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Topic: Worship (05/03/04)
TITLE: You Are Going To Fall By michael e. evans 05/06/04 |
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Revelation 19:10
It was very natural, though unrehearsed. Reasonable, though unexpected. Falling was the only thing to do. The staggering combination of relaxing under the relentless stress of my troubles, the dizzying shift of focus from that which pursued me to he who would deliver me, with a sudden twisting lunge through a newly revealed way of escape, straight toward the source of my relief. It was my first encounter with worship. My brain said: “You are going to fall.”
I was the only guy to sign up for typing my senior year. All my friends laughed, until they realized I was like a rooster in a hen house. And Paulette was my favorite hen. Short and shapely. Smart and sassy. It didn’t hurt that she liked me too. But Paulette had a boyfriend -- Lee Frank Holmes. Why is it that psychopaths tend to have three names? I pray he turned out okay, but back then -- Lee Frank Holmes was a thug before his time. When he found out I had eyes for Paulette, or more importantly, that she had eyes for me, I got a message. “After school, we’re gonna kick your tail.” Now, “we” would be Albert Adkins and a handful of half-human henchmen that did Lee Frank’s bidding. Lee Frank wouldn’t be there. He was in jail.
Worry is a curious thing. The weight of it boggles the mind. It entangles every thought and confounds logical possibility. Scenarios soar and one is left drained from dreaming of what might be. I was no good that day, until I got another message. Johnny Ray Worth might have my back. Hey! There are exceptions to every rule. Johnny Ray Worth was the only kid in the county who really knew Kung Fu. Rumor had it that he had actually gone to South East Asia to study in a Shao Lin monastery. I know he missed a whole year of school and returned in Adonis’ body. I also know that he was dating Kathy Hawkins, whose body defied the laws of physics. Johnny Ray Worth practiced behind his grandmother’s house every evening, after school and the crowd always left dumbfounded.
The last bell rang and a crowd gathered. Word had spread through the school all day. There was no place to hide, so I made my way to the doomed destination, not knowing if I would be on my own. Albert was on time. He loved a good fight. Johnny was nowhere to be seen. The weight of what I imagined tripled at the sound of Albert’s voice. “Evans, Lee Frank told you to leave his girl alone.” Suddenly I realized, I didn’t see Paulette. But before I could process the thought, the crowd parted. Like the Red Sea, everyone cleared a path and with a gasp that seemed to create a temporary vacuum, Johnny Ray Worth heart punched Albert Adkins, just as Albert was reaching for me.
It was very natural, though unrehearsed. Reasonable, though unexpected. Falling was the only thing to do. The staggering combination of relaxing under the relentless stress of my troubles, the dizzying shift of focus from that which pursued me to he who would deliver me, with a sudden twisting lunge through a newly revealed way of escape, straight toward the source of my relief. It was my first encounter with worship. My brain said: “You are going to fall.”
And fall, I did. Albert fell too, gasping, right beside me. His henchmen were in the freshly exhaled wind. The crowd screamed with laughter just as I realized that I was holding Johnny’s leg. I scrambled to my feet, embarrassed but unharmed. And I tried to find what was left of my pride in the gaze of Paulette, who had been shielded by the now fallen Albert. But to no avail. Her eyes were fixed on the victor. She worshipped him more than I did.
This story is fictional -- loosely based on real people and true events.