CHAPTER 13
The Sunday service was over and it would be a Sunday morning that the Pittman family would never forget. First, it was the first Sunday that Gene went to church with Mike and was a saved person. Second, his dad accepted Christ as his personal savior. Third, Thelma said that she would never miss another Sunday service again.
All the way home, Gene thought about all of the things that had occurred and, every two or three minutes, he was thanking the Lord for answering his prayers. However, the Lord was not through with the Pittman family that quick. Gene and the rest of the family was about to see what happens when a man commits his life to the things of the Lord.
The rest of the way home, the kids joked back and forth, and then Darrell hit the whole family with a statement that made Thelma’s heart skip a beat. “I have decided to have a Bible reading every night for thirty minutes.”
“You are going to do what?” was Thelma’s reply.
“When I accepted Christ this morning, I really did mean what I said. I am going to change, and I, well, I mean we, are going to do what God wants us to do and that is to read the Bible daily.”
Gene didn’t say a word. He just sat and listened to every word his dad said. Again, he thanked the Lord for everything that He had done in such a short time. He also said a little prayer for the rest of the family. However, this prayer is one of those prayers that a person prays and he knows the prayer is going to be answered.
After lunch, Gene and Mike met in the backyard and started to talk about Sunday School and also about Darrell getting saved.
“Gene, what did you think about your dad getting saved today?”
“I knew he was going to get saved today. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I started praying for him and the rest of my family last night, I knew my dad was going to get saved, just as I know that the rest of my brothers and sisters are going to get saved. It isn’t a matter of will they get saved, it is a matter of when they get saved. I believe that they will all get saved within six months.”
“Well, I have been praying for years, so with both of us praying, maybe the Lord will get them all saved in two or three months. Gene, let’s go get our bikes and just go riding.”
“Sounds like fun to me.”
They both jumped on their bikes and down the street they went. After riding for about an hour, they stopped at the service station to get a bottle of pop. Gene put his dime in the machine and he decided he wanted a bottle of strawberry pop. Mike decided a cold Coke was exactly what he needed. With a bottle of pop in one hand and the other hand on the handle bar of the bike, they pushed their bikes around the corner of the service station and sat down to drink their pop. At that time, the service station attendant walked around the corner and started small talk with both boys.
“What’s your name son?”
“My name is Mike and this is my best friend, Gene.”
“Well, Mike and Gene, I’m Brad.”
“It’s nice meeting you, Brad.”
“Thanks, I like meeting you boys, also. What are your big plans for today?”
“We decided we would like to go riding.”
“When I was a kid I liked to do the same thing. We also liked to go to the creek and go swimming. Tell you what I will do. Come back by tomorrow and I will pay for the pop. How does that sound to both of you?”
“Sounds great!”
All the time that Mike was talking to Brad, one thought after another was going through Gene’s mind. But, the one thing that kept rolling around was the thought that Brad may not be saved. Gene knew he had to say something, but how was he going to do it. He just couldn’t shout out, are you saved? However, that little voice in his mind asked the question, why can’t you just ask if he is saved or not?
Brad said he had to get back to work and he would see the boys the next day. As Brad turned to walk off, Gene shouted out, “Are you saved?”
Brad turned and said, “What?”
Gene said it again, “Are you saved?”
Brad looked puzzled by the thing that Gene had asked. “Gene, no one has ever asked me that question before. I’ve heard about Jesus on the radio some, but I guess I can say that I am not saved.”
Gene spoke up and said, “The Bible says, ‘today is the day of salvation,’ you must accept.”
“That’s what the Bible says?” Brad asked.
Gene replied, “That is exactly what the Bible says. I accepted Christ yesterday, and I believe you should accept today, before it is too late.”
“Gene, what did you do to accept?”
“Old man Bishop led me in a little prayer that takes about a minute. I repeated each word he said and I meant every word that I repeated, and after that, Christ came into my life and I was saved. It was as easy as that. If you believe what we pray then you are saved. Would you like for me to repeat that prayer and you can say the same thing that I did and get saved? ”
“You know, Gene, I would like to pray that little prayer.”
In less than a minute, Gene had led his first person to the Lord. As Mike watched and listen, he could not believe what was happening. He had been a Christian for years and no one had accepted after he talked with them. He thought he was doing something wrong.
Mike and Gene sat and talked about Brad getting saved. Mike just couldn’t believe it was that easy and to the astonishment of Gene, he couldn’t believe it either. Both boys decided they wanted to see if it would work on anyone else they may meet that day. It did not take long. It happened in a matter of seconds.
Mike looked down the street and he saw Dewey, Norman and Larry (those were the three boys they met earlier) riding their bikes.
“Hey, Dewey, come over here.”
The boys rode over to where Gene and Mike were sitting down.
“What are you two doing?”
“Having a nice cold bottle of pop,” was Gene’s reply.
“Mike, you and Gene want to go riding with us?”
“No, we need to get home and mow three different lawns for some extra money.”
Gene took another big swallow and then his mind started to work. “Dewey, you need to get saved.”
“I what?!”
“I said you need to get saved.”
“Oh, okay, whatever you say, Gene. Mike come here for a minute." Mike walked over to Dewey, and Dewey asked, “What’s wrong with Gene? Did his dad drop him on his head or something this morning?”
“No, he is still excited about getting saved yesterday.”
“Gene got saved yesterday?”
“Yes, and this morning his dad, also, asked Jesus to come into his heart.”
“So, in two days, Gene and his dad accepted?”
“Yep. Can you believe that? They both got saved.”
After the boys left, Gene and Mike finished off their pop and then Gene asked a question. “What did Dan mean this morning when he said that many religious people are going to go to hell?”
“What he meant, Gene, was that they knew all about religion and they had the walk and they had the talk and they had the looks of a person that was very religious. The only thing they did not have was Christ in their hearts. Those are the people that will think that they are saved, but Jesus will say, ‘Depart from me, I never knew you.’”
“So, there are some people out there that would make you think that they are saved, but they are not?”
“That’s right, it happens every day.”
“With what we learned today about King Agrippa being or knowing about religion, it makes me wonder if Dan was thinking of the King when he made those comments.”
“I think we could put King Agrippa in that group. But I really think that he was referring to people, not only in the church, but people everywhere. They want you to think that they are very religious and they want you to think that they are saved, but they are not. Some people want to be famous
or important, so they use religion to reach their goal.”
The following Sunday, Mark started telling about Vacation Bible School and that the theme was going to be Scuba Driving. Gene and Mike were both excited as two little boys could be. They talked back and forth about being under water and seeing all the different and beautiful things that God had created. It was at that time that Gene started to think of different people he could ask to come to VBS. His first thought was of Dewey, Norman and Larry. “They need to get saved, the same way I got saved,” was his thinking.
Once church was over and both families had finished lunch, Gene and Mike decided to just walk and talk. They started talking about VBS and how the girls had beaten the boys for the last few years. “All of that will end this year,” was Gene’s remark to Mike.
“Why do you say that, Gene?”
“Because I will start praying about it tonight and I know the Lord will answer my prayer. There is no doubt in my mind about it.”
“Well, I prayed pretty hard each year the girls won and the Lord didn’t answer my prayers.”
“But, Mike, I don’t think you understand about praying.”
“Gene, how long have you been praying?”
“Oh, just a little over a week. I know what you are thinking. With me only being a Christian for a little over a week, what do I know about praying?”
“I wasn’t going to say that, but you might as well answer the question.”
“I think praying is all about believing. If you really do believe that Jesus is going to answer your prayer, you are expecting to see a result. So when I pray, I expect to have my prayers answered. Not only that, but when I was talking to pastor Mark, he said I had to have the faith of a muster seed. This year I know that the boys are going to win, because of my prayers and because I expect the Lord to answer them.”
“Don’t be praying about a million dollars, I don’t think the Lord will answer a prayer like that.”
“No, I would never pray about something like that. I always pray about Bible things. You know, like, let this person get saved, or let me tell someone about getting saved. I would never pray about money things. I don’t think the Lord would answer them even if I prayed really hard.”
As the boys continued to talk, Gene let Mike know that he was planning on asking Dewey, Norman and Larry to come to VBS with him. He thought that if he started to pray for those boys, the Lord would answer another prayer and all three of his friends would get saved. “Mike, would you pray with me every day until VBS, so we can see a miracle from the Lord?”
“Sure, I will pray every night before I go to bed, and if it is the Lord’s will, all three will get saved.”
That night, Gene and Mike prayed for thirty minutes about VBS and about getting Dewey, Norman and Larry saved. They also prayed about all the other kids that would be at church and would hear about Jesus dying on the cross for them. You could say that Gene and Mike were turning into real prayer warriors. Each and every night, they prayed, including the Sunday before VBS.
The next morning, Gene and Mike were so excited about VBS, they could hardly wait until they were at church. They had talked to their three friends and they promised they would go to VBS all week long. They also had invited some of their other friends, but they were already saved. They were more interested in Dewey, Norman and Larry. The Bible says that in James 5:16 - 'Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.' Their effectual, fervent prayers were going to be answered. For their faith was that of a muster seed and they knew that the Lord would answer their prayers. Also, the Lord wanted these small boys to always trust in Him for everything. If He showed them that they could trust in Him even as a child, their faith would grow into a giant oak tree that would never falter. And once they became adults and had a family of their own, they could teach their children about the same faith that they had when they were small children.
Thelma and Bonnie were both going to help with VBS this year. With all the kids loaded into both cars, they were off to church. All the way to church, Mike and Gene couldn’t believe that Dewey, Norman and Larry would be there all week. They talked about scuba diving and how they would have a free one hour trail period to see if they really did like diving.
“My dad has a friend that goes scuba diving all the time. He said it is so peaceful under the water. He also said that the things that we can’t see from above the water are so beautiful that he wishes he could stay down forever. Also, the fish are huge and sometimes, he said he has found rings and watches and other things that are valuable,” stated Dewey.
“Once we get to church, you three will be with me and Mike. Our teacher is Dan and he really is a good teacher. If you listen hard, you can almost see the stories of the Bible come to life right before your eyes.”
At church, all five boys jumped out of the car and started to run and play just like all the other kids that were waiting for the whistle to blow. There were so many kids for VBS that it even surprised Pastor Mark. Mark then took the whistle out of his pocket and started to blow. All the kids formed a single line and into the church they marched.
All the children took their seats and then came the singing and after the singing, Mark gave a little speech and told what was going to happen the rest of the week. Then came the news that all the boys wanted to hear.
“Next Saturday, if your parents come with you, there will be a one hour trial dive to see if you would like to learn how to scuba dive.”
All the boys shouted out, “Grrrrreat!”
With all the classes full, the teachers began to teach the lessons that were supposed to be covered for the week.
On Thursday, Dan taught about the way that people learn about scuba diving. He said, “Once a person learns how to scuba dive, he will tell others about the joy and how much you learn about something that you never knew before. You, also, will want all of your friends and relatives to know about scuba diving, so you will tell them how you learned and what they need to know in order to become a diver.” He said that scuba diving is something that everyone could do, but they can only learn by committing themselves.
Dan looked at all of the boys and asked if there were any boys in the class that wanted to know about scuba diving? All of the boys held their hands up in the air. “None of you know anything about scuba diving, but you can learn very quickly. All you have to do is to say, ‘yes, I want to know about scuba diving.’ Once you say that, I can then teach you what the book has to say about diving.” The boys said they did want to know what the book said about scuba diving.
“I want you to think about what I just said and what you said.” He paused for a few seconds. “The Gospel of Jesus Christ is just like scuba diving. You know nothing about diving, but you want to know all there is to know about diving. You want me to teach you and to show you what you must know. The Gospel is the same. You know nothing about Jesus, but if you want eternal life, you must have someone to teach you what the Book, the Bible, has to say. By learning all about the Bible, you will see that Christ died for your sins and that He only wants you to accept His free gift. I stated that all that you had to do was to say yes to scuba diving, and all of you said, ‘yes.’ That was very easy. It is, also, that easy, if you want to accept Jesus as your Savior. All you have to do is say, ‘yes’.”
Dan continued to teach and show different things in the Bible until the bell rang. He stated that he was going to pray a small prayer and if anyone in his class said that prayer, they would be saved. “When Pastor Mark asks for you to come forward today, if you accepted this day, or if you want to accept, you need to go up front.” Dan then prayed a small prayer and three small boys accepted Jesus Christ into their hearts.
The bell rang a second time, which meant for everyone to meet in the auditorium. Mark gave his talk, focused around scuba diving, and after the se
rmon, he asked all the kids that had accepted Christ as their personal Savior to come forward, or if there was anyone wanting to accept, they should come forward, also. Dewey, Norman and Larry left the pew and walked forward along with a number of other children. They all had accepted Christ and, now, they all were born again believers.
All the way home, the boys couldn’t stop talking about being saved. They talked about what heaven was going to be like and how they were going to tell all of their friends about Christ and they also said they were going to pray for souls every night. They decided that when school started, they would witness to anyone that wanted to listen.
“GENE, BECAUSE YOU PRAYED WITH FAITH FOR DEWEY, NORMAN AND LARRY, I PERFORMED THAT MIRACLE THAT YOU WANTED. I HAD THEM READY THE FIRST DAY OF VBS. WHEN DAN TAUGHT ABOUT SCUBA DIVING, I OPENED THEIR HEARTS TO THE GOSPEL. I TOLD YOU THAT EVERY PERSON THAT YOU COME IN CONTACT WITH WILL BE CHANGED. THE CHANGE THAT COMES WITH SALVATION IS A CHANGE THAT WILL LAST FOR ETERNITY. DEWEY WAS CHANGED AND HE KNOWS THAT IF HE WERE TO DIE, HE WOULD BE IN HEAVEN WITHOUT A DOUBT. THE REASON I TOLD YOU THAT IS BECAUSE DEWEY WILL HAVE OTHER THINGS TO DO WHEN HE GETS TO HEAVEN. REMEMBER, WHEN THAT CAR HIT YOU BEFORE THE SUMMER WAS OVER? WELL, THAT CAR WILL NOT HIT YOU IN THIS LIFE, IT WILL HIT DEWEY. BECAUSE OF HIS DEATH, NORMAN AND LARRY WILL BECOME PREACHERS AND WILL LEAD THOUSANDS OF SOULS TO ME.”
“Lord, I never thought that my prayer would be responsible for the life of Dewey.”
“YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT A PERSON’S LIFE ON EARTH, BUT I AM TALKING ABOUT ETERNAL LIFE. THE LIFE THAT DEWEY NOW HAS, BECAUSE YOU PRAYED FOR HIM, IS ETERNAL. ALSO, YOU MUST THINK ABOUT THE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE THAT WILL ACCEPT BECAUSE NORMAN AND LARRY COMMITTED THEIR LIVES TO ME. IF DEWEY HAD NOT DIED, NORMAN AND LARRY WOULD NOT HAVE BECOME GREAT SOUL WINNERS. AT THE BEMA SEAT, THEY WILL BE REWARDED FOR THEIR GREAT ZEAL FOR THE GOSPEL.”
When VBS came down to the last day, the count was taken and the boys had beaten the girls in the offering for the missionaries. However, all the way home, the talk was not on the boys beating the girls, but the boys were still talking about getting saved. Once out of the car, the boys were still talking about all of the things that happened that week. They were really looking forward to school, so they could tell everyone about scuba diving and all about Christ.
The summer seemed to fly by for all of the boys and they were looking forward to the first day of school. School would start on Wednesday, so they decided to make Tuesday one of the best days they would ever remember. They decided to first go frog hunting and then they would just get on their bikes and go riding until they were so tired they couldn’t pedal anymore.
The frogs had another very bad day. Gene, Mike, Dewey, Norman, and Larry had the best Daisy BB guns money could buy, or at least that is what they thought. The first place they went was to the creek. All the boys made expert shots on the frogs. Next, the small pond that was two hundred feet from the creek also had a lot of frogs that needed to be shot. After the frogs were slaughtered, the boys jumped on their bikes for the longest ride of the summer.
For three hours, the boys rode and rode and rode. They decided to go across Grand and then stop at the small family store of the Brown’s for a bottle of pop. Norman hollered out, “Last one there is a dirty rat.” All the boys started pedaling as fast as they could, but Dewey was by far the best bike rider around. Over the curb and across the street he went.
Then all of a sudden, the only sound the boys could hear was the screeching of tires, the horn blowing, and then there was this loud thump. The boys watched as Dewey was propelled through the air and onto the hard concrete. They ran over to Dewey and looked down at him. His eyes were wide open and they were not blinking. Blood was all over his head and on his chest. One of the neighbors ran inside and called the police. Within minutes, the police and the ambulance arrived, but for Dewey, it was too late. He had just received his promotion, just like all other Christians receive, once their time is over. His short ministry on earth was over. There were new and better things for him to do in heaven.
Dewey’s parents asked Mark if they could use the church for the funeral services and Mark agreed. They wanted to know if it would be okay if the announcement would state that the pale bearers would be his best friends. Dewey’s mother, Jill, said that he had told her that he was saved and that he knew for certain that if he died, he would be in heaven with Jesus. He also had told her that it was Mike and Gene that asked him to go to Vacation Bible School.
At the funeral, most of the kids from school were there and, even though the boys were too small to help with the casket, their names were on the pale bearer’s list. Norman and Larry promised Jill that they would never forget Dewey and they also promised that when they became grown adults, they would go to Bible College and learn all they could about the Bible and about Jesus and they would tell everyone they met about Christ dying on the cross for their sins.
Let me interrupt right now, because I forgot to tell one important thing. Remember the service station attendant by the name of Brad? The next day, after the death of Dewey, Bobby and Mike stopped to get gas. Brad recognized Mike and asked why he and his friend never came by for that free bottle of pop? Mike explained that they were busy the next day and he forgot all about the free pop. He told Brad about Dewey being killed and that the funeral was Friday. Mike also explained how Dewey had accepted Christ during Vacation Bible School with a very simple prayer.
Brad told Bobby that he had accepted Christ, also, with a very simple prayer. He stated it was Gene that came out and asked if he was saved or not. “I told Gene I was not saved, but I would say that prayer. Gene led me in that prayer of salvation. I have decided since I am a Christian, I must know more about Christ, and I am saving all my extra money so I can go to Bible College.”
Now, let’s get back to where I left off. School started right on time on Wednesday and Thursday, but the school was closed for the funeral services at the church, on Friday. All day Wednesday, the only thing the children were talking about was Dewey being killed when he was hit by a car. The children had different stories that they had heard, but when they asked Mike or Gene, they found out that it was an accident. The man that hit Dewey was so sad and he thought it was his fault. But Gene and Mike told the police officer that Dewey never even looked before he started across the street. They both said they saw the car and they thought for sure Dewey saw it coming. They said about the time the car reached them, Dewey took off across the street and then they heard the loud thump. They saw Dewey flying through the air and then he hit the ground.
When school started back on Monday, Gene and Mike thought about Dewey all the time. They both wondered what he was doing in heaven and if he was grown or was he the same age. They also wondered what it was like to be right there with God. After a few months they thought about other things, but they never forgot Dewey.