Raoul was the eleventh of twelve children, born in the rural village of Hockenburg, Mamisota. His parents had emigrated from Chekoslovakia. Raoul’s father was a hardworking farmer who had experienced the Great Depression and his mother a very industrious woman who cared for her children and helped on the farm. Raoul’s father was a sickly one but he had been blessed with good neighbors. When extra help was needed on the farm the neighbors would help with the sowing of the seed as well as the reaping of the harvest. “Some day I am going to help people”, Raoul would say when he saw the neighbors working on his dad’s farm. Raoul had six brothers and five sisters. He knew his family was poor because his parents said so but he did not understand why. There was always enough food to eat. All the kids, even to the youngest, had chores and there was plenty of yard to play outside. “Honey, I wish we could send the kids to school”, his mother would always say, “I wish we had the money.” Raoul was only six years old but thought: Money must be important. If you have it you can go to school. What was school anyway? And why did you have to go there? He liked things just fine at home.
Soon it would be harvest time. That was always fun because the neighbors kids came to play while their parents helped on his dad’s farm. There was usually a big dinner afterwards and Raoul looked forward to the harvest each year. Raoul was caught up in his thoughts when suddenly he heard a loud cry with repeated sobbing. His mother rushed to the room. “Dad is dead”, she cried. “He just collapsed on the farm. Call Mr Stone next door.” Tom, the older brother, rushed next door while his mother ran and picked up Raoul. “It will be okay”, she said as she sobbed, “God will take care of us.” “Who was this God?” Raoul thought. Soon Mr Stone and the other neighbors arrived. Raoul’s dad was very well liked. The neighbors comforted Raoul’s mother and promised his mother they would take care of the harvest. Raoul missed his father. Why did he have to die? The funeral service was a blur in Raoul’s mind but one image stuck in his memory. It was his rich aunt and uncle. Mr and Mrs Cottenheart were very well dressed in their flamboyant suits. They took an immediate liking to Raoul. Shortly after the funeral Raoul’s mother came to him. ‘Raoul”, she said, “you will be staying with Aunt Mary and Uncle Joe for a while. They are very nice and want to make sure you go to school. I will stay here and take care of Dad’s farm. Your brothers and sisters will help me. But you, Raoul, must go to school. I love you and will always be there for you.” Raoul cried and held on to his mother. “No, I do not want to go to school”, he cried. But he didn’t have much choice. Mr and Mrs Cottenheart showed up in their flamboyant clothes and Aunt Mary picked up Raoul and kissed him on his cheek. “It’s going to be alright”, she told him. Raoul’s older brothers and sisters were on the farm working. His littlest sister was asleep. Raoul did not get to say goodbye to his siblings. His mother came and hugged him, thanked Aunt Mary and her husband for all their help and Raoul was carried outside into their long Lincoln Town Car. With that Raoul was transported into the world of affluence.
Aunt Mary and Uncle Joe lived in a big house near the city with a large swimming pool. Raoul had never had his own bedroom let alone his own bathroom. He liked his school but he missed his family. “When will I go home?” he asked. “As soon as you finish school” Aunt Mary replied. Just make sure you get good grades in school. “I get it”, Raoul thought. “I am going to be a good student, make good grades in school, make a lot of money and be able to take care of my mother and all my siblings.” And he did just that. Raoul excelled in school, encouraged by Aunt Mary and Uncle Joe. Aunt Mary and Uncle Joe had no children of their own and made sure Raoul had everything that he needed. They were also very religious and made sure they attended Faith and Love Church regularly. Raoul loved Sunday school and studied and memorized the Ten Commandments. He made new friends and began to plan for college. His family was always on his mind and he longed to be with his family again. He would make a lot of money, he thought, and build a nice home for his family. And then he thought of all the neighbors and their kids. What would he do for them? He would build a school for them so all the kids in the neighborhood could go to school. And then they could all make money. And send their kids to school. That, Raoul thought, was the answer to life’s problems: – Make more money.
And so it was that Raoul completed high school and college. He had majored in Business Administration and had carefully saved his allowance. Upon graduating from the University of New Beginnings Raoul was ready for the world. Or so he thought. Uncle Joe had set up a fund for Raoul with ten thousand dollars as his college graduation gift. That was a lot of money. He was going to have a big graduation party when he came back from the farm. For now he was going to spend the weekend with his family. He couldn’t wait to see his mother again. Aunt Mary had said his mother was planning to sell her farm. Raoul would build her a nice home. But first he was going to hear the great Preacher who was visiting their church that evening. Raoul had heard that he was a very good man. He taught at various churches and prayed and people who were sick or oppressed by evil were healed. He always spoke up for the little guy. Raoul was sure to learn a lot from him. He got into his new Corvette and headed for church. The Corvette was a graduation gift from Aunt Mary. She was so proud of Raoul. The sermon was wonderful. It was about being kind to you neighbor. Raoul had experienced that personally. Growing up in rural Mamisota his family was blessed by kind neighbors. After the sermon there would be time for questions. That was the main reason Raoul was there. He had a very important question. He had seen his father pray a lot and wanted to make sure he saw his father again. Soon it was question time. Raoul stood up. “Good Teacher”, he asked, “what must I do that I may have eternal life? The preacher looked at him and smiled. “God is the one who is good”, he replied. To have life you must keep the Ten commandments. Raoul was a little disappointed. That seemed too easy an answer. “I have kept the Ten Commandments since I was young. What else do I need to do? The Preacher smiled again but this time his gaze met Rauol’s. “If you want to be perfect”, the Preacher said, “go and sell everything you have and give to the poor and come and follow me.” Raoul thought: Oh, no! Not his car. Not his ten thousand dollar fund. Not his savings. No, that is just too hard. Who will take care of my family? How will I live? His facial expression changed. Forlorn and sad, he walked out of the room. This time the Preacher did not smile. He looked down, and looked back up at the audience. “This is a hard saying”, the preacher continued, “it will be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Jesus Christ came to give himself to man on the cross of Calvary. Jesus denied Himself of the pleasures of heaven to come to earth to die for our sins and is now risen and sits at God’s right hand. To be saved you have to believe and receive this Jesus Christ into your heart. You cannot put any gods before Jesus, not even the god of money. I hope this young man will reflect on what I said and reconsider his decision.” “No more questions” the Pastor at Faith and Love Church announced. You are all dismissed. Thank you for coming.”
Choices – with your eternal destiny at stake! by Sheila Hayford
Written by Sheila Hayford