Chapter 8 : Praise Yourself More
The Praise Night for the Ladies, at North Point they call the women’s ministry the “Dees”. You know… lay-dees (ladies) Laying it down for the ladies. It kinda went down like Faith figured it would. She wasn’t asked to sing even as a harmony singer and the writing on the wall was getting real loud — we don’t want you, Faith.
Ross Strong was thriving as the new interim and he was being molded to lead but Faith feared her journey here was nearing its end even before it barely began. Cassie and Jeremy hadn’t wanted to attend North Point once Compass Point failed. They decided to go with their friends to their neighbor Sonny Barnes’ church over in the next town called Harmony Church. It is where a lot of the younger crowd attended. The music on the radio was in their services all the time, She was currently enjoying a few of the radio songs like: God is in this Story, Same God and Honey in the Rock. She was tempted to attend a service just to see what it was like.
That thought made her fear another outing. She had been coerced out of her former church due to wanting to see her friend sing who wasn’t even attending the church any more since she had moved out of state. It was sad since Calliope was the one friend she had clung to during her transitions at the beginning of the year. This year had just been one hard struggle after another. God was really testing her faith right now and she was trying her best to be strong.
Harry Denton, North Point’s previous pastor, was as big a fan of the Railroad Cafe as she was. So when she she saw him sitting alone in a booth near the front window, she joined him.
“Fancy meeting you here,” Faith said with a smile. His eyes lifted to hers but his quick grin didn’t light up his face like it usually did. “You okay?” she asked finally.
“I will be. Sometimes life is a journey and I was shoved off at an exit I wasn’t ready to take.” He sipped his coffee and glanced outside, his expression blank.
“I get it, you know. What you’re going through,” Faith said. “And I am pretty much fearing it is about to happen again.Sometimes people aren’t ready for people like us. We connect so easily to God in a world where it seems the devil and his minions reign. We take recognition from them and to them power isn’t in the blood but in the power that blood brings. And that is sad to me. They push Jesus aside and stand ahead of hi saying — my turn, look at me now,”
Harry chuckled. “I definitely see your point. It’s both sad and freeing. In one way i know God is moving me for a reason, just like he is moving you. But my sadness is — did I make an impact for God there at all? Did they see him through me? That is my goal.”
Faith put her hand on his. “I saw him in you.”
Ross Strong came in at that moment with Jackie Townsend on his arm. They made a cute couple. And Jackie was one of the few friends she had made at North Point. She was sad they had used her friend’s success in the worship team to poke at her. That was when Faith knew everything in life had its season.
Jackie and her friend Trisha were both working at dispatch one at the sheriff’s office and one at the police department. With Ross’s focus as a detective he came into contact with both quite often. It was funny how things worked out — almost like it was meant to be, like there was a divine plan or something. Faith smiled to herself as Jackie embraced Harry saying how much she missed him and his sermons which made Ross a bit uncomfortable considering he was the one currently replacing him.
Harry was still attending North Point but mostly at the early service. He had taken up racketball at the new courts at the Rec Center not too far from the church. There was even a rock climbing wall Faith was curious to one day check out. Rock climbing had always been one of her aspirations.
She was feeling good in this moment. It was as if the heaviness of the past was like a veil that lifted letting the four of them walk through. Oh Happy Day stàrted playing in her mind and she knew everything was going to be okay.
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