Authors: Faith
“Yeah. It’s an unexpected move, but it’s the best thing for our family. I know Sheila is going to miss everyone.”
“As we will miss you all too. And I understand that sometimes you have to put your emotions to the side for the good of the family,” Lacey said, and gave Junior a look.
“That’s so true. Oh, Pastor, we’ll be leaving soon, and I was hoping that you would baptize her before we leave.”
Jamir’s comment shocked everyone in the room.
“Of course. Just let me know when and we’ll work it out,” Junior said. He was trying his best to keep his composure.
“Thank you, Pastor. And I have another favor to ask.”
Oh, no what now?
Junior thought to himself. “Ask away. I’m feeling generous this morning.” Junior let out a fake chuckle.
“Sheila and I were thinking about who should be baby girl’s God Parents, and I know how much you two mean to her, so we were wondering if you and the First Lady would stand up as our baby’s God Parents.”
“We would be honored, wouldn’t we baby?” Lacey answered before Junior had a chance to catch his breath. She was just glad Sheila was sticking with the plan.
“Yes, we would be honored,” Junior agreed.
“Do you want to hold your Goddaughter, Pastor?” Sheila asked. She gently placed the baby in Junior’s arms.
Junior felt terrible that he couldn’t have a bonding moment with his little girl. He made a mental note to see if he could get some alone time with her. She deserved to be serenaded to also. He didn’t expect to feel so sad holding her, but he did. In that moment, he realized how much damage he had done. The pain in his heart was nothing compared to the pain he caused his wife; and Sheila, for that fact.
“What’s her name?” he asked. He couldn’t take his eyes off of the baby, and he did his best to not look Sheila directly in the eyes since Lacey was standing right there.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot to tell y’all her name. We named her Kalila Joy.”
Sheila caught herself looking at Junior for approval, but he wouldn’t look at her.
“It means ‘dearly loved’. I think it’s a perfect name,” Jamir said, sounding like a proud father.
“That’s beautiful, don’t you think, honey?” Lacey asked. She couldn’t help but feel bad for Jamir. Here this man is all excited, and he’s being completely played for a fool.
Yes, moving to Texas will be the best thing for them.
“Beautiful,” Junior replied. “Oh, I almost forgot.” He reached his hand out to Lacey, who went into her Hermes bag and pulled out an envelope of money and handed it to him. He in turn handed the envelope to Jamir.
When Jamir opened the envelope and saw the amount of money that was in it, his mouth dropped open. “Pastor, we can’t accept this!” He tried to hand it back.
Junior backed away and wouldn’t take it. “No, please keep it. Sheila has been an important part of First Assembly for many years, and she has helped us reach level of success we are at. So this is a love gift from us to you. And now that I know that little Miss Kalila Joy is my Goddaughter, I consider her family, and I take care of mine. So please, if you want to put it towards her college fund or whatever, just know that it came from the heart.”
“Jamir, we always give a love offering to new parents of the church, and Sheila has worked side by side with my husband for many years, taking care of him in ways you couldn’t imagine, and filling in for me on many occasions. Now she has a family of her own to take care of, and although we hate to lose her, we couldn’t help but throw in a little extra,” Lacey expressed while throwing in a little a shade, which Sheila definitely noticed.
“Well thank you, First Lady! It has been my pleasure being your husband’s right hand. And I’m sure one day he’ll find someone who can do just as good a job as I did, if not a better one. But who am I kidding? I know they couldn’t do it better,” Sheila said, and shot Lacey a look and laughed as her clap back was heard loud and clear.
Feeling the tension rise between the two women, Junior knew it was time to go. “So, we good Jamir?” He reached out his hand to give him dap.
“Well, since you put it that way, thank you,” Jamir said, returning the pound.
“I hate to cut our visit short, but we need to get going. A Pastor’s work is never done.”
They quickly said their goodbyes and left the hospital room.
“Wow, baby! That was so nice of them.”
“Yeah, they’re something else!” Sheila said, and rolled her eyes.
________
“The doors of the church are open. If you would like to be a part of the First Assembly family we welcome you to come forward. One God, one heart.” Eddie announced.
The Blanks brothers stood with him as numerous people made their way down to the front.
Mama Eloise watched closely as she always did, inspecting everyone who came forward. When two women caught her eye, she was trying to rack her brain on where she had seen them before. And then it hit her.
Oh Lord!
she thought to herself. She leaned over and whispered to Lacey, “You had better keep an eye on those two. They’re Lilith’s sister’s children, and I told you something wasn’t right about that sister.”
“Hmm!” Lacey watched the women as the line moved quickly. “I’m on it,” she said. She walked up to the front and took her place next to her husband to greet the new members. When the two women approached, Lacey smiled. “Welcome to First Assembly. I’m the First Lady of First Assembly.”
“I’m Sapphira, and this is my sister, Maacah.”
The two ladies were beautiful, and could pass for models.
“Oh, I know exactly who you are; my condolences on the death of your family members. I’m sorry we couldn’t be more help to them, but we’re prepared this time. Here at First Assembly we put our foot on the devil’s neck.”
Maacah’s eyes locked with Sapphira’s, and the sisters exchanged a look with one another as Lacey put her hand out to shake theirs.
Lacey had nicely called them out, so without shaking her hand, they moved on down the line.
Lacey was satisfied that she had made her point.
Uh-huh, Satan! I got you this time!
Epilogue:
First Assembly continued to prosper and grow, and the Pavilion was rebuilt bigger and better than before.
Junior and Lacey’s marriage grew stronger by the day. Lacey’s non-profit organization was about to open a second center, and Junior’s renewed commitment to his marriage and God made his way prosperous. Lacey knew that he had it in him all along, and now he knew he was unstoppable. Junior and Sheila remained friends, and he sees is daughter as much as possible.
Mud and Tricia welcomed another son to their family, soon followed by a daughter. Mud was still a livewire, but he put more of his energy into the Men’s Ministry at church. He had become an outstanding leader. His no nonsense personality turned him into an activist, and he became a well-known opponent to injustice in the city.
Eddie and Felicia focused on building their family by adding four more children to the Blanks clan: two boys and two girls. Eddie gained more confidence in his preaching as he focused on his prison ministry. Rebuilding the community one heart at a time was his new mission in life.
Lizzie and James had a baby girl name Love nine months into their marriage. They eventually moved to the same neighborhood as her family to accommodate their growing family. Mud and Tricia allowed Lizzie and James to raise Jezebel’s daughter, Athaliah. Liah thrived under their love and guidance, and was looking more and more like her mother every day. They adopted two more children, and they had two more of their own. Lizzie’s hands were full, but she was in her element being a wife and mother, and therefore, living her dream.
Elisea and Andrew’s first child was a girl they named Esme. Although she tried to convince everyone she named her that because it meant esteemed and beloved, everyone really knew she name her after one of the characters from her favorite movie, “Twilight”. She and James had four children together: one boy and three girls. Andrew convinced Elisea to go into the studio and record an album, and now she is one of the most sought after artists around.
Mama Eloise has been enjoying life with George and the gangsta grannies. They are always traveling. Don’t get it twisted, she’s still the matriarch of her family; she just decided to let them spread their wings. She was proud of the men and women her children have become. Sunday dinners are still mandatory, and Mama Eloise wouldn’t have it any other way.
Edem and Ruthie had beautiful twin boys as Ruthie had predicted, followed by six more children back to back. Edem’s books made him a household name, and he started hosting a local talk show. He started his own production company, creating movies, sitcoms and music. The Blanks have all recorded under his label. He wrote a bestseller about his family’s experience with the Harlots sisters. He named it “Church Whore”.
Note to my wonderful readers:
I understand that I have ruffled some feathers with this series amongst the genre of Christian Fiction. I can only speak
My Truth
. Being raised as a preacher’s kid I witnessed a lot and experienced much more. This is
My Truth!
Christians aren’t perfect. We curse, we have sex, and we do a lot of things that make us fall short to the glory of God. That too is
My Truth
. That doesn’t mean that we don’t love the Lord; it just means we are flawed individuals. Many of us know that we fall down, but we get back up, and sometimes only to make another mistake. Life is full of temptations, but the story doesn’t end there.
God is a God of second chances. Just like the Blanks have learned the
hard
way to shake the devil loose to walk in the authority of Christ, so do we. That alone deserves a praise break. Hallelujah! So with that being said, I am unapologetic on how I choose to tell
My Truth
.
Thank you all for rocking with me on this “Church Whore” journey. And remember; please be patient with me. God is not through with me yet.
Love Always,
Faith
For: Daddy, Tanya, Lil Faith, Sean, and Mama
Acknowledgments:
I want to thank God from whom all blessings flow.
To my children, Courtney, Jada, Anaia and Avery, my life, my love, my strength.
To the entire KPG family for being there on this journey with me.
Eros, thank you for having more faith in me than I have in myself sometimes. Thanks for giving me the business when I need it. Much love to you. Shalonda Collier, my rider who never changes, I love that about you. Tameka Jones, you always make me laugh and are there to listen no matter how crazy I get to talking. Allyson M. Deese aka Allycat, Lady Starsja aka Lala, Jasmine aka Lil Bit, Latosha Capone and LR Smith aka Sunkist, much love.
Thank you to my Kentucky crew: Angelique Bowen, Debbie Redd, MiMi Kidd, Karen Goddard and Jeffrica Brown, and sister-in-law Tameka Cheek. To my North Carolina crew: Felicia Hayes, Tiyana Cureton, and niece LaToya Hudson.
To my Faith and Friends family, and Sista2Sista The Queens Roundtable that keep me laughing and allow me to be MUCH LOVE!!! #Crownon
To my first grade teacher Ms. Bettye Goodwine for teaching me how to love words by having us write every morning a MORNING MORNING. Little did I know that daily assignment got me in the habit or writing every day!
To Ava Mann, my buddy and critic. After each book I wait for a phone call or text.
To all my friends and family who have supported my writing, my wonderful test readers, thank you so much. And to all the people who doubted me, I thank y’all too.
And anybody that knows me knows that I write to music, so thanks to Jill Scott’s Tasha Cobb Break Every Chain, Albertina Walker, Rizen, TLC, Switch, Sia, Hezekiah Walker, Kirk Franklin, Fred Hammond, Martha Wash, Wynonna Judd (don’t judge me!) and Creed.
Please be patient with me. God is not through with me yet. And remember; you can take the girl out the church, but you can’t take the church out the girl.
Blessings, Peace and Prosperity.