Page 150 of Sing with Me

“I should join the church too,” Diehl said.

“And get baptized. We do believer’s baptism at church.”

Diehl wondered why Ivan had not offered to meet with him one-to-one. He’d ask Ivan later. Was it because they were brothers-in-law?

“I’d be happy to meet with you if you don’t mind the fact that I go out of town once or twice a month to buy new stuff for my stores,” Matt said. “My schedule is sort of touch-and-go.”

“I don’t know if you want to see me too much.” Ivan laughed. “You’ll get so tired of me and then I’ll be in trouble with your sister.”

Benicio lifted his hand. “We’ll be your big brothers here in this group Bible study. I need someone to hold me accountable too. I sometimes fall off the bandwagon and get lazy about studying the Bible.”

“The chaplain has confessed,” Ivan said.

“Former chaplain. I retired, remember?” Benicio grinned. “Seriously, I’m helping in the youth group at church, so I’ve already met your daughter and son, and Riley’s daughter and son. I don’t know if the kids will think I’m tattling on them whenever we meet.”

“Thanks, guys, you’re all very kind,” Diehl said. “Looks like the only person who has no connection to me personally is Matt.”

“Let’s set a date,” Matt said. “I think we should start as soon as possible, even while the police and the community are searching for your daughter. You need to know the power of His Word and His presence in your life. When going through difficult times, we need to pray powerfully in the Name of Jesus. How do we pray? We need to know Scripture so we know what prayers God listens to.”

Wow.

Diehl was happy he picked Matt to help him study God’s Word.

“What I just mentioned is where we are—or ought to be—as Christians,” Matt continued. “We went over a list of things that unbelievers are before they get saved. And now we’ll see who we are as Christians. Diehl, would you please read the next sentence? It’s one long sentence split up into five verses in Ephesians 4:20-24.”

“Okay.” Diehl felt a little bit nervous. For the first time in his adult life, he was going to read the Bible aloud to three mature Christian men. He had to do well—not for them, but because this is the Holy Word of God.

He cleared his throat. “ Here’s the passage. ‘But you have not so learned Christ, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.’ Whew. It is one long sentence.”

“With many loaded parts,” Ivan said. “Bonus list of ‘former conduct’ we’re to do away with. We were corrupt, deceitful, lustful.”

Lustful.

That described Diehl’s relationship with Isobel.

“The phrase ‘the truth is in Jesus’ reminds me of John 14:6,” Benicio said. “Pastor Gonzalez mentioned it last night. ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’ Once we are reconciled to God through Jesus Christ, the rest of the list applies.”

“It’s a call to action,” Matt said. “Put off your old self. Put on the new self. What’s the same and what’s the difference?”

Diehl didn’t understand the question. He waited for someone else to say something.

Benicia was at the coffee maker. He poured a half cup. “What’s the same? Only Jesus can cleanse us from our past. And only Jesus can help us walk in the newness of life.”

“And the difference is that our new life in Christ is internal,” Matt said. “You are called to be ‘renewed in the spirit of your mind.’ The new man that God transformed you into is ‘in true righteousness and holiness.’ The next time I teach, we’ll break down those two words in two studies. What is righteousness in Christ? What is holiness in Christ? For now, just remember that we can’t have either unless we are in Christ.”

“In Christ, we have everything,” Diehl said. “Outside of Christ, we have nothing.”

“That about sums it up.” Matt nodded in approval. “Now let’s turn to our list of prayers and praises. Are you having a fun summer? Rejoice in the Lord! Are you having a difficult and trying time in life? Pray to the Lord. He's sovereign over all the events in this world and everything that concerns us. He undergirds us with His strength.”

Diehl felt good about the Bible study this morning until they started to pray about his lost daughter. Then he lost it and found himself on his knees weeping, pleading to God to bring his daughter back alive and in one piece.

He wasn’t the only man on his knees. The other three men were with him, praying in turn and in earnest for Elisa, a girl none of them—except for Ivan and Diehl—knew.

When they were done praying, there was not a dry eye in the room.

“Even though I’m not married and don’t have a daughter, I do have a niece,” Benicio said. “I can’t imagine what my sister’s family would go through if my niece were missing.”

“As someone who is the father of a soon-to-be-born child, I already know it’s tough,” Ivan said. “The search party has gone online, so we’re not out there pounding pavement. It might not seem that we’re doing much, but the college kids are on the frontline for this. The rest of us—mostly the older generations—have a lot to catch up on connectivity.”

---