Song of Praise

by Vanessa Miller

  Rita stood up. “Here’s the thing. I don’t see her at the revival. I see her lying on the floor of a dark room that doesn’t get sunlight.”

  “She had one of her premonitions,” Raven told RaShawn.

  RaShawn handed the baby back to Rita. “I’ve got to go get her.”

  “Hold on,” Marcus stood. “You have a revival to get to. We were just trying to figure out where Britney might have gotten off to, so I can go get her.”

  Like the wind was being knocked out of him, RaShawn pushed the words out, “When she called me last night… she told me that she had just pulled up to her mother’s house.”

  “I know where Judge Hartman lives,” Marcus told RaShawn. “You go on to the revival. And I’ll go check on Britney.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Raven said. “You’ll need an extra pair of hands if Judge Hartman and Britney are laid out in that house.”

  “Wait, Britney wouldn’t have spent the night at her mother’s. She told me that house gives her the creeps.” Rita said.

  RaShawn then told Marcus and Raven the name and address of the hotel Britney had checked into. “Ask the hotel clerk to let you into her room.”

  As Marcus and Raven left Rita turned to RaShawn. “Can we ride to the revival with you? I can look around the church to see if Britney shows up.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” RaShawn said as they all left the house.

  ***

  Judge Hartman knocked on the cellar door. She waited a moment then knocked again. “Wake up, Britney.”

  “Go away.”

  “Don’t be like that, Britney. I’ve tried everything I can think of to help you. I don’t know why you keep going back to drugs.”

  “What are you talking about? I’m not on drugs.” But as she said those words she heard the slur in her voice, and then recognized the sleepy feeling that seemed to overtake her senses. She’d been nodding off in this room and being forced to deal with her nightmares for hours now.

  “I found your drugs and your needle, so there’s no use in denying it. I called Dr. Sellers and he will be here to get you within the hour.”

  “You drugged me? How could you do that?” Britney tried to get up, but found herself stumbling backwards. She now knew her mother to be a cold-blooded murderer, but she’d never expected that she would actually put the very thing that Britney had struggled long and hard to get away from back into her system. “Lord Jesus, I need help. Please…” was all she could say before tears rolled down her face.

  “Call on the Lord all you want. Just know that no reporter will believe a word you say now. Not when you can’t even stay off of drugs.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  RaShawn couldn’t concentrate. He was scheduled to deliver his message in less than ten minutes, but still hadn’t received word that Britney had been located. He walked over to Rita. “Have you heard anything?”

  She shook her head. “But Judge Hartman just walked in.” She pointed to the front of the church.

  Just as Judge Hartman was about to take her seat, the senior bishop rushed over to her. As RaShawn watched them smile and chit-chat, the fact that Judge Hartman was on the board of their church fellowship crossed his mind. “Let’s go talk to her.”

  RaShawn didn’t have time to wait his turn, so he tapped the Bishop David Brown on the shoulder and asked if he could borrow the judge for a moment. She moved to the side of the church with Rita and RaShawn. Then RaShawn said, “We haven’t been able to find Britney. I was hoping that you might know where she is.”

  Shaking her head, Judge Hartman told him, “I haven’t seen Britney since the funeral. I thought she was with you or with Rita.”

  “We don’t have time for your games, Judge Hartman,” Rita said with the baby on one hip and her hand perched on the other. “We know Britney was at your house last night. Now you need to tell us where she is.”

  Looking as if she’d like to wring Rita’s neck, she turned to RaShawn and said, “I was trying to keep this from you until after you delivered your message, but Britney is sick.”

  “What do you mean? What’s wrong with her?”

  Shrugging her shoulders and sighing deeply, Judge Hartman said, “She was whacked out of her mind on drugs when she came to my house last night. I called Dr. Sellers. He’s picking her up now and taking her back to rehab.”

  That made absolutely no sense to RaShawn. Britney had conquered that beast. No way would she turn back like a dog licking his vomit. “I’m sorry to hear that. Thanks for telling us,” he said as he took hold of Rita’s arm and walked away from the judge.

  “You don’t honestly believe that, do you?” Rita was saying, but RaShawn shushed her.

  He rushed Rita to the back of the church and said, “Call Raven and tell her to turn around and go to Judge Hartman’s house. And tell Marcus use the full weight of his governorship to ensure that Dr. Sellers releases Britney.”

  “Okay,” she said in a much calmer voice, now that she knew that Bishop Thomas didn’t believe the judge. “You had better get to the pulpit, the senior bishop just looked at his watch, then glanced over here.”

  “I’m on my way. I just need to make one quick call,” RaShawn said as he headed to his office.

  ***

  “Listen to me, Dr. Sellers. I don’t have a drug problem and my mother is evil. She kills people for fun.” But as Britney thought about everything that happened, she realized that the killings didn’t start until her father wanted to reveal himself to her. So maybe her mother wasn’t some thrill-seeking kind of killer…maybe she only wanted to kill Uncle Tony, but to get away with it, she staged this whole Avenger of Sins thing.

  She sat up straight with her hands extended. “No, wait. She doesn’t like killing people. She just wanted to kill my uncle… I mean, my father, who I thought was my uncle.”

  Dr. Sellers glanced at the housekeeper who had let him in the house so that he could get Britney. “She’s manic. I’m going to need you to help hold her down so I can give her a sedative.”

  Britney got up and ran behind the sofa. “I’m not manic, just listen to me, okay?”

  Dr. Sellers opened his bag and pulled out a syringe. “We’re just going to get you calmed down and then we can talk.”

  Britney turned frightened eyes toward the housekeeper. “I know you haven’t worked here long, but you’ve got to believe me. My mom is a monster.”

  “She says you’re a drug addict,” the housekeeper said with a strong Jamaican accent.

  “Grab her,” Dr. Sellers yelled.

  The housekeeper rushed her. Britney’s reflexes were off because of what her mother had put into her system, so the housekeeper was able to tackle and get her on the floor with very little opposition. But as Britney turned pleading eyes on the woman and said, “Help me… please,” she felt the woman’s hold loosen, then the doorbell rang, and rang and rang. Then someone started beating on the door like Satan and all his imps was after him.

  “This is Governor Marcus Allen.”

  The instant Britney heard his voice, she started thanking the Lord. Because she knew He had answered her plea for help.

  “Open this door or I’ll have the police here in a matter of minutes.”

  ***

  RaShawn stood in front of the podium with his Bible open, ready to do God’s will; he now had a clearer understanding of what His will truly was. Yes, he was called to be God’s battle axe. But RaShawn no longer thought that meant to tear down all the no-good preachers. Rather, God had him on a mission to root out sin. His mission was to chop sin down to the root and then dig it up and put it on display, so that the people who belonged to God could see clearly, and would then be able to find their way back home.

  He said a silent prayer for Britney, trusting that God would take care of her. He opened his Bible, turned to Romans 12:2 and began reading: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfec
t will of God.”

  Looking out at the congregation he said, “Apostle Paul wrote those words during a time in Roman society when Christians were hated for their belief in moral purity. You see, when Rome was at the height of its glory and power, there existed a group of people who dared to challenge the immoral and wicked behavior that had become common.

  “These Christians refused to be absorbed into the godless society of Rome. They’d never heard the saying, ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do.’ Nor, were they among the ‘live and let live’ crowd. Therefore the Roman high tribunal decided to stamp out Christianity because they were considered disturbers of pagan unity.”

  His dad and Mama-Carmella were seated on the front row. RaShawn caught the smile that appeared on Mama-Carmella’s face as she realized that he had indeed read the book he’d borrow from her last night. He smiled back at her as he continued. “The Romans had a false notion that they could control a person’s conscience by implementing laws that made it illegal to be different. Everyone had to bow to Caesar… all had to conform to pagan customs or be threatened with death. In those days many Christians chose death rather than conform to Rome and compromise the faith they had in the only true God.

  “I can hear you now, silently thanking God that you live in America, where all are free. But if we are so free, why are so many Christians conforming to the immorality of this era… saying that wrong is right and declaring, ‘Who am I to judge?’

  “Do you know why Christians are now afraid to quote the very Bible they are supposed to be reading,” he held up his Bible, “and declare abortion, lust, fornication and homosexuality is sin? It is because they have been backed into a corner and fear that their livelihood will be taken away if they speak up for the truth of God.

  “So, I tell you that the Christians of today are nothing like the Christians in Roman times. Those Christians would have loved for someone to just make it hard for them to earn a living, rather than feeding them to hungry lions.

  “The Apostle Paul urges Christians to be nonconformists as far as the world system is concerned. Because a true Christian, living an obedient life is a constant rebuke to those who accept the moral standards of this world. Our Lord warned His disciples in John 15:18, ‘If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you.’”

  Marvel Williams was seated about three rows behind his parents. Tears were streaming down the man’s face. But the way he glared up at the pulpit, RaShawn knew that those were not tears of repentance, but of hot anger. But RaShawn would not be deterred from the mission he’d received from God.

  Pounding on the podium he declared as it says in 2nd Timothy 3:12: “Do you not know that all who live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution!”

  “The word of God teaches that popularity with the world means death. Satan’s most effective tools are conformity and compromise. He is aware that one man standing in the midst of a pagan nation declaring, ‘I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes,’ can move more sinners in the direction of God than thousands of weak, compromising Christians.

  “The words of Apostle Paul, ‘Do not be conformed to this world,’ have a great deal of significance and meaning for us in this day and age. These words cut like a sharp sword to those of us who have allowed our family and friends or the things that entertain us, like movies and music, to cause us to conform. But Apostle Paul’s words are like a battle cry… calling out to all who claim the name of Jesus Christ. His words separate the weak from the strong. They are words of inspiration, encouraging the believer to press on toward the prize of the high calling of Jesus Christ.

  “Will you join me, saints? Will you stand up for the truth of God and not prostrate yourself before the temple of the Baal of this age? I challenge you to present yourself holy and acceptable to God… Let’s be a living sacrifice and let the rest of the world stand back and witness the glory of God.” As RaShawn closed the Bible and stepped away from the podium, the congregation went wild. They stood and gleefully applauded his message.

  But RaShawn wasn’t deceived by the applause. He was standing in front of like-minded people. But the conference was being televised… soon, the persecution would come.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Marvel Williams had been ready to leave two minutes into RaShawn’s sermon, but he didn’t want to bring attention to himself. So, he stayed in his seat, fuming over the message. Who was he to judge him? Bishop Thomas knew nothing of him or what his family suffered because of Marvel’s commitment to Christ.

  He had planned to stick around to support Daniel. The choir would sing and the offering would be taken before his friend stood behind the podium. But Marvel didn’t think he could sit there and pretend that he was just fine with the message that had just been preached, when in truth, he was livid. Now that others were up milling around, Marvel didn’t want to miss his opportunity to quietly leave the building.

  He had reached the fellowship hall and was almost at the door when Judge Hartman stopped him. “Hey, Pastor Williams, where are you rushing off to?”

  Marvel shook his head. “I’ve got to get out of here.”

  “But your friend is about to preach, don’t you want to stick around and support him?”

  “If I stay here any longer, I just might explode. Excuse me, Judge Hartman, but I need to leave.”

  As he stepped past her, Judge Hartman lightly touched his arm. She moved closer and said, “I wasn’t in agreement with the rest of the board members when they voted to let you go. I thought the situation could have and should have been handled in a much more productive manner.”

  Marvel looked in Judge Hartman’s eyes, as if he were searching for understanding. “I’ve always tried to do what was right. But I had to be there for my son.”

  “If it wasn’t for the fact that the board had been looking for a fresh face to take over, you might have been the new bishop. Would you like to go into Bishop Thomas’ office so we can discuss your future, and how I might be able to help you?”

  Wouldn’t it be something if after being fired from his pastoral position, he then became bishop and was able to make the changes he saw fit within this confining organization? Marvel liked the thought of that very much and quickly agreed to speak with her in Bishop Thomas’ office… an office that, if things went right, could soon belong to him.

  ***

  Marcus and Raven helped Britney along as they entered the church. The effects of the drugs that had been injected into her system were fading, but she still wasn’t a hundred percent yet.

  Rita ran over to them the moment they entered the sanctuary. “Thank God you’re okay. I don’t know what I would have done if something happened to you.”

  Britney pulled her best friend into her arms. “Thank God for those premonitions of yours. I promise I’ll listen to you from now on.”

  “You better,” Rita said as she wagged a finger in her face.

  Before Britney could respond to that, she felt strong hands pulling her away from Rita. Turning, she saw RaShawn as he pulled her into his arms. “God is a prayer-answering God,” he proclaimed, then said, “I was so worried about you. Are you okay?”

  “I will be,” she assured him.

  “Where’s Judge Hartman?” Marcus asked.

  RaShawn pointed to the front of the church. “She was sitting over there with the other board members.”

  “I didn’t know she was on the board for this fellowship,” Britney said as all the pieces came together.

  “She joined the board about two years before I came here,” RaShawn told them.

  “We can’t let her leave this building, RaShawn; she’s the killer.”

  RaShawn stepped back, looked at Britney. “Your mother? The judge… is a killer?”

  “Yes.” Britney nodded. “I think that my mother once believed in God and wanted to be a true Christian. But she has been messed over by one too many men claiming to be men of
God. I think that’s why she snapped.”

  “I don’t understand.” RaShawn still wasn’t getting it. He didn’t know how someone could go from being a judge, charged with upholding the law, to spree killing.

  “I’ll fill you in on everything later. But if we don’t find her, she will not stop until she has finished Pastor Williams off.”

  RaShawn turned back to the sanctuary, searching for Marvel. “He was just here. I looked right at him while I was preaching.” RaShawn turned this way and that, then finally rushed out of the sanctuary and into the fellowship hall, looking from one end of the room to the next, but Marvel was not in there either. He went outside in search of Marvel’s police detail. The officer was still in the parking lot.

  “Have you seen Marvel?” RaShawn asked the officer as he approached the car.

  “Not yet. He’s still inside.” The officer pointed to the car parked in front of his. “His car hasn’t moved.”

  Britney pointed towards a Rolls Royce in the reserved parking space. “There’s my mother’s car. So she hasn’t left yet either.”

  Marcus asked the officer to come with them as they rushed back into the church. Daniel Marson was behind the podium beginning his message, so most of the people had reclaimed their seats. RaShawn had instructed Rita to have a seat with the baby. He didn’t know what they were about to encounter, but knew that Tyler needed to be as far from the scene as possible.

  The rest of the gang ran from room to room asking anyone they encountered if they had seen either Marvel or Judge Hartman.

  RaShawn’s secretary told him, “I just opened your office. She wanted to speak with Pastor Williams in private. I hope that was okay.”

  “Thank you,” he said as he rushed past her. As they reached the door, the police officer held them back.

  “Knock on the door,” the officer said.

  RaShawn did as he was commanded.

  “Yes?” a woman’s voice from inside the room called out as if she were in her own office and had already asked not to be disturbed.