I’m Gonna Call My Mom

Today Kenny stood up in our worship service and announced, "I'm gonna call my mom and tell her what I've done."

That might not seem too unusual. After all, it is Mother's Day. A lot of folks call home to let Mom know what's been going on.

But this fellow was telling a different story. He'd come a long way... from the bayous of Louisiana to the suburbs of Washington D.C. He had battled a drinking problem. He had lived through multiple car wrecks. He faced mouth cancer and a slim chance of survival. He survived chemo and radiation treatments.

"I've hit rock bottom... several times," he said. But he was never a fan of organized religion. He never wanted to join any particular church.

At last, he realized something: he needed some help. He was tired of rock bottom. He needed a friend.

So he wandered into our sanctuary one Sunday, a few minutes before 11. I welcomed him and let him know we were just wrapping up. Our services END at 11.

He laughed it off and said he'd be back. I knew that wasn't likely. Not many people come to a new church, all by themselves, with no friends or acquaintances. When people feel out of place and embarrassed, they hardly ever come back.

But come next Sunday, there he was. I greeted him by name. I think that surprised him, but it shouldn't have. How many displaced Cajuns wander into your church in Northern Virginia? He was a pretty memorable fellow.

Having lost all his teeth and much of his jaw to cancer he was hard to understand, but he made himself understood. He wasn't looking to join anything--he was just looking for a little hope. He wasn't sure why God spared his life, but he was ready to find out.

Last week someone stood up during the service to be Baptized and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. That person testified about the long and winding road that they took to find faith. As Kenny listened, he realized she was talking about him. Her story was like his.

After the service Kenny's question to me was downright Biblical: what do I have to do to be Baptized? Well, I had just preached on Philip and the Ethiopian Official, who asked, "Look! Here is water! What prevents me from being Baptized?" Philip's answer was, "Nothing prevents us!" That day the Official accepted Christ as his Lord and Savior. Kenny was ready to do the same.

"I don't have anybody to stand with me," he said. "I don't need that." With that, one of my lay leaders grabbed him and said, "Oh yes you do!"

And so it was set. We talked over the meaning of Baptism a little longer and agreed: he would stand to profess Christ and receive the sacrament today--on Mother's Day.

Kenny still wasn't sure he was ready to join the church. "I'm not much on organized religion," he said. "Well, you're in luck," I replied. "We're about as disorganized a religion as you can get around here."

Today Kenny accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal savior. He said yes to the Baptismal vows. He read the Apostles' creed and affirmed the faith. And he was Baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

I told the congregation he wasn't sure he was ready to join the church--so I invited them to help him make the decision. If they were ready to welcome him home as one of their own, please come forward and embrace him.

Kenny's whole personality changed as one person after another hugged him. In fact, he was soon downright giddy. "What do y'all say? Is Kenny one of us?" The whole congregation said yes--and Kenny did too! I handed him a certificate of Baptism AND church membership.

That's when he said, "I'm gonna call my Mama, back in Louisiana, and give her the best Mother's Day gift ever. This is gonna be better than flowers, or candy or a meal. I'm gonna tell her what I've done."

That day a Cajun woman on the bayou wept tears of joy. Her prodigal son had come home. He was Baptized and joined the church.

That day the church really was the church. The Gospel is not about nice people doing nice things nicely. The Gospel saves lives, mends hearts, brings home the prodigals, and makes mothers cry for joy.

Happy Mother's Day, Y'all!