JoJo; Part 4

JoJo was very happy! He had just downed his third chocolate-covered doughnut! He had been in Mr. Wesley's Sunday school class for three years. JoJo really liked Mr. Wesley. He brought them doughnuts every week, taught them Bible lessons, and most of all...he was a nice man. JoJo really didn't know many nice men, but they all seemed to go to his church. Of course there were others, like Mike, the mechanic; James, the mailman; and Sy, a family friend. But, most men he knew were mean! They were always talking about how long his hair was or how his family was goody-goody. Mr. Wesley's lesson that day was really good, but 5 minutes after it was over, JoJo had no idea what the man said.

This was the second Sunday, which meant no worship service for his family. For two years, they had traveled the thirty minutes to Stuckey for a visit with Granny-Jo. She resided at the Methodist Home for Old People. Only 4 people in the world knew who JoJo was named after: JoJo, his dad, his mom, and his Granny-Jo. As a matter of fact, Granny-Jo was a nickname for Josephine. You guessed it, JoJo was named after his grandmother. He didn't mind because he loved her from here to Canada! Granny-Jo was cool! She had a nice stereo with an 8-track player. She liked all kinds of music: Christian, Country, and Rock & Roll. Plus, she always played it real loud because she was hard-of-hearing! Today, she was listening to an old Beatles' tape called Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club. 

As soon as Dan heard the music, he said, "Groovy Man!"
JoJo whispered, "Oh, no"
He hated the word groovy. Some words left over from the 60s were OK, but NOT groovy. Oh well, Dan had his faults like every one else. On the flip side, Dan was one of the main reasons JoJo wanted to know more about God. His dad was more than nice. He went out of his way to help people, especially poor people. Dan was almost always in a good mood, usually humming some hymn. And when it came to Alice, Dan would do anything to make her feel like a queen.

Granny-Jo had already had lunch, which was always the topic of conversation. If it was bad, she would say, "Dan, get me out of this Old Folks' Home!" But, if it was good, Granny-Jo would have a smile on her face and usually laughed often. Today's meal, complete with pumpkin pie, was especially good. Granny was full of questions.
She would begin with me: "How much have you grown?" "Have you been watching the Braves?" "Have you been playing your guitar?"
After a while, Dad would give me the nod, which meant I could go visit Mr. Wendell. We talked baseball! He played second-base in the minors for a team called the Red Hens. Man, could he tell some stories.

My sister and Granny-Jo were real close. As I left the room, I saw her crawl in Granny's chair. It didn't bother me. Just the opposite, I was glad to see them both happy.

In a few minutes, Dad came and got me, and we were off for Smallville. I was so looking forward to a nap, when Dad cleared his throat to make sure I was awake.
"JoJo, did you bring your Bible like I asked you to?"
"Yes sir."
"Good, turn to Malachi 6:8." "Did you read it three times last night?"
"I think so...I fell asleep reading."
"Shawhaha!" "That's ok, Son!" "I want you to back up and read verses 6 & 7 aloud."
"What can we bring to the Lord? Should we bring him burnt offerings? Should we bow before God Most High with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer him thousands of rams and ten thousands rivers of olive oil? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for our sins?"
Dan told JoJo he was impressed with how well he read the verses, then he asked him to interrupt what he read.
"The people sounded desperate!" "They were asking what did they need to do to get right with the Lord."
"Well said, my favorite son!"
"Dad, I am your ONLY son!!"
"Shawha!" "The people were in trouble with the Lord for what they had already done. They were asking could they do all these desperate measures--as you said, but The Lord is Love. He beautifully told them all he wanted. Do you remember those three things from the verse you read last night?"
"Can I peak?"
"Uhhhh...yea."
"To do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God."
"That was what God wanted!" "Guess what?"
"What, Dad?"
"That is what he still wants from His people."
"Oh! Cool!"
"Now you can take your nap, JoJo."