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Then there are numbers you can call and websites too, all of which will help you give your life to Jesus

Jesus Christ! I thought

It was a wild story, and I was mostly confused, so I walked over to Lauren and said, "I’et it"

This awful, anxious look blooo to hell, do you?"

I was going to say I don’t believe in hell, but I was deterie-style, so I didn’t want to say anything that would end the conversation I had seen enough Bogie films to know that you have to ride out the insanity when it comes to beautiful woet more and more attractive every tiest conversation I’d had with a girl e, so I didn’t want to blow it

I asked, "Why didn’t Johnny go to hell if he had sex and drank, just like the others?"

"He asked Jesus into his heart"

"What do you mean?"

"No matter what you’ve done, if you ask Jesus into your heart, you get to go to heaven The blood of Jesus Christ washes our hearts clean as snow"

"So you just have to say ic words?"

"What?"

"If you say, ‘Jesus coo to heaven then That’s it?"

"You have to mean it"

"How can you tell if you mean it?"

"You know in your heart and God knows What’s in your heart?" Lauren pointed at my chest

"I don’t know," I said, because my heart was full of desire I wanted to kiss Lauren like the girl kissed Johnny in the car I wanted to "park" with Lauren in the worst way That’s whatme

"Do you want to come to my church this Sunday?" Lauren asked

"Will you be there?"

"Of course! My father’s the pastor You can sit with o to any church, but I knew going would help my cause, so I said, "Okay then"

That Sunday I went to Lauren’s church, which I had walked by ait--or what it stood for--a thought It was awith an ilass s, red cushions on wooden pew, and all the rest45

Thesuits and I had come in jeans and a sweater, whichto oers

I found Lauren sitting in the front roith her ave h hopes for the day46

They looked hter, and I wondered if believing in Jesus kept you younger looking But then I thought, if that were really true, Linda would be the biggest Jesus freak going, because she’d drown a baby in a bathtub if it would er

The best part about the church were the huge organ pipes at the back, up in the balcony that were so loud you could alanist played It an s ist froious life was like in the past

There were announceroupsat this or that time, and church dinners, and which people needed help, and as in the hospital--which was nice, because it really made you feel like everyone took care of each other here, like they all were part of a gigantic family

I could really see the appeal, for sure

Next, everyone sang a few hymns--which was also kind of nice, because where else will you experience a few hundred people singing together?--and then Lauren’s father gave a talk about huht be able to best serve God, which I didn’t really understand

If god existed and he created the whole universe, like these people believed, ould he need our help, let alone our praise?

Why would he need us to serve hiod really both all powerful and emotionally needy?

It didn’t reallyto have a hard ti this idea toanthropologist--report on ancient religions

There wasafter that, and then we all waited in line to shake Lauren’s dad’s hand, because he was the head of this church

So od hiot to the front, Pastor Rose patted my back and said, "Are you the fish etting evenwhy the hell he earing a graduation gown