Here is the second part of the short story about Jamie Button. Seemingly unsuccessful in finding a new girlfriend he finds himself in a conversation with Charlie Parker; a conversation he was not expecting and that seemed to be leading him down a very different route to the one he pictured for himself as he walked into the café! We take up his story as Charlie explains to a bemused young man how the girl he thought had spurned him was actually very concerned for him!
Jamie Button and the Lazarus Theory – Part 2
Charlie could obviously see I was affected deeply by all this because he paused for a good few moments before he carried on.
“I think you will find that Lauren has been praying for your salvation for some time. I’ve never met this girl but in my spirit I have a picture of her on her knees by her bed praying for you every night.”
He looked at me, I think trying to gauge my reaction to this information. I could still feel my heart pounding, some sort of almost electrical surge coursing through my whole body. This wasn’t raw emotion though. This seemed to be coming from another dimension of my being altogether.
“Wow!” I said. Suddenly I had become aware that my physical life was not the beginning or the end. Suddenly I had become aware of a spiritual dimension to my life I had never experienced before. And Charlie was telling me it was due to Lauren praying for me. And then I remembered the end of the only conversation I had had with her. She had told me about her studies of Richard Lazarus and his theory. And then she had finished by saying that there was another Lazarus, a friend of Jesus Christ, who was far more important – and that his story was a great deal more life changing than any modern psychologist. At the time I hadn’t taken that last bit in, I think I had been too excited at even having a conversation with this wonderful girl.
It was now that a life-changing conversation started.
I said: “Charlie, what is this salvation that you said Lauren has been praying about?”
“Ah!” he said. “This for you is the true meaning of life, the meaning of everything. And of course, for every other person as well. But for you at this moment, in this Coffee Shop, I need to explain about the Gospel, the Good News, of the Lord Jesus Christ. It’s what Lauren has been praying for – and it’s why I am sitting here drinking cold coffee with you this morning!”
Once more he got up, went over to the counter and ordered more coffee. I was still trembling when he returned holding a plastic duck with a number on it. “More coffee on its way and some warm croissants too! They’ll be here in a minute. But I must just text Becca to tell her I won’t be meeting her in town for lunch”.
And he grabbed his phone and quickly sent the message. Then he looked up and said: “Are you ready for this? It’s not the cinema with Lauren – but, I’m pretty certain there will be another chance to do that. And I venture to say, Jamie Button, that you will look back on this morning as one of the most important one’s in your life, if not the most important!”
There seemed to be an inevitability to these events. But now I was a willing participant in this unfolding drama that Charlie and I – and Lauren too, were a part of.
Charlie continued: “You asked what this idea of Salvation is all about. It’s all to do with the fact that we are made in God’s image. Yet because of the sin in the lives of every human being we have, every one of us, been cut off from our Creator. And we have been cut off from the everlasting life in His Kingdom that He planned for us and still wants for us. God’s righteous judgement over you and me spells inevitable death.
Well it would, except that the Bible tells us: “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
That’s one of the most famous and important verses in the Bible, John 3:16. It’s what Jesus Christ, God’s Son, did for us through His life, death and resurrection. And it’s by putting our faith, your faith, in Him that we are each of us saved. That’s the salvation Lauren was praying for you to believe and accept.”
My mind was in turmoil – all the things I had once held dear were being shaken to their roots. Until about a month ago, I thought I was happy with my life. But then Lauren arrived and upset my plans big time. And now this bloke Charlie has breezed into my life, really setting the cat amongst the pigeons. First I discovered my emotions and now I have discovered there is a whole dimension to my life I have never experienced before – a spiritual dimension. And it really is, like, an awakening of the real me. Oh boy!
I looked across at Charlie. “Charlie, why did Jesus shed His blood for me? What had I done wrong and what difference does it made whether I’m good or bad?” I paused, then: “So are there spiritual laws, just like there are natural ones?”
“Jamie – do you get on with your mum and dad? Do you know that they love you?” I found myself nodding, though I guess I wasn’t absolutely sure.
“The thing is that God, your heavenly Father, the God who created you in his image, loves you more deeply and with an acceptance far beyond that of your parents.”
“It’s as we read the Bible that we see and understand just how much God loves us. As we read it we cannot fail to see the enormous depth of that love. That verse I quoted just now has often been described as “The Gospel in a nutshell”, the Gospel being “God’s good news” to a sad, lost and dying world.”
He rummaged in his rucksack and produced a Bible. He opened it, found the page he was looking for and plonked it down on the table in front of me.
“There! Read it for yourself – because it’s for you Jamie Button to understand and to make your own! The Gospel of John, chapter 3, verse 16! Go on, read it out loud.”
I did as he said, my voice trembling slightly. Partly because reading the Bible out loud in a full Coffee Shop was slightly intimidating, but mainly because I knew this was more a bit significant.
Then Charlie started to explain. “There are five parts to that verse. They point to five crucial things we need to understand about our relationship with our Father God. Shall we look at them?”
I nodded and looked down at the Bible, finding the verse. It seemed to shine off the page at me.
Charlie got stuck in: “It starts by saying “For God…”. Jamie, there is a God who loves us. He is our Creator, the creator of everything, including quarks! He’s not some figment of the imagination or some man-made idol. He is the Person with a capital P who created us in His image. The Bible tells us that He loves us and wants to bless us. And He even has a plan for your life Jamie, that may include Theoretical Physics and may even include Lauren!
Then it says “…so loved the world.…” God loves everyone, even you and me! The problem is that I am not perfect, you are not perfect, nobody is perfect. And all the time we find ourselves doing and saying and thinking things that don’t please Him. Sometimes we don’t even acknowledge his existence or His position. Instead we choose to go our own way. The Bible calls all these things “sin”. It means that our relationship with Him is broken. It means we may not even be aware of His existence. It means we are separated from Him.” I nodded. I had to admit that deep down I had sort of known He existed, but I had chosen to ignore Him and do things my way.
Charlie continued. “The next phrase is “…that He gave His one and only Son.…” The greatest gift He could give us was His Son, Jesus. Jesus alone was perfect, despite being tempted in every way. So when He chose to die on the Cross, chose to be crucified, he was able to be the perfect, eternal sacrifice for our sins, yours and mine, everybody’s. The next bit is incredible but true. He really died on that Cross. And afterwards he was properly buried, but on the third day after His death He rose from the dead. And so God accepted the shed blood of His Son as a once and for all, complete sacrifice. For you, for me, for everyone. God chooses to forgive all our sins because of what Jesus did on the Cross.
And then the verse goes on: “…that whoever believes in Him shall not perish…”. Jamie, believing involves making a heart commitment. You decide to trust Jesus alone – no other belief system or god. And you ask Him to forgive your sins as you repent – saying and being sorry for each one of them, as they come to mind. You do that because you believe He knows what is best for you. He is your Lord, the most high God and you trust Him to be your Guide, to keep you safe.
The verse ends with these words: “…but have eternal life.” Now we come to the benefits! To everyone who believes in Jesus, who has accepted Him into their hearts, God gives eternal life. It’s a new life. Our relationship with Him is restored and we now have an ongoing, moment by moment intimate relationship with Him.”
Oh no! – those emotions again! As Charlie finished speaking I could feel the tears welling up inside me. I don’t do emotions. I pride myself on my self-control and hide my feelings where no one can see or reach them. I’d even managed to hide those surprising emotions raised by Lauren. But these emotions were open, this was for real. At last I was being myself. Not pretending to be some other, different person.
Charlie looked at me. “Jamie, does this make sense? Do you want to have this eternal life with God, this life full of meaning and joy?”
I couldn’t speak. It was not just those silly emotions. I just knew deep within me that I had to say yes. But all I managed was a tearful nod.
Charlie: “There are a couple of helpful verses in Paul’s letter to the Christians living in Rome. These verses say: “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.”
“Making Jesus your Lord means you are willing to let God guide you and set the direction for your life. He may call you to give up your own plans to be a Nobel prize winning Physicist – or He may not! So those verses say that if you believe, then it is important to use words to tell God that you believe He is Lord. You see it is important to be willing to tell others about your re-birth – it confirms you have made that step and you’ve got a new relationship with Jesus Christ.”
I just knew that was what I wanted, what I needed to do. Yes, I was prepared to throw aside any thoughts of a life of Theoretical Physics, even a life with Lauren, just to follow Jesus Christ. I nodded vigorously. Then Charlie explained the words of a prayer, a prayer that gave permission for God to enter my life and be my Guide. Charlie fished in his wallet and gave me a little card with these words on:
“Dear God, I believe You are the all powerful God. I accept that You love me even though I am imperfect, a sinner. I believe that You sent Jesus to earth to die for my sins – and that He was raised from the dead. Heavenly Father, I want to invite You into my life and I want to follow You. Please forgive my sins. And now I thank you for this gift. Please help me to follow You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”
Through watery eyes I read those words out aloud, in the middle of the Coffee Shop. It didn’t matter if other people heard or saw. My new life was so much more important. That was all I knew. And when I had finished I burst into tears. These were tears of joy mixed with such a sense of freedom. Somehow there had been a spiritual dynamic going on that morning that had taken me to a new place, a place of joy but also peace. And excitement.
I stood up and walked round the table. Charlie also stood up. We hugged one another for what seemed ages. Then he invited me to supper that night. “Come and sample Becca’s cooking,” he said. “and we can talk further about your future, the things God has planned for you. I’ll must check with Becca and then I’ll message you with times etc..”
I gave him my mobile number. We shook hands, hugged again and then left the Coffee Shop. We left behind a table littered with dirty coffee cups and plates with nothing on them but crumbs. And I left behind an old life and set off on the first steps of a brand new one. What a morning! Charlie turned left down the High Street towards the florists. I turned right and up the road, almost skipping towards home. My phone went.
It was Lauren!
*******
There will be more stories about Jamie and Charlie – and Lauren!
All references are from the NKJV unless specified otherwise.
John Partis
bearing-kingdom-fruit.com
Text copyright © John Partis 2026
John Partis asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
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