The Man Who Was Given Away

Situation:  Lily and Thomas were young marrieds with children.  They seemed to be the perfect couple, extremely active in church and community.  They were very outgoing and usually ended up being the chairpersons of whatever committee one or both of them joined.  Their church was popular and large; the youth minister, Fred, a young gentleman, was unmarried,  and a special friend of Lily and Thomas.  Most days of the week, Fred would eat with the family, and sometimes even slept in one of their children's beds while the child slept on the floor elsewhere.

This went on for several years; all involved seemed to be happy.  The crack in the perfect window came when Thomas seemed to be having an affair with another church woman, Kay, who happened to be one of Lily's best friends.  They weren't really having an adulterous affair, it just looked like they were together so much, they 'must be' having an affair. One day, Lily and Kay had a rare private moment together.  Lily talked and talked about Fred, how wonderful he was, and all of a sudden, Kay knew: Lily was in love with Fred!  Lily also mentioned what a 'ungrateful dog' Thomas was, and that, "if you really like him that much, take him."

Kay was sorely tempted to do just that, but she also was married, with children.

Lessons learned:  What would you call this 'mess' - a 'fivesome?'  Married men and women have to guard their relationships very carefully.  Lily knew her feelings for Fred were not good for her marriage.  Thomas, in his loneliness, flirted with every woman he encountered.  No one knew how sad and lonely Kay was, in her marriage.  That was a bad combination.

Outcome:  From then on, Kay knew to be on guard, and never be alone with either Thomas or Lily. Kay and Lily were polite to each other in church but never again friends. In time, Fred 'came out of the closet' as gay, was discredited in his ministry, and left the church.  Thomas' job was transferred to another city, Lily and the children moved with him.  Very few church members heard from them after that.