War Room (25 page)

Tony sat with Michael at a corner table
in the community center café. The place was abuzz with activity. Moms held lattes and talked, waiting for kids to be released from morning programs.

The look on Michael’s face was priceless. His shaved head had wrinkles on its wrinkles from the way he was frowning.

“Man, I didn’t know you were going through all that at work and at home. Why didn’t you tell me?”

Tony shrugged. “Pride, I guess. I wanted to keep all of that hidden.”

“Bro, we’re supposed to be there for each other, you know? That’s what friends are for.”

“I see that now. And that’s why I wanted to tell you.”

Michael took a sip of coffee and smiled. “That’s awesome, though, about your marriage
 
—your faith in God. I gotta be honest. I could tell something was up from how angry you were playing ball. You were like the Tasmanian Devil out there, swirling around. You remember that night?”

Tony nodded. “Yeah, there was a lot going on that night.”

“I started praying for you then. Off and on, you know.”

“Off and on?”

“I’d drive past your house, or see Danielle and Elizabeth here, and I’d think about you. Ask God to do something with your sorry little heart.”

Tony laughed. “Well, He answered. I’m serious now. No more going to church just because it looks good or my wife wants me to. God has shown up. He’s revealed what’s most important.”

Tony told Michael more about why he’d been let go at work. He was afraid Michael might judge him and scold him for taking the samples, but he listened to the story without comment. When Tony was finished, Michael said, “That’s a tough lesson.”

“It was even tougher going back and confessing, but I knew I had to do it.”

“Good for you. If it had been me with that Tom guy, though, I’d have wanted to smack him upside the head.”

Tony laughed. “Believe me, I wanted to. I still want to. And if I ever get the chance, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“Revenge is a powerful motivator,” Michael said. “But
I’d hate to see you do something you’d regret. You know, Jesus said you’re supposed to pray for your enemies. Maybe you ought to try that. It’s hard to hate somebody you’re praying for.”

Tony smiled. “I have prayed for him, believe it or not.”

“You mean, like, ‘Lord, break his teeth’?”

Tony laughed. “No, I’m just praying that someday I’ll have a chance to reach out to him somehow.”

“That’s good, bro. Because Tom was just calling you out for what you did. You admitted it was wrong, right?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Okay. So when you look at it from his perspective
 
—I’m assuming he’s not a believer
 
—he just wants to make you pay for the wrong stuff you’ve done.”

Tony nodded. “So I’m supposed to just take his meanness?”

“No, I’m saying to look at it from a third perspective. Sometimes the hardest way to think about people who hurt you is how God sees them. And every time you want to smack them upside the head, remember God wants them to turn to Him just like you’ve done.”

“Can’t I see him that way
and
smack him upside the head?” Tony said.

“Let me put it this way. Let’s say you do something mean to me. I hold it against you so much that when the call comes that you’re having a heart attack, I say no, I don’t want to help this guy. You think that’s a good idea?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“You’d lose your job.”

“True, but there’s a bigger reason. I gave my word to help whoever’s lying on the ground, no questions asked.”

“I get you. So I need to forgive him even if he doesn’t ask for it or think he needs it.”

Michael nodded. “You’ll get a chance.”

“I’m never going back there. There’s no chance.”

“Then write him a letter. Hire a plane to write it in the sky.” He thought a moment and sat forward. “We have a men’s Bible study over at the station on Tuesday mornings. Eat breakfast together. Pray. Talk about our struggles. Talk about what forgiveness looks like. We have it in the community room because some of the other guys object. They call us the God squad. Stuff like that. We’d love to have you join us if you could spare the time.”

“Man, time is all I have right now,” Tony said.

“Yeah, any job prospects? Must be a ton on your shoulders with that house payment.”

Tony nodded. “And we’re down to one car. Liz picked up a few more houses and she needs the ride. Tell you the truth, I’d love to find something close, you know, that didn’t involve traveling all the time.”

“So I’m looking at the death of a salesman? I thought you loved the travel.”

“I did. I loved the money even more. I loved making the sale and the bonuses. But when your priorities change, all that comes into focus, you know?”

Michael nodded. He started to respond, then held up, noticing someone behind Tony. “Hey, Ernie!”

Ernie Timms, the director of the community center, passed with his usual bewildered look. He was carrying a large box and heading toward his office.

“Michael,” Ernie said with a blank stare. He nodded at Tony.

“Where you going with the box?” Michael said.

“Cleaning out my office. You heard about the change, didn’t you?”

“What change?” Michael said.

“They’re letting me go. Board made the decision yesterday. I’m clearing out.”

Michael stood, concern etched on his face, and put a hand on Ernie’s shoulder. “I had no idea. I’m sorry, man.”

“Just one of those things, I guess,” Ernie said as if he was trying to take it in stride and be a man.

“I know how you feel,” Tony said. “I was let go from my job at Brightwell.”

“Sorry to hear that,” Ernie said.

“Sit down. I’ll buy you a cup of coffee,” Michael said.

Ernie looked at the box, then at the hallway leading to his office.

“Come on. It’ll help to talk, don’t you think?” Tony said.

“Yeah. Probably.”

Michael went for a cup of coffee and Ernie sat.

“Was it all of a sudden?” Tony said.

“I knew it was coming. I’m not really cut out for this.
Too many administrative plates to keep spinning. The main job of the director here is getting everybody on the same team, you know? I was never good at organizing. I’m not really a people person. That’s what they told me when they let me go. But they gave me a good severance package, so I can’t complain. It gives me some time to look.”

Tony listened. A few weeks ago he wouldn’t have cared about somebody else’s problem. He would have been glad Ernie had been fired because it would mean less confusion at the gym over court time. He’d only judged things on how much they affected his own life. Now he saw a guy who was hurting, a real flesh-and-blood person with a family and hopes and dreams that were coming to an end, and his heart was moved by the man’s struggle.

Michael returned with the coffee and the two of them listened to Ernie’s tale. When the man had told them everything, he sat with the coffee in his hands, staring into the distance.

“You know, the job loss that Tony’s been through has been a game changer for him,” Michael said.

Ernie looked at Tony. “Really?”

“I can honestly say I’m at peace right now,” Tony said.

“You found a job that quick?” Ernie said.

“No, I haven’t found another job. I don’t have any idea what I’m supposed to do next.”

“Then how can you be at peace?” Ernie said.

Tony hesitated. He didn’t know where the man was spiritually, and the last thing he wanted to do was bash the guy
over the head with religion. But it seemed so natural just to tell him what God had done in his life.

Michael raised an eyebrow at Tony, giving him the look of a teammate who had just passed the ball to him under the basket.

“I guess you could say God got ahold of me when I hit bottom,” Tony said. “I was running after achievement and success and money. But God woke me up to what’s important. And when I ran toward that, He gave me peace. Real contentment. Even though I’m not really sure what’s ahead.”

“That’s great,” Ernie said. “For you. I mean, I’m happy for you.”

“What about you?” Tony said. “Do you have a relationship with God?”

Ernie frowned. “I go to church. Every now and then. My wife goes.”

“Does she pray for you?” Michael said. “Because Tony’s wife prayed up a storm and his whole life came unraveled.”

“Your wife prayed and you lost your job and you’re happy about that?” Ernie said.

“I’m not happy about losing my job,” Tony said. “And my wife didn’t pray for bad stuff to happen. She prayed for our marriage. She prayed I’d come alive to God. But I was going down a wrong path, you know? I was trusting in myself and my own abilities. And that’s over. I’m not leaning on my own understanding anymore.”

Ernie took a sip of coffee and stared at the table.

“This is a lot to take in, isn’t it?” Michael said.

Ernie nodded.

“You mind if we pray for you?” Michael said. “Don’t look at me that way. We’re not going to throw snakes around and roll on the floor.”

Ernie stood. “I appreciate it, but I need to get going.”

Michael nodded. “Okay. We’ll catch you some other time. But know that we’re going to pray for you and your family.”

“I appreciate it,” Ernie said, leaving with the box and his coffee.

“Sad,” Tony said. “That he wouldn’t listen.”

“He listened,” Michael said. “He’s just not ready to hear. And that’s okay. Breaking through people’s hearts is not your job. That’s God’s business. You be faithful to share what God’s done. That was awesome the way you picked up and told him what had happened to you.”

“Yeah, but he walked away. That was a failure.”

“I seem to recall somebody else doing the same thing with me,” Michael said. “And he’s sitting right there looking at me.”

Tony smiled. “Guess I got a new name for my prayer list.”

Elizabeth fidgeted with her phone, trying to calm her nerves by scrolling through her Facebook feed. Tony was driving them to the double Dutch competition. She looked at her notifications and saw the photo she’d taken of Tony
holding Danielle, both of them wearing their Comets T-shirts. She had ten comments from people, all of them encouraging the team to do well.

“Will Miss Clara be there today?” Danielle said.

“She said she wouldn’t miss it,” Elizabeth said.

“Did you bring my snack?”

Snacks were her daughter’s middle name. Though they had talked about not being superstitious, Danielle was convinced that when she ate peanut butter and gummy worms on celery sticks, she jumped better. “Yeah, baby, I’ve got it right here.”

“Danielle, are you nervous?” Tony said, looking in the mirror at her.

“Very,” Danielle said.

“Are you nervous?” Elizabeth said to Tony.

A wide grin spread across Tony’s face. “Oh yeah. But I’ll be fine just as long as I don’t fall on my face.”

“Are you really still going to do that flip?” Elizabeth said. Tony had been telling her some of the moves they were practicing, and she wasn’t entirely confident Tony could wed his gymnastic ability with the jump rope competition.

“Am I gonna do the flip? Yeah, we’re gonna do the flip.” Tony spoke in a high voice and it made Danielle giggle. To Elizabeth it was proof that God had been at work. Before the change in their relationship, she and Tony hadn’t been able to ride in the car for ten minutes without arguing. Now the mood in the car was playful.

“And that’s not all, huh, Danielle?” Tony said.

Elizabeth turned and saw her daughter with a grin as wide as Tony’s.

“You ain’t seen nothing yet, Liz,” Tony added.

“Okay, now I’m nervous,” she said.

They drove toward the venue, a gymnasium on the north side of Charlotte. Tony had wanted to get there early for the team to get a feel of the room and the atmosphere. The building wasn’t far from the Brightwell offices, and as they looked at the stately building in the distance, Elizabeth put a hand on Tony’s shoulder.

“You miss going there?” she said. “The polished floors and nice office?”

“I miss the paycheck. And the challenge every day. But I wouldn’t trade what I’ve learned. There’s no going back now.”