Books by Dennis Beaudry
A sample portion of A Meeting in the Air: The busy schedule and shortened daylight hours made my normal autumn activity impossible. I usually enjoyed field excursions and scenic tours through the woodlands and by this time would have already walked at least five nature trail hikes and ridden on the Algoma Train at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, to take fall foliage photos. Although I had missed them this year and hadn’t experienced the peace and tranquility they usually yielded, the events of this September were equally rewarding.
Saturday arrived with a chilling breeze from the north. The air coming in from Canada was cold, but fortunately, Lake Superior was still warm enough to temper it. This same warming effect would soon cause the southern shoreline to be buried in mountains of lake effect snow. For now, though, all we could expect was a blustery day with gray, rolling clouds and an occasional sprinkle.
We expected an active day at the station, and the entire FM staff would be in, preparing for the dedication as well as next week’s programming. The AM staff of announcers would still be on their fire-forced vacations. The team of installers and technicians would be putting the finishing touches on the equipment and turning the facility over to us later in the day, ready for broadcasting.
We had already received several phone calls from inquisitive people who had heard we would soon be on the air and were asking when we expected to start broadcasting. Jerry had planned to announce the start of the new FM station over the AM side, but the fire took care of those plans. Instead, he bought a full-page ad in the Ridgemont Inquirer. That ad was to run in this afternoon’s edition. I had sent letters to nearly one hundred known churches in the signal area for announcement from the pulpits or in the church bulletins. Because we were not going to be a commercial station, thus not seeking advertising dollars, we hadn’t informed individual businesses. We had also told many of the area chambers of commerce of the new station in those cities that had chapters.
The programming for just about all the upcoming week had been scripted, scheduled, and, for the most part, produced—a chore made more difficult by not having a studio B in which to rehearse and record production work. I hoped a private talk with Mr. Gramswald would alleviate that problem.
It appeared as though many of us had used the same alarm clock this morning as we approached the parking lot at the same time. Jerry was making a right-hand turn and had the right of way, as did Ted, Jim, and Trish. I waited patiently to make my left turn. It was still dark, but I recognized my Trish as she drove in and up to her parking spot. Jerry ran up the sidewalk to unlock the door, bracing himself against the wind while I greeted Trish. “Did you sleep well last night?” I asked.
“Yes,” she replied pleasantly. “I sure did. How about you?”
“Very well, thank you,” I answered while yawning. “You’re working the morning training session, right?” I asked as we approached the front door to the station. Ted held it open as we went in.
“Thanks, Ted,” we said in unrehearsed unison.
“Yes, and remember, Annette won’t be in until just after nine. She doesn’t have a Saturday-morning sitter for the kids, so she won’t be able to leave the house until her husband gets in from work.”
Jerry started the coffee, and we sat chatting in the break room, waiting for it to brew. “What time did Mr. G want me to go and get him, David?” he asked.
“He said around noon, but you may want to call him to see if he has a more specific time in mind.”
Jerry looked at me like I was out of my mind for making such a suggestion. “No,” he responded. “You call him and confirm the time. Maybe, if I’m lucky, he’ll change his mind and have you pick him up.”
“I’m surprised at you, Jerry,” I chided. “A strong Christian like you still relying on luck.”
Trish smiled widely and said to me, “Very good, David! Just what are you going to be like when you get even more mature in your faith? He got you, Jerry. You know that, don’t you?”
Jerry hung his head, faking a childish pout, then said, “You’re right, David. That’s a worldly statement, and it has no place in a Christian’s vocabulary. I repent, and I accept your chastening in the love that I hope it was intended.”
“Well, actually, Jerry, I was only pointing out what’s become obvious to me. I wasn’t trying to correct you, although it may have appeared that way. I just don’t believe in luck; never really did even as a nonbeliever. Your use of the word simply took me by surprise.”
“Whether you meant to or not, I stand corrected!” he stated.
With our coffee poured, we headed to our workstations. Ted, Jim, and Trish went into the studio, while Jerry joined me in my office. “It’s just about ready, isn’t it, David?” he remarked, looking about and turning a full 360 degrees, making obvious reference to WPFH-FM.
“Yes,” I replied. “I sure hope the technicians give us the okay early today, so we don’t have to worry over any last-minute problems.”
“Hey! Now it’s my turn, Dave!” Jerry quickly retaliated.
I looked puzzled at him as he made the statement. “Your turn to what?” I asked.
“My turn to correct you! You used the word worry. Christians shouldn’t worry! We may show some concern or attention, but we don’t worry. Both AM and FM stations are in the Lord’s inventory of responsibilities. That means they are under His care, and as such, we needn’t worry about anything. The same holds true in our personal lives as well. If we’ve turned our life over to Him, then it’s no longer our life but His, and all we do is walk in the steps that He ordains. By all means, we should pray, turning the situations of life over to Him. And we should, as the Word says, pray without ceasing. However, that doesn’t mean we have to pray over every detail like ‘Oh, God, what record should I play next?’ It’s part of living our faith to trust God in directing our steps. Our decisions should always be under His jurisdiction. Have you ever considered that, David?”
“Maybe something like that, but I just didn’t realize that God enjoys and desires to be a part of our lives. I guess He’s willing to get involved whenever we extend the invitation. It makes sense that He would want us to live life trusting Him to see us through all the circumstances we encounter each day. Going through life with that perspective would alleviate most of the harmful stress and probably give the devil fits.”
“What about you and Trish?” he asked, quickly changing the subject.
“Why do you ask?” I answered.
“I tried to reach her last night after she left work because she seemed upset—no, not upset, more like subdued in her spirit. That’s just not like her. She didn’t seem to want to talk about it, no matter how much I tried. Apparently, she didn’t go straight home either. You two didn’t have a disagreement, did you?”
I paused for a moment, recalling the events of our evening together, trying to determine if I had missed some emotional signal from Trish or if she had displayed anything that should have alerted me. I couldn’t recall one. Then turning back to Jerry, I said, “She came over to the photo shop after she got done here. She seemed in a good mood then. In fact, she and a policeman even played a trick on me.”
Jerry perked up momentarily and then asked, “A tall, stocky, dark-haired policeman … badge number seven twenty-three?”
“I didn’t catch the badge number, Jerry, but I would say he matches the rest of your description, maybe 210 pounds and rather large feet, about elevens or twelves.”
“That’s him! What kind of a trick did they play on you?” he asked, continuing his impromptu interrogation.
“Oh, just a thing about my being in the office so late at night, not very significant in retrospect. Do you know that officer?”
“Sure. That’s Trish’s uncle Charlie Lawson. Didn’t she introduce you to him?”
“No. But wait until I let her know I’m on to that little secret. Thanks, Jerry. You may have just taken a weapon out of her arsenal.”
“Well, you’re welcome, I think. She may very well cancel our previously arranged confidence agreement now, but can I return to my original question?”
“Sure, Jerry. What was it?”
“How are you two getting along? As I said, I tried to reach her at home but couldn’t until after eleven. By then, she seemed okay, at least over the phone.”
I once again returned my thoughts, momentarily, to the night before. “I can’t for the life of me remember anything about last night or yesterday that would have caused her to display that kind of emotion to you. We left the shop and stopped at the drop box at the post office. Then we went up to her apartment. I didn’t want to go in at first. After a lengthy talk out front, I finally went in. That’s probably why you couldn’t get her on the phone; we were outside, standing by my car. Once we went in, we had some hot chocolate and apple pie. Very good apple pie, I might add. Then we talked for some time about the neighbors and other things too. Then I left to go home. That must have been around ten forty-five because I was in bed by eleven thirty.”
Jerry strolled across my office to the window, looked out at the dreary, gray sky, and then sat in the easy chair facing me. “Maybe I just picked up vibes that weren’t true. But she just seemed uneasy about something. You’re sure there’s nothing wrong?”
I didn’t even get a chance to start my answer. “Why? Should there be?” came Trish’s question from the doorway.
We both recoiled, looking in her direction. I immediately turned beet red as she came closer. She looked right into my eyes and said, “That’s cute, David! You look good in red. But this guy,” she continued while turning to point at Jerry. “This guy needs to get shot like a double agent spy. I’m paying him good money to spy on you, David, and he’s in here spilling his guts to you about me.” I could tell by her smile she was teasing and attempting to start another game.
“I’ve got work to do,” I said, reaching for a stack of papers from my in-basket. If you all don’t mind, I should get with it.”
“Not until I get an explanation,” she retorted, poking her finger tenderly into my chest while I stood there, desperately wanting to hold her in my arms.
“You’ll get the same explanation I got about your uncle Charlie!” I sternly informed her, removing her finger gently from my chest.
“Oops! I just remembered Jim needs me for something back in the studio.”
Trish turned, starting a hasty retreat from the office, but not before I said, “We’ll continue this later!”
“Jerry, as you can see, we’re fine. Trish and I have some learning to do about each other but plenty of time to do it. We each may have our own areas of insecurity about the future of our relationship, but by the direction of God, we’ll get through them. Hopefully, during this learning process, we’ll know just what it is that God has in mind for us.”
“Sounds good to me, David. God bless both of you.” Jerry headed to his office, and I picked up the phone to make the call to Mr. G.
The phone rang seven times, and I was about to hang up when I heard that not-so-familiar voice of Mr. Jerome Gramswald. “I didn’t wake you up, sir, did I? This is David Post in Ridgemont.”
“Of course not, David. How are you this morning, and why are you calling? Let me guess. Does it have something to do with Jerry?”
“Well, sir, he did ask me to call you and get a firm time for him to pick you up, or to see if there was any change of plans.”
“That rascal! Undoubtedly, he’s hoping for a change of plans. He doesn’t really want to come and pick me up, does he?”
I didn’t answer.
“That’s as good a confirmation as I need, David. Then you come and pick me up around two this afternoon, at the hotel. Wait till I see him!”
“Sure thing, Mr. G. I’ll see you then.”
“Fine, son. I’ll be in the lobby and ready to go when you get here.”
After quickly punching Jerry’s intercom number, I informed him that he was off the hook. He seemed relieved. “Someday you’ll know him a little better than you do now. He really hasn’t upset your apple cart yet, but mind my words. Give him time; he will. Thanks for going in my place.”
“Okay, Jerry. I’ll talk to you later.”
A sample portion of The State of Christianity: Larry Gillespie, a 45-year-old white male, stood at the intersection of Howe Street and Morgan Avenue. The large evening sun was about to drop beneath the blood-red western horizon. Fortunately, there was a breeze that helped cool down the record setting heat of the day. Although thunderstorms were predicted, none had formed. Larry had spent the day, as he had each day this week, at a business convention and was now on his way back to his hotel room. The crosswalk sign seemed to take forever to flash "WALK"; on the other side of the intersection was the bus stop that he needed.
While waiting, Larry noticed a very attractive black lady who appeared to be watching his every move. She was dressed to kill, and he figured in a split second she just had to be a movie star. More startling was the fact that she was now moving from her sidewalk bench toward him. She had to be, even without the high heels, about six foot, two inches tall, at least. The closer she got the more intently he found himself observing her. Her beauty was strangely captivating to him, but he didn't know why. He quickly did a spiritual evaluation to make sure lust hadn't gotten a foot in the doorway of his mind. It wasn't lust. He then reasoned her sudden stronghold on him had to be due to his certainty she was an actress. After all, beauty like hers didn't normally walk the streets, he further reasoned within himself.
The crossing sign finally gave clearance to the five waiting people and one stray dog to cross the street. Larry started his trek with the mysterious and attractive lady right at his heels. All the commuters continued up the street except for Larry and the lady, who turned to the right, heading to the shelter of the bus stop, now nearly filled with waiting people. He sat down in one of the few remaining vacant spaces, set his briefcase beside him, and looked up at the bus schedule on the wall. As he did, his eyes met hers. Slowly, almost seductively, she sat down beside him.
"You're from out of town, right?" she softly spoke in a pleasing voice.
"Why yes" Larry answered, "but how did you know that?"
"There's a number of ways, but you just had lonesome written all over your face as you waited at the corner. Where you from?"
"Dallas. Originally from Pittsburgh, but my company moved me out there about three years ago. I really haven't been any one place very long and it looks like they're preparing me for a move here to Atlanta. That's part of the reason why I'm here. I'm attending a conference at the Parkland-Grace Convention Complex, and I'm also supposed to determine if there's a need for a corporate division here in the north central Georgia area.” He stopped his dialog to apologize. "I'm sorry. I'm not being very gentlemanly, am I? My name is Larry Gillespie."
"I'm pleased to meet you, Larry,” she replied, extending her hand. “My name is Roxanne. I'm not from here either. My hometown is St. Louis, at least that's where I did most of my growing up. That's where my grandparents lived. They raised me until I was 17, then I left to come here. I've been here ever since. There's a bus coming. Where you headed?"
"To my hotel room. It's been nice talking to you, Roxanne. I guess you just naturally picked up that southern hospitality since moving down here. Up north you wouldn't get the time of day from a stranger. Have a nice evening."
"Are you getting on this bus, Larry?"
"Yes. This is the one that takes me to the President McKinley Hotel."
"Well, how about that? This is the bus I'm taking too. Let's talk some more."
After finding an open seat, Larry allowed Roxanne to enter first and then he sat down.
"Listen Larry. I can imagine how it is in a strange town by yourself, away from home. Why don't we have dinner together? Then maybe we can find a nice place to relax and kick up our heels and enjoy life a little bit together. Does that sound okay to you?"
"I appreciate your offer, I guess, Roxanne. But the fact of the matter is, that wouldn't be appropriate for either one of us. I don't know about you, but I'm married and having dinner with another woman, well...that just doesn't look very good, if you know what I mean."
"I sure do, Larry. But we're not strangers really. It seems like I've known you a long time, and anyway who's going to know? We're a long way from Dallas. It's just dinner and small talk; maybe a drink or two."
"Thank you, but no thank you, Roxanne. I have plans for this evening anyway. It's Wednesday and I plan on attending mid-week services at a church two blocks over from the hotel. Do you attend church?"
"Excuse me? I think maybe I've misread you and the way you were looking at me at the corner back there, Larry. Forgive me. You really don't understand; do you?"
"Understand what?" Larry quickly asked.
"I've been trying to work a sale; you know, a trick. I can see now you're not that kind. My God, I remember ages back when I was that innocent and naive. I'd give anything to return to that innocence, but a girl on her own has got to earn a living, doesn't she?"
"You mean you...did you...I never would have guessed if you hadn't spelled it out. Maybe I am naive, but I wouldn't have guessed that's what you were doing. Roxanne, even though you might not be able to return to the innocence of your youth, you can return to God. Although I might not be able to have supper with you, you're welcome to come to church with me tonight. Or maybe you would like me to lead you to the Lord right now, right here. Would you like to do that?"
"Yes, I would like to do that, but I won't, or should I say can't, at least not now. Maybe this would be as good a place as any for a goodbye."
She stood and Larry let her out of the seat. "I'll pray for you tonight," he said.
"Please do that," she replied. "Who knows, it might just help."
"If you want it to, it will; there's no doubt about that."
When she arrived at the front of the bus, she turned, blew a kiss in his direction, and was gone. The bus pulled away from the curb in a haze of bluish-black diesel fumes.
Although Larry had never set foot in the non-denominational church before, he felt at home right away. A spirit of welcome and friendliness greeted him at the front steps and ushered him in to his seat. Several people extended their hands in greetings and even the pastor's wife sat down beside him for a few minutes of small talk prior to the start of the service.
Her lovely, peaceable and charming personality became evident with each word she gracefully spoke. Larry figured she was probably in her late fifties yet carried all the radiance of someone twenty years younger. Her husband, Pastor Stanley Sharp, didn't have a gray hair on his head. Although he had some age lines across his forehead, he too looked much younger than what Larry presumed him to be.
There weren't any bulletins handed out by the ushers, so he didn't know what to expect as the order of service. As the sign out front said, "Prayer Group Meeting - 7:00 p. m. – the Word at 8:00". That was the only order of service dictated by man. The Holy Ghost was apparently given free reign in this church. Larry liked that because it reminded him of his home church in Dallas.
He slowly and cautiously looked around the church, trying to do so without moving his head. He estimated the crowd to be close to two hundred, maybe two hundred fifty. All were warring in the spirit as though their life depended on it. How had they been trained so well to enter the throne room of God without so much as a word by the pastor, a deacon or elder? Larry was amazed but quickly realized he was wasting valuable time gawking around the sanctuary. He stood to join in, making his contribution to the warring efforts of his newly found sisters and brothers in the Lord.
Gradually the intensity of the intercession decreased, people started sitting down, reverently waiting for those who were still in prayer to finish. Soon all were seated, and Pastor Sharp stepped down from the platform to be close to his faithful flock.
"You can turn your Bibles to 1st Peter, Chapter 2 and verse 9 if you care to follow along. We'll only be using that one verse for our text tonight, but I think you'll find a lot of meat in there. I'd even venture a guess that you're going to be surprised as to the direction God provides in that one verse as well as confirmation to some of the things He has been telling us of late. Follow along as I read.
"'But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him that called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;'[i] Another translation puts a portion of that verse in a much better perspective. Let me read a portion. '...show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness and into his marvelous light....'[ii]
"Sisters and brothers, we are being called out of the darkness. Our four-year campaign to remedy the prostitution ring in this section of town has run into another snag. As you know, ever since the new convention center on Peachtree opened nearly five years ago, we've seen an increase in the number of ladies, and now men too, who have started doing business in our neighborhoods. We're at both a disadvantage and advantage by being located so close to the center. The advantage is that we have an opportunity to witness to the large number of visitors in the area. We can also invite to our services those who are in town for conventions or business and who might be looking for a house of God close to where they're staying. The disadvantage is that we see an increase in such things as drugs, muggings, drunkenness, and of course the current epidemic – prostitution.
“I suppose by now you're asking yourself, 'Where's the connection with the scripture verse? Where's the calling out?' Those are two good questions, and they need to be answered. Like I said, we haven't made much headway in our warfare against prostitution. We don't want our younger children seeing this kind of lifestyle. Nor do we want our older children to have such easy access to those sinful and luring attractions. The city commission had agreed to place more police cruisers in the area at night but then backed down. They said they saw no increase in the crime rate for this area since the Center opened when compared to the increase that's hit other areas of town. Our next request was to at least increase the night foot patrol. They again agreed; but failed to produce a budget that would provide the increase in manpower needed to do that.
"Lastly, we petitioned the commission for stricter prostitution laws and more arrests, but this time they laughed at us. Monday night's meeting in commission chambers ended at roughly ten o'clock with three unfinished items on their agenda. The submission of the results of our second petition drive was next when they decided to table everything else for next week's meeting. We objected loudly. They yielded, quickly rejecting the petition due to, quote, '...the imposition of minority values on the majority of citizens not represented.' The whole thing took thirty-five seconds with a unanimous vote, complete with denial of rebuttal arguments.
"We're not getting anywhere with them. They're blinded. They will not listen to reason, nor even take into consideration the history of other declining areas of the city that have been plagued by this vice. They won't even call it sin. The best we could get out of them in the past seven months was to acknowledge it as a social ill.
"I know. You're still waiting for the connection with the scripture verse, aren't you? Well, here it is. You know all too well how God has been leading us from complacency to action. We've been found faithful and obedient to God in sounding the alarm and warning them of their sin. And seeing as how they've rejected the warning; God is ready to turn them over to their reprobate minds. But here's the good part. He has something new for us! Something, that if you look back at the past several weeks and months, you'll agree was the working of God. He has been directing us in our efforts and preparing us for a separation should our efforts fail.
"We are simultaneously preparing and being prepared for a separation from this darkness. We have warned them, but they have chosen to remain in the darkness. Once separated from them, they may then be able to see that OUR light missing from their landscape. They will hear our warning fading off into echoes. And maybe, they will recognize the truths we've tried to make known – truths that become evident when illuminated by the light within US! A light that God shines not only on them but shines everywhere they run as they try to get away from it. There is no other reason but this why you are here tonight. From among the nearly four hundred people who call this church home, you are the loyal, faithful remnant. You're here this evening to be marked in your spirit, readied in your life, and prepared in your heart to move as God directs. And make no mistake about it, God is directing us to physically move from this darkness into the light that He has for us to live in. Make your personal preparations! Make your spiritual preparations! And ready yourself for an adventure the likes of which you have never experienced before.
"Our journey in this life is about to expand to new dimensions and arrive at new horizons. I see some of the WHEAT separating from the chaff! I see the GRAIN! I see many KERNALS fully ripened and ready for the harvest while helping others get ready! But this harvest I see is not the start or culmination of the end time harvest, but rather only a preparatory harvest conducted by our God. He is about to harvest us, His chosen people, to a place of peace, a place of plenty, a place of unprecedented prosperity, and a place of health and happiness. I don't see this as a worldwide harvest. Not yet anyway. Not right now. I believe God is saying this and doing this specifically for America. This may be His final effort in calling her back to Himself, and thus keep His blessing upon her. Are you willing to go?"
"Amen! Hallelujah!" the people shouted, jumping to their feet, and raising their hands in adoration of their God and His greatness.
Sample reading of The Legacy: An Unfaithful Journey to Faithfulness
Rev where are we going to stay tonight?” Jason asked.
“That’s a very good question, son.” Rev started his reply. “I know two places along the way where we might catch a few winks tonight. Which one depends on how much road we cover this afternoon. Up ahead about a half mile, there’s a small grocery store where we can get a loaf of bread and some bologna. Mark and Janice gave me a little cash to tide us over until we get to Prairie Hill. If we don’t get very far today, we can have bologna sandwiches and water. We can sleep at a small shantytown by the abandoned tracks near Newport Village. The trains don’t go on those tracks anymore, so there aren’t many road people there either; but some of the shacks and tents are still there—at least they were last fall when I came through here.”
“Did you get close to Prairie Hill last fall, Rev?” Jason inquired.
“No. Sadly, I didn’t, son.” Rev slowly acknowledged. “I got about as close as I could, but I had a full bottle, and I drank it all and that’s when I found myself headed to Kentucky where you and I met up. Are you still going to be with me on this attempt to get there, boy?”
“You bet. We’re both gonna strut down the streets of Prairie Hill and announce to the whole world you and I are there!” Jason remarked enthusiastically.
“Not so fast, young man. Let’s not get the cart before the horse. Our first stop will be the cemetery just outside of Prairie Hill. If we visit the graves and I make it through that, then we might look up some old friends who will let us make a bed in their barn loft. Maybe we’ll attend a church service where I used to preach. I…would also like to…to meet the current pastor there and tell him about our little trip back to Prairie Hill—which really isn’t a very little trip at all for either of us.
“Thank you, son, for making the deal with me to tell you about Jesus and keep me off the bottle. Just like you said, ‘that you can understand things better’, well, so can I without the cloud of alcohol in my brain. Stick with me, son. We’re gonna do this—and do it together.”
“I’m with you, Rev. let’s keep moving!”