Four Good Men But...

Anne Shorrock

Description

Four men who lived good lives - though never using their God-given gifts - find they are in a beautiful place. The people around them are radiating light and colour, but when the men look at themselves, they are grey and dull. The beautiful people go towards the light. The men look around, there is nobody left, only the four. Are they dreaming? Could they be dead? Are they going to hell? One by one, they are called to account for their lives. To their relief, they are given a second chance. They are allowed to go back to earth to help others. But they couldn't imagine the terrifying adventure they were entering or the fear that would almost paralyse them. Will they succeed in their God-given mission? And if not, where will they end up?

Sujets

• Thriller

Informations

• Publié par: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Date de parution: 30 avril 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781528960816
• Langue: English

Extrait

Four Good Men But…
Anne Shorrock
Austin Macauley Publishers
2018-08-31
Four Good Men But… About The Author About The Book Copyright Information Acknowledgement Prologue Chapter 1 (Derek) Chapter 2 (Harold) Chapter 3 (Paul) Chapter 4 (Mick) Chapter 5 (The Voice) Chapter 6 (The Great Outpouring) Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Chapter 39 Chapter 40 Chapter 41 Chapter 42 Chapter 43 Chapter 44 Chapter 45 Chapter 46 Chapter 47 Chapter 48 Chapter 49 Chapter 50 Chapter 51 Chapter 52 Chapter 53 Chapter 54 Chapter 55 Chapter 56 Chapter 57 Chapter 58 Chapter 59 Chapter 60 Chapter 61 Chapter 62 Chapter 63 Chapter 64 Chapter 65 Chapter 66 Chapter 67 Chapter 68 Chapter 69 Chapter 70 Chapter 71 Chapter 72 Chapter 73 Chapter 74 Chapter 75 Chapter 76 Chapter 77 Chapter 78 Chapter 79 Chapter 80 Chapter 81 Chapter 82 Chapter 83 Epilogue
About The Author
Anne Shorrock was born in Dublin, Ireland. She is married with a daughter and stepdaughter, and two grandchildren. She now lives with her husband in Cyprus. She is the author of the children’s book The Secret Adventures of Amelia and Rainbow.
About The Book
Four men who lived good lives – though never using their God-given gifts – find they are in a beautiful place. The people around them are radiating light and colour, but when the men look at themselves, they are grey and dull.
* The beautiful people go towards the light. The men look around, there is nobody left, only the four. Are they dreaming? Could they be dead? Are they going to hell?*
* One by one, they are called to account for their lives.*
* To their relief, they are given a second chance. They are allowed to go back to earth to help others. But they couldn’t imagine the terrifying adventure they were entering or the fear that would almost paralyse them.*
* Will they succeed in their God-given mission? And if not, where will they end up?*
‘Not to us O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name goes all the glory for Your unfailing Love and Faithfulness.’ Psalm 115:1
Copyright Information
Copyright © Anne Shorrock (2019)
The right of Anne Shorrock to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
ISBN 9781528914185 (Paperback)
ISBN 9781528914192 (Kindle e-book)
ISBN 9781528960816 (ePub e-book)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published (2019)
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd
25 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5LQ
Acknowledgement
Thank you to my wonderful daughter, Rachel, who is always an inspiration to me.
Thank you to my husband, Ian, who is and always has been the wind beneath my sails.
A very special thank you to my friend Colin Pearce for his continual support and encouragement and belief in me. Thanks, Colin.
Prologue
The light was overwhelming, the beauty indescribable, colours, more vivid than any sunset or rainbow he had ever seen. He looked around all he could see was exquisite beauty. Fields upon fields of wild flowers. Meadows filled with daisies and buttercups, and other flowers he had never seen or even imagined in all his life. The sky was an intense blue and through the fields ran a river, gently flowing over rocks and stones. It was an extraordinary sight to behold. And the fragrance, it filled his nostrils, making him practically lightheaded.
Everything he remembered, everything he enjoyed through his life paled in comparison to this amazing sight. “Oh, if this is a dream,” he said, “I don’t want to wake up.” Then he felt the peace, it was tangible, he’d never felt anything like it. Extraordinary beauty, all around him and inside he felt a bubble of laughter that he couldn’t control, it was the most wonderful feeling he had ever experienced.
He saw the people. They came over a hill. He saw the colours emanating from them. It was as if they had mini rainbows flowing through their bodies. A wonderful light seemed to be shining from every pore. The people were smiling and laughing. They chatted as they walked towards him. He turned to see where they were going so he could follow. As he turned, he saw a beautiful gate—it looked like it was made of pearls. He couldn’t see beyond the gate, only the intense light coming from behind it. He was so happy, maybe I’m in Heaven , he thought. Then he looked down to see if his own body showed the same colours and light. He was still in his pyjamas. There was nothing at all coming from his body. He felt devastated, what was going on?
He was grey, just dull grey. He felt a tap on his shoulder, he turned, expecting to be woken up, but instead there was a large black man standing beside him.
“Hi,” the man said, “my name is Mick, do you know where we are? Isn’t it breathtaking? I just want to sit and enjoy the beauty and never leave this place. But you and I seem to be the only ones without the ‘rainbow effect’.”
“My name is Derek,” he answered, “yes, it is beautiful, but why have we not got the colours and light coming through like everyone else. It makes me feel very dull and dreary,” he laughed.
“Well, thank goodness there is someone else that is normal,” said Mick. “I was beginning to think I was the only ‘grey’ one around.”
They both looked across and saw two more ‘grey’ men coming their way. They introduced themselves. One man was called Paul and the other was Harold.
“So what do you think is going on?” Paul asked. “The last thing I remember is working on my laptop at my desk—it was the middle of the day???”
“I remember going upstairs for a lie down.” Harold told them. “I was feeling a bit under the weather, but I can’t remember actually getting into bed??”
“Well, I remember getting into bed,” Derek replied. “Maybe we are all asleep and visiting each other in our dreams?”
“You are probably right,” said Mick, “I remember sitting at my table eating a meal. I bet I dozed off.”
“Mmmm,” Harold looked confused. “How come we are all in each other’s dreams? Have any of you ever experienced anything like this before?”
Paul looked shocked, “What if we are dead?” He practically shouted.
“No time to answer that,” said Harold, something is happening.
A light shone all around them. It consumed everything. The people, the fields, the flowers, everywhere they looked it was awash with light. But it wasn’t like any light they had seen before, it was extreme, it should have blinded them, but it didn’t. Inside the light there was a beauty and as they looked into this beauty, they were left speechless, breathless!!
One by one the people with the ‘rainbow effect’ floated towards the beautiful gates. The four men could see the looks on their faces as they rose. Joy, pure joy, it was the only word to describe it. Their whole bodies looked as if they were on fire but with a fire that doesn’t burn.
Then the light dimmed and they were left alone. It seemed as if all the lights of the universe had just gone out. The emptiness and the hollow feeling that each of them experienced was so harrowing that none of them spoke for what seemed like hours, though in fact it was just minutes. The beauty that had surrounded them earlier paled.
“Please let this, be a dream,” Mick whispered in desperation. “If we are dead, I think the others have just entered paradise. Where does that leave us??”
“No,” whispered Derek, though he didn’t feel very confident. “I’ve tried to live a good life. I didn’t purposely hurt anyone. I never stole from anyone and I looked after the people who worked for me. Maybe I could have done more, but I did my best. Surely, if there is a God, He won’t condemn me for just doing my best?”
They all agreed they had been good people, well, fairly good. They hadn’t deliberately hurt anyone. They all believed in God, and though they hadn’t attended church every Sunday, they were all churchgoers.
“What if it wasn’t enough,” Paul said. “Maybe we should have done more when we were alive and now we are paying the price.”
“Who said we’re dead!” shouted Harold. “I thought we all agreed that this could be a dream and any minute we will wake…please!!!”
Then the brightness came again. They were terrified now. Each one was reminded of what Paul had said… “What if how they had lived their lives wasn’t enough? What would happen to them now, if that was the case?”
If this is a dream , thought Paul, I’m going to change my ways when I wake up. I’ll take more time with my family. I’ll play with the kids and let someone else look after the business. Please let me be dreaming .
A Voice came through the brightness!!!!
The Voice was soft yet strong. It sounded like rushing water. The Voice seemed to cleanse as it spoke, it was the only way they could describe it afterwards. The four men fell to their knees, it wasn’t a conscious decision. They couldn’t stand when the Voice spoke, the only reaction was to fall on their knees in awe.
“I have called you together to ask you a few questions.”
One by one they were called out.
Chapter 1

(Derek)
Derek, a good man, he was a gentleman in both nature and reality. Derek lived on his father’s estate, in a twelve-bedroom house with acres and acres of land. He built cottages for his many workers who were scattered throughout the estate. There