Long Lost Love

Chapter 7

"What an amazing group of kids, don't ya think?" Mike gently punched Adam on the arm. Rubbing his arm to relieve the pain, he turned and punched Mike right back.

"Ouch man, careful with that heavy hand of yours. And yes, they were great." They, along with the other camp volunteers, stood waving to the group of kids who were leaving from a week long camp experience.

"If you would've told me back in school that I'd be at a christian camp, leading youth to the Lord, I may have stopped being your friend." He said sadly.

"YOU? Nah man, I don't believe that...I saw the excitement in your eyes when we met and I told you I was a follower of Christ."

"I was headed toward self distraction when God put you in my life that night. Adam."

"Seriously man?" He asked surprised.

"Dude, I was gonna meet Gary that night. Remember Gary?"

"Gary?...Yeah, I remember him. Isn't he in jail now?"

"He is." Mike continued. "He's actually in prison, serving time for drug possession."

"I can see that. He had the reputation of 'Hooking people up', if you know what I mean."

"By the grace of God you see me here today. He 'hooked me up' multiple times before I met you."

"Get out!" Adam was stunned. "You? But after that night, we practically became inseparable. You even moved in with me the very next week."

"I did." Mike replied.

"I don't understand. You were doing drugs?" Adam asked.

"I was up until that very night." [Mike exhales] "That night, I received a call from my dad telling me I would no longer be receiving financial help from him if I didn't turn my life around." They both walked over to a bench, and sat down. "I hadn't been in class for about three weeks and had lost all reason to continue with my education, much less my life." Tears running down his cheeks, he continued.

"I knew I was being disobedient and I felt lost. Right before I saw you, I had already made the decision to buy a bit more than my usual, and end my life." Adam was distraught.

"Wait, wait, wait..."

"No joke Adam. I had just reached out to God one last time and asked if he was true to his word, I needed it to appear right in front of me." He turned to Adam. "And there you stood." Mike wiped his tears. "Do you remember your first words to me?"

"Hi?"

[laughed] "No. You said, "Here I am standing in front of you asking to come and follow Jesus with me.""

"Yeah! I do remember that...huh...I had never done that before." Adam took a minute as he searched his brain for reason. "That day, we met and were challenged to invite one person to come alongside us to follow Jesus...I was so discouraged, because I could not find the courage to do it." He too began to tear up. "It was down to the last hour of the night and I remember walking back to the house when I saw you just standing there." He laughed. "Man, I felt this tug in my heart and was literally pushed toward you." Mike gave Adam a hug. "Thank you for being obedient to him. I would not be here if you'd opted out to go through with the challenge...I called my dad the very next day and asked for forgiveness."

"Thanks man. All this time, I thought you were walking on a better path than I was. I knew you were a PK and thought, what better person to ask than a Pastor's Kid." [laughed once again] "And I thought God gave it to me easy that night."

"Crazy, huh."

"What's all this male bonding going on here?" Helen asked.

"Man, you don't wanna know." Adam answered.