of Christ did. And it seemed like Kenny’s preacher had scriptures to back up what he was saying. I was definitely going to have to study this more.  Right then, though, I was a little troubled about why they waited so long to baptize me when I got saved. The verse Brother Banks used that night – Acts 22:16 – says that baptism washes away sins. I started wondering how I was saved before I was baptized if you have to be baptized to wash your sins away.  I knew I would have to talk with Daddy about that.

SARAH:  Kenny, do you think anybody can be saved first, then get baptized later?

KENNY:  I don’t know, but from the Bible verses Brother Banks used tonight, it sounded like you have to be baptized before you can be saved. Didn’t one of the verses he read say that baptism saves us?

GINA:  Yeah, I heard that too.  That sure sounded different from anything I had ever heard before. I thought then that could not possibly be right.

MIKE:  But he read it right out of the Bible, didn’t he?

SARAH:  I wrote the reference down here in the back of my Bible.  Mike, can you turn on the light so I can see?”

MIKE:  Sure.

SARAH:  Yep, it says it right here in 1 Peter 3:21– the like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us.

MIKE:  What does ‘like figure’ mean?

KENNY:  I think that’s comparing baptism to Noah being saved from the flood.  God saves us through baptism just like he saved Noah and his family from the flood.

MIKE:  Okay, if baptism saves you, then how can you be saved before you’re baptized.

SARAH:  Yeah, that’s the important question.  Do you think that means we might have been taught wrong about baptism?

GINA:  No, I do not think so!  That’s not possible!

SARAH:  Why isn’t it possible?  I’m not saying that Pastor Ted or Brother Don or anybody else at our church lied to us. If they taught us wrong that was because they misunderstood it themselves.

GINA:  But they went to seminary and had all kind of Bible training. They couldn’t be wrong about something as simple as baptism!

KENNY:  But do you trust what a preacher says or do you trust what the Bible says?

SARAH:  Exactly!  I think we have to study our Bibles and see for ourselves what the truth is.  Kenny, I think you might know more about this than you have let on.  Will you help me study about baptism?

MIKE:  Yeah, help me study, too.  I’m really interested in this.

GINA:  There’s nothing wrong with studying, but I still don’t think it’s possible Pastor Ted taught us wrong. I’m going to go talk to him about it and let him straighten me out.  I think that is what you should do, too.

SARAH:  I’m not saying I won’t talk to Pastor Ted sometime about this, but I want to study the Bible with Kenny first. That way I will know enough to know what questions to ask Pastor Ted.

MIKE:  That sounds right to me. If I went to talk to Pastor Ted now, I would just have to accept what he says because I haven’t studied for myself to know what the Bible says.  And we just agreed with Kenny that we should follow the Bible instead of a preacher.

GINA:  Okay. Kenny, you’ve been pretty smart about other things. Maybe I ought to listen to you about this, too.

KENNY:  Wait a minute, Gina.  I’m not any kind of expert. I don’t know all the answers. If we study, we will all be studying together to try to find out what the Bible really says. I’ve just been taught something different from what the three of you have been taught. Maybe it was my preacher who was wrong.  Maybe it was your preacher who was wrong. But they teach different things. We are either saved  before we are baptized or we are not saved until we are baptized.  It can’t be both ways. So it’s our job to study the Bible together  and see what we can learn about the right way to answer that question.

SARAH:  Agreed.

MIKE:  Agreed.

GINA:  Okay, count me in, too.

(Act III will follow in the next post)

Copyright 2011 by John Gaines. The author will give permission
for this work to be used or duplicated, but reserves the right
to approve any changes to the script.  
Photo Copyright (c) www.123rf.com

And a Girl Will Lead Them – Sarah Learns About Following God

What follows in a series of posts is a four-act play (adapted from a longer work of original fiction). It tells the story of a 17-year-old boy named Kenny and his girlfriend, Sarah. Sarah has attended church with Kenny a few times and has listened carefully to what she heard taught about baptism. When Kenny gets snowbound and has to spend the night with Sarah’s family, she takes advantage of an opportunity to get Kenny and her brother, Mike, involved in a Bible study about baptism. Mike and Sarah are members of a church that teaches salvation comes by accepting Christ as your personal savior and has nothing to do with baptism.  Sarah and Kenny share the narrator’s duties as the story unfolds:

CHARACTERS

Kenny Little and Sarah Breck  … a  teenage dating couple, Kenny is a 17-year-old junior in high school. Sarah is a 15-year-old sophomore.

Henry and Kate Little … Kenny’s parents. Henry is 70 years old; Kate is 57. They have a daughter, Rue, who is 14 years older than Kenny.

 Richard and Margaret Breck  … Sarah’s parents. They are in their 40s.

 Mike Breck,  Sarah’s brother, who is a high school senior.

Gina Burkett … Mike’s girlfriend, also a high school senior.

Bree Breck (short for Brianna), Sarah’s younger sister. She is 11

 ACT I

Scene 1 –  The Littles’ living room.

The Breck family (except Mike) is visiting. [The adults are drinking coffee. Kenny and Sarah are sitting close together, holding hands, and ignoring everyone else while looking deeply into one another’s eyes and smiling. Bree is bored and anxious to leave.  The Brecks are dressed for church.]

RICHARD  (looking at watch):  Margaret, look at the time!  We’ve got to hurry if we are going to make it to church tonight.

 MARGARET:  You’re right!  I had no idea it was so late. (Turning to speak to Kate Little)  Kate, it was so nice getting acquainted with you and Henry. It looks like we might be seeing a lot of each other, if our children have anything to do with it.

 Richard, Margaret, and Bree get up and start to leave. Sarah, oblivious to everything but Kenny, remains seated with Kenny, holding hands and grinning at one another.

RICHARD:  Sarah!  Come on, we have to go, or we will be late to church!  She ignores him. He speaks more loudly:  Sarah! I said come on right now!

Sarah finally realizes that her father is speaking to her, and jumps up.

SARAH (speaking to Kenny):  Oh, I guess I have to go now. Call me after while, OK?  (Turning to Kenny’s parents)  I’m happy to have met you, Mr. and Mrs. Little.

(She shakes hands with them, then takes Kenny’s hands in hers. They start to kiss on the lips, but realize their parents are staring at them and stop. Sarah gives Kenny a quick kiss on the cheek, then winks at him.  Richard, Margaret, Sarah, and Bree exit)

HENRY:   They’re nice people, but I thought they were going to stay all afternoon and there’s a football game I’ve been wanting to watch (Henry exits).

KENNY:  Well, Mom, what did you think of Sarah?  Isn’t she great?

KATE:  She seems very nice, Kenny. And her parents seem like they are good people. The only thing I’m concerned about is that she might be a little young for you.

KENNY:  She’s 15; there are just two years difference in our ages. That’s not much. You and Dad have a lot more distance between you than that!  Almost 13 years, right?

KATE:  Well, that’s true. But I was well past 20 and he was almost an old man when we started going together!

KENNY: That doesn’t matter, anyway. What matters is how Sarah and I feel about one another and how well we get along. I know we haven’t known one another long, but it’s been long enough for me to know that she is the best thing that has even happened to me. We’re falling in love, and I have a real strong feeling that she is the girl I’m going to marry someday.

KATE:  Whoa! Slow down, you’re way too young to be thinking about marriage. Kenny, who knows how this will work out. But if it is real love between the two of you, nobody is going to keep you apart so there is no point in me trying.

KENNY (hugging his mother, then speaking):  Mom, can we go to church tonight?

KATE: To church?  We don’t ever go to church on Sunday night. What makes you want to go all of a sudden?

KENNY:   I don’t know (hesitates) . . . yes, I do know, too. Sarah and her family go to church all the time and I think that means I need to start going to church more, too.  But she goes to the First Community Church and we’re members of theChurch ofChrist. I need to figure out what the differences between the two are and learn which one is right.

KATE:  Kenny, as you know, I was brought up in the church. My granddaddy was a gospel preacher for as long as I can remember. But my daddy made the mistake of marrying a woman who wasn’t a churchgoer.  You know that she had lots of other problems and that she left us when I was 13.  Daddy tried to take me and my sisters to church, but he didn’t do a real good job of it.  We missed when he had to work. Later on, we missed when he wanted to go hunting or fishing. Over time, we got less and less faithful.  When I married your Daddy, he had never gone to church anywhere, but he promised he would go to church with me and we would bring up our family in the church. His commitment didn’t last too long after we were married though. I began to slip back, too. I know I didn’t do a very good job taking you to church, but I’ve never given up altogether. I’ve always been afraid of completely turning my back on the Lord. Now, if your Daddy had been more supportive, I’m sure we would have done a better job taking you to church.

KENNY:  But you can’t blame him for what you ought to do, can you, Mom?

KATE:  You’re right about that, I have to admit.  I tell you what, Kenny. Yes, if you want to go to church, I’ll take you.  Not just tonight, but anytime. All you have to do is ask. Maybe this will help me get back going in the right direction. The Lord knows I need to do that!

 VOICE OF SARAH AS NARRATOR:

            Kenny surprised me when he told me that he had gone to church that night. I asked him why he had decided to go. I was happy because he said I had been a good example for him. He liked the fact that I went to church a lot so he thought he should start going more. He had talked with his mom and she agreed they both ought to attend church better. Kenny said his dad was probably hopeless about church, but he not going to let his father keep him from doing better.

            I was really happy for him, but it made me sad that we were going to church at the same time but in different places. I told Kenny that when he got his car, we would get to go to church together all the time. I didn’t know anything about the Church of Christ where he went, but I promised him that if he wanted to go there, I’d be glad to go with him (if he would come get me and if my Daddy would let me go to another church). 

Scene 2 – the Breck’s living room.

 Richard is just getting home from work.  He is dressed in work clothes; Sarah is dressed casually.

 SARAH:  Hey, Daddy!  I’ve got good news!

RICHARD: What’s that, Pumpkin?

SARAH:  Asking Kenny to go to church with us last Sunday got something started. He said me going to church all the time made him think about how he ought to be going to church more himself.

RICHARD:  That’s great honey.  Tell him he can go to church with us whenever he wants.

SARAH:  He wants to go with us again Sunday morning, but he got his mother to take him to their church Sunday night. Isn’t that great, Daddy?  I feel like I sort of let my light shine, like you’re always telling us we need to do.

RICHARD: It is, honey.  I’m proud of you for showing him the right way.  But doesn’t his family go to some other kind of church than we do?

SARAH:  Yes, Kenny goes to Hillview Church of Christ. His mom goes, too, but they have not been attending very much lately.  Kenny talked to his mom after we left Sunday afternoon and they agreed to start going better.

RICHARD:  Church of Christ, huh?  I don’t know much about that church. Are they the ones that don’t have music?

SARAH:  I don’t know, Daddy.  But I’ll find out Sunday night if you’ll let me go. Kenny wants me to go to church with him.  You want me to go and encourage him, don’t you?

RICHARD:  I don’t know, Pumpkin.  Sunday is a school night; you don’t need to be out late.

SARAH:  Kenny promised his mom would bring me home right after church. I ought to be back by 8:30 – no later than 9:00.”

RICHARD (shrugging shoulders):  Okay, the last thing I want to do is interfere with teenagers who want to go to church.  Tell your Mom I said ‘Okay.’  If she doesn’t have any objection, go ahead and make your plans.

SARAH (squealing):  Thank you, Daddy!  (Gives him a hug and a kiss on his forehead).

Scene 3 –

 Kenny and Sarah talking to one another on the phone.

SARAH:  Guess what, Baby?  Daddy said I could go to church with you Sunday night.

KENNY:  Great. I want to show you off to my friends. They’ll think I’m the luckiest guy in the world to have a pretty girlfriend like you.

SARAH:  Kenny, when you went to church with me last week, did you notice anything different between First Community Church and the Church of Christ church?

KENNY:  Not much, but, Baby, I have to admit that I was thinking about you a lot more than I was thinking about what was going on at church. I’ll try to pay more attention this Sunday so I can give you a better answer.”

SARAH: I’m flattered that you were thinking about me, but I think you’re really supposed to be thinking about the Lord when you’re at church.  (Then she laughs)  I guess I wasn’t paying too much attention either last Sunday, when you were sitting right there beside me.

KENNY:  So we’ll both have to do better this Sunday, huh?

SARAH: Yeah, but not too much better. I don’t want you to forget all about me even when you’re at church. Is that bad of me?

KENNY:  I hope not, because, baby, there is no way I could ever forget about you for one second.

SARAH:  Me either, Babe, me either.

Act II of this play will follow in the next installment of this blog.

Copyright 2011 by John Gaines. The author will give permission
for this work to be used or duplicated, but reserves the right
to approve any changes to the script.  
Photo Copyright (c) www.123rf.com

Whatever Happened to Common Sense?

In 2005, Rod Blagojevich issued an executive order requiring pharmacists in his state to fill all legal prescriptions for any drug – including birth control or “morning after” pills. The former Illinois governor made many unwise decisions during his tenure as chief executive in the Land of Lincoln, but none were any more lame-brained than this one. In April of this year, an Illinois circuit judge ruled the ex-governor’s order unconstitutional. This settles little as the court’s ruling may be appealed. In any event, the same issue is being contested in other states.

Does the fact that drugstore owners or pharmacists have a moral objection to selling a product that results in the death of a life that has already been conceived give them the right to refuse to sell a legal product that a customer wants to buy?

Framed that way, the issue is a part of the emotionally-charged abortion debate.  The American Civil Liberties Union and other pro-abortion groups are pushing for regulations that make pharmacists fill “morning after” prescriptions.  Those who believe a woman taking such a pill is equivalent to taking human life are steadfastly resisting such requirements.

For a moment, let us leave all that debate aside and consider the simple question of whether government should have the right to require a merchant to sell any product he does not want to sell.

Stop in for a quick lunch at almost any fast-food restaurant and you will find a choice of soft drink beverages available at a dispenser. You might be able to select from a variety of Coca-Cola products or you might choose from a variety of Pepsi products. Rarely do you find yourself able to purchase a Coke or a Pepsi.  Merchants have concluded arrangements with one beverage supplier or the other.  A Coke lover is out of luck if he happens to stop at a burger place that sells only Pepsi products, or vice versa.

Has anyone ever suggested that the government step in and force McDonald’s and Wendy’s to sell both brands of colas to their customers?  Of course not. We understand that merchants have the right to choose for themselves which products they will stock.

Surely, the same reasoning applies to drugstores, doesn’t it?

It shouldn’t matter what reason causes the store not to offer a product for sale. It might be a business decision.  It might be a moral decision.  It might simply be a matter of the merchant’s likes and dislikes.  Always, if customers do not like the merchant’s  product line, they are free to take their business elsewhere.

All of this makes sense, except when the product not offered for sale is one that allows a woman who had unprotected sex and fears that she might have conceived a child to allay that concern by ridding herself of any fertilized eggs that resulted from her careless behavior.  When that happens, the ACLU and its allies tell us, the merchant suddenly has no right to decide for himself if he will offer that particular product for sale.  Not even if his conscience tells him that selling the product would amount to aiding and abetting the taking of human life.

Another Midwest politician, former Vice President Dan Quayle once mangled the slogan of the UNCF and said, “A mind is a terrible thing to lose.” Sadly, it seems that quite a few people have lost their minds – or at least their common sense – when it comes to understanding whose rights are being trampled upon in this controversy.