A New Life
Chapter 1
ROSE
Her name
was Rose and she was clinging to
the
vows
made to the man she'd come to dread.
His harsh
voice now fill her with fear,and
this from
the one she'd dearly loved and wed.
They'd both been baptized as teenagers
and had there served the Lord for years.
Now after two short years of marriage, Rose was
seeking for answers while shedding many tears.
Lee had
started drinking about six months
ago
and
had quickly progressed to this.
He was
vocally abusive almost every night and
Rose
feared
it would soon progress to fists.
He'd made
it clear before their marriage
he
wanted
to wait before having a child.
Now Rose
felt she had to tell Lee about the
baby, for she'd been putting it off for a
while.
As he
flew into a rage, Lee yelled, Get
rid of
that kid, or better yet,just leave.
Such
words coming from the man who'd pledged
his love
was
very hard for Rose to receive.
Totally
out of control, Lee struck
out at
her,
this
time using his fists;
with a
split lip and a black eye, Rose hadn't
known
such physical and emotional pain could exist.
Having no
family, Rose knew she'd have to get
away for her safety and that of her unborn
babe.
Deciding
just what to do and where to go,
were the
hardest choices she had ever made.
While
packing things into her bags, Rose
decided
she
must leave that very day.
Still not
knowing exactly where she would
go,she just knew she had to get away.
Just before leaving Rose called John,their
pastor, to tell him all that Lee had done.
He prayed with her and said, God Speed,let me
hear from you, and remember you'll never be alone.
With Lee
passed out,Rose took her things
and drove
to get
some money at the ATM.
All the
time hating what she was doing,but
knowing
it was the best for all of them.
Her next stop was to get her lip
stitched,then to fill her car with gas.
Thus she drove quickly away to protect her
child and to get away from the awful past.
Rose had driven for hours when she came
to a town with the unusual name of 'Paradise'.
This seemed to be a sign, so she called her pastor
and said, Here the two of us will begin our new life.
And so they did.
Virginia Archer
11-09
A New Life
Chapter 2
JOHN
He was
the pastor of a fairly large
church
and most people called him John.
He and
Gena, his wife, had just been talking
with
their friend, Rose, on the telephone.
In the
three way conversation, Rose had told
them all
that was happening in her new world.
She had a
good job working from her apartment
and
yesterday she'd borne a healthy baby girl!
Rose had
named her new baby Rosalee and
seemed to
be getting on with her life.
John was
praying that Lee would come to himself
and soon be doing as well as his estranged
wife.
Rose had
left to protect their unborn baby
plus she
could no longer live with the fear.
Lee had
beat her in a drunken rage, and
soon after Rose left, he seemed to disappear.
John and
some of his deacons had searched
for lee,
figuring he'd wound up on the street.
John had
a ministry among the street people,
so he asked about Lee of everyone he would
meet.
No one
had seen lee, or even heard of
him,
at
least none who were willing to tell.
So asking
everyone they talked with if they
saw Lee,
tell him to give Pastor John a call.
After
years had passed with no contact,
John's
sadness for Lee continued to grow.
Then a
doctor called saying, We've a patient
here who
says he's someone you used to know.
His name is Lee and he was found
on
the
street
where he'd been beaten to a pulp.
John
almost shouted for joy, saying I'll
be right
there, and tell Lee not to give up!
Lee was
indeed in such bad shape
that John
could hardly recoginze him.
As he
began to recover,John and Gena told
Lee that
he could come to stay with them.
All those
months in hospital and detox,
Lee's
bills
were paid by John and his wife,
all the
time praying that their good friend
would
soon be free and ready to start a new life.
And he
was.
Virginia
Archer
11-09
A New Life
Chapter 3
LEE
His name
was Lee and he was clinging to the memory
of the
one who his voice she had come to dread.
His
beloved whom he had caused great fear,his
Rose
who'd loved him dearly and happily had wed.
It was
almost three years since his
violence
has caused her to run away.
Two of
those years he'd spent in a drunken
stupor,
seldom remembering their happier days.
Living on
the street was a dangerous place
as Lee
had found out one dark night.
Two men
attacked and thinking he was dead, took
his last
bottle and disappeared from sight.
The next
morning he was found by a
policeman as he was patroling his beat.
Lee was
so drunk plus having been severly
beaten he
couldn't even stand on his feet.
After
taking him to the charity ward
they
found Lee had several broken bones.
When
asked for his next of kin,the only
name he
could remember was Pastor John.
John came
to the ward right away and
agreed to
pay Lee's many bills.
He spend
six months in detox, where
his body
and soul were eventually healed.
The next
six months he spent taking in
every
word that Pastor John was teaching.
With the
lord's help, Lee was back on the
street and now the Gospel he was preaching!
After
being sober for over a year, Lee
decided
his Rose he must try to find.
Knowing
that until he found her and their
child, he
would never have peace of mind.
When John
heard what Lee was planning
he said,
I know where your Rose is living.
Having
kept in touch, I know they're safe and
all
the
hurt you did to her is already forgiven.
After
recovering from a time of bitter
weeping, Lee called Rose on the phone.
He told
her he'd been sober for a year
and
begged her and their baby to come home.
After
they had talked and talked, Rose then
said,Lee,even after all the sorrow and strife,
I still
love you and Rosalee and I will
be home
tomorrow to start our new life!
And they
were.
Virginia
Archer
11-09