A Future and a Hope Read online

  Why not? Most kids had already applied to college and many had already been accepted. What was that she’d said? “You’re so lucky to have parents who are able to pay for college.”

  That must be it! Whoever she was living with must not be in a position to help her financially. Maybe they made too much for her to qualify for federal assistance but not enough to help her themselves. No wonder she was in desperate need to find a job and work as much as possible. Right then and there, he determined to pray consistently for her. That she would find a job, find lasting friendships, find healing from the hurts of the past. He ignored his surroundings and prayed silently in his seat.

  Saturday morning Caleb went to work and asked his boss, Mr. Pruitt, if he would be willing to hire any more help. As expected, the answer was “no.” He already had ten people on the payroll, including Caleb and four other part-time high school kids. Later that night, he and three carloads of friends went to Cairo to play miniature golf. For the first time in a couple of weeks, he was able to put Ellie out of his mind and participate wholeheartedly in the laughter and horseplay. How they managed to survive an evening which involved golf clubs and golf balls without hurting someone or breaking something would remain one of life’s little mysteries.

  Afterwards, they drove back to the Dairy Shack in Baxter for ice cream. As the group of friends sat on the patio under the red and white striped umbrellas, defending their putt-putt scores, and debating who cheated and who hadn’t, he couldn’t help but wish that Ellie was there. She would have enjoyed the evening.

  On Sunday morning, he and his family went to church. The red brick building with white trim sat on a hillside overlooking the town. Its tall white steeple could be seen from several miles away. His dad was one of the deacons and a “greeter,” so the family usually arrived there early enough for him to meet people entering the building.

  As soon as they arrived, Cassie dashed away to find her friends, a giggling gaggle of girls. Caleb went down the hall to the youth room and plopped down onto one of the old sofas lining the walls to wait for B.J., Kelli, and his other friends. After the youth hour was over, everyone gathered in the main auditorium for the morning worship service.

  Following the songs, announcements, and offering, Pastor Murphy got up to preach. His sermon text was from the Gospel of Luke, the third chapter, and his subject was “The Fruit of Repentance.” Caleb listened with interest.

  John the Baptist, after living in the wilderness and receiving the word of the Lord, came into the countryside near the Jordan River, proclaiming that people everywhere should repent so that their sins could be forgiven. When people came to him seeking to be baptized, he told them to produce fruit in keeping with their repentance. The pastor explained that people who have genuinely repented of their sins will demonstrate that inward change by the way they live their lives. The people who came to John wanted to know what this looked like, so he gave them some examples: those with two coats were to give one to someone who had none, and they were to do the same with their food; those who collected taxes were to deal honestly and not steal by taking more than was lawful; and those who were in positions of power, such as soldiers, were not to use violence or make false accusations against those under their authority, and were to be content with their pay. As usual, it was a good sermon. But this morning, one phrase in particular stood out to Caleb: “Anyone who has two coats should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

  Following lunch and an afternoon of playing hoops with some of the guys at B.J.’s house, Caleb returned home, loaded some leftovers and snacks onto a plate, and retired to his room to finish some homework that he had intentionally neglected until the eleventh hour. He was in the middle of solving a calculus problem when the phrase from the morning’s sermon returned: “Anyone who has two coats should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

  He pulled open his nightstand drawer, withdrew his Bible, and turned to Luke chapter three. He read the eleventh verse over and over. What did it mean for him? He had several winter coats and three or four light-weight jackets. Was he supposed to give some of them to someone who had none?

  He couldn’t think of anyone he knew who didn’t already have a coat. Or food, for that matter.

  “Lord,” he prayed, “what are You trying to tell me? Who am I supposed to help?” He ended his prayer and finished his homework.

  As he brushed his teeth and stared into the mirror, it suddenly hit him. The person God was telling him to help was Ellie! And it wasn’t a coat she needed, it was a job. But he didn’t have two jobs.

  “Think, Caleb, think!” he urged himself as he slipped under his covers. Through no fault of her own, Ellie couldn’t find a job, one she desperately needed in order to pay for college. But his parents were paying for his tuition. All of it. Plus room and board. His job was just for gas and oil, and spending money. What should he do, give up his only job for her?

  He’d have to park his car and cut out all the fun at Edwards, and the bowling alley, and the Dairy Shack, and everything! He couldn’t touch what was in the bank. That was designated for incidentals while he was at UGA.

  “Lord, I don’t have an extra job to spare. Are You telling me to give up my only job so Ellie can have it?” That didn’t seem right. Besides, his parents would never agree to that. He hadn’t even told them about her yet. He lay quietly for a while.

  His mind drifted back to a few years before during a Wednesday night youth meeting. Once every quarter, instead of the usual program, Tony would schedule a Christian movie night, complete with popcorn, snacks, and sodas. On this particular night they had watched the movie Sheffey. Shot mostly in the Carolinas, it told the story of Robert Sheffey, a circuit-riding preacher who traveled the Appalachians on horseback during the mid to late 1800s, preaching and serving mountain folks wherever he could. He was a determined man of God, known for getting answers to his prayers.

  In one of Caleb’s favorite scenes, Mr. Sheffey came across a poor family whose horse had just died. But they didn’t have any money for another one. He got down off his mount and began to pray that God would provide for their immediate need. Looking up at his own beloved horse, he knew he already had the answer. There was no need to pray. He gave his own horse to the needy family, and soon after that, God provided him with another ride.

  He was certain he knew what God wanted him to do. He would give up his job and let Ellie take his place. Then she would have to acknowledge that God cared about her and that He answers prayer!

  But how would his parents react? And what would he do for work?

  He recalled Tony’s words following the movie, “Whenever God tells you to do something, He’ll always provide what is necessary to complete it. It may not be obvious, or easy, but He will provide.”

  “Dad, you got a minute?” Caleb paused in the doorway of the home office where his father was paying bills.

  “Sure thing! Come on in.” His father shuffled some papers to one side of the desk as Caleb entered the windowless room and plopped into the cane-backed chair facing him. “What’s on your mind?”

  Four days’ worth of thought and prayer hadn’t shown him how to approach the subject.

  “I wanted your advice about something.” Better to ease into it gradually.

  “I’ll give it my best shot.” His father folded his hands across his stomach and leaned back in his chair. “Shoot!”

  “Um, there’s a situation at school I wanted to discuss with you. See, there’s this new girl in the senior class. She just moved to Baxter this past summer. I found out she lost both her parents when she was very young, and she’s still hurting from that. I think that’s part of the reason why she doesn’t want to make any friends. She needs a job so she can go to Georgia next year, but there’s nothing available here in town.” He paused to catch his breath. “And she doesn’t have a car. I thought that since you’re a member of the Chamber of Commerce
, you might have some ideas about that.”

  His dad looked at him with a twinkle in his eye. “Ideas about what? The car or the job?”

  “About a job, Dad!” he laughed. “She’s been looking since they moved here, but the other kids have all the part-time jobs locked up.” He waited for his father to reply.

  Always careful to think before he spoke, his father took his time. “No jobs, huh?” Caleb shook his head. “Sounds like a community problem to me. We can’t expect Baxter to grow if there aren’t enough jobs here. Tell me, is her family able to help with expenses?”

  “I don’t know the details. I mean, I’m not sure who she’s living with. She doesn’t really open up to anybody. But from what I’ve learned, if she doesn’t get a job, she won’t be able to go at all.”

  “Well, there are other options besides going to Georgia this fall. What about the community college instead? It’s less expensive, and she could live at home to save on room and board.”

  “I don’t think she can even afford that.”

  “What about the option of waiting a year or two? By then she should be able to find something and save enough to at least get in.”

  His father’s line of questions made him feel woefully unprepared for this discussion. He hoped his lack of knowledge wouldn’t jeopardize the desired outcome. “I’m not sure about any of that. It never came up. But I know she’s desperate. I’m grateful that you and mom are able to cover my tuition and room and board. But Ellie doesn’t have that option. She’s on her own, and it’s not looking very good at the moment. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about it. And praying, too. Dad, I’m convinced God wants me to give her my job at the Pet Palace.”

  He waited for the reaction, but none came. Instead, his father leaned forward, put his elbows on the desk, and clasped his hands.

  Several moments passed before he spoke. “Hmm. How did you arrive at that decision?”

  Caleb told him everything he knew about Ellie and how God had spoken to him. The words poured out. When he was through, he thought he’d done a pretty good job presenting his case.

  “I think that’s great, son.” His father looked pleased. “I’m proud of you for being so sensitive to God’s prompting. I’ll agree that her needs seem to be greater than yours at the moment.” He paused. “But what about your car? And your bank account? What you’ve saved so far won’t last long once you’re on campus.”

  Caleb wanted to say “But God will provide,” but that sounded a bit presumptuous.

  “I thought I might start up my lawn-mowing business again. I heard some of my old customers aren’t happy with their current service.”

  “Okay, I’ll go along with that, for the moment. But let me ask you a more important question. Why is it that you are so interested in helping this young lady?”

  Caleb wasn’t quite sure what he was driving at. “Well, um . . . to help a person in need. To show God’s love. You know, the ‘fruit of repentance’ that Pastor talked about on Sunday.”

  His father looked at him for a long time, and then spoke slowly and gently. “Could it also be that you’re hoping she’ll be attracted to you once she hears you’ve given up your job for her?”

  A burning heat rose in his face. “I . . . I don’t think that’s the reason, Dad. Honest! I really do want her to see how much Jesus loves her. And that He answers prayer.” He feared his words sounded insincere.

  “That’s wonderful, Caleb. I believe you do. But how would she know that’s why you’re doing it? Can you see how she might think otherwise?”

  Caleb considered that for a moment. “Yeah, I see what you mean. If she thinks I did it because I like her that might keep her from seeing the truth.”

  “That’s right, son. Anytime we do something for God, we need to first check our own motives, and then make absolutely sure we do it in such a way that He gets all the credit.”

  Caleb could feel his cause slipping away, and with it, his enthusiasm. He was sure his dad was angling for him to keep his job.

  “Do you suppose there’s any way you could arrange it so that she wouldn’t know how the job became available?”

  Caleb couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. “You mean you’d be okay with me quitting if I could do that?”

  His father got out of his chair, walked around the desk, and placed a hand on Caleb’s shoulder. “Caleb, I’m going to level with you.” There was pride in his voice. “I believe your heart is in the right place. I can see you’ve put a lot of thought and prayer into this decision. You’re convinced it’s what God wants you to do.” He smiled broadly, “If—and I mean if—you can work it out with your boss so that she won’t know what you’ve done, I’ll support you one hundred percent!”

  Caleb had always looked forward to weekends. Two days with no school, Friday night lights, Saturday hanging with friends, Sunday church and a well-deserved rest. But this week, Saturday couldn’t come soon enough. He planned to go to work and talk to Mr. Pruitt about giving his job to Ellie. Friday seemed to drag by unbearably slower than ever. He soldiered through biology and calculus, but economics was absolutely excruciating. Even study hall couldn’t end fast enough today.

  When the final bell rang, mercifully putting an end to the torture, Caleb exploded from his last period class into the sea of students filling the hallway.

  “Wahoo!” He sprinted to his locker before Mr. Hartsock could station himself in his classroom doorway for the mandatory warning. He hurriedly threw some books and things into his backpack and headed upstream to B.J.’s locker. “Hurry up, dude! Let’s get outta here! Time’s a-wastin’!”

  B.J. glanced up and tried his best to imitate the biology teacher. “Where’s the fire, Sawyer?”

  Caleb grinned. “Just hurry up, will ya?” B.J. took his sweet time before they left the building together.

  Caleb’s four-cylinder sedan laid down some rubber on the way out of the parking lot, risking a fine and suspension of school driving privileges.

  That evening, as the Bearcats took the field for pregame warm ups, Caleb glanced into the stands. Mom, Dad, and Cassie sat near the top of the visitor’s bleachers. He smiled inside his helmet. They could always be counted on to be there. As the teams prepared for kickoff, he surveyed the student section. Baxter was well-represented tonight.

  He searched through the sea of blue and white. A twinge of sadness overcame him when he didn’t see Ellie there. Of course she wouldn’t be at a football game. She was probably home studying. Or out looking for work. For a moment he imagined her right in the middle of the crowd, cheering for him along with the rest of the student body. Then, embarrassed for allowing those thoughts into his head, Caleb turned his attention back to the field as the referee’s whistle signaled the start of the contest.

  Saturday morning came all too early for Caleb. After silencing his alarm, he lay in bed for several minutes, taking inventory of the aches and pains his body had accrued during the previous night’s game. His left elbow was bruised where he’d taken a hard hit from the crown of an opponent’s helmet. The defensive back had timed his hit just right, and the ball had popped loose before Caleb could safely tuck it away. It was the first time he’d dropped a pass this season, and he was determined not to let it happen again. His thoughts turned to his work. Today he would talk to his boss about letting Ellie take over his job. Following the discussion in the office, his father, had shared Caleb’s decision with his mother.

  At first, she had strongly opposed the idea of letting her son give up his job, especially for a girl he’d met only a few weeks earlier, and about whom he didn’t know very much. But his dad had convinced her to go along with it, and she’d finally come around, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

  Climbing out of bed, he wondered how he should approach Mr. Pruitt about the subject. As he dressed for work, several different scenarios ran through his mind.

  It was five minutes to nine when he pulled into a parking space in the nearly empty lot in front of the
Pet Palace. After clocking in and hanging up his jacket, he sought out the owner. He located him in the pet food aisle, inspecting a partial skid of puppy food.

  “There you are, Caleb. Could you put up the rest of this skid? Aaron didn’t get around to finishing it last night.”

  “Sure, no problem.” Caleb grabbed one of the twenty-five pound bags and started stacking them neatly on the proper shelf. He turned toward Mr. Pruitt, but he had already disappeared around the corner.

  First chance I get, Caleb promised himself.

  The next opportunity didn’t present itself until nearly one o’clock that afternoon. The store had been exceptionally busy all morning, and he had been given the tasks of keeping an eye on the puppy playpen near the front of the store, helping customers find various pet-specific products, and cleaning up a massive spill in aisle seven, thanks to a six-year old brat in serious need of a good spanking.

  Toward the end of his lunch break, Caleb walked past the office and noticed his boss was alone behind the desk. The heavy wooden door was partially open, so he rapped lightly and stuck his head into the room.

  “Uh . . . Mr. Pruitt?”

  The man replied without looking up from his paperwork. “Yes? Come in.”

  Caleb stepped through the doorway into the tiny office and hesitated.

  Mr. Pruitt glanced up. “Hello, Caleb. What can I do for you?”

  “Do you have a minute? I need to ask you a big favor.”

  His boss paused, and then nodded and motioned for him to sit down. “Sure. Have a seat.”

  Caleb sat down in the worn padded chair in front of the desk.

  Mr. Pruitt repeated his question. “What can I do for you?”

  Caleb quickly prayed for the right words to say. “Well, I’ve worked here for almost a year and three months now. It’s been a great job, and I really like it here.” His tongue seemed to stick to the roof of his mouth. He wished he hadn’t left the can of Sprite sitting on the lunchroom table. “This is really a great place to work,” he added.