Church Folk - Michele Andrea Bowen [124]
Theophilus smiled at his sister. He knew she loved him dearly but was just too stubborn to admit it out loud. He wiped his mouth and went over to where she was sitting and gave her a big smack on the cheek.
"Boy, stop. You'll have my whole face stinking with your old chit'lin' lips."
He laughed and kissed her again.
Essie smiled. Theophilus and Thayline were something else. They loved each other fiercely, even if they were always fussing and bickering about something.
Theophilus looked around his mother's kitchen at all the folks crowded up in it, savoring the feelings of joy, love, and contentment they brought up, and it seemed to him that he was basking in the miracle of God's love. Some people thought that the only way to feel God was in church, but he knew better. God was everywhere, always there, always a breath away. It could hit you at any moment, like right now, reminding you that one of the many places God can be found is in the love of your family. He wished he had a pen on him so that he could jot down those thoughts for a sermon.
"Baybro, what you think gone happen tomorrow? You know, despite all the action this morning, I didn't get a feeling that y'all accomplished everything you set out to do."
"Me neither," Uncle Booker said to Willis.
"Ernest will not win a bishop's seat at this conference," Bishop Jennings said evenly. "His son will be demoted to serve as an assistant pastor at a prominent church in Detroit. And when things cool down, he'll be moved to a smaller church, and then to a much larger congregation by the time the next Triennial Conference rolls around."
Theophilus shook his head. All this work, stress, and worry for Marcel to chase women at another church.
"You two quit looking so glum. This business we're in is a lot bigger than this mess," Bishop Jennings said. "See, there is your church, then your district and the denomination. But most importantly, there is the business of the Lord. And as long as God is in business, the devil is out there just ready to do some work of his own. This thing we were dealing with this morning was way beyond you and me and a few corrupt preachers. It is a thing, a force, trying to harm the very soul of the church. Those men who started this mess and the ones whose names are in those two books are just pitiful little pawns in a war that outshadows any of us in this room."
"Amen! Preach, Bishop," Rev. James said, in between bites. He had been thinking those thoughts all morning and hoped someone else would see things like he did.
"So," Theophilus said. "So, Bishop, where does that leave all of us?"
Looking at his young pastor struggle against disillusionment with the church, Percy Jennings recognized that this was what it really meant to be the senior bishop. It was about more than overseeing a multimillion-dollar budget and administration of a national organization. It was really about right and wrong, serving the Lord, honor and duty, caring for the folks who made up the church, and preaching the good news of Jesus Christ.
"You know where it leaves you? Son, it leaves you at the altar of God's grace and mercy. Did you really think for one minute that this calling you answered would be easy? No, Theophilus, it is a daily walk to do right, by yourself and those you love as well as by your church. It is a calling to love the church like Jesus did, which brings with it the responsibility to make sure that the Body of Christ, the Church, can stand tall and look the Lord dead in the eye with a righteous heart.
"So before you start getting all discouraged because these men didn't get the just desserts that you thought they should have, take stock of why you took this job in the first place. Because, let me tell you, what happened this morning was earthshaking. You didn't feel it all that much because it all came down in a series of tremors, but mark my word, the shake-up happened. And I guarantee you that you will see some surprising things happening tonight