Greetings were being exchanged

in the parking lot as the members made their way toward the building.

As always, everyone was glad to see everyone else, and all seemed well.

Suddenly the flow of people going into the building stopped. The people

were just standing there, looking towards the entrance area of the building

as if something had happened that they did not understand.

Finally someone asked, "Where

is it? Where's Mr. Mac's bench?"

No one had an answer, and soon

all were moving into the building to their respective classes. That night,

the evening announcements included a request for an explanation as to

who had moved the bench, but none was given. It seems as though no one

in the congregation had any knowledge of why the bench had been moved.

As the days passed it became

evident that none of the members had moved the bench, so the Peachtree

City Police Department was called and a stolen property report was filled

out. The officers were of the opinion that this was probably just an act

of vandalism, and that the bench might soon show up in someone's yard,

or be found sitting along one of the many cart paths that wind through

our community.

The weeks passed, and it became

evident that we would not see our beloved bench again. Sadly, we began

to accept the fact that our bench had been stolen by someone who had either

sold it, or was using it in their own home or yard.

It is still hard for us to

understand how anyone could take this bench, especially since it had a

large plaque attached to it that read, "In loving memory of Brother

J.A. 'Mac' McDaniel." The bench that was taken from our entrance

way was bought by the people who knew, respected, and loved Mr. Mac.

Brother Mac served God for

many years, and was a wonderful example to all. The last years of his

life had not been kind to him. He suffered many illnesses, including heart

problems, and finally had to have a knee replacement surgery that left

him virtually crippled. But Brother Mac did not let his physical problems

stop him from obeying the call of his first love; that was his God. Mac

was always there greeting people as they came in that rear door, even

during the days that his pain was the most severe. You see, Mac always

gave more than he received.

Brother Mac passed away last

Aug. 16. The members placed that beautiful bench beside the entrance way

where he so often stood.

Sadly, Mr. Mac's bench was

stolen just before the Thanksgiving season. It is our prayer that the

person responsible for the theft reads this article and hopefully understands

just how much we loved that bench.

Our prayer is that he or she

also understands this. Our love for that bench is great, but our love

and concern for your soul is even greater.

Let us make you this offer.

We want you to keep the bench; all we ask in return is that you give us

just 15 minutes of your time to [let us] tell you just a little bit about

the One that can forgive the sins of us all.

I think Brother Mac would even

invite you to have a seat on his bench while we talk. We will wait to

hear from you; you know where we are.

The elders of the Peachtree City

Church of Christ

201 South Peachtree Parkway

Peachtree City