“Yes, I am.” Pat said as he rolled over and sat up.
Arrow stood by the door in plaid pajama bottoms and no shirt, gesturing for Zion to come in. Zion was already wearing khaki shorts and a blue and pink polo shirt.
“I already notified Clive, but we will be going to services this morning together. I want you to see one of the most important aspects of what we do here.” Zion said excitedly.
“Church?” Pat asked, trying not to let disdain slip into his tone.
“Yes.” Zion said, unabashed. “Since you are staying here and working alongside us, I want you to have a clear idea of what we offer our residents.”
“What time and do we need to dress up?” Arrow asked.
“10 am and no. Just whatever clothes you feel comfortable in. We’ll meet in the lobby around 9:50 and I’ll show you where the chapel is.” Zion smiled ear to ear.
“Sounds good.” Arrow said.
Pat didn’t respond but studied his nails closely. He wasn’t very happy about this development, but hopefully, it would just be a one-time thing. He had been around some Christians who seemed to only care about preaching at him instead of being a friend. Usually, when his mental illness reared its ugly head, they gave up. That signaled to Pat that he was too far gone to be worth saving.
The time before the service seemed to crawl by since he had been awakened so early. Showering, getting dressed, and eating breakfast barely took an hour so he wandered the grounds to waste time and played cards with Arrow. When 9:50 rolled around they all met Zion and Rachel in the lobby. Clive and Harmony were already there. It was apparent that Clive had tried to dress up his outfit despite having limited options.
“Wonderful.” Zion said warmly. “Let’s go to the chapel.”
Zion led them outside and down the front steps. To the left through the garden and the weeping willows was a small brick building with red double doors. It was so removed from the main house that Pat hadn’t noticed it before. There was no steeple like he had seen on some church buildings, so at first it didn’t look like what he expected. Once they were through the doors, a man and a woman flanked the entrance and were holding stacks of paper.
“Good morning!” The woman said cheerfully. She grinned and he could see a few teeth missing and her blond curls bounced beside her face. The man said nothing but simply smiled and helped hand out the sheets to everybody. When Pat looked at the sheet he had been given, it looked as though it was an agenda for the service.
“Sit back here. That way you’ll be able to see everything.” Zion said pointing to a bench four rows from the back.
They all followed his instructions and sat while he and Rachel went to the front. Now that they were sitting, Pat looked around the building. Long wooden benches were in two vertical rows stopping short of a raised platform. This platform had a keyboard, drums, a couple of guitars, and a podium. On the wall behind this was a large blank white screen scrolling through announcements. He glanced up and could see the projector. Finally, on either side of the space were a couple of windows letting in some natural light. Everything in the space seemed as updated as possible, but the nicks and scratches on the furniture aged everything by a degree.
Something crawled inside him. A few congregants looked their way and it felt as though they were looking through him. He also noticed Sirona sitting with a few women close to the front of the room. He had the strong desire to shout that he wasn’t here voluntarily and that this wasn’t his “thing”. At this stage in his life, he hadn’t been very concerned with how people perceived him, but at this moment he wanted people to know that he didn’t belong here.
“Welcome.” Said a warm but deep voice over his left shoulder.
Pat looked around and saw a short man with spiky black hair. His eyes were deep green and every part of his face was sharp like it had been cut from stone. Everything about this man screamed strength. He was holding out his hand for Pat to shake. Pat took the hand gingerly and allowed the man to practically pull his arm from the socket. The man then reached around to shake Clive’s hand, followed by Harmony and Arrow.
“I’m Misha.” He smiled wide and his teeth seemed to glow in the space.
There was an awkward pause and Misha looked around at everybody as if expecting them to introduce themselves. Clive took charge and introduced each of them to this man. Pat couldn’t help feeling resentment building up inside him at the nerve of the doctor thinking he wanted this stranger to know who he was.
“It’s great to have you all here. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Thank you, Misha.” Clive said jovially. “What a nice man.” Clive said as Misha made his way to the front of the chapel.
“Of course he likes you.” Pat muttered bitterly.
Clive gave him a strange look but had no time to respond because that’s when Zion went up on the platform and began speaking.
“It’s wonderful to be in the Lord’s house today.” A loud cheer rose from the crowd as the residents clapped, hooted, and whistled. “Amen! I can see that worship this morning is going to be lively.” Zion chuckled. “Please stand as we sing today.”
The band joined Zion on stage and took their places. Rachel went to the microphone, Zion slung an electric acoustic guitar over his torso, Misha took his place at the drums, and an unknown woman with a narrow pixie-like face and long aqua-colored hair was behind the keyboard. Everybody in the crowd stood as one, including Clive and Arrow. Harmony and Pat then stood uncertainly.
The music swelled in the space and Rachel’s angelic voice rang out. The discomfort in Pat’s body grew as the unfamiliarity of everything assaulted his senses. Some of the people in the crowd had their hands raised and some were closing their eyes and swaying. Not everybody could sing but that didn’t stop them from trying. Clive looked a little out of his element but he was trying to sing along. Arrow also seemed to be making an attempt after the first verse. Harmony was stony-faced and not even attempting to sing.
The first song ended and transitioned into another one. Halfway through this song, Pat got the feeling that each song seemed to be a love song to their God. It didn’t make sense to Pat why they would sing to a God who was not here to hear the heartfelt performances. When the bridge of the song swelled into an epic crescendo the crowd sang out about how they had been brought from death to life. At this many people began sobbing and clapping and cheering. Clive smiled and clapped politely. He seemed to be the only one enjoying himself out of their group.
Two more songs later they were able to sit down but things didn’t become quiet. Some of the residents were still sobbing and clapping. Clive joined in by clapping gleefully while Arrow and Harmony tentatively clapped. Pat shoved his hands in his pockets and sat. His shoulders bowed forward and he peered around looking for a quick exit. When he had mentally decided he was going to excuse himself to go to the restroom, Zion went to the podium and began speaking.
“Let’s pray.” Zion bowed his head. “Lord, thank you for the blessed time of worship. We owe all we have to you and humbly ask for you to move into our midst today. Give me the words to say thank you to those who are visiting with us and be with them. Amen.”
Pat had bowed his head out of respect for this man who had opened up his home to them, but he did not believe the words that Zion spoke did any good. When the prayer ended, he returned his gaze to the podium and found himself unexpectedly drawn to Zion’s words. The man was a gifted public speaker.
“I’m so excited to be here with you all.” Zion began. “As I was preparing for this sermon, it was weighing on my heart to share with you what God says about anxiety.”
Pat was sucked in at that point. He had never heard a Christian speak about mental illness. Theresa grew up in a Christian home and had always been very weird when it came to mental health. He had a feeling that she regarded it as something abnormal and to be feared. This had informed Pat about what Christians must have thought about him.
Zion expressed how anxiety can be a chronic issue that affects your mental and physical health. He explained that when people suffer from mental illness, it isn’t necessarily a sin that requires a person to pray more or just have more faith.
“It’s okay to go to therapy or seek treatment for these conditions. Having these struggles doesn’t necessarily mean you lack faith in God.” Zion stepped around the podium and began to speak directly to a few men in the front row. “You don’t have to continue to suffer in silence to prove you are faithful.”
A few unseen people shouted, “Amen!” in agreement.
“Storms will come.” Zion said somberly. “Just because you put your faith in Jesus doesn’t mean your life will be perfect. Things will still happen…”
“Then what’s the point?” Pat muttered to himself.
“But when the storms come, you will have the creator of the universe in your corner. You can rely on him for all your needs and he wants what’s best for you.” Zion circled back around to the podium and opened a large book. “Turn with me now to Mark 4:37 in your Bibles. If you do not have your own Bible, there are a few in the seat racks.”
Pat shoved his hands further in his pockets, determined to not cooperate. He still wanted to leave, but something kept him rooted to the spot. To his chagrin, Clive was dutifully turning to the passage.
