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Erasmus is directing the Greenes to the church of his
youth in Clarksboro, Mississippi, when they discover the
charred remains is all that is left standing. Erasmus
is reunited with his close friend, Alicia, who is the church
minister and battling pressure to sell the land and be turned
into a shopping center. Alicia understands the economic
pressures but feels strongly about the historic value of this
location, where their ancestors first learned to read and
built this church once they were set free. Russell and
Erasmus encounter resistance from a redneck named Ellis at
the local lumber yard but manage to buy lumber
elsewhere. Alicia's spirits are lifted by the
energizing effect the new lumber has had on her
congregation. Tension mounts as Claire and Dinah are
terrorized by a six-wheeler and driven off the road.
Claire is incensed, having to explain to the sheriff that it
was deliberate. Nathaniel makes friends with a young
black girl his age named Lucy. He learns what it's like
to be discriminated against when Lucy's parents forbid her
from playing with him. The arsonist strikes again just
as the reconstruction effort is making headway. Josh
finds a lighter in the vicinity, possibly connecting it to a
young Green Beret named T.J. who works with Ellis.
Russell offers to help in the search for the arsonist but
Sheriff Oakley warns against it. Russell spots an
abandoned truck and stops. Ellis hijacks Russell and
forces him to drive at gunpoint. Russell steps on the
accelerator, refusing to slow down. There is a struggle
for the gun, a shot is fired and the Suburban crashes.
Ellis bolts from the Suburban with Russell in pursuit.
Russell finds Ellis hiding out near an abandoned construction
trailer. Ellis pulls a knife on Russell, who disarms
Ellis and tackles him to the ground. Ellis' cohorts show up
with Sheriff Oakley gagged. Russell and Sheriff Oakley
are tied at the wrists, seated back to back, as Ellis and his
boys figure out what to do. Russell and Oakley wriggle
free of the poorly tied knots and turn on their
captors. Before the situation escalates further, T.J.,
poised with a gun from atop the bridge, orders them all to
the ground. It turns out that T.J.'s on the right side
of the law and is there to bail out Russell and Oakley.
The bad guys caught, the Greenes turn their attention back
where it belongs, helping Alicia and her congregation raise
the church walls. Together, within the framework
of the church, the congregation (and the Greenes) sing,
rejoice and worship in harmony.
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