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Strange Boy in a Strange Land

Album: 37: Counter Moves

Episode: 478

Lesson/Theme: Trust; honesty; loneliness

Bible Verse: .

Characters: Jared, Mandy, Whit

Writer: Marshal Younger

Sound Designer: Rob Jorgensen

Original Air Date: December 8, 2001

Last Air Date: November 10, 2009

Description:
Sarah and Mandy are enjoying their camping trip. Four hundred miles from Odyssey. No school work. No studying. Just the trees, the sky, and the...strange boy watching them from the trees? Who is it? He looked awfully familiar when he ran away. In fact, he looked like...Jared DeWhite. Mandy is sure that it was Jared, but Sarah says it's impossible until he shows up again. Then there's no doubt. He runs off again, but this time they follow him. After a merry chase, he leads them to a secret cave. Jared is excited to see them and wants to know all about what's happening in Odyssey, but hesitates to them anything about himself or why he's here. Jared follows the two girls around for the next day-showing them all his favorite places, watching them braid hair, and talk about their favorite teachers. When they finally ask him why he's hanging around, he tells them his secret...and it's a dozy. His family is in the Witness Protection Program because his dad discovered some sensitive information about a company named Andromeda. His dad even found a hidden camera in a book in his office. Now he's living in a house in the woods with a big fence around it. The girls, however, don't believe a word of it. It's just like a story that Jared would make up. The girls are eating marshmallows when Jared shows up again. Sarah tells him he should just go away when suddenly a mysterious man shows up. He takes Jared away. When the girls head to the hidden cave in the morning, all of Jared's secret equipment is gone. It's the same story when they find his house-everything is stripped clean, as if no one was ever there. But it's not completely empty. Jared left an encoded secret message hidden under the floorboards. The girls decide to decode it when they get back to Odyssey. Back at Whit's End, Sarah is telling Whit all about their adventure when Mandy comes in to say she decoded the message. It said, "Moved Again. Beware Andromeda." Sarah thinks it's silly, but Whit becomes very interested when Sarah says that Jared's dad found a hidden camera in a book in his office. As the girls discuss the validity of Jared's claims, Whit slips back to call a friend who can get information about Andromeda.

Questions:
Why do you think Jared wanted to hang around the girls? Have you ever felt lonely? Was Sarah right for not believing Jared? Do you believe what Jared said? Read 3 John 5-8 in your Bible. What do you think John is telling the church to do for lonely people?