Читать книгу The Chest of Visions: New Pathways ‘cross Broken Highways - Tim Ferguson - Страница 11

February 4th

Dear Alex and Laura,

Amazing things are happening. This is a long story and I can only forward a little at a time, so it will be sent in three separate messages on three separate days.

Jonas returned with quite a story to tell. He stated that he had much difficulty finding Chihaysu in the desert. After travelling all day Jonas sat down as it was getting dark. As twilight came, he spotted a flickering light. He walked towards it and discovered a small campsite to the north. As he approached, he realized Chihaysu was there.

They greeted each other and Jonas shared the information about Chihaysu’s mother. Chihaysu was saddened. He and Jonas prayed for her. Since it was late, they lay down to rest. The next morning Chihaysu stated that he felt compelled to remain one more day in the desert as he became convinced, while praying, that an important revelation was coming. Chihaysu asked Jonas if he would like to take a walk and Jonas agreed. They grabbed a bottle of water each and walked, for some time east. Then Chihaysu pointed. “Do you see them . . . the mountains?” Jonas replied that he did and that he never knew that there were mountains on the other side of the desert.

“They are huge,” Chihaysu advised. “Someday I will travel this desert and visit them.” They sat down near some small rocks. The desert, at this place, had some yellow-like grass growing. It was a comfortable place to rest and, before Jonas knew it, he fell asleep

Jonas did not know how long he rested. He only remembers Chihaysu awakening him. “It’s getting late,” Chihaysu stated. When they got back to camp, Chihaysu and he had a quick meal. Chihaysu prayed for Jonas’ safe return and gave him a written message for his mother just before he left.

After walking for some time, Jonas sat down to rest. He checked his pack for Chihaysu’s message and could not find it. Since it was for his mother, Jonas returned to Chihaysu. When he came near, the sun was about to set. Chihaysu had started a small fire as it does get cold at night in the desert. Jonas stopped a short distance from the camp and noted that Chihaysu appeared to be meditating.

Off in the distance he saw an animal coming towards Chihaysu, an animal he had never seen. It was like a large goada, but with longer legs, a bushy tail, and a much longer nose. Seated on its back was a tall woman with long black hair that hung to her waist. The front of her black hair was colored gold, and she was able to ride this beast, which was running quite quickly towards Chihaysu. It ran faster than the fastest mobile in Caperston. Jonas told us that he hid behind a large rock to see what was happening. The woman slowed her beast as she approached Chihaysu, then stopped and stepped off the animal. In response Chihaysu rose from his seated position. Jonas stated that the desert was without noise so he could hear all the words of their conversation. The woman greeted Chihaysu by name and introduced herself as Cle-as. She stated that she was the Princess of the kingdom of Romas, which was further east at the other side of the desert. Cle-as stated that her spies had been following the events in Caperston and had told her of a wise and handsome man, who had motivated the people to end the inequality between the Valley People and the Mountain People. Cle-as stated that she was impressed. Chihaysu asked how she knew the language of Caperston so well and Cle-as responded, “It is not I who learned your language. Rather your people in Caperston are speaking the language of Romas.”

I am sending you a sketch by Jonas of Cle-as arriving, leading the large goada. I hope it arrives. The story will be continued in a day or two.

Huchfee

February 5th

Dear Alex and Laura,

Cle-as then told Chihaysu an amazing story. The Kingdom of Romas had existed for over 100 generations. About 25 generations ago a small group of Romasians asked their Ruler if they could journey across the desert to find a “New World.” They had been farmers working on the Ruler’s land for a salary and wanted a chance to own their own land. The Ruler, noting that the population of Romas was rapidly growing, agreed. These people journeyed across the desert, settled in the mountains and their descendants became the Mountain People of today.

Four generations passed and a group of Romasian scientists with a few wealthy allies attempted to overthrow the Ruler, whom Romasians now call a King. They were defeated and condemned to die. However, an appeal was made to spare their lives as there had never been an execution in Romas. The King agreed and sent them across the desert on their own. Upon crossing the desert, they observed there were already settlements in the mountains, so they continued, settling to the southwest of Lake Gael. These criminals are the ancestors of the Valley People. So, all of you, Mountain and Valley people, are ancestors of my kingdom, Romas.

Chihaysu asked her to sit. Jonas stated that he could see that Cle-as was muscular, yet slender, and very beautiful. She dressed modestly, not as you would imagine a Princess would dress. What stood out was her hair. It was long, down to her waist with steaks of gold above her forehead. In the back it was clasped with a silver clip on which was attached a red star. She told Chihaysu that her father was dying and, as his only child, she was the heir to his throne. Her father wants her to wed as she cannot become queen after his death without a husband. It is the law of Romas.

Cle-as could choose any man she wished, and it is a wise man that she was seeking. She stated, “Now I have found my wise man and he is handsome as well as being wise. Between your wisdom and the kingdom, I shall inherit, we can unite not only the Mountain People and the Valley People but all Romas. I shall be the queen and you shall be my king.”

Chihaysu was speechless It appeared that he was impressed with Cle-as. She continued, “I know you need time to think. Let us rest.” She looked at the blanket and the rock next to it on which his head rested the previous night. “Is this where you slept, my dear man?” Chihaysu responded affirmatively. Cle-as continued, “Come rest your head on my lap. It is more comfortable than this hard rock.” A few moments later he lay by her side, resting his head on her lap. She occasionally brushed her hand through his hair.

Huchfee

February 10th

Nothing more happened for several minutes, then Chihaysu sat up. He asked Cle-as, “My new friend, Cle-as, do you know of the God whom I serve?” Cle-as replied, “I have been waiting for you to tell me of him.”

Chihaysu then shared his story: the chest of visions he received, the prayer which led to Dawnling being healed, the prayer that caused the rain to cease during the contest with the scientist and the death of Mattpaul. Cle-as listened intently. She replied, “So you feel there is a Ruler named God over all of us, you and me, Caperston, Romas?”

“I do, Cle-as,” Chihaysu answered.

Cle-as paused for a few seconds, then replied, “Then your God will be my God as surely as you shall be my husband.”

Chihaysu moved a small distance away, then asked, “Cle-as, do you know what prayer is?”

“I have heard that it is powerful,” she answered. He then asked her to pray with him. He bowed his head as did she. Chihaysu asked God to hear his prayers and the prayers of “my new friend, Cle-as.” He continued with his head bowed in silent prayer. Cle-as remained silent, head slightly bowed, eyes closed but appeared restless. Jonas stated that he did not think she was actually praying. He also stated that the moment moved him, and he quickly sketched them.

When he finished, lifting his head, Cle-as spoke, “I like praying with you. Now I must return to my country. You have asked me to pray and I have done so. Here is what I ask of you. First, you need to return to your mother. Ask people to join you to observe what you will do. Look your mother in the eye and tell her that you will pray for her and that she must believe that God will make her better. We in Romas have discovered that AHT is a disease of both the body and of the mind. If a diseased person truly believes that he or she will get better, then the mind will convince the body to fight and defeat the disease. Let the people see you take these actions so that they will follow you.”

My second request is this: “believe in your heart that your God wishes you to be my king and our alliance to be the restoration of our planet. Commit yourself to work with me to make this a reality. Lastly, I ask you to pledge that you will love no one in this world more than you love me. In return, I pledge that your God will be my God, my dear Chihaysu.” She stood up and he did likewise. She then stroked his cheek gently with her hand. She blew him a kiss, climbed onto her beast and rode away to the East.

Chihaysu watched as Cle-as rode away then sat down. He appeared deep in thought, so Jonas decided not to disturb him. He left him, returning to Caperston to share this surprising story. We all await Chihaysu’s return.

You asked about the name of Mattpaul’s father. Mattpaul always called him “father.” His actual name is Paved, pronounced “Pav-ed.” I will try to use this name when corresponding in the future with you.

Huchfee

February 22th

Dear Huchfee,

Just when we think the drama in Caperston cannot become more complicated, we hear of Chihaysu’s encounter with Cle-as. Wow! We await your next letter with great interest.

In our world our lives are so different. We meet every two weeks as a youth group at church where we enjoy each other’s company and do activities that challenge our faith. We all have a difficult time praying, particularly out loud in the group. I sometimes wonder if this prayer activity actually works? My friend, Laura, tells me that it is all right to have doubts. That is what faith is all about . . . when we are not certain, we still act on our beliefs. We say “Yes” to the call of God’s word.

I am trying very hard. Sometimes, when I pray, I feel close to God and, other times, I am not so sure. I am glad that I had the vision of heaven, but sometimes I wonder. Was it just a dream? At times I feel confused so I hope I will learn to pray more effectively.

After youth group we go back home to our lives of family, friends and school. Some are on sports teams and, when I am playing basketball, the success of the team seems to be the most important thing in my life.

All of you in Caperston are showing us that following Chihaysu’s teachings and regularly taking your challenges to God in prayer are the important things. Thank you for inspiring us.

Alex

February 25th

Hi Alex,

Before I tell you of the new events in Caperston, I want to ask a question. You often refer to something called a church. What is a church? Sometimes it seems to be a building in which you gather and other times it seems to be a special holy place. We are interested in this thing you call a church.

Now I have an even more amazing story to share. After visiting his mother Chihaysu called us all together to tell us of his days in the wilderness. We knew of his meeting with Princess Cle-as, but from Jonas not from Chihaysu. Chihaysu wanted to update us on what happened while he was in the wilderness the past four days. He did not begin by mentioning meeting Princess Cle-as to our surprise. We thought this is what he deemed important.

Instead Chihaysu shared something both exciting and very mysterious. It starts with the power of prayer and what prayer exactly is.

Chihaysu stated that on his last night in the wilderness he had a dream. He found himself walking down a path. In a short distance there was a fork. He looked down the left fork and it appeared to curve in a short distance. When he looked down the right fork, he saw it go on and on, seemingly endlessly.

His first inclination was to go left as he could see the turn ahead, but instead, intrigued by the distance, he chose the right turn. He took a few steps then, suddenly, a beam of light came from behind and carried him down a tunnel and then dissipated. He looked up and saw a door a few steps away.

Chihaysu said he walked to the door and in bold white letters was the phrase “Warning: unknown land ahead.” Above the message was a small rectangle, about three inches wide and two inches tall. Over the rectangle was a hinge that could be pulled upward. There was no warning message on the hinge. Chihaysu’s heart was racing. He paused and thought, “There is a reason I was brought here. There is no warning message on the hinge so looking must be safe.” He raised the hinge.

As he looked through a glass enclosure under the hinge, he saw a world similar to Caperston yet different. There was blue sky and trees, but the trees seemed taller. There was a path coming out of the collection of trees on the left and on it were people. There had small packs on their backs, and, upon emerging from the path, took the packs off and opened them. Upon opening his pack one person took out a clear bottle of liquid, drank some then shared it with a friend. They were talking to each other, but he could not hear anything behind the closed door. Then he looked to the right, over a large rock that seemed to protrude into space. Past the rock there was a slight haze in the sky, and through the haze, he could see buildings, many buildings which appeared very far away. Chihaysu assumed that the buildings were tall, probably taller than the House of the Dead, the tallest building in Caperston. He then looked again to the left at the path coming through the trees and he saw a sign “Bear Mountain Lodge . . . three miles.”

Chihaysu stepped back and again looked at the message on the door, “Warning: unknown land ahead.” He wanted to open the door and enter but questioned, “What if this world was not conducive to people from Caperston? Maybe we will not be able to breathe the air.” Even more frightening was the thought, “What if the door only opens one way?”

Chihaysu stepped back, turned around, and, after a quick glance back over his shoulder at the door, stepped forward. Upon completing two steps the flash of light reappeared, carrying him back to the fork in the road he had earlier walked to.

Chihaysu once again looked down the two forks and this time took the left fork. The path around the left fork was clearly more travelled. Fifty steps along the left path he began to turn further to the left and after a few more steps, he emerged into his campsite in the wilderness.

Chihaysu awoke from his dream and relived it over and over in his mind. He did not want to forget, as we so often do after dreams, any of the details of the dream. As morning came Chihaysu prepared to leave when suddenly he felt exceedingly tired. He thought to himself, “I did not get a full night of sleep. I will rest for a minute.”

Once again Chihaysu fell asleep and had a second, very vivid dream. A man was approaching him in the wilderness. He looked quite ordinary except for his eyes. There was a sparkle in them, and he sensed that they were sending minute beams of light towards him, many small beams that, together seemed to say, this man has a message for you.

“So, you have had a dream, my friend,” the man said. “You were in the tunnel.”

Cautiously, Chihaysu replied, “Yes.”

“Just after you came to the fork in the road?”

“Yes.”

“And you took the right fork, the road less traveled. Most people who come to the fork take the left fork. They are not daring enough to visit the unknown.”

“Yes, I took the right fork,” Chihaysu replied.

“So, the beam of light came and took you through.” The man paused.

“Yes, my friend, where did the beam take me to?”

“Oh, yes, people living in Caperston do not know about wormholes. A wormhole is . . . ”

“My friend, as you say, we know nothing of wormholes, even though we have a very learned scientist in Caperston. Where, my friend . . . where was it that I visited?”

“My dear Chihaysu, perhaps your scientist can tell you about wormholes some time. You wish to know your destination?”

“Yes, I do,” he replied.

“Well, God, your Caring Creator, has found you to be an upright man. You are the first such man, who has been given the opportunity to choose a destination for his future in a generation. The last such man was Jonton, a generation ago. You probably have heard of him. He chose the left fork and returned to Caperston. Just before him, quite a while ago, was . . . ”

“How do you know my name?” Chihaysu interrupted.

“Oh, yes, your Caring Creator always provides us, his messengers, with all the information we need to carry out his requests. He told me your name when he sent me to speak with you. So . . . where were we?”

“You were telling me of Jonton and before that I was asking where that the beam of light took me.”

“Ah yes, you saw the Bear Mountain sign but, I guess you do not know where Bear Mountain is.”

“No, I do not.”

“And do you know what a bear is? Oh yes, God told me there are no bears in Caperston. A bear is like a big fat, very furry beast with sharp claws, who likes fish. I’m surprised there are no bears in Caperston because there are lots of fish.”

“My good man, God has taught me the value of patience, but I really am not interested in learning about a beast that does not live in Caperston. So please, what world was it that I was looking at?”

The man took a few seconds to reply. Then the sparkle in his eyes intensified. Chihaysu stated that, every time he relives that moment, it sets off a chill in his heart.

“Well, my friend, you were looking at . . . Earth.”

Chihaysu, who was sitting with his legs crossed, began to rise, leaning on his right knee. The messenger sat on a nearby rock. Several seconds of utter silence followed and Chihaysu sat down again. He looked up at the sky for a few seconds then at the man, who he deemed was a messenger from God.

After what seemed like an eternity of silence, the man spoke. “God sent me to you after your experience in the tunnel to give you the message why you were given the privilege of seeing and visiting Earth, if you chose to open the door.”

Chihaysu, still uncertain how to reply, looked at the messenger but said nothing. After a minute of silence, he replied, “because of Mattpaul and his friendship with the young people on Earth?”

“Well, true but . . . “

Chihaysu interrupted, “May I ask you your name?”

“Of course, you may. I am surprised it took you so long. My name is Gabby, short for Gabriel.”

“All right, my friend Gabby. Is it because of Mattpaul? I still feel guilty for not acting sooner.”

“Mattpaul’s fate was part of God’s plan for Caperston. In the future people of Caperston will look back and remember Mattpaul as the most important person who ever resided in Caperston. More important than any king or queen from Romas.”

Gabby continued, “In part your visit to get a glimpse of Earth was for Mattpaul but mostly it was for the young man Alex from Earth. Do you remember Alex? He lost his friend who was killed while feeding the homeless. In his letter to Mattpaul on October 29th he stated, ‘I need a miracle. I need an inoculation of hope’. God took that as a prayer. You know you do not need to be on your knees to pray. Anytime you sincerely call out for help, God hears you. He also heard Alex’s hope expressed in the letter of July 27th in which he wrote, ‘Chihaysu is looking for helpers. Full time? I wish I could be with all of you. I think I might sign up’. Do you remember?”

A long pause followed. “So Gabby, I was sent to Earth to . . . ”

Gabby filled in the request, “to be able to assure Alex, when he comes to Caperston, that it is safe to open the door. Would you find a place for Alex to join you?”

“I certainly will. When will this happen?”

“You need to meet with the youth Michaeling, who has been preparing prayer meetings with the Caperston youth. Have her schedule a special meeting but the purpose of the meeting should not be discussed. After the youth assemble let Michaeling lead a normal meeting, as she has been doing. Bring a candle with you. Partway into the meeting ask Michaeling if you can intervene. Light a candle and ask the youth present to watch the smoke of the candle. Then pray out loud for the welfare of all youth from Earth and especially for the youth Alex.”

Gabby continued, “As you pray, some youth will see a vision in the smoke and others will not. End your prayer and ask who saw the vision. These who saw a vision should be invited to a second, more intimate prayer session. Michaeling should then conclude the meeting.”

“I understand,” Chihaysu replied.

Gabby further instructed, “Afterwards some time will pass, which is not determined yet. I will again visit you in a dream. I will give you the time to hold the next prayer session . . . only with those who saw the figure in the candle’s smoke. They are the youth, who are truly praying. At this prayer meeting you will all pray for two things . . . a safe journey through the wormhole for Alex and a wise decision when he comes to the door with the window. He will be given the opportunity to come to Caperston. Like you, when he arrives at the door, he will be given the opportunity to peer through the window, but it will be at Caperston. After viewing he will be given the chance to open the door to enter. If the youth and you are praying hard enough that you want him to visit Caperston, then he will sense your prayers and open the door. If you are not sincere in your prayers, he will probably turn away.”

“We will very much want Alex to visit Caperston. For how long can he stay?”

Gabby replied, “The length of his stay has not been determined yet. It will be a visit and will continue until such time that Alex has a special message to bring back to the people of Earth. God has a plan for Alex in Caperston as he did for Mattpaul.”

Gabby rose to his feet and left. Chihaysu’s mind was buzzing. In four days, he had learned of Romas, met Princess Cle-as, dreamed of a visit to Earth and met God’s messenger, Gabby. He took a deep breath, pondering all these things for some time, then rose to his feet. He picked up his pack and planned to return to his ailing mother, dumbfounded but spiritually refreshed. After sharing his story, Chihaysu immediately went to his mother’s home. He did not bring anyone with him, not even Jonas. We only know of this because he spoke with Jonas and Marcus the next day.

Chihaysu told them that his mother asked him not to pray for her. She is ready to join her husband in the House of the Dead. She asked Chihaysu to ask the authorities if this is possible. She told him that she believes in God but also believes that she should be with her husband.

Chihaysu shared that this is a time of trial for him. His faith is being tested as never before and his days in the desert were revealing. He said nothing to us of Cle-as and we, of course, said nothing to him. He asked us to pray for Caperston, for his mother and for himself. We will meet again in a week and I am worried about Chihaysu. He is not the same since Mattpaul’s death.

Mattpaul’s father called me to his office. Pontos told him he can use me for special projects, but he is withholding a decision to make me the “Youth Representative.” I am sensing that Pav-ed is becoming more accepting of Chihaysu’s teachings, but he still refuses to believe in the God Chihaysu has spoken about.

Huchfee

February 27th

Dear Huchfee,

We had a youth meeting last night and several of us are reading your letters. They requested that I write to you.

First of all, let me talk about what a church is. Yes, it is a meeting place and it could be called a holy place. Our churches are often decorated with symbols of our faith and, when entering the building we call a church, worshippers receive the feeling of peace.

But a church can also refer to a group of believers. So just like we believers on Earth are considered to be a church, those of you in Caperston are God’s Caperston church. You do not have to have a building to be a church.

We have been talking about forgiveness at our youth meetings and how the ability to forgive releases us from anger. We learned about a group of faithful people who reached out to a woman, whose husband murdered several of the children in their village. It was amazing to us how forgiving they were. It has helped us accept Kevin’s death a little more.

We all look forward to hearing more of the events in Caperston.

Laura

February 27th

Hi Huchfee,

My name is Brad and I love your story. I cannot wait to hear more of it. I trust your people will respond positively to what you have learned about your history and that the Valley People will no longer look upon the Mountain People as inferior.

I am wondering about one thing. Perhaps it is silly, but I want to ask you. I just got back from skiing. It is a sport on Earth where we go down snow covered hills on long sticks about four to five times the length of our feet. These sticks, which we call skis, are securely attached to our boots we wear on our feet. It takes some time to learn to balance, but now that I have learned, I have much fun going down mountains which are covered with snow.

I have never heard you speak of snow. Do you have it on Caperston? It is frozen water, which comes down when the weather is cold in place of rain. It is soft and very white, very pretty when it covers the ground.

Brad

February 28th

Hi Brad,

It is so good to hear from you. We do not have anything on Caperston like snow. Perhaps it is because the weather here does not get so cold that rain becomes frozen as you describe it. It sounds wonderful and your sport, skiing, sounds like great fun. It is good to hear how our worlds are similar and yet so different.

We are learning so many new things. First Chihaysu taught us about the Unseen Ruler, called God, then the origin of the Valley People and the Mountain People, and now you tell us about snow.

I wonder how many more mysteries we will discover.

Huchfee