The Courage of One: A Short Story

By Melanie Schatzel, M.Ed.

Creative Christian author, Melanie Schatzel, M.Ed, once an enlisted member of the military, takes readers on a foretelling adventure into the very near future of the final world wars of the earth as the coming of Jesus Christ nears. In this story, she shares of a single soldier, a young captain, alone, navigating a war-torn countryside praying and searching for his beloved brothers--also men of faith. He is a commander of only himself as he seeks to find surviving Christians who believe in God, have faith in God, and are living with a righteousness defined by God in the scriptures. His objective is to gather the righteous--a monumental task in a world raging in war.

The story begins with a very honest, direct, and enlightening account of the world in which the gentle giant was born into as a means of defining how the setting became what it is--an earth torn by the ravishing of souls who catered to the devil himself by turning away from the teaching in the scriptures. In the telling of one day of his story, author Melanie Schatzel, portrays our world, our society, where the value of God's definition of male and female is confused; when nations are burdened by contention in politics; and greed, pride, and corruption dictate mankind. He is born into a time when faith is no longer strong, but the desires of men are, and those carnal desires dictate the acceptance of fatherless families, and disrespect of women and mothers; when children are confused about what is considered morally appropriate and values no longer depict respect for faith, family, or love for one's neighbor. A time when in the world hypocrisy is welcomed, and the needs of the good are ignored for the sake of the evildoers.

The world is at war and the warring, as been foretold in the scriptures, will only come to an end when the beloved and Only Begotten Son of God comes again. And there are few left who believe in Him.

The gentle giant soldier, a captain, demonstrates that his faith in God is what leads him and guides him. He finds a brother who observes as the captain prays, closes his eyes, and reaches out for the extended hand of one of God's messengers--to guide him through the dangerous terrain to the loved ones the Lord needs him to gather. And through what he observes, he comes to realize that following the Holy Spirit in faith is the only means to be successful on this quest of and for one, and the only way to survive until He comes again.

A rich, powerful story!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Apr 8, 2024
• ISBN: 9781304495792

Book preview

The Courage of One

A Short Story

By

Melanie Schatzel, M. Ed.

Copyright

The Courage of One: A Short Story

First Edition

Copyright © 2024 Melanie Schatzel, M.Ed.

All Rights Reserved

ISBN:  978-1-304-49579-2

This is a short story based on fictional characters. There is no intentional representation of any one person, event, or otherwise by the author in creating this story.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Dedication

This story is dedicated to my boys.  I hope someday they might find the desire within themselves to build their own relationship with the Lord with as much courage and conviction as Mormon.

Introduction

I have been attempting to encourage my oldest son, Trey to stay focused on building his understanding, knowledge, and commitment to reading The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  As a parent, I am concerned for his future.  I see the tribulations and temptations of teenagers today, and I know had I been born in the world at this time, I would have fallen away from the gospel of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and their Christian beliefs earlier than I did. 

I have spent a lifetime trying to understand how to read and study scriptures to hear the Lord responding to my earnest prayers.  And though I spent 2023 writing about this exploration process and the rebuilding and strengthening of my own testimony, I have yet to find a way to incorporate teaching moments into my parenting skills or parenting time with my boys. (If you have a desire to learn of my experiences, please review the books series, From Shutter To Story’s Devotionals.)

In my From Shutter To Story’s Devotional book series, several of the themes were decided by Trey.  Some were influenced because I have special needs boys.  And there are a couple that share that I have one son, younger than Trey, Ty who has decided to live with his father—whom I divorced because I questioned the example he set as a man, father, and Christian.  I knew I was not the best example, but I was sincere in my dealings and my character was on a surer foundation than I felt that of the one they seemed to be