There Must Be Something More

51 | All Because Of A Batch Of Cookies

"What?" I said, staring hard at Trey.

He looked away and stared down the grass underneath the bleachers. He shuffled his sneakers and exhaled, the wind sweeping his hair to the side. He clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes.

"I do know that kind of feeling," he repeated, lacing his fingers together. "In my house. Everyday. I may act all happy and funny in the team, but deep down I'm... hurt. It's just everyday that my mom and dad fight. My brother is always out somewhere, and when he gets back he smells of liquor. The only comfort I have is when my uncle comes to visit. He's a Christian, and he actually cheers me up with encouraging words. But when he mentions the Bible, I tell him I'm not interested. It was only because of your club that I understood that all the good and happy things he told me were derived from his love for God. And from God's Word. That's why I immediately wanted to accept Christ into my life."

"But what about the cookies? You came to our club room just for it."

He smiled. "Yeah. It's been a while since I ate fresh homemade cookies. My uncle along with his wife used to always bring one when they visit. But for the past month they went to Peru to do some kind of church work. I blamed God for it. I blamed Him for making my life miserable. But I know that was wrong. After receiving Christ for myself, I was hungry for His Word. I wanted to hear more of what I heard from uncle. I wanted to know I was loved. After studying the Bible, I realized my life was something God was using to remind me of a life without Him--it's horrible. 

"But of course I still have a lot to learn. Often times I get lazy and not read. I still have a lot to give for God to improve me."

"I never knew," I said. I put a hand on his shoulder. "You're not alone, man."

He grinned. "Thanks, man. And thank you so much for inviting me to your club, introducing me to Jesus. It really changed my life."

"Mine too," I said.

"What about Liam?" he asked. "It will be great if you tell him about God and what the Bible says about his soul."

I bit my lip and looked at the kid several feet away from the bleachers. "Yeah, I still need to talk to Steven or Meredith about that. I admit I'm still pretty weak in sharing the gospel. I want to share, but I'm afraid to."

"You mean you're shy?" 

"Yeah," I said, my voice fading away.

Trey cringed. "Me too."

"Well, you're seeing Steven today, so you can talk about that," he said.

I scratched my cheek. "Yeah"--and then I thought of a great idea--"I have an even better idea!"

Trey jumped. "What?"

"Why don't I invite him to today's cell group."

"Is that alright, though? I mean, I'd love for him to hear God's Word, but it's kind of like our time with Steven. I don't think there should be someone from outside yet. I don't know. Maybe you should ask Steven if Liam could tag along."

I fished my phone from my backpack and dialed Steven. After several rings the line got busy. I sighed and told Trey he wasn't picking up. He said to call again after five minutes. I left a message about it instead.

"What about you? You coming to the cell group?" I turned to him.

He frowned. "I'd love to. But I promised my cousin I'd come to her piano rehearsal right after baseball tonight."

I shrugged okay.

"Let's go," I said to Trey and ran to the diamond.

----------

"It's nice to see you again, boys," Steven said. Beside him were two guys we didn't recognize from anywhere. One had blond hair and tons of freckles on his face. One had curly red hair and a faint mustache that I felt he had newly shaved.

"Oh, they're two guys I shared the gospel to at Clarkdale Park," he explained. He introduced the two. The blond one was Daniel Lyons and the redhead was Cameron Leonard. They both went to Woodside High. And just like Samuel and me, they were sophomores.

"They're both at Lesson Two like you guys," Steven added.

We introduced ourselves and formally shook hands. And then Steven apologized about not being able to receive calls or messages because his phone's battery died. He asked if we had any calls or messages for him. We told him about Liam.

"Every night?" he asked, his eyebrows scrunched in worry.

We nodded and sat across from him. 

"Well, just remember not to come on too strong," he said. "Show how much you care first and he'll believe what you say since he sees it for himself. Remember Matthew 5:16? In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

We nodded.

"How's Meredith? I heard you guys just had three new believers in your club?" he asked.

I explained about how we invited people from our own clubs and evangelized them inside the room after a few games and food. Steven was amazed at the great success of the plan and asked about the new believers.

"Trey Mullins is a guy from my team," I explained. "He's really hungry for the Word. It's like we don't even have to do anything, but it'd be great if you become his leader too. He told me about his beloved Christian uncle who brings him cookies and tells him of encouraging things and makes him feel loved. He had been seeking of that kind of love, especially when his uncle went on a missionary trip. He realized it was all from God when we evangelized him and he heard his uncle's exact same words."

"He seems like a cool guy," Steven said, "I would love to hear more of his story."

"Yeah, I would've invited him today if he didn't have something to do. But he promised to come next time."

"What about you guys?" Samuel turned to Daniel and Cameron. "Got any stories to tell?"

Daniel and Cameron nervously looked at each other, then turned to Steven. Steven smiled and patted Daniel's shoulder.

"They'll tell you some other time," he said. "Or I could tell you. But not right now. Why don't you tell your own stories first, boys?"

I went ahead with mine. Then Samuel came after. I had never heard his full story before, in spite of the times we've been together. I felt as if a new wind had swept over me when he told his story.

"My mom and dad are strict Catholics," he explained. He clenched his jaw as he went on, "they think God's just some kind of religion. Before becoming a Christian, I didn't really care about religion. But I thought because it was printed on birth certificate that I was guaranteed of heaven. I would go to a cathedral with my family on Sundays, sometimes pray with them with the rosary, and even do the sign of the cross. But I was empty.

"I cursed a lot. I used to hate my older brother because he was a greater leader and student than I was. I used to watch inappropriate stuff like pornography. Sure, I wasn't a drug user or dealer or I didn't kill anyone. I thought I wasn't a bad person. I thought the only sinners were the ones in jail or the ones who did something that deserves jail.

"But then I had a sprain on my forearm one day and I was sent to the infirmary. Meredith did voluntary work there and she told me about the love of Jesus. She told me He was the greatest healer of all time. And then she prayed for my arm. I didn't believe her. I thought she was loony. But when I came home it was completely gone. The red spot, the pain--gone. 

"I debated upon myself about that. I searched the internet for explanations. I came to the conclusion that maybe Meredith was some kind of witch. I told my parents about it and they laughed it off. But then I came across a Christian article in the internet.

"It was called 'Christ The Healer'."