Journals of Peter Perry: Faith on Ice

SMASHWORDS EDITION

Copyright © 2017 M.J Brooks.

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Journals of Peter Perry Faith on Ice

Copyright © 2017 by M.J Brooks.

ISBN: 9781370998890

All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations em- bodied in critical articles or reviews.

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter One

Peter’s Decision

Peter Perry had become an old man of the ripe age of 81. In the later years of Peter and his wife, they had moved to Ninilchik, Alaska some thirty miles south of Kenai. Peter agreed to teach at Ludlow Christian Academy.

It was a seminary for new ministers who had just entered the ministry. Every Monday, just before class, Peter would be seen getting out of his old blue Ford F-250, he would slowly walk across the parking lot carrying an old brown leather lawyer’s case. His wife gave it to him for his 54th birthday, and he loved that old case because it reminded him of his wife and it kept him close to her when they were separated.

Both of them were living in a motel in town because their home was flooded by the storm surge of the Pacific typhoon McClain. All of their personal belongings were destroyed, and Peter was very sad.

The one thing that Peter cherished was his old chest of journals that he had written over the past 62 years. He assumed that they were all wet because the pages were smeared with the precious ink of that time. He thought that because of today’s innovations, the advancement of word processors, no one takes the time to write anymore.

It was Monday again, and Peter gave his wife a kiss as he would always do whenever he would leave her. But know that he had Parkinson’s disease, his kisses had a bit of tremble in them.

Closing the door behind himself, he walks over to his old truck of which he called old blue. He loved old blue because he felt they both had two things in common, they both were old, and they both needed God’s grace. So before he turned the key, he would rest his hand upon the dash of the old truck and pray for it and their safe journey to Kenai.

That morning, Peter received a call from the local authorities informing him that it was ok to move back into their home.

Their home was a little cabin that had running water, but no electricity, and Peter had to bring the wood in so his wife could cook and keep the cabin warm. Everyone wanted them to take a modern home, but they decided on the seclusion of the Alaskan wilderness. While Peter was driving to the academy, he was troubled in his heart concerning what he would find this afternoon when he would go to view the damage.

Peter gave his lecture for the morning with those gray and bushy eyebrows flickering up and down over the top of his glasses looking down with a look of perplexity. Then one of his students walked over to him and said, Sir, are you ok?

Peter looked up at Patrick sharply and said, I am fine, just considering some things.

Patrick said, Sir, I heard about your home being washed away and the class and I would like to help in any way we can.

Peter responded, Oh that’s ok, but thank you.

Patrick said, Are you sure sir, we are ready to help just let us know.

Peter nodded his head acknowledging the offer and grabbed his old case and headed for old blue in the parking lot.

He got into the old truck and looked over to his left and saw a car that resembled one that his wife had proposed for him to purchase as a replacement for old blue. Then he rested his hand upon the dash to pray as always. But this time he said to old blue looking at the other car I will never give you up old dude and continued with his prayer for safety.

Once he arrived at the town motel, he pulled out his keys and went inside greeting his wife with a kiss of peace. She immediately took off his coat and told him to go and wash his hands, so he did. Returning to the dining area, he took a seat where his wife had prepared a place mat for him. She brought over a bowl of Halibut head soup which was Peter’s favorite; he ate and enjoyed his meal. Once he finished, he walked over to the recliner in the living room area. His wife placed a heater between the both of them that she purchased at the local hardware store.

In their little cabin, the both of them would sit on each side of the fireplace, they enjoyed their time together before the fire. It was a ritual for Peter and his wife to sit in front of the fireplace in the afternoons and evenings. This was a time that they enjoyed each other’s company sharing what God was doing in their hearts.

So as always his wife started the dialog saying So our home is ready? How are we going to clean that place up, Slave? She called him Slave because that is the name the West Africans gave him on his second missionary tour, they called him the Slave of Jesus.

So he looks up sipping the hot green tea his wife gave him saying I really don’t know? He continued by saying with a smile, My class is certainly willing to help us, one young man in particular called Patrick.

His wife said, Maybe the Slave of Jesus should let Patrick and the crew do the work; we are too old to allow God’s help pass us bye.

Yea, responded Peter; I will call them tomorrow.

Peter reclined back in the chair with a deep sigh saying Those old journals are destroyed, and all the records of God’s grace are with them.

His wife got up from her chair and swung her long braided band of silver hair over her shoulders and knelt on Peter’s knees. She looked up into his eyes and said, The testimony of God’s grace is written in heaven Peter concerning all that he has done for us in ministry, you know that right?

Peter reached and hugged his wife and said, Truly our entire life had been ministry even as God has cared for me, through you.

So that night Peter called Patrick and informed him that he would need his help, he gave him the location of where his home was.

The next day Peter drove old blue to the location of his home. When he started around the tree line, he could see the roof of the old cabin cresting on the horizon of the grassy slope. When he pulled up to the old place, he was amazed that the old structure was still standing.

He got out of his old truck and thanked God for preserving his home, and then he thought to himself How bad could it be inside? He continued in his thinking and said, All this place would need is a good fire inside to dry up the walls.

Peter sat on one of the old rocking chairs that were on the porch. While he was thinking of what disaster was awaiting him on the inside, he chose to look around the place and enjoy the serenity of forest around him. Then he saw Michael the angel walking before him, and he said My, my, don’t you look well! When we first met I looked younger than you, but now I look older than you, don’t you guys ever age.

Michael responded by saying No that’s one of the benefits of being an Angel.

Peter responded, Well someday, and I’m sure it will be very soon, that I will have a body better than yours. Then Peter looked at his old hands as they trembled while resting them on his knees.

Then he looked right at Michael and said When is the Master coming for me, I’m tired, and my body is all used up.

Michael responded by saying, He that said he would come will come and will not tarry, only remain faithful to Him!

Peter responded, Have I not been faithful, have I not magnified the Lord in my flesh all the days of my life? I just wanted to be with my beloved the one who promised to come for me and take me home to be with him forever.

Michael then walked off into a clouded mist and disappeared. So just before he began to consider again what was inside his home, Patrick and the students arrived. Patrick speedily walked up to the porch where Peter was standing and said, Sir, they just don’t make them like this anymore, resting his hands on one of the logs.

Peter looked at Patrick and said, Yes the time has passed concerning good old fashioned woodwork. Then Peter opened the door and walked in standing with the light from outside behind him; he smelled something that he described as death.

That’s what he said to Patrick as he stood in the doorway, then he walked in panning around the living room.

He walked out like a general prepared for battle, he said to Patrick, I have a large tarp in the back of my truck, take it and lay it on the porch.

Patrick responded by saying, Ok, sir, what after that?

Peter said, Do that for now, and I will tell you guys what’s next!

Peter walked over to one of the walls of the cabin, he rubbed one of the logs with his finger where the water line had settled. This line showed how high the water had risen in his home.

Peter went back outside of his home and stood on the porch with everyone standing before him and said, Take everything that’s in the living room and place it on the tarp. So Patrick and the rest of the students did as Peter had instructed them and placed all of the contents of that room on the huge tarp. Peter then walked back inside of his home and opened his bedroom door.

He noticed that most of their things were destroyed by the flood that protruded into his wife’s private space.

He thought to himself that it was a good idea that she did not come with him for the cleanup. This room was her place of devotion, a place where she enjoyed time alone with God.

So he walked back out to the porch and gave them instructions on getting the next tarp out of old blue and taking everything that’s inside the bedroom and placing the items on the tarp. Patrick said, Sir, I think it would be best if after we take these things out of your home that we should move them to a safer and secure place like storage.

He continued by saying, I believe these things are valuable to you and your wife and it looks like it may rain any minute.

Peter looked right at Patrick as he spoke and said Ok but just these things first.

Then two of the students brought out a huge chest made of leather with oak binding straps. The color of the lower half had changed into a dark, grim like appearance. Peter then shouted to the two to put that down on the porch, and they did.

The two stepped away as if they had handled something sacred. Everyone surrounded the porch as Peter approached the chest, the old man fell to his knees before it with tears welling up in his eyes. The fingers of the old man trembled as he snapped the hinges of the chest and everyone’s eyes were on the old man. When Peter opened the chest, he saw all of his precious journals partially covered with water that had collected in the chest. He had other books that were on the bottom of the chest, and his journal rested on top of those.

Peter called Patrick and said, Get me some newspaper or something to absorb the water so the journals can dry out.

So Patrick and the students looked for paper or anything that the journals could rest upon, they created a mat of old newspapers and rags.

Peter took each journal and placed them on the paper mat, there were seven in total, and each one was in a bonded leather.

On the front of each journal was a paper insert of which Peter had given a name to it, all of them were Peter’s account of his ministry over the years. So Patrick and the students moved all of Peter’s furniture to a nearby storage building and returned back to Peter.

All of the students had left for the day, and only Patrick returned with the key to the storage space of which he rented for Peter. When Patrick drove up to Peter home, he saw Peter holding one of his journals in his hand looking out