“ Do you believe in God?” Larry asked the old man.
“ Please, please, I don’t want to hear about God. I’m too old to believe in fantasy,” the old man replied.
“ Do you think God is a fantasy?” Larry pressed on.
“Listen, young man, I’m seventy-eight years old. I have lived long enough to know that there is no God,” the old man said, annoyed.
“ I can tell you have a unique perspective about God, and I respect that. Have you ever heard about the story of the wind and the leaf?” Larry questioned.
“ The wind and the leaf?” the old man repeated. Then he stared at Larry and said, “ I have never heard about that story.”
“ It’s a fascinating and thought-provoking story. Would you like to hear it?” Larry asked, his voice filled with anticipation.
“ Sure,” the old man said.
“Here is the story of the wind and the leaf,” Larry started, “once upon a time, there was a huge forest with many animals. A river crossed the forest from east to the west. One day, a caddisfly, an aquatic insect, landed on a Trident Maple tree leaf and said, “you are bright and heavy. You look gorgeous. I hope the wind won’t destroy you by making you fall from the tree.” Larry paused, looked at the old man, and continued, “The leaf smiled and said, don’t worry, the wind doesn’t exist. Nothing can destroy me.”
“How did the insect react to the leaf’s silly words?” the old man commented.
Larry replied, “The insect, shocked by the leaf’s words, asked: how can you say that the wind doesn’t exist?” Without any hesitation, the leaf replied, “Have you ever seen the wind? Did you ever talk to it? Of course not. No one has ever seen the wind; therefore, it doesn’t exist.”
“It may be too late for you when you encounter the wind,” the insect warned, its voice filled with concern, and flew away.
A week later, the insect went back to the tree, Larry, continued, “ Guess what happened?”
“ What !” The old man reacted.
“ One of the branch fell off the tree. Both the branch and the leaves dried up,” the insect said.
“ What this has to do with me?” the old man asked.
“ The leaf dinied the existence of the wind. It’s attitude didn’t prevent the wind to operate. You dined the existence of God and yet you can see His marvelous work around you. Nature alone is the proof that God really exist.”
“ If there is a God, as you try to make me believe, why is there so much evil in this world?” the old man questioned.
“ I respect you as an old man, but let me tell you that God is responsible for all the evil you see in this world,” Larry replied.
The old man looked at Larry with a shocked face as if he said something strange.
“ So if God is not responsible for all the evil in this world, tell me who is responsible?” the old man questioned.
“ Do you want to know the answer?” Larry asked.
The old man nodded in agreement.
“ Well, people like you are responsible for all the evil we see in the world,” Larry said.
“ You are not serious, are you?” the old man replied, stunned by Larry’s unexpected response.
“ I’m very serious. You are responsible. And I can prove it to you,” Larry said.
“ I feel offended. You are disrespectful, young man,” the old man replied, walking away.
“ At least listen to what I have to say,” Larry shouted.
The old man turned back, stared at Larry, and said, “ Why should I listen to a disrespectful young man like you?”
“ I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m sorry about that. I’m trying to make a point. God is not responsible for all the evil things we see. Can we sit down, please? I want to clarify my point,” Larry responded, gesturing towards a peaceful bench nestled in a quiet corner of the park.
When they both sat down, the old man said, “ What’s your point? I’m listening.”
“ Thank you for your willingness to listen. I will try to make it simple the best I can. Everything God created is good. Unfortunately, the creation was corrupted by a being called the devil,” Larry explained, his voice tinged with a hint of sadness.
“ But I assume that God is more powerful than the devil. Why didn’t God prevent the devil from destroying the world? God could have stopped that,” the old man objected.
“ The best part is that God gave you and all humans the power to do so,” Larry said.
“ You mean God gave us the power to stop the devil?” the old man asked skeptically.
“ Yes. God gave all humans the power to destroy the devil’s actions and have dominion on this earth. In other words, what happens on earth is human’s business, not God’s business,” Larry explained.
“ But I don’t see any human stopping the devil? The earth is filled with all kinds of bad stuff: murder, rape, violence, hatred, to name a few. I don’t get your point, young man,” the old man replied concerned.
“ You are right. Even though humans have been given the power to dominate the earth, the reality is that those who were supposed to dominate are themselves dominated. I agree with you?” Larry said.
“ Why?” the old man questioned.
“ Because the first man, Adam, missed the mark. He disobeyed God and, therefore, lost the power to rule the earth. Fortunately, the power and all the privileges have been restored, ” Larry explained.
“ What do you mean by the restored power?” the old man questioned.
“ Jesus, the Son of God, has not only redeemed us from the curse but also restored everything that was lost. Now, those who accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior are not just recipients of this restoration, but they also gain the power to overcome the devil and to subdue, dominate, and rule,” Larry explained.
” Are saying that the power to overcome the devil is reserved to a select few?” the old man enquired.
“I understand your concern, but the truth is, the power to dominate is not reserved for a select few. It’s a fair and open opportunity for all. It’s about making a personal choice to accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior,” Larry reassured.
” Can you please elaborate?” the old man asked.
“ The truth is, the concept of being part of the chosen minority is not exclusive to a select few. It’s open to everyone, regardless of their race, age, or social status. All it takes is a simple YES to Jesus. The door is wide open, inviting all to partake in this journey,” Larry clarified.
“ I want to have dominion on a lot of things. How does someone make Jesus his Lord and Savior,” the old man asked intentionally.
“ All it takes is a prayer. If you pray with faith, you become a child of God. There are so many benefits attached to the new status.” Larry explained.
The old man agreed to give his life to Jesus. Larry led him through the salvation prayer.
The old man thanked him and said, “Could you share with me some of the benefits of being the child of God?”
“ I’m glad you asked. There are many benefits. But I want to share only three of them,” Larry replied.
The old man nodded in agreement.
“ Before I continue, let me ask you: do you have a Bible?”
“ Unfortunately not,” the old man replied.
“ No problem,” Larry said. Then he opened his backpack, took out a new Bible, and offered it to his new friend. “This Bible will be your guide as you embark on this new journey with Jesus.”
“ Thank you so much,” the old man said with a smile.
“ The Bible is full of God’s promises. It’s the most wonderful book in the world. The first promise I want to share with you is found in the New Testament book of first John. This passage, John 1 verses 12 and 13, speaks about the privilege and power of becoming a child of God. Could you please read it?” The old man found the scriptures and read. Verse 12: “ Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” Verse 13: “ Children born not of natural descent, nor human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.”
“ As you can see,” Larry explained, “ the first benefit of receiving Jesus is being part of God’s family. Can you imagine that? What a privilege! Verse 13 tells us that we are no longer born of natural descent. It means God set you above all limitations attached to your natural lineage. I love that. For example, if in your family people died at a certain age, or if everyone in the family gets a certain sickness, you are divinely immunized. Whatever dominates your natural family can’t work on you.”
“Wow!!! That is very exciting !” the old man said.
“ The second benefit,” Larry continued, “ is the forgiveness of your sin. No matter what you did in the past, the blood of Jesus washed it away. Do you know that death is the result of sin? Therefore, when Jesus cleans and wipes out your sin, life flows in you and your circumstances.”
“ Thank you for introducing Jesus to me,” the old man said.
“ There is more. Are you ready to hear it?” Larry asked him.
“ Yes !” the old man answered with excitement.
“ The second benefit of making Jesus your Lord and Savior is protection. You are protected in the natural world and the invisible world as well,” Larry said.
“ What does it mean to be protected in the invisible world?” the old man questioned.
“ You must understand, my friend, that our world is not just what we see. There exists a realm beyond our sight, an unseen world. To help you grasp this, let me share an example. Have you ever come across the concept of witchcraft?” Larry asked, his voice filled with intrigue.
“ Of course,” the old man replied quickly.
“ Do the wizards kill people physically?” Larry asked.
“ No. Most of the time, they use incantations and all kinds of enchantment,” the old man said.
“That’s right. These wizards, these people of the unseen world, cast spells on others. Their actions manifest in our physical realm. But when you embrace Jesus, you are shielded from their harm. In the book of Numbers 23, verse 23, the Bible assures us: ‘Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any divination against Israel.’ God becomes your refuge, your fortress, protecting you from all evil,” Larry explained, his voice filled with conviction.
“ That is amazing !” the old man said with a big smile.
“ There is always more in God. The third benefit I want to share with you is found in the book of Ephesians 2, verse 6. Could you please read it, ” Larry said.
The old man flipped the pages and found it. He read eagerly: And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.
“ You see,” Larry continued, “ That is your new position. You are seated with God Himself in the heavenly realms.”
“ what does this imply?” the old man asked.
“ Good question. It means you are above earthy stuff. Normally, it means you become untouchable from the evil that reigns on Earth. Let me give you an example. Let’s say there is a contagious disease that decimates the Earth. You claim Ephesians 2 verse 6. And because spiritually, you are not from the Earth, you would be protected against the disease. But let me warn you. You must be AWARE of your new position in Christ. It takes awareness to benefit all the promises of God,” Larry explained.
“ From everything you explained, I understand that being with Jesus makes us a new person. I mean, we are no more ordinary men. Am I right?” the old man asked.
“ You are ABSOLUTELY correct. Let me show you a shocking verse,” Larry said.
“ A shocking verse?” the old man repeated.
“ Yes! Read Psalm 82 verse 6,” Larry said.
The old man reached the book of Psalm 82 and read the verse 6.
“ It’s written: “I said, ‘You are “gods.”
“ God calls us small gods. Now go and operate as a god,” Larry said, inspiring the old man.