Chapter Two (present day - 2010)

Reversal of roles for the brothers six years later.

January 20, 2010 �" Six years later

Most of the three hundred chatty teenagers and college students sat in their chairs, ready to listen. Music boomed from the sound system overhead, and the students stood up to cheer and clap. The youth pastor waved his arms and encouraged everyone to sing the lyrics projected on the screen.

“Come. Now is the time to worship,” they all sang, pumped and ready to go. David Cole, just off to the side, stood with them swinging to the music. He sang to God and clapped his hands. In few a minute he’d be speaking to them as an audience. Meanwhile, he began to sing the lyrics. “One day every tongue will confess You are God…”

Okay, it wasn’t David’s favorite music. He liked Skillet better. But it at least it set the mood for his speech. Some of these audience members were in college, but most were in high school, and they’d been here to see a musical performance put on by the San Jose mega-church. Testimonies would follow the performance; testimonies that included his own. He knew what he’d say. It was all on the three-by-five index cards tucked in his pocket:

1) encourage them to make the right choices

2) take responsibility

3) even find hope in God.

They just needed to know that, anything to help them.

After the song, the youth pastor, a stocky guy with glasses and a neatly trimmed goatee, jogged back onto the stage and more people clapped.

“We know that our Lord reigns,” Pastor Jack told them. “And God is the answer to all our problems. He has all the answers.”

David shifted his weight uncomfortably as Pastor Jack continued.

“We’re going to hear two people who have seen God’s work in their lives. The first is from David Cole. He's a Bay Area native, he's only 27, but he survived the 2004 Indonesian Tsunami, and now God uses him to reach others. He’s published a book, Finding Faith, and he speaks to churches and youth groups around the Bay Area. Everyone welcome David Cole.”

The room exploded in applause. David stepped away from his seat, walked to the front of the room and shook Pastor Jack’s hand. He looked down to adjust the tiny microphone pinned to his shirt collar. After glancing once more at his index cards, David took the position in the center of the stage.

“Hey guys!” he called out. “How is everyone?”

“Woohoo!” and “Fine!” filled the air.

“Thank you for coming tonight to listen to all of our testimonies,” he said. He meant that. Really, who would want to hear someone speak like a lecturer? “I’m from Sunnyvale. Attended Sunnyvale High.” A dozen cheers lit the room. “Go Spartans!” More cheers surfaced before they all died down. “How many of you are planning to go to college?”

Many raised their hands.

“How many of you hope to, but aren’t sure you’ll go to college?”

Some hesitantly raised their hands.

“How many of you would say you’re going through something right now�"it could be anything- tough time at school, a bad break-up, anything?”

About half raised their hands.

“I want to tell you �" you’re not alone, and you will get through it. God will help you through it, and He'll help you make the right decision. You just have to let him. I know I wasn't concerned about Him. Heck, I wasn’t looking for Him, when He came into my life. I was in college, in the Kappa Phi fraternity. I’d go out drinking every weekend, and I’d hook up with various girls. I got my party on, but I was empty….”

He told them about that day �" not too much -- just enough to let them know he’d gone through something bad. Then he spoke to them about his walk with God in the months that followed. Finally he transitioned into thoughtful advice.

“Don’t give into that peer pressure,” he walked back and forth as he scanned the audience. “Girls, you don’t have to give into sex just to get popular. And if you have, you’re not a s**t. You made a mistake, just like everyone else. Guys, you’re still a man if you wait.” He paused. “Maybe you’re going through something non-sexually related. You’re not alone. There are others who feel isolated, just like you.”

Some clapped and others mumbled in agreement. Hopefuly, someone would be helped. After finishing his speech, David sat down and the other person stood to give hers.

The one part he disliked about these speaking engagements was the book signing. Although he promoted the book, which he self-published, he didn’t sell as much as he hoped, and he didn’t get as much feedback. People were more impressed by his speaking than his writing, but that was OK. Although he sometimes liked the attention, he reminded himself constantly that helping others to be more responsible, to find more to life, was the better reward.

In his book, Finding Faith, he talked about how God propelled him to really look at his life and make a change. David reflected on how he began making that change by a commitment to Christ. Jesus had saved his life. He hoped to communicate what God really meant to him.

But what did He really mean to him?

He meant something. He had to mean enough to help whoever he could.

*************************************************

It knocked him over with a great crushing weight. It squeezed him like a python, constricting his chest, sending piercing pains down the right side of his rib cage. He plunged further into blackness and he tried frantically to push himself to the surface. His legs became entangled in tree branches and bungee rope and he saw the eyes, glaring at him

David jumped out of bed quickly, scanning the room, frightened at the vision and sensation.

It took him a moment to realize it had been a dream. He sat down and looked down at his pajamas. He was drenched.

Great. He sighed, got out of bed, shed his pajamas bottoms, and threw on some cry clothes. Maybe he should hop on the computer to get his mind off the dream. He had a lot of friends from the high school ministry on Facebook, along with his own friends, like Mark Johnson, and family members. They wouldn't be up this late, though. Maybe he could check out the other Web site.

No, he shouldn't. He'd better go to bed. Just has he crawled back in his Blackberry rang.

“Hello?”

“Heyzz bro,” a slurred voice responded.

David sat up.

“Nick, what is it?”

“I’m juzz havin’ a good time and theyz stardin something. The sayin’ I need to take it outside! I ain’t done nothin’ OK? I wuz just talking to her., I’m tellin’ it like it izzz .” Nicolas cursed.. “You-youse pick me up? I can’t find my car…”

David bit his lip and sighed.

“Davezz?”

“Yeah, yeah, alright. Where are you?”

Nick told him the name of the club. “I’ma waiting, alright?”

“Give me twenty,” David said and hung up. He rubbed his eyes, and sighed. Nicolas, thrown out of another nightspot. Nicolas, the former jokster with a wide grin, ever smiling in the picture someone took of him standing with the children during his trip to Chiapas. Nicolas, the alcoholic God left behind.

Getting his older brother out of yet another bar was not his favorite thing, but David had to make sure Nicolas was home safe.

Author's Note

there may be typos. You can point them out. Here, we jump forward to the present day, where the story will pick up. again, please let me know what you think

Reviews

[MJReed]

Nice. This second chapter adds onto the first nicely.
this conference thing the main character is speaking at reminds me of a few I've been to.

Keep it up.

[Joanna Johnson]

Thanks. I have gone back and done some tweaking here and there. I will be sending this novel off to be edited before I have it published.

[MJReed]

nice.