Lilly And The Angel: Volume 1: The Story of Snuggle Bug

By Joseph L. Marshall

Angels with attitudes and sucky six-year-olds-the world needs more of them!Meet Lilly Faithe Christians, a defiant, foul-tempered six-year-old girl with a personality well beyond her years. Meet Corinthian Angel Creation Of God-an immature, blemished, illegitimate angel with highly exaggerated hopes of becoming part of the elite Guardian Angel infantry. These two beings are messed up and in need of a serious intervention!Their outrageous adventure begins when an untimely tantrum from Lilly proves to be the last straw for her mother, Faithe Christians, who decides to place Lilly on punishment for an entire week. Forced to remain in her room, Lilly must learn to correct her bad behavior in order to be freed from punishment.Just above her in the second heaven, the frustrated and unfulfilled Corinthian Angel Creation Of God, a.k.a. Cori, has been demoted and stripped of his angelic wings because of an ancient assignment gone awry several centuries ago. Corinthian, now forced to flounce around the heavens with a shamefully puny pair of wings, is sentenced to living throughout eternity with the stigma of his sullied track record.But fear not! God always has a plan to make right what has gone wrong. And God's eternal plan for Lilly and Corinthian means colliding their worlds together for a chance at redeeming both their unsavory behaviors.Together, Lilly and Corinthian must let go of their hang-ups and prejudices in order to work as a team, for the sake of waging war against several evil spirits lurking inside of Lilly-as each new foe proves more challenging than the last. These beasts are serious! Corinthian and Lilly must get past their differences and trust in themselves, each other, and the Most High if they're ever to have a chance at the liberation, the validation, and peace they both so desperately yet so secretly desire.A rude angel with a serious distaste for humans, an unmannerly six-year-old girl with an attitude larger than the city in which she lives-this could either be a recipe for disaster or the very ingredients for a miracle!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9781098045944

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Lilly And The Angel

Volume 1: The Story of Snuggle Bug

Joseph L. Marshall

Copyright © 2020 by Joseph L. Marshall

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

The Punishment

A Pep Talk

On with the Old in with the New

Familiar Territory

Lilly and Corinthian Meet

A Selfish Thing

Eggs Lonely Side Up

A Stubborn Thing

The Story of Snuggle Bug

Torn Emotions

Tread Lightly

A Foul Battle

We are each of us Angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.

—Luciano de Crescenzo

Acknowledgments

Never forgotten

To My Dad, Samuel Marshall. Though not here physically, you will always be in my heart. Thank you for your gift of art, imagination and the bounty of lessons that came from your presence, your words, and you being my dad and I, your son. The completion of this novel is for you. Enjoy these pages as you rest. I’m sure this will make you proud. So have something really cool to say about it when we meet again!

I really miss you man.

Forever grateful

To My Mom, Linda Sharon Bennett Marshall. I never imagined your awesome gift of writing could be within me. Thanks for your timely encouragement, the endless sacrifices, and for feeling my pain to finish (as only a mother can). Mostly, thank you for teaching me as a child that prayer and applying scripture truly has power.

Always present

And to you my wife, Aimee Manalang Parel Marshall. Your initials of AM PM are spot on! From late nights to early mornings and everything in between, you have been with me on this journey. From first word and illustration to the very last, no one knows the good, the bad, and the stress-filled ugly of this nine-year journey to the depths that you do. Aren’t you glad you married me?

Thank you for enduring me, supporting me, and adding valuable insight and concepts that became integral to the DNA of this book. The world needs your words! Soon.

Preface

This book is dedicated to all of God’s dreamers who are stuck at a place in life where nothing seems to make sense. To the gifted visionaries who battle daily to be true to their nature and wholly dedicated to the perfection of their craft while struggling to stay above water. To the ones trapped in a world that labels complex ideas and innovations as wishful thinking. To those creative minds constantly provoked by outside influences to pursue normalcy and the status quo, as well as to the restless, unsatisfied servant who feels a king inside longing to break free. This book is for you.

This is a dedication to all untapped potential of Christian artistry of this present era, as well as to the generations of gifted minds still to come. One man’s mind can touch a generation centuries later; and though the body may fade from the earth, we know that words do not share this same fate. Instead, they possess the power to bring life, stir emotions, and provoke thoughtful questions and ideas well beyond the grave. May this book be a source of inspiration for the genius whose mind, behavior, and outlook seems abnormal to the masses because he/she cannot be neatly put into a specific category. This book is dedicated to you. To us!

So now I say to you, my friend, hold on, stay faithful, and do everything—whether it be great or seemingly insignificant—as unto the Lord and not for men. Perfect your craft, even when the road gets lonely and cold and the chill of the wait begins to numb the senses. Keep the faith, even when the demands of your life get so hectic and chaotic that you lose the very passion which has kept you inspired to even fight for your dream. Remember, we are endorsed by a God, who is the greatest author and creative mind of all time. So now, know this: if the breath in your body still pumps life through your veins, then your story isn’t finished. He has a plan. He will restore your hope, destroy your fatigue, and He will make a way for you!

Stay the course and fight your night.

Plant feet that hold fortified like cedar roots might.

Have hope that stretches to the stars

and faith that serves as healing from the scars.

Fleshly eyes cannot visualize what the heart sees so clearly.

Doubt tries to cast distance from The Energy that stands so diligently near me.

I hear Thee calling for me, like a child lost and all alone.

Wrapping me with Your embrace of love, You call me home.

With angelic wings, I mount to embrace my destiny. My lips now tell of a new song.

Alas, this is where I belong.

Welcome to Apple Valley California, not your typical place for the miracle of the millennium. Nevertheless, there’s a story in every place; and whether large or small, one can find the fine hand of God moving all around, stirring the atmosphere like a chef to a gourmet pot of stew. Miracles, however, are often found at the bottom of the pot, where the best of the batch lies in wait for the soul hungry enough to eat until the pot reveals its choicest morsels. You may be wondering who I am right now. Well, it’s a bit complicated to explain, and there’s no need to confuse you so early on our journey, or turn this into a conversation about me. So how about I reveal who I am at the end of this adventure. For now, simply—and ever so kindly—regard me as, the Narrator. Now you’ll know it’s me when you see, a singular, bold—much larger, more unique, and ever so distinct, letter starting the sentence off. I’ll be all italicized, and ‘respectfully ostracized’, by a fine borderline, to signal my start and end. Comprehend? So, do we have a deal? Good! Now let’s try this out…

Ahem …so now fasten your seat belt as I take you on a trip into the quaint yellow home in the middle of the map, right on the edge of Esaws Road and perfectly poised between the cradling corners of Pioneer Avenue. This will be the place of miracle and change for one unsuspecting six-year-old girl by the name of Lillian Faithe Christians. Little does she know that after this week, life as she once knew it will never be the same.

Chapter 1

The

Punishment

Sunday

It was their breathy sighs of relief that mirrored and mimicked the warm exhales of the sleepy sun above as it pulsated a hushed orange glow of evening’s light in and out the white dove-embroidered door of the Christians’ cozy two-bedroom home. The end of a long day of weekend errands and church had finally set upon the Christians family’s horizon of need-to and to-dos as both mother and daughter stepped through their doorway’s threshold and into the house at long last.

Lilly, make sure to change out of those church clothes and hang them up, said Faithe Christians, trying her best to contain a bubbling sense of giddiness growing within her. And I—Faithe hummed her words playfully as a wave of frantic excitement took over—I’m going to have myself a nice little snack and kick back before another insane workweek begins.

Faithe, the self-taught culinary artist, walked away from her job several months back to open a food-catering business for the disabled and elderly: Manna by Faithe, she called it. The name first began as a playful term tossed around among her employees that she eventually adopted as her own. And what was once a meaningless name soon blossomed into a full-time sapling-sized business, to which Faithe now dedicated the majority of her time.

The Manna by Faithe catering service concept began well before any thoughts of leaving her very dependable and most generous raise-issuing job as lead supervisor was ever a consideration. But her coworkers at Goggle World (as the commercial put it; The megastore for all sorts of exotic eyewear, including: prescription, sports, leisure—and every other kind of spectacular spectacles!) loved the name and pushed Faithe to pursue the idea of creating her own catering service. Faithe had a reputation as both an excellent cook and supervisor, and being that her team operated more like a family than coworkers, it was easy for her to trust their support of the idea to be sincere. She knew her employees weren’t using brownnosing tactics just to get into her good graces, nor were they conspiring to get rid of her as lead manager.

The truth of the matter, quite simply, was that everyone loved Faithe. They appreciated her calming demeanor, her effortless charisma, and lively personality. She had this uncanny knack of working with difficult people and making success stories out of folk other bosses would have fired in short order. Under Faithe’s guiding hand, her whole team became adept at this attribute as well. Faithe was genuine, creatively witty, and gentle when it came to reprimanding her team. Some would even go so far as to say a pushover, but no one ever dared test those waters to prove the merit of that. During staff holiday parties, anniversaries, birthdays, and other employee celebrations, it was Faithe whom everyone called on for recipes and food-preparation tips, which she generously provided. She was, in every way, a one-of-a-kind manager; and as her employees put it, Faithe was the best boss of any store, any company, of anywhere—any questions?

Faithe barged through the living room door and proceeded to rip open a couple pieces of unclaimed candy left on the front room counter. Guiltlessly stuffing her jaws full of mouthwatering sugary bliss, Faithe sighed aloud. "Aah, nothing like a Sunday afternoon to kick back and nap!" Like a squirrel with a mouthful of pine nuts, Faithe chewed and smacked her way into the hallway, lazily tossing her keys into a gaudy bluish-green oyster-shaped glass bowl filled with dusty coins, paper clips, and crumbled receipts.

Lilly walked in behind her mother and slammed the door shut, annoyed that another Sunday of precious leisure time had been ripped from her and given away to a church house full of uncomfortable shellac-scented wooden benches, gag-worthy perfume, and multiple selections of off-key singing, not to mention being forced to listen to a man wearing a fancy bathrobe with a golden plus-sign hanging from a loose chain around his neck. Lilly cringed in boredom for the entire duration of service, wondering why she had to sit and listen while the preacher rambled on and on about some invisible God-person hiding behind a cloud, waiting for powerless humans to look into the sky and call out his name. And then, by some miraculous stretch of luck, to search until they…found him.

To Lilly, playing hide-and-seek was hard enough when looking for an actual person, so the idea of searching for someone whom was said to be invisible seemed like a ridiculous waste of time. Other than the occasional laundry days (which Lilly felt were more like pop quizzes that she never was prepared for) where the task was to separate the bright colors from the neutral ones, and pull all-white garments from the off-white and darks, the Sunday church routine was the absolute worst moments of Lilly’s weekend time away from school.

Faithe’s leather-bound toes now broke free from the unrelenting chokehold of suffocating shoe straps and snag-filled hosiery as she propped her hand against the wall for balance. Oh, thank God. She sighed in relief. My feet are throbbing! Faithe took a good long moment to savor the exhilarating sensation of blood surging through the full span of her foot once more.

At this point, Lilly was pushing her way past Faithe to avoid this annoying tradition of decking the halls with loads of mommy and sent Faithe toppling against the wall. Without missing a beat, Faithe uncorked the second shoe and in the same motion, tilted her head sideways to loosen from her earlobes the heavy earrings that currently swung on the sides of her face like leather hammocks on a lazy day.

Lilly swiftly disrobed and tossed her Sunday’s best across the bedroom floor and, within seconds, jumped into the closest outfit she could find. The choice was usually one of her spare school uniforms; a bright orange blouse, a teal, black and orange checkered skirt, black and white saddle shoes, and matching teal and orange sphere-shaped hair barrettes. An odd choice for weekend wear, to say the least. But nonetheless, an absolute right and sane choice through the eyes of a six year old child as odd and peculiar as Lilly. Bolting out of her room, Lilly made her way into the kitchen where a refrigerator full of delectable postchurch snacks awaited her. With an adequate amount of goodies in hand, Lilly rushed past Faithe’s pleasure-stunted body and headed toward the front door. Fully collected now, Faithe shuffled down the hall with heels in hand. "Home, home, home!" she sang aloud as she tiptoed over the welcoming coolness of the wooden floor, pumping her fist in jubilation. Befitting to her motherly instinct, Faithe paused from her celebration to peer into Lilly’s room (just as all dutiful and somewhat nosy mothers must do).

Lilly! Faithe screeched. Oh no, no way, this room is a complete pigsty. Come clean this mess! Faithe’s expression twisted with disgust as she stared at the tornado-like mess. Faithe continued, And is this the dress you wore to church today that I see balled up in the corner?

By this time, Lilly was back in the front room rambling through the main closet door in search of her playthings. Lilly huffed with annoyance at Faithe’s call. Okay Mommy, I’ll do it when I get back. I’m taking Snuggle Bug outside to play with my friends.

Uh-uh, not a chance—get in here right now!

Lilly dropped her things and stormed back down the hallway to meet Faithe. Why do I have to clean? My friends can have their room look any way they want to and still go out and play! she argued.

"This isn’t up for debate, Lilly. Your friends are not my responsibility, you are. So until you are old enough to stop being my responsibility, you’ll play by my rules! Now go ahead and get to it," Faithe said as she nodded toward Lilly’s mess.

Lilly stomped into her room angrily as Faithe headed toward her own living quarters and collapsed into the soothing embrace of her fluffy white king-sized bed.

Back in the other bedroom, Lilly began to strategize. I know what I can do to speed this up! she thought. Raking her clothes and playtime items into a large pile with her feet, Lilly quickly shoved the massive heap into her closet and chucked all remaining debris of trash, toys, and abandoned articles under the bed. Scooping up Snuggle Bug once more, Lilly quietly gathered her things this time and tiptoed to the front door.

By this time, Faithe had made it back on her postswollen feet and was in the process of hanging up her clothes when she heard the unmistakable sound of six-year-old feet scurrying down the hallway. Faithe tossed her hanger onto the bed and hurried to Lilly’s room to scan the premises. Lilly, I told you to clean your room!

I did, Mommy! Lilly yelled out, her hands strangling the knob of the front door anxiously.

"Then what is this?" her mother asked. Faithe paced irritably through Lilly’s room.

Lilly slunk back around the corner to witness Faithe standing by her closet door as the final bits of trash and clothes tumbled out.

You lied to me! Faithe grimaced, her face clinched tight as if tasting something sour.

Uh…I was about to finish that. I just put everything in the closet to…sweep the floor.

Please don’t insult my intelligence, Lilly! You were tipping toward the front porch, and from what I remember, we kept the broom in the kitchen—not the front porch! she proclaimed. Know what? I think you were about to wiggle yourself out of this house with your Snuggle Bug doll had I not come in here to check on you. Faithe’s frustration seemed to be building. I shouldn’t have to stalk you like this, Lilly!

I don’t like to clean up! Lilly said in a raised voice.

Well then, you must not like going outside either! Faithe challenged.

Lilly took her turn and snapped back, "I hate doing this cleaning crap!"

The room went silent with an uncomfortably long pause. Lilly knew that these revolting actions struck a serious nerve with her