CHAPTER 31
Church Issues
Lisa was livid! Instead of racing over to have it out with her ex-best friend as part of her wanted to, she rushed to update RJ on the latest happenings. When she got to his office he was in a meeting with Pastor Burlington.
“Lisa, it’s so good to see you!” Using his cane for assistance, Pastor Burlington immediately stood and hugged her. The sunlight from RJ’s window bounced from the top of his hairless dome, making it glisten. “Robert has told me about what’s going on. I want you to know that I’m praying for all of you.”
“Thank you.”
“Well, you’re here to see Robert, not me, so I’ll mosey on out so the two of you can talk. I’ll be around in the building; have someone page me when you’re done with the misses here and we can finish up.”
“No, don’t leave on my account. I’m sorry to interrupt. What I have to say can wait until later.” Lisa began to back out of the room.
“Are you sure?” RJ spoke up.
“Yes. . .”
“Lisa, if you were coming to ask RJ for a slice of bread, you have precedence over me.” He winked. “I’m going to leave so you can speak with your hus—Robert.”
“You don’t have to leave, Pastor Burlington. Seriously, this isn’t a do or die situation. I just came to vent because I lost my job today.”
“What!” exclaimed RJ.
“Well, technically I’ve been placed on administrative leave without pay, but it’s all the same. Olivia and her husband practically run that place.”
“What happened?” Pastor Burlington asked. Lisa had obviously sparked his curiosity as well.
She shared with both of them the event that had taken place moments ago.
“Olivia’s trying to coerce you into making Chanelle change her story. You, downloading pornography? That’s absurd!” RJ quickly came to her defense.
“I know. . .,” spewed Lisa.
“If Olivia and the other board jerks approved your absences, it’s not fair for them to use your time off against you.”
“Robert, we all know that the devil doesn’t fight fair. The minute Lisa accepted privileges that went against company policy, she made herself a pawn. You can best believe that a record of your unofficially approved absences has been kept as insurance in case you ever went against the grain and they wanted to get rid of you.”
“I can’t believe these people are being so ruthless!” spat RJ.
“I can’t believe Olivia. I thought I knew her so well. . .I thought we were friends. Apparently I didn’t know her at all.”
“I can believe everything,” inserted Pastor Burlington. “Some people with money think the rules don’t apply to them.”
“But Olivia is supposed to be a Christian. She was supposed to be my friend,” cried Lisa.
“The key words there are ‘supposed to be,’ and only the Lord truly knows. He will take care of her in His time. Sometimes it’s the people close to us who hurt us the most. As David said in Psalm 41:9 ‘Even my close friend, whom I trusted, he who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.’ Some of the hurt we experience from our friends is because we failed to ask for discernment before letting them into our lives in the first place. Even in those situations, God is capable of using those people to get us to where He wants us to be. Listen, I’m not gon’ start preaching. Lisa, I don’t want you worrying ‘bout money. I’m sure Mr. Director over there can find something for you around here. If there’s no open position, perhaps he can create one.”
“Thanks, Pastor Burlington. We’ll see if I’ll have to ask RJ to take you up on that.”
“Meanwhile, I want you to take some time to rest and be with Chanelle. She needs you and your entire family needs time to heal. Robert can take off whenever he needs to in order to be with you. Have you spoken to your pastor about any of this?”
“No. . .”
“Well, I suggest you do. From what I understand, the Scotts are very active in the church. As the head of Hope Ministries, I’d want to know if one of my leaders was behaving in such a manner.”
• • •
Chanelle went to her appointment alone that same afternoon. Lisa asked her how it went and she just said, “It was fine.” Lisa didn’t press her daughter for more information than she was ready to give. Later that day, Lisa decided to follow Pastor Burlington’s advice and she called the office to see if she could speak with Pastor Ross. As expected, she wasn’t able to get in that same day due to such short notice, but she was able to set up a meeting on Thursday afternoon.
Lisa confided in her sister about Olivia’s latest tactics at work, but once again withheld the information from her mother. She pulled into the church parking lot Thursday afternoon. While waiting to see Pastor Ross, she spotted Eric walking down the hall. Thankfully he didn’t see her. At least if he had, he pretended not to and that was fine with her.
Pastor Ross was a very chubby and petite man with a gray Afro. Standing several inches taller than him, Lisa looked down when he stood up to greet her as she was granted permission to enter his office. “Sister Hampton, what is it I can do for you?”
“I wanted to speak with you to let you know about what’s happening with one of the leaders here at the church.” She took a seat and went into her story about the rape, the peanuts, the attempted payoff for Chanelle to change her story and the incident at work.
“And what would you like me to do about this?” he asked cynically.
“I would think it’s something you would like to speak with her about.”
“Regarding everything you told me, it’s your word against hers. Sister Scott does a lot for this congregation. The police are handling the rape allegations. I’m not sure the other alleged incidents are things I need to get involved in.”
“I get the impression that you really don’t care.”
“Sister Hampton, you interrupted my day and set up this urgent meeting with my secretary. I had other things planned during this time, but because you insisted this was an emergency, I rearranged my schedule. I have patiently listened to your complaints and that’s the best I can do. I’m neither judge nor jury. There’s nothing I can do to help you. This is an issue for the courts.”
“But you are the pastor of this church.”
“Yes, but I make it a point not to involve myself in matters that occur outside of the church walls.”
“Isn’t it your responsibility to correct leadership when they are out of line? Though these are not technically church issues, like it or not, Olivia’s behavior is a direct reflection on this church.”
“Again, it’s your word against Sister Scott’s. No offense, but I don’t know you very well. In fact, I don’t really know you at all. If it had not been for the fact that you participated on the anniversary committee, I might not even know your name. Thank you, by the way. You all did a wonderful job commemorating my time at this church. Anyhow, I’ve known Olivia for quite some time and she and her husband—”
“Have done a lot for the congregation,” Lisa said grudgingly. “I knew money controlled politics, but I didn’t think the Scotts would have this church in their back pocket, too. I’m sorry for wasting your time. I see this is something that you’re not willing to address.” Lisa had so much she wanted to say, but she politely got up and walked out while she could keep her mouth shut.
CHAPTER 32
A Permanent Fixture
Within several months, Justin had been officially charged with rape. Consequently, he had been suspended from playing football for Ohio State indefinitely. As the weeks turned into months, things eventually settled to some form of normalcy for Lisa. Her parents had long ago come back from California and naturally had been heartbroken upon learning of Chanelle’s pregnancy. News of Justin’s arrest still made headlines and the trial date had been set for early next year. Lisa was surprised at how quickly the date had been set. She thought it would take a year, if not more, before this all came to a head, bu
t apparently Justin had waived his right to a preliminary hearing and Isaac had pulled some strings to get a date as soon as possible. Lisa was sure that the Scott family wanted to make sure this trial was far behind him by the time football season started next year. Justin going pro was the only thing that family seemed to care about.
Chanelle, who was now twenty weeks pregnant, had agreed to testify at the trial next year, and was still attending counseling every other week. She still didn’t really share her feelings about the rape with Lisa, but she seemed to be adjusting well. Lisa was glad that she was at least talking to someone professional; and she was also continuing forth as planned. She’d started college back in the fall and had been doing great. Lisa marveled at her daughter’s strength. She had endured such a horrible ordeal and still wore a smile. The relationship between the two of them had grown tremendously. Gone was the rebellious daughter constantly bumping heads with the overwhelmed mother. Chanelle had shown considerable growth, not just in her personal life, but her spiritual life as well. Lisa no longer had to fight with her daughter to get up for church Sunday mornings or attend mid-week Bible study because Chanelle was often more eager to go than she was. They were now regular attendees of Pastor Burlington’s church. It was a much smaller congregation, but the close-knit family environment was what they needed. Even Kyle seemed to enjoy the hospitality and had become a frequent visitor.
The whole ordeal with Justin had brought Lisa and Chanelle closer together. In fact, it had brought everyone in their family closer together; and Lisa couldn’t have been more excited as she strolled down each aisle in the grocery store gathering items for the Thanksgiving dinner she was hosting. She shared her menu plans with her sister, talking on her cell phone with her Bluetooth earpiece.
“Dang, girl, it sounds like you’re trying to feed an army.”
“Well, it’s better to have too much food than not enough. RJ said he spoke with his brother. He and Sheila are driving up. Pastor and Sister Burlington have also been invited.”
“Is Kyle still coming? Or as Mama calls him, ‘Kelvin.’”
“She’s finally gotten his name right. She’s still calling Stacie, Stasha, though. But, as far as I know, he’s coming. I told Chanelle to make sure she also invited his mother and siblings.” Lisa had developed a soft spot for Stacie and Kyle ever since she found out how they had looked out for Chanelle. Lisa saw Kyle regularly because he had become just as much of a permanent fixture around the house as RJ. If he wasn’t at work, and Chanelle wasn’t at school, then Kyle was likely to be by her side. He was polite and generous, always calling before he showed up to see if Lisa or Chanelle needed anything.
One day Kyle had gotten to the house before Chanelle had made it home from class. Lisa took the opportunity to engage in a conversation with him and learned that he wasn’t as thuggish as she’d originally thought. Yes, his pants were still a little too big, in her opinion, and she didn’t appreciate hearing his loud stereo system blocks before he got to her home, but overall, she found him to be a nice and intelligent young man. He had hopes and dreams like anyone else, just not the means to see them through. He wanted to go to college, but Stacie couldn’t afford to send him, and Kyle had a plan to work all this year, save up some money, and hopefully start school next fall. Lisa admired his determination and respected the fact that he was willing to work hard for what he wanted.
Over the months, Lisa and Kyle became so comfortable with each other that she didn’t mind giving him “motherly” orders to pull up his pants and he always obliged without a mumble.
“Didn’t you say that Stacie has four other children and a grandchild?”
“Yep.”
“Girl, you are gonna have a lot of folks in your house. Now I see why you are buying so much food.”
“I don’t mind. I’m just glad that everyone can get together.”
“Well, don’t feel like you have to buy all the food yourself. I’m going to give you some money when I get up there.”
“No; that’s okay. And anyhow, how are you going to pay for anything? You don’t have a job either,” teased Lisa.
“There’s a difference between being self-employed and unemployed such as you.”
“Hey. . .I work. . .sometimes.” Lisa had formally been let go from Brentson Technologies. The pornography allegations were thrown out because the incidents occurred when she was in California, so it was obvious that she could not have been involved. But, Lisa could not dispute all the time she had taken off of work. Pastor Burlington had been right. Lisa didn’t know that there had been a list kept and it was presented against her and used to accelerate her termination. Overall, she was glad to be out from under Olivia’s reign. Every now and then Lisa kept in touch with Megan, who stated she wanted out of Brentson as well and was emphatically looking for another job. Currently, Lisa worked on an “as needed” basis, helping RJ at the center. She didn’t get paid much, but it kept her utilities on.
“Is working sometimes enough to feed everyone?”
“Yes.” As proud as Lisa was of her daughter, she was also proud of her sister. Callie had decided not to continue her tenure at the college where she taught and had applied for several grants looking to begin The Callie Jamison Foundation, a non-profit organization whose primary mission was to help people living with HIV find healthcare and other resources needed to live a healthy lifestyle. Things were still in the beginning stages, but all was going well. “RJ gave me money for most of the stuff,” she explained, putting several packages of dinner rolls in her cart. “Mama called earlier and said that she would pick up the turkey and green beans. She won some money the other day, so I guess she’s feeling extra generous.”
“When is that woman going to give up gambling?”
“You got me. . .I’m done preaching to her about it. She’s just going to have to learn the hard way.”
“It seems to me like she should have learned already. Anyone who takes bill money to play scratch offs has a problem. I couldn’t believe it when you told me she’d played the lottery with the money Daddy gave her for bills.”
“Daddy is a better person than I could ever be because I would’ve been right back in Maryland. He’s sticking it out, though. He’s been trying to get her to get some help.”
“That just goes to show how much he has changed.”
“I’m starting to see that. At first I thought it was all a charade, but he really is a different person. I guess it took Mama leaving him for him to get it together. He’s been very active in the church as well, although he has been down that road before.” Their father had previously been one of those who served the Lord in spurts. It was sort of like a three-three rotation: three months walking with the Lord, and three years backsliding.
“Well, I think he’ll be alright. I’m sure Mama’s gambling addiction will keep him coming to Jesus, because Lord knows she has to be driving him crazy.”
“Speaking of Jesus, did I tell you I got an email from Eric the other day?”
“What did he say?”
“Just that he was aware of everything and wanted to let me know he was praying for us.”
“Aw. . .that was nice. I hope you responded.”
“I did, but it was short and sweet. All I wrote was ‘thanks.’”
Callie laughed. “I’m sure he was hoping for a little more. After all, the man called you to be his wife.”
“Girl, I thank God that He did not let me make the mistake of marrying that man because it would have been awful.”
“Your prayer life would be the bomb though, because he would have made sure of that with his morning ritual.”
“You’re silly. Anyhow, let me let you go so I can hurry up and get out of this store. My goal is to get everything I need because I am not trying to come back out tomorrow. You know the store is going to be packed tomorrow night with it being Thanksgiving Eve.”
“Yeah, I need to finish packing before Bryan and Tyra get here. I look forward to seeing you to
morrow.”
Lisa spent about another thirty minutes or so shopping, and stood in line for what seemed like forever. She was in the parking lot loading bags into her trunk when she heard the wicked voice. “Well, well, well. . .look who I’ve run into.”
Lisa’s muscles tightened and she silently prayed, “Father, in the Name of Jesus, deliver me from evil.” She ignored Olivia as she had done the last several times they’d run into each other. Lisa was starting to get the feeling that these meetings weren’t coincidental. This was about the sixth time she’d seen her former best friend in the last couple of weeks since the trial date had been set. Olivia didn’t live on the same side of town as Lisa and yet she kept popping up. This was the first time Olivia had spoken to her. She normally just gave Lisa the evil eye. Olivia approaching her and actually speaking was, to Lisa, a definite sign of nervousness and fear.
After the first couple of “run-ins,” Lisa had stopped telling RJ about them because he was being excessively protective of her. He had finally given up the guest room at her house and was back with Pastor Burlington, but he was still over every night. His presence didn’t bother Lisa, though. For the first time since their divorce, she could actually say they had become friends and she enjoyed his company.
“How’s the little pregnant slut of yours doing?”
She had some nerve calling Chanelle a slut! Lisa took a deep breath and shot a piercing glance Olivia’s way. For a brief millisecond, Lisa felt sorry for her. Liv’s birthday had been in September and she had turned fifty. Lisa would be thirty-nine next month and Olivia used to pass for someone her age or younger, but today she looked every bit of fifty and then some with the large bags and dark circles under her eyes. Even her cheeks seemed to sag. She looked awful! No one in their right mind would guess that the figure dressed in a jogging suit, baseball cap and not a stitch of makeup, was the wife of multimillionaire Isaac Scott. Liv always had a Kodak-moment-ready appearance. Lisa continued unloading the cart, praying that God would enable her to move quickly so she could get away from this woman before she gave in to the urge to attack her.
In Times of Trouble Page 20
