What I learned in Chicago Last Night.

So we went to church last night. We got there at 6:45. We had to wait for someone to come so they could unlock the doors (how long has that been?) so we sat in the car along the street. Everybody that walked by the buick scared me. There was a liquor store on one corner and a custom wheels and rims shop on the other corner, which seemed to be owned by this very large man with slicked back hair, lots of tatoos, and gold chains. This little church was right in the middle. I'd been apprehensive from the moment we got in the car to come and it was not getting any better now. In the passenger side mirror, I saw a pretty built man in black pants and a black tank top. He was carrying 2 things, another shirt, and a bible. Luke says, "This must be the pastor." I said, "Good, lets go inside." He said, "No, not yet, there's nobody else here yet." So we sat. and waited........and waited. 10 minutes later, a woman in scrubs holding a 10 year old boy by the hand walks up to the church and goes in. I say, "Ok, someone else is here, now can we go in?" In we go.

I must say that I have never felt such a relief to be in church, Amen. The man we thought was the pastor was called a deacon, and he led the bible study to Nita, the mother of the 10 year old, Luke, Me, and Minister. That was what they all called the guy who ran the sound board. And that was all of us, although 3 other women came in later. After the service, they got teased pretty bad by Deke, Nita, and Minister.

After Deacon talked, Bishop came out of his study and finished up the lesson for us. Now that man speaks with authority. If you live in Chicago, you can hear him on the radio some nights. I don't know the station, but I do know that he could preach. And when we were finished and Luke and I talked to him a little about where we lived and things, he told us he had a word from the Lord for us and it was 2 Kings 6 v. 12-18.

2 Kings, chapter 6 verses 12-18 talk about Elisha and his servant being put under seige by the king of Aram. His servant gets up early to do his chores, looks outside and sees this army camped around the city. He runs in to Elisha and, clearly frightened, tells him what he saw. Elisha says to him, "Do not fear, those who are with us are more than those who are with him." The servant persists that there are not and Elisha prays that the Lord God would open the servants eyes. All around Elisha are horses and chariots of fire." Elisha prays that the army would go blind. God then strikes them blind and Elisha leads the whole army himself into the middle of Samaria (where the King of Israel, Aram's enemy, asks if he should kill them all. Elisha says, "No, feed them and send them home, they won't trouble us anymore." And they don't.

I have been afraid in my life. Not much lately, compared to my younger years when I slept with the covers vice-gripped around my neck to keep vampires away. Like I said, I have been afraid in my life. But lately, my fear hasn't been death or monsters. My fear is that Luke will die and I will be left here to live without him. This word that the Bishop spoke to us was about my fear. We pray every single day for God's protection from evil, and we need it. But who am I to doubt that he gives it when we pray for it? There are chariots of fire if we need them and they will be there to protect God's own who are about God's business. and I am about God's business and so is my dear husband.

He's my rock and My salvation, who have I to fear? Nobody. Who have I to fear about my loved ones? Nobody. I have prayed for them and GOD is Faithful. Amen.