Whispers of the Heart by Ruth Scofield

Author:Ruth Scofield
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Steeple Hill
Published: 2000-09-19T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Standing on his front porch watching Autumn and Curtis drive away, Brent wanted to slam something. Leaning forward, he wrapped his hands around a low railing and stretched his body out, his balance on his toes. He did thirty quick push-ups, enough to give himself a miniworkout. It didn’t quite ease his tensions, so he paced the length of his porch instead.

What was he going to do with this knowledge about Autumn? Was it really none of his business?

How could he think it wasn’t. Not when he cared so much about her.

Although he’d realized she usually refused his invitations whenever it involved a lot of people, he hadn’t quite understood the depth of her fear. But to resort to shopping at dawn or the middle of night told him that fear went much deeper than he could imagine.

Why wouldn’t she admit to needing help? Why was she foolishly determined to deal with this alone?

Where had it come from, and when had it started?

Bright and pretty, she seemed perfectly at ease in a gathering of only a few people. He didn’t think she was a loner by natural selection. He’d sensed too much loneliness, a hidden hunger for a fuller life.

It rang a bell with him. He hungered for a full life himself, only he found it in his son, his visits with his mom, his many friendships and his work for the community. And not least, he found it in his frequent communication with his Lord. And although he’d grieved his wife when she died, and remembered her fondly, he looked forward to loving another woman one day.

Honestly, a wife to love and cherish was the only thing missing in his life. Deep in his heart, he’d thought that woman was Autumn.

She’d hit him like an explosion. From the very first day, he’d wanted to walk right up to her and take her into his arms.

He swung back into his living room and listened to the silence around him. Yet he didn’t feel alone. He never did, and his awareness of God’s spirit with him was strong and ever present, a force beyond anything he could describe as merely tangible. He frequently talked to Him aloud.

“I don’t understand, Lord,” he admitted now, “when others experience that kind of loneliness, that kind of fear. It’s so foreign to my own makeup. Help me to feel their pain when I come across it, help me to feel true compassion. Help me to understand Autumn.”

Maybe he needed to gain some perspective on it. He sure as wonder needed to find a perspective on the phobia Autumn faced. Perhaps David would have a free hour for a quiet talk tomorrow.

For now, he walked the floor as he continued to petition the Lord.

“Father, I guess I needed a good knock in the head to realize Autumn’s true needs. While I was busy taking in her beauty and just wanting her, I missed the inner woman. I need your guidance here, Lord. More that just guidance, I need your all-seeing wisdom.

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