Fire in our hearts - The Jesus Army

FIRE IN OUR HEARTS THE LORD TOOK HOLD OF BUGBROOKErented an empty house. He felt the responsibility of the baby.He worked a long hard day for an Irish ganger and brokewith dope. After a police raid, friends in London had gonedown for two years on drug charges, and Rufus felt he’d hada narrow escape.Purity was his goal now. He shaved his hair, leaving a ponytail — which Jess cut off! She detested the Hare Krishna scenethat seemed to dehumanise her friends. There were blowupsbetween them and Rufus would sometimes lash out andhit her. Dope no longer soothed his conscience and guilts camecrashing in. He meditated three hours a day and fasted, butout on the building site he wept with cold and exhaustion.Enlightenment seemed a million miles away.In desperation, he read the New Testament and saw theidolatry in Krishna. The Gurus were also turning him off andstories of their affluence disgusted him. He plunged intomacrobiotics and spent his money on special foods. Even thedogs were vegetarian! He dreamed of a houseboat on theriver, and laid out £500, but the boat turned out to be rotten.It felt kind of symbolic.Then in the new year he met John Cornish. John seemedeverything that Rufus wasn’t — contented, relaxed, a pictureof sanity.‘Wow! You’re looking great!’ said Rufus. ‘What’s that underyour arm?’John flushed and unwrapped a Bible.‘Man, you’re really into it!’Rufus longed for what John had. A friend gave him a tractabout a cartoon hippy who gets ripped off, burned out, andends up in a mess. Then the guy meets some Jesus People,78