"One Bodacious Party"
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
Series II Cycle A
Doug enjoyed partying with his friends. All through his high school years he and his friends would have lots of fun partying on the weekends. They would go to one of their friend's home, preferably when his parents were away, and party. Beer was frequently involved in their partying. One of Doug's friends had an older brother who did not mind buying beer for his brother and his friends for a modest profit. Monday mornings at school Doug would brag to anyone who would listen, "I was like, totally wasted this weekend!"
When asked for specific details he would honestly say he could not remember.
At graduation there was one all-night blow-out party. It was a fitting conclusion to high school for the police to come to quiet things down shortly after midnight. This would certainly be a party to remember.
At various times during the summer Doug would say good-bye to his friends as they left for colleges in and out of state. By the end of the summer Doug was eager to start classes at the university.
Doug was like other freshmen at the university, and although he would probably never admit it, he was homesick -- for his old friends and his family. His roommate was certainly different. Doug would observe his roommate reading a Bible or devotional material before going to bed every night. Doug did not know what to think of his roommate other than he would probably be stuck with him for a minimum of one semester, more than likely the whole school year. It's hard to explain what Doug was feeling, but he resented his roommate even though his roommate never said anything about religion to him. They were just different; they did not enjoy the same activities. Several weeks into the semester Doug decided to play a trick on his roommate and hide his Bible. Much to his surprise his roommate never said anything to him about it. Another time his roommate came back to the dorm to find his Bible with a leather belt tied around it as if to prevent him from reading it. Again his roommate said nothing about the incident.
Doug continued partying. He would often stumble back to his dorm room late at night, sometimes waking his roommate. His roommate never seemed to get mad at him, which surprised Doug. If the shoe were on the other foot Doug thought he would have had it out with his roommate by now. But Jeff was different.
Near the end of his first semester of college Doug and Jeff were studying in their room for finals. It was getting late and both would soon be going to sleep. Doug asked Jeff a question: "How do you keep so focused all the time? I mean, everything I do to disrupt you never seems to bother you." Jeff gave an honest response. The two young men stayed up another hour talking. Doug had plenty of questions for Jeff. Doug asked him why he read the Bible so much, admitting that he did not know anyone who ever read the Bible. It was an opportunity for faith dialogue. That night the seeds of faith were planted.
During Christmas break Doug went home. He had looked forward to being home with his family and friends for quite some time. Something seemed different to him. During the holiday his friends picked up where they had left off partying. Something just did not feel right to Doug. He went to the parties but felt awkward, as if he was out of place and did not belong there.
By the time the spring semester started, Doug looked forward to returning to class. He looked forward to speaking with Jeff, realizing that there was some quality about Jeff that he wanted in his own life. The second semester found Doug and Jeff hanging out more together. They went to basketball games together and shared other activities.
Doug began attending Campus Fellowship meetings with Jeff. Once Doug was introduced to other Christians on campus he quickly made friends. He felt comfortable talking with other Christians, recognizing several from some of his classes. By the end of the semester Doug accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
It wasn't as through his roommate shoved religion down his throat. Doug first became friends with Jeff and saw how he lived. It was then that Doug realized that he wanted to emulate Jeff.
When asked for specific details he would honestly say he could not remember.
At graduation there was one all-night blow-out party. It was a fitting conclusion to high school for the police to come to quiet things down shortly after midnight. This would certainly be a party to remember.
At various times during the summer Doug would say good-bye to his friends as they left for colleges in and out of state. By the end of the summer Doug was eager to start classes at the university.
Doug was like other freshmen at the university, and although he would probably never admit it, he was homesick -- for his old friends and his family. His roommate was certainly different. Doug would observe his roommate reading a Bible or devotional material before going to bed every night. Doug did not know what to think of his roommate other than he would probably be stuck with him for a minimum of one semester, more than likely the whole school year. It's hard to explain what Doug was feeling, but he resented his roommate even though his roommate never said anything about religion to him. They were just different; they did not enjoy the same activities. Several weeks into the semester Doug decided to play a trick on his roommate and hide his Bible. Much to his surprise his roommate never said anything to him about it. Another time his roommate came back to the dorm to find his Bible with a leather belt tied around it as if to prevent him from reading it. Again his roommate said nothing about the incident.
Doug continued partying. He would often stumble back to his dorm room late at night, sometimes waking his roommate. His roommate never seemed to get mad at him, which surprised Doug. If the shoe were on the other foot Doug thought he would have had it out with his roommate by now. But Jeff was different.
Near the end of his first semester of college Doug and Jeff were studying in their room for finals. It was getting late and both would soon be going to sleep. Doug asked Jeff a question: "How do you keep so focused all the time? I mean, everything I do to disrupt you never seems to bother you." Jeff gave an honest response. The two young men stayed up another hour talking. Doug had plenty of questions for Jeff. Doug asked him why he read the Bible so much, admitting that he did not know anyone who ever read the Bible. It was an opportunity for faith dialogue. That night the seeds of faith were planted.
During Christmas break Doug went home. He had looked forward to being home with his family and friends for quite some time. Something seemed different to him. During the holiday his friends picked up where they had left off partying. Something just did not feel right to Doug. He went to the parties but felt awkward, as if he was out of place and did not belong there.
By the time the spring semester started, Doug looked forward to returning to class. He looked forward to speaking with Jeff, realizing that there was some quality about Jeff that he wanted in his own life. The second semester found Doug and Jeff hanging out more together. They went to basketball games together and shared other activities.
Doug began attending Campus Fellowship meetings with Jeff. Once Doug was introduced to other Christians on campus he quickly made friends. He felt comfortable talking with other Christians, recognizing several from some of his classes. By the end of the semester Doug accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
It wasn't as through his roommate shoved religion down his throat. Doug first became friends with Jeff and saw how he lived. It was then that Doug realized that he wanted to emulate Jeff.
