Temptation: Rendezvous with God--Volume Two: a Novel by Bill Myers

Author:Bill Myers
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Fidelis Publishing
Published: 2022-02-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER

FIFTEEN

EXCEPT FOR THREE or four kids cleaning tables and packing up sound gear, the room had pretty much cleared. Our time with Dr. Stewart was short and had little to do with his sermon. Nobody’s fault but mine. I mentioned we were under a time crunch with Amber’s upcoming shower—and the whole conversation changed. As soon as Shondra, his wife, learned Patricia declined the invitation, had in fact never even attended one, we were off to the races, heading an entirely different direction.

“Seriously?” she asked, “You’ve never been to a baby shower?”

Patricia shook her head. “I have not.”

“Not even one?”

“It’s my understanding they’re mostly frivolous affairs with gossipy women.”

“Present company excluded.” Stewart gave me a wink.

“Or not.” I grinned.

“Besides,” Patricia explained, “we have the garage sale this afternoon.”

Shondra was already shaking her head. “Girl, we’ve been over this how many times? You got to get into other things. There’s more to life than just Bible and church.”

“I can’t believe you’re saying that,” Patricia said.

“Believe it,” the woman said.

Patricia replied, “The Word clearly says, ‘Worship the Lord God and serve him only.’”

The big woman sighed and looked away in exasperation, muttering something clearly not in The Minister Wife’s Handbook.

Dr. Stewart took a more tactful approach. “Patricia, sometimes life, the useless and mundane, sometimes those very things are where God dwells.”

She remained respectfully silent.

He continued, “He wants a daughter, Patricia. Not a servant.”

Unable to restrain herself, she fired back, “While the world is going to heck in a handbasket?”

Stewart looked down, suppressing a grin.

She continued, “‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.’ Matthew 9:37.”

He raised his head back to her and gently replied, “My counsel to you, as your pastor, is you should go to that baby shower.”

Shondra quipped, “Who knows, maybe there’s somebody’s soul there you can save.”

Stewart shot his wife a look and she reluctantly backed down. Then, to Patricia, he repeated, “Go.”

“But Will, here,” she said, “he has some serious questions.”

“I’m sure they can wait. Go.”

She looked to me. I gave less than a helpful shrug. Finally, with a sigh, she began buttoning her coat.

“And have a big ol’ helping of empty carb cake while you’re at it,” Shondra said, “or two.”

Dr. Stewart could only look back to the ground and shake his head.

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