The Testimony of Taliesin Jones (47 page)

The
preacher is praying for other things
:
the
Queen, the government, a lady who is sick
.
In
his mind Taliesin sees h
ands so
othing these
thin
gs
th
at
th
ey're
pr
aying
fo
r: soo
thing the qu
een,
s
troking th
e g
overnment, h
olding
h
is fa
mily
, touching
th
e
l
ady w
ho's
si
ck, pi
cking
th
e
f
amilies o
ut o
f
th
e
fl
ood
w
ater
in Am
erica,
and d
amping
down
a
fl
ame
in
th
e
d
esert,
bl
anketing
th
e
fir
e
ther
e
.

Th
e
pr
eacher
likes
to b
e
in c
ontrol.
H
e
w
aits
f
or a
n
a
lready
silent
co
ngregation t
o
be
e
ven mor
e s
ilent
.
I
s
h
e ac
ting, or
is
h
e
r
eally
w
aiting
f
or a
diff
erent
kind
of qui
et;
not the kind
o
f quiet th
at
i
s as
ked fo
r
in
re
gistration,
but th
e
s
ilence th
at
G
od
r
equires? Co
ntent th
at
h
e
h
as
p
eople
wh
ere
h
e
w
ants
th
em,
th
e
pr
eacher
b
egins
,
a
rchly. H
e
i
s
d
oing w
hat h
e's
d
oing in a
pr
actised, acto
rly
way
.
H
e
b
egins ca
lmly, thro
ws i
n
s
miles
a
nd
soo
thing
wo
rds
o
f
we
lcome
a
nd
t
he
s
hared
ac
hes
a
nd p
ains
of th
e wee
k;
spr
eads
hi
s
h
ands
on th
e
le
cturn as
if
sa
ving
th
em
f
or i
mminent
g
esticulation, th
en
hi
s
v
oice
dr
ops a
n o
ctave,
wh
ilst
h
e
k
eeps
th
e
deliv
ery
m
ethodical
a
nd
ca
lm
.
Th
e c
ongregation
a
re be
ginning to
w
arm
to his th
eme; see
th
em
n
od
their he
ads.
The pr
eacher
l
oves
m
etaphor a
nd
a
nalogy. And th
e
si
mple
o
nes
a
re
t
he b
est
.
Aft
er a
ll
,
s
ays Pr
eacher
Pr
eece,
Chri
st
s
aid
l
et
th
ere
b
e
m
etaphor a
nd
th
ere
w
as
m
etaphor; a
nd it ent
ered
i
nto th
e
h
earts
of
m
en a
nd m
ade
th
em see
t
wice
as
mu
ch.
L
ast
we
ek
w
e
saw
fai
th
as a
dr
op
o
f r
ain,
h
e
r
eminds
th
em
.
Th
e
dr
op
m
ight fa
ll
up
on a
fl
ower a
nd
g
ive it lif
e,
it
m
ight f
all int
o
th
e sea a
nd
a
ppear
lo
st
and u
seless.
T
oday
h
e'd
li
ke to s
how h
ow
w
e a
re n
ot
u
seless;
th
at
w
e
all hav
e a
p
art
t
o
pla
y
.
H
e's
h
olding
up prop
s: a
mi
xing
b
owl fro
m
It
aly;
fl
our
fr
om Ca
nada;
s
ultanas
fr
om
E
gypt; a
lmonds
fr
om
P
ortugal;
r
aisins f
rom Ar
gentina;
br
andy
f
rom
Fr
ance;
l
emons
from Sp
ain; s
ugar
f
rom th
e
W
est
Ind
ies; a
ll
go
ing
i
nto
m
aking so
mething
w
hole
a
nd
ye
t
se
parate
:
a ca
ke -
a
nd
eve
ryone h
as a
p
art
t
o
pl
ay.
It ju
st s
hows
u
s
th
at
in
Go
d's
eyes
th
ere a
re no b
oundaries
o
r
fronti
ers.
All
thin
gs co
me
f
rom
H
im.
E
ven
th
e
th
ings
th
at we
th
ink a
re
intrin
sic
all
y o
urs
co
me from Him
.
Th
e
in
gredients a
nd
th
e w
hole
ca
ke
a
re Hi
s
.
And
we a
re
a
ll in
gredients,
diff
erent i
n t
aste
and
t
exture
bu
t a
ll m
aking
up
o
ne thin
g:
The Kingdom of God
.

Wh
at we
mu
st
b
e awa
re
o
f
a
re those
i
ngredients
wh
ich
do n
ot
m
ake
up th
e
Kin
gdom. T
his i
s
no
e
asy task wh
en
thin
gs
look and t
aste so
goo
d,
says
P
reacher
Pr
eece
.

Ta
liesin th
inks a
bout
w
hat in
gredient
he is
.
A tiny
s
peck of
sa
lt p
erhaps o
r
a
dr
op o
f
va
nilla es
sence?
And Bill
y?
Bill
y wo
uld h
ave
t
o
b
e so
mething imp
ortant
like
s
elf-raising fl
our
or
eggs
.
Wh
en
h
e
think
s of o
thers it g
ets
diffi
cult
.
Luc wo
uld
b
e so
mething th
at
t
asted goo
d
a
t fir
st
and th
en
lo
st
it like
c
hewing
g
um. And
w
hat
o
f Jonathan, hi
s
m
other a
nd father,
a
ll th
e
p
eople
h
e
kn
ows, a
re
t
hey part of th
e c
ake? Or
a
re th
e
y
t
o
b
e pa
rt o
f so
me
g
reat
s
oup
o
r
s
tew,
s
omething l
ess s
weet?

A
c
reaky l
ady w
ith
a g
reen h
at
read
s
this
s
tory fr
om
th
e
Bibl
e as
i
f it's a
n
e
lectricity bill
, e
nunciating w
ords
with
a
p
edantic
pr
ecision.
It
's ca
lled
'
How Je
sus
R
aised
H
is
Friend F
rom
Th
e
D
ead'.
It
's a fan
tastic
s
tory
.
Unb
elievable
r
eally.
Wh
en
J
esus
h
ears
th
at
H
is frien
d Laz
arus
i
s
ill H
e says
that th
ere is a
r
eason
f
or
it.
B
ut
w
hen H
e a
rrives Hi
s
fri
end
i
s
d
ead.
It
see
ms th
at
i
t
'
s
t
oo
l
ate
f
or
ther
e
to b
e a
ny r
eason.
Wh
at is
H
e goi
ng to d
o
n
ow?
Would
y
ou beli
eve
it
,
H
e
br
ings
h
im
b
ack t
o lif
e -a
nd
a
fter four d
ays,
t
oo
.
L
azarus
w
as even
b
eginning
t
o sme
ll a b
it
,
lik
e
milk
o
n th
e
turn
.
When L
azarus a
ppears
many
p
eople
b
elieve
it
.
But
o
thers, lik
e
th
e
Ph
arisees, w
ho
a
re
f
rightened
a
nd en
vious, ge
t
toge
ther
a
nd d
ecide
t
o
pl
ot
th
e
d
eath of
J
esus.