Thy Will Be Done

At Whit's End, John Whittaker explains to Connie Kendall and Lucy Cunningham-Schultz that although God has the power to do whatever He wants, He allows people to be part of His plan - agents of His will in the world. Connie immediately applies the idea to Eugene Meltsner: if it is God's will that Eugene become a Christian, then she can be an agent to help it happen. Lucy has something more specific on her mind. Allen Ginsmore, the art teacher who has just become sponsor of the Odyssey Voice, the school's alternative newspaper, has invited her to join the paper as a roving editor. She has always written for the Odyssey Owl, where she feels stuck with lightweight assignments, and Mr. Ginsmore has promised her the freedom to write whatever she wants. But the Voice tends to favor things Lucy is against, and she wonders what God wants her to do. Whit suggests she write an article or two as a test, to see whether she and the paper are on the same track.

Lucy agrees, and Mr. Ginsmore - shouting over the chainsaw he is using to turn a table into art - hands her the first assignment: an expose on Citizens for Decency, a group trying to remove certain books from the school library. Lucy interviews the group's leader, Mrs. Kelly, expecting to find censors trampling on freedom of speech. Instead, Mrs. Kelly shows her the books themselves, and Lucy is shocked at what the library is offering to elementary and middle school children. Mrs. Kelly insists the group is not silencing publishers; it simply wants the schools to show responsibility and common sense about what fills children's minds. Lucy writes an article presenting both sides fairly - and Mr. Ginsmore refuses to print it. He wanted a piece condemning censorship, and when Lucy asks what happened to her own freedom of speech, he tells her it only extends as far as the paper's editorial guidelines. She is out.

Meanwhile, Connie appoints herself a secret agent of God's will and sets a series of traps for Eugene. She plays a tape of Pastor Ben Burford's sermon series on salvation while Eugene repairs a freezer, recites salvation verses from Romans while he politely listens, and rigs Whit's BEAVRS computer program to launch into an analysis of salvation while he stands by. Eugene sees through every scheme, and when Connie invites him to a lunch with friends who are clearly meant to convert him, he finally erupts. He is not being snippy, he tells her - he is angry, and he does not appreciate every encounter being a setup to pressure him into a decision he is not prepared to make. Whit gently reminds Connie of her own story: he never preached at her or cornered her, yet Christ was all over Whit's End, and in her own time she saw the truth and accepted Jesus. Everyone comes to God in their own way, and the love of Jesus shown in her life will make a deeper impression on Eugene than any clever trick. Connie understands - actions speak louder than words - and Whit invites her lunch guests up to his office to pray for Eugene instead.

Lucy, surprisingly cheerful about being fired, arrives with a new idea. If God cannot use her at the Voice, He can use her another way: she will start her own newspaper dedicated to the truth, and a truth group to expose distortions wherever they are found. She asks Whit to sponsor it so they can be agents of God's will together, and Whit happily agrees - that, he says, is the best way to do it.