The Grace Card Page #6

You need anything else?

Father, you know we need a

miracle right now for Blake.

We're coming to you asking

that you help them find a kidney

that will work

with Blake's body.

You touched him.

- Morning, baby.

- Coffee first, then talk.

They gonna lose that boy?

Don't know.

Did I tell you

they lost their first child too?

This is beautiful.

- What is this?

- Something Grandpa George gave me.

It was supposed to be

a teaching moment,

but I'm not quite sure I got it.

"I promise to pray for you

every day,

ask your forgiveness,

grant you the same

and be your friend always."

Yeah, that's pretty

advanced theology.

Must be, because a child wrote it.

You always know

just the right things to say.

Well, I'm sick

about the man's family.

And it's all I could do

to pray for him.

This guy makes me feel things

I haven't felt in a long, long time.

Like?

Anger.

Hate.

- What's wrong with me, Debra?

- You're a human being.

I'm a pastor.

I was called to minister

to people, or so I thought.

- What's that supposed to mean?

- It's my part-time job.

I can't focus on it or grow it

or really even commit to it

because I have to ride around

in a cop car for 10 hours a day

with some guy who hates me

because I'm black.

He hates the whole world.

That's his problem.

What's that got to do with you?

He's showing me where my heart is

and where it isn't.

It's not with people.

I thought it was

until I met one I couldn't love.

This is just words to me now.

It's not real anymore.

Chasing the bad guys,

wearing the badge, that's real.

And I'm growing there,

but my church isn't growing.

It's growing stale.

And soon enough, it'll just die,

because of me.

That's what Mac is doing

in my life, Debra.

Showing me

where my heart really is.

It's carrying a gun,

not carrying a Bible.

You really believe that?

You are a good man, Sam Wright,

and I'm so glad God gave you to me,

but I think you've got it

backwards, baby.

God didn't bring him into your life.

He brought you into his.

You just gotta figure out why.

You'd think with an organ-donor box

on every driver's license in America,

you'd find one kidney

that would match his.

You gonna survive this?

Do you really care?

I'm here, aren't I?

Because you wanna be

or because you have to be?

I haven't decided yet.

Good answer.

- I got...

- You're not gonna preach, are you?

You know how I get

when you preach.

No.

But it's interesting

you're here.

I just came to sit with you.

I guess the answer is no.

By sunup tomorrow, I won't be

a father anymore or a husband.

Sara won't even come home

after we bury him.

She'll just keep on going.

Sam, I...

I didn't mean what I said to you

in the car.

I know you didn't.

I say a lot of things I don't mean.

I hurt my wife every single day

with something I say.

I hurt Blake, so he ran out on us.

I even made my 5-year-old

keep riding that stupid bike.

He didn't want to. I made him.

If I just...

If I just hadn't...

Just answer me this, Sam.

This good Lord

you prattle on about...

Why would he let two little boys die

and let some miserable wretch

who doesn't wanna live anyway

go on?

There's no answer

to that question.

There's just not.

Then what is there to

believe in, man? What...?

What's the use of any of it?

Every time I think

I got it all figured out,

I get a curveball thrown at me.

I only know

we're in this together, Mac.

And somebody put us here.

And it wasn't

to make us suffer, either.

We brought that one

on ourselves.

You didn't cause

either one of them.

They were both

accidents, Mac.

- I did.

- No.

God doesn't want you

to carry that burden, Mac.

He wants you to be rid

of that pain.

I don't deserve to be out of pain.

I'm so sorry.

I'm so sorry. God help me.

I'm so sorry.

Then you are forgiven.

Do you hear me, Mac?

You are forgiven

because you asked for it.

I don't want him...

I don't want him to die, Sam.

I don't want my little boy to die.

I'll give anything.

Please pray, will you? Please pray.

I don't want my boy to die.

Oh, God.

You gotta pray with me.

Oh, my Lord,

my dear, sweet Lord,

I'd like to swear

to submit to you, God.

We pray, Lord, that you lift up...

Hey, Dad.

Could everyone leave us

a moment, please?

I've been wanting to talk.

Every time I come,

you're asleep or in some

Star Wars machine or...

With Mom?

Yeah.

Take good care of her, okay?

- She's not as strong as you are.

- Hey.

Hey, none of that. Look, we're...

We're gonna beat this thing, okay?

They think they found

a match in Canada...

Dad.

I'm sorry, Dad.

I'm the one

who needs to say he's sorry.

I should've done it

a long, long time ago.

I am so sorry.

Please tell me you forgive me.

You know I do.

Do you realize

how much I love you?

I love you, Blake.

I just wish that there was

something I could do.

He's just gone downhill so fast.

And I cannot find him

a kidney.

No family matches, no friends.

- What you got there, Sam?

- Blood work. High cholesterol.

Let me look at that.

It'll give me something else

to think about.

Sam?

I know my LDL's too high.

- I gotta cut back on my...

- Your blood type.

- You're A positive.

- What's that got to do with my LDL?

So is Blake McDonald.

So you mean that I...?

I mean you may have just

gotten your wish.

Come on, Blake, hang in there,

buddy. You just gotta hang in there.

I thought type A positive meant

I was an overachiever.

Who would've actually thought

that meant something?

- I would, that's who.

- I'll be right back.

You go home and make me one

of those big old cheesy lasagnas.

And don't forget

my garlic bread, either.

And, baby, I know why now.

I love you.

I'm sorry,

this is as far as you can go.

Mommy, we had a question.

What's that, honey?

Um, how do they know a black

kidney will work in a white boy?

Well, because on the inside,

we're pretty much all the same.

You'll be fine. Just a little stick.

At long last,

we have our senior pastor back.

Now, before we bring him back,

get out your grace cards.

Let's see the cards.

Let's welcome back our brother,

our teacher,

our friend and healer,

Sergeant Pastor Sam Wright.

- Hallelujah!

- Okay, okay, okay.

- All right, let's read that card.

- All right.

I hereby promise to, one:

Pray for you every day.

Two:

Ask your forgiveness.

Three:

Grant you the same.

- And be your friend when?

- Always.

Now, the next time

somebody talks to you

about playing the race card,

you whip that bad boy out.

Sign your name at the bottom

and tell them,

"No, my brother, my sister,

I'm playing me the grace card."

Now, six weeks ago, right here,

I told you all

that when the student was ready,

the teacher would appear.

- Yes, you did.

- Yes.

I just didn't think

that I was the student.

But I was.

And the teacher, he appeared.

Oh, man, did he appear.

And Brother Mac,

you weren't just my teacher.

You were the professor.

Yeah.

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