THERE IS A WAY
Six-year-old Kyle sat by his grandfather’s bedside,
wondering why the old man had to lay there all day. He remembered how they went
scavenger hunting during the last holiday, the fun they had and the promise of
Grandpa Lee (as he was fondly called) that they would do the same thing this
holiday. Imagine his disappointment when he got to Grandpa Lee’s house to find
that he couldn’t get out of bed. The more painful part was that he didn’t seem
to notice him.
Kyle’s disappointment gradually snowballed into
frustration, and he decided to go out to the garden to play by himself. But as he reached for the doorknob, he heard a
strange weak voice call out his name. “That can’t be Grandpa Lee’s voice,” he
said to himself. He walked back slowly to the bedside with a questioning look
on his face. For a moment, he was inclined to think that his grandfather was
trying to play pranks on him, but that thought was quickly dismissed when he
saw his shaky hands motion him back to his seat.
He then remembered that his parents had told him that
grandpa was ill, but he had never thought for a moment that the illness was
that bad. He thought he would still be able to play with him even if it was
just an indoor game. “Grand... pa... Lee,” he startled, unsure of what to say.
‘Are you going to be alright?”
Nodding his head weakly, Grandpa Lee smiled and said,
“I’ll be better than I’ve ever been.”
Kyle frowned and continued with his probing. “How do
you know that?” Grandpa f Lee’s attempt to reply resulted in a spasmodic -
cough, attracting the attention of Ruth, Kyle’s mother She quickly gave him
some water to drink, and after a while, he stopped coughing.
“Kyle, I think you should leave grandpa to rest
awhile,” his mother suggested. He made move to get up from where he was
sitting, but Grandpa Lee stopped him, insisting that he could use some company.
“Back to your question, Kyle,” the old man began
hoarsely while Ruth excused herself. “I know I’ll be better because I’m going
to...,” he coughed again, “a beautiful city! I’m going to a place of rest, a
place where nobody feels pain, sorrow or sickness.” With great effort, he
turned himself to face Kyle and continued. “Do you know that the streets of
this city are made of gold?”
“Really?” Kyle intoned.
Moving to the edge of his seat, obviously excited,
Kyle breathlessly inquired, “Are children allowed in there? Do they have
animals there? Will they allow someone to play with them?” The old man nodded
to all his questions. He added quickly, “What about Cronut bugger and butter
tart; do they have lots of them over there?”
His grandfather smiled again and said, “There will be
no lack over there.”
Too impatient to listen, he interrupted the old man
with his pleas. “Please Grandpa Lee, take me along with you, I’m sure my
parents won’t mind. I promise to behave myself.”
Smiling, Grandpa Lee reached out for his hand and
assured him, ‘I know you will behave yourself, but you will go there in your own
time; this is my own time.”
Dissatisfied with his grandfather’s response, he
decided to press his case further “But Grandpa Lee, if I don’t go with you now,
how will I know the way to this city? You see, I won’t be able to get there on
my own.”
Nodding thoughtfully, Grandpa Lee replied, “Come to
think of it, son, you are right. You can’t get there by yourself. You need help,
and I know the Person that can help you. Actually, He’s the only Person that
can take you to that beautiful, magnificent city.” Kyle brightened up when he
heard that he could get help from somebody. “This Person is Jesus!” Grandpa Lee
announced. “But you need to make Him your best friend, stay close to Him, and
listen to His instructions, because He’s the only Way to that golden city.”
That day, Kyle made a decision to make Jesus his pal
by surrendering his life to Him as Grandpa Lee had counselled, and two weeks
later; the old man passed on to glory. During his funeral, the officiating
minister called on Kyle to address the congregation. Standing by the pulpit, the
six-year-old smiled and said, “I’ll miss Grandpa Lee very much, but I’m not sad
because I know where he has gone to. He’s in a beautiful city, a place where
there’s no lack and where you don’t feel hunger, pain, sorrow, heartache and
sickness.”
Shrugging his shoulders, he sighed and continued. “I
wanted to go with him, but he told me to wait for my time to come. He
counselled me to accept Jesus and lead His lifestyle, because He is the only
Way to that glorious city. I have surrendered my life to Jesus and made Him my
best friend, because I want Him to take me to where Grandpa Lee is. I’ll see
grandpa again; therefore, I’m not mourning, but rejoicing. I employ you to do
what Grandpa Lee did. Surrender your life totally to Jesus by repenting of all
your sins and obeying His instructions so that He’ll take us all to that
beautiful city, a place of rest, uninterrupted aid unlimited joy.
When Kyle finished his address, wailing and weeping
rend the air as many accepted Jesus as their Saviour and Lord, including an
aged man who had consistently rebuffed Grandpa
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