Tommy Nelson's Brave Girls Confidential

by Travis Thrasher

  GOOD NIGHT BRAVE GIRLS

  Confidential

  Two people are better than one. They get more done by working together. If one person falls, the other can help him up. But it is bad for the person who is alone when he falls. No one is there to help him.

  —Ecclesiastes 4:9–10

  After Honor finished telling her story about spring break, nobody said a word. The steady, soothing sounds of the ocean waves had caused all of them to become very still. Glory looked around at the girls in their sleeping bags. She could just barely make out their figures in the moonlight and couldn’t tell who’d fallen asleep.

  “Are you girls still awake?” she whispered.

  “I am,” Hope said right away. “I’m just looking at the millions of stars.”

  “I’m awake too,” Gracie said. “I was just thinking about Hawaii. That was so much fun.”

  “It sure was,” Honor said. “I wish all the Brave Girls could have come.”

  “But we all got to come here!” Hope replied.

  “This has been so awesome,” Glory said.

  “Best sleepover ever!” Gracie said. “Especially telling our stories.”

  Glory looked at Faith, who still hadn’t stirred in her sleeping bag. She made a shushing sound and then spoke in a whisper again. “I think Faith’s asleep.”

  “I’m not asleep,” Faith called out, making everybody laugh. “I was just thinking how we really are brave.”

  “How?” Hope asked.

  “By telling our stories and being honest,” Faith said.

  “And keeping everything here confidential,” Honor said. “Just between us friends.”

  “Just between us girls,” Gracie said.

  “Us Brave Girls,” Hope added.

  “It’s cool ’cause we’re brave in all different ways,” Glory said.

  They got quiet as they thought about what Glory had just said, about how they were brave in their own unique ways.

  Hope was learning that the word brave meant more than climbing a tall tree or taking the game-winning shot during a soccer match.

  She thought of how she’d made friends with Violet last summer and how they’d stayed in touch, talking on her mom’s phone a few times.

  Hope couldn’t wait to see Violet again at the lake. Violet told her she’d grown out her hair and gotten it highlighted blond, so Hope was eager to see it.

  Bravery is being a stranger’s friend, she thought.

  Hope also thought about her dyslexia and about the worry that had filled her before figuring out what was wrong. She hadn’t feared playing Little League baseball with the boys or hitting against their best pitchers. She’d simply asked for help and tried to be the best player she could. That had been easy, but that was sports, and sports were easy for her.

  Bravery is asking for help when you’re afraid of what the answer will be.

  Gracie couldn’t believe what a difference a year had made. As she lay on her back with her eyes open, she was glad to know her friends surrounded her. A year ago she’d moved with her family and had wondered if she would have any friends, much less four awesome ones.

  She remembered Honor coming up to her at church and talking. It was easy to think of Honor as brave, since she always seemed to go out of her way to help people and make them feel comfortable. Then Gracie thought of her parents and how they had started going to church for the first time. They were now reading the Bible regularly at dinnertime, and they’d encouraged her to start going to Sunday school.

  Bravery is starting over, Gracie thought.

  The year had been tough in a lot of ways. Dad had gotten a couple of temporary jobs but spent a lot of time looking for something steady. Finally, in the last month her dad had started a new job, one he told them he’d be working at for a while.

  This year had also been the best for Gracie, and not just because of her new friends. She was singing at church and had gotten involved with drama at school. Gracie found she really enjoyed singing in front of people because they seemed to enjoy her doing it.

  Bravery is not letting the bad things in life keep you from discovering the good things.

  Faith used to keep things inside and not talk about them. She’d done that her whole life. Yet these girls surrounding her in the beach house had gotten her to open up and share things she’d never shared with anybody else.

  Glory made her laugh, and Gracie got her talking about her life at home. Honor was always encouraging her, especially with her painting. And then there was Hope, who still teased her about the first few times they’d hung out and Faith had quietly done all the sporty things she didn’t like. Together they were trying new things. Hope’s parents had finally gotten a horse, and Faith loved caring for the horse with her. She’d even asked her parents if she could take horseback riding lessons so she could ride alongside Hope.

  Bravery is trying new things, Faith thought.

  She thought about the summer ahead and the art camp she’d be going to. Faith and her parents had talked a long time about it, about the cost and how she’d be in another state for a week. Faith didn’t know anybody going to the camp, yet she knew it would be amazing to learn all about drawing and painting and working on her craft.

  Maybe Faith wouldn’t be going if she hadn’t known the rest of the girls. She might not have taken the chance on something like the art camp. But just like the time she let her little sister paint alongside her, Faith knew it was good to do things she wasn’t used to doing, to be open and allow new things to happen.

  Bravery is taking chances, even if they seem scary or unlike something you’d ever do.

  Resting on her sleeping bag, Honor saw Hope praying, so Honor prayed silently like she always did when she was at home in her bed.

  Thank You for my friends, God. Thank You for how special they are and for how much fun we all have together.

  A year ago Honor had made the decision to go up a grade in school, which meant going to a new school and making all-new friends. Honor was glad to have made some new friends, but she was really glad to have found the Brave Girls. They helped her realize that everybody’s different and that’s okay.

  Bravery is being confident in who you are, Honor thought.

  The girls had also taught her a lot about what it meant to be a good friend.

  They had their disagreements and sometimes feelings got hurt, but just as she said, they were able to share things with one another, to talk about confidential things like financial struggles or parents going through a divorce. Honor had learned that the best thing to do was to talk about things, even something like the spring break trip she’d been afraid to mention to anybody.

  It wasn’t hard to laugh with friends or play with them. But sometimes it was hard to tell them what was going on in your life.

  Bravery is being honest with the people you love.

  Glory was the last one to fall asleep. She found herself thinking about her parents, remembering them telling her about the divorce and about how angry she’d been. She had been afraid that one of them would end up leaving her, but now she knew that wouldn’t happen.

  Things had changed. Like Mom said, that was part of life. Some parts of life weren’t so good, but other things happened that surprised her because of how wonderful they were, like her new friends.

  Glory didn’t know what she would have done without her friends, especially when she told them what was happening.

  Bravery is being able to lean on others and ask for help, Glory thought. She started to wonder how long all five of them would be friends. Maybe someone would have to move away. Or maybe a family would switch churches. Or maybe . . .

  Glory stopped wondering about the future and reminded herself to be thankful for today. Thankful for friends and family. Thankful for everything.

  Bravery is not being anxious about tomorrow but relying on God for today.

  • • •

  The sun slipped up on the Brave Girls before any of them awoke. It soared
high into the sky and smiled on them as they began to move and open their eyes.

  Summer had just started, and with it came a thousand possibilities. Possibilities for making sand castles and surfing the waves.

  Possibilities for making new friends and painting new pictures and practicing new sports and finding new fashions and singing new songs.

  Possibilities to see God every new day, to learn about Him, and to try to be more like Him.

  Each one of the Brave Girls knew the possibilities were good. Especially when they could share them with friends.

  With the smell of bacon and eggs and biscuits in the air, the waving waters outside beckoning them to join in the fun, each of the girls knew something deep inside: “The Lord’s love never ends. His mercies never stop. They are new every morning” (Lamentations 3:22–23).

  And the morning after that. And the next one. And the next.

  Thank You, heavenly Father, for filling us with Your hope and for helping us be brave each new day.

  Talk About It

  Name something you learned from each Brave Girl:

  1.Hope

  2.Faith

  3.Gracie

  4.Honor

  5.Glory

  GLORY’S LAUGH-OUT-LOUD, BUILD-A-STORY GAME

  Glory says, “On a separate sheet of paper, come up with some creative words for a short story. Then insert those words in the story below!”

  1.The name of your favorite Brave Girl

  2.An activity/something you do

  3.An object of any kind

  4.A place

  5.A second Brave Girl (different from #1)

  6.Something you yell

  7.Something you tell a friend

  8.A type of food

  9.Another place

  10.An adjective

  Short story:

  One day, (1) decided she wanted to try out for (2). So the first thing she did was buy a (3) and take it with her to the (4) to practice. Right before she started (2), she saw (5) run over and yell (6). (1) stopped and thought about things, then realized something important. She hugged (5) and told her with a big smile, (7). The two Brave Girls decided it would be better to go have some (8) and then later go to (9). The day turned out to be (10).

  HOPE’S SPORTS QUIZ

  Hope says, “Here’s a fun quiz I’ve given to some of the other Brave Girls who might not know as much about sports as I do. Cover up the answers with your hand, then see how many you get right!”

  1.In what sport do you get a “hole in one”?

  2.In football, how many points do you get for scoring a touchdown?

  3.In baseball, what’s it called when you hit a home run with the bases loaded?

  4.Which sport has three-point shots in it?

  5.What is another name for soccer used outside of the United States?

  6.How many points do you play up to in volleyball?

  7.In tennis, what’s it called when a player legally serves and the ball isn’t touched by the other player?

  8.Tough question: In what popular sport in the world is a wicket used?

  Answers:

  1.golf

  2.6 points

  3.grand slam

  4.basketball

  5.football

  6.25 points

  7.ace

  8.cricket

  HONOR’S ANAGRAMS

  Honor says, “I love to play around with anagrams, where you rearrange letters to come up with new words.”

  How many words can you write using just the letters in this sentence?

  ILOVETOREAD

  10: Smart thinking

  20: Brilliant

  30: Spectacular

  40: A-Plus

  50+: Genius

  GRACIE’S PLAYLIST

  Gracie says, “I love discovering new songs, whether they are fifty years old or brand-new. Here are some of my favorites. Cover up the answers at the bottom, then fill in the names of these popular tunes.”

  1.“What a______ World”

  2.“If______ ______ and You Know It”

  3.“Better Is______ ______”

  4.“Have Yourself a______ ______ ______”

  5.“He’s Got the Whole ______ ______ ______ ______”

  6.“Somewhere Over the______ ”

  7.“Isn’t She______ ”

  8.“This______ ______ of Mine”

  9.“______ Around the Clock”

  10.“______ Loves Me”

  Answers:

  1.Wonderful

  2.You’re Happy

  3.One Day

  4.Merry Little Christmas

  5.World in His Hands

  6.Rainbow

  7.Lovely

  8.Little Light

  9.Rock

  10.Jesus

  FAITH’S PAINTING PROJECT

  Faith says, “Join in a fun painting project! Think of every Brave Girl, and then paint a picture they might create. What would each painting look like?”