by Lori Wick
this fun."
Reagan only laughed at what had been a serious comment
from him and started on her way. Somewhere along
the line she had decided that Russell and Holly took obedience
a little too seriously. They had good kids. Reagan
could see that. It seemed to her that they need not worry so
much about all the little details.
Hopping on her bicycle yet again, Reagan rode toward
the schoolhouse. She was running a little late, and the
school was uphill, but she arrived just as the children were
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dismissed for the day. Several of them stopped to see her
two-wheeled conveyance and were suitably impressed, but
in short order she was walking along with the Bennett children.
"How was your day?" she asked them.
They both tried to answer at once, but then Jonah let his
sister talk. Reagan listened with genuine interest until they
were over halfway home, then agreed to take filly's books
so she could ride the rest of the way. Once Reagan and
Jonah were alone, the little boy told her about his day.
"I had to spell words up front."
"How did you do?"
"I got them all right. Jimmy got one wrong, but teacher
let him do it over."
"That was nice of her. What word was it?"
"What."
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"What word was it?"
"What/' he said again, turning his head to look at her,
and Reagan began to laugh. Hearing her laugh, Jonah
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caught on and laughed too.
"We could have gone on with that for a long time,"
Reagan commented as both her little house and Jonah's
came into view. Out front, EUy was still atop the bike, going
in big circles. Reagan heard Jonah sigh.
"I wish I had long legs."
"You will before you know it."
"That's what my mother says too."
Reagan smiled at his sweet little face. She had never
yearned for a family, but this little boy touched something
inside of her that she had never felt before.
"Watch me, Miss Sullivan," Elly called just as Holly
came to the porch with Alisa.
The adults clapped and cheered while Elly leapt off and
stopped the bicycle. Reagan then gave Jonah a ride, basically
pushing him while he steered. Elly cheered her
brother on from the porch, and Reagan was again struck by
the closeness of these two children.
A moment later Holly told the children she had a snack
for them on the kitchen table. She invited Reagan, who
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declined. Much as she enjoyed being with this family, at
times she was oddly uncomfortable.
Not willing to think on it, Reagan took herself home. She
had no specific plan, but she needed to do something to
elude the feelings that seemed to pester her.
m
A sunday morning off! reagan could hardly believe
her luck. Not that she would ever want anyone to be
harmed, but having a small fire in the hotel kitchen on Saturday
night had meant the dining room would be closed
all day Sunday. It hadn't allowed her to sleep in because
she didn't know about it until she arrived for work, but
that didn't diminish her joy. She hadn't had a morning off
since arriving in Kinkade, so she wouldn't have wanted to
lie in bed anyway. There was too much to see and do!
For the first time since her bicycle had arrived, Reagan
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left it at home. She had ridden to work but now returned
home, spent time mending a torn seam, puttered around
her small house, and eventually put on her better dress and
set off on foot. It occurred to her somewhere along the line
that she had not had breakfast, but she dismissed the
thought for the moment. If she got desperate, she could
throw herself on Sally's mercy to let her use the kitchen
long enough to prepare a meal.
Thoughts of all she might do with a full day ahead raced
through her mind. Because her business rarely took her to
the east end of town, she decided to head that way. She was
enjoying a few new sights when she heard singing.
Reagan stopped and listened to what sounded like a
choir in full voice. It was in front of her somewhere, and
after a few seconds, she moved toward the sound. A small
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white church came into view. Reagan didn't know why the
idea of a church hadn't immediately occurred to her, but
now that she saw where the sound was coming from, she
smiled at her own surprise, shook her head, and started to
turn away. At almost the same moment, she remembered
that she had nowhere else in particular to go.
Walking slowly and enjoying the voices, Reagan went
ahead to the church and stopped a few feet from the closed
door. The closer she neared, the more beautiful it sounded.
Church was not a place she'd visited much, hardly at all if
the truth be told, but she felt mesmerized by the music she
was hearing. Even when the singing stopped and didn't
start up for a few seconds, Reagan remained still. The
singing resumed, and the congregation must have been on
their fifth number when Reagan's feet moved again, this
time all the way to the door. Working not to be noticed, she
opened the portal and slipped inside. To her surprise, no
one turned. They were all standing, facing front, hymn
books in hand, singing their hearts out.
Reagan couldn't say exactly what compelled her, but she
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slipped into the last pew and sat down just as they finished.
There was no one directly in front of her for two pews as
she moved as far to the wall as she could get, and the
people in the next two pews were closer to the aisle.
Reagan gazed at the man up front and listened to the
sound of his deep voice. He was reading from the book in
front of him, and although the words were not familiar to
Reagan, she knew it must be the Bible. With almost no idea
how she'd come to be there, Reagan found herself quite
rapt.
"The angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias; for thy
prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a
son, and thou shalt call his name John. And thou shalt have
joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he
shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither
wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the
Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb. And many of
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die children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord, their God.
And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of
Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and
the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a
people prepared for the Lord. And Zacharias said unto the
angel, Whereby shall I know this? For I am an old man, and
my wife well stricken in years. And the angel answering
said unto him, I am Gabriel, who stands in
the presence of
God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to show thee
these glad tidings.'
"This news from Gabriel was huge," the pastor intoned,
looking up from the pulpit and smiling kindly at the
people in the pews. "A special child is about to be born to
Zacharias and Elisabeth because Zacharias and Elisabeth
are special. Verse six describes them as blameless. They had
clearly shown God that they were up to the task of raising
this child.
"John is going to be a man with a very special job. Hie
angel compares him to Elijah, one of the most powerful
prophets of the Old Testament. We've taken a few weeks to
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come to these verses because I didn't want to rush. I
wanted you to be prepared for the special words here."
Reagan watched as the man paused, his eyes scanning
the pews.
"Look at verse 17. It says John is going to go before Him.
Do you understand who the verse is talking about here?
Who that Kim is?"
Reagan could see some heads nodding, but she didn't
have a clue.
"If s Jesus Christ/' the pastor continued. "John is coming
to prepare hearts for Christ when He starts His earthly
ministry. God's Son, who has come to bring salvation to
mankind, is going to be announced by John."
For a time, the man's words were lost on Reagan. She
had never heard of this, but she found it riveting. It was
almost as if her questions were being answered, but she
hadn't asked any questions.
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"The events that follow in the book of Luke have paved
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the way for what we believe today, and we will get to many
of those in the weeks and months to come, but don't rush
past verse 17. Let me read it to you again. 'And he/ thaf s
John, 'shall go before Him/ Jesus Christ, 'in the spirit and
power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,
and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to
make ready a people prepared for the Lord/
"What is the first thing Jesus is going to address? The fathers! Of all the things that could be at the top of the list
during this time, we find that God wants fathers to father
their children. I don't know about the rest of you men in
the room, but this gives me a wake-up call. Are my children
hearing from me the way of salvation? Do my children
know that my main priority is to teach them of their
Creator, their Savior, their God?"
The pastor shook his head in wonder, smiling a little as
he leaned forward on the pulpit "I'm excited about this
verse. God never demands something of me that is impossible
for me to do. He came to turn my heart to Him, and
to help me, as a father, put my children in the right direction
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as well. With God's help I can do this."
Again Reagan was swept out of the room as her own
father's face sprang to mind. The pastor concluded with a
final prayer and an announcement, but Reagan did not
hear much of it
"Father in heaven, thank You for bringing each one here
today. We praise You for Your Word and Your love for us.
May we go from this place better prepared to serve You
and return next week if You do not come for us before that
time. In Christ's name I pray. Amen.
"Don't forget now, come out the side door today and see
all the remodeling in our home. We'll meet in the side yard
for prayer in a few minutes, and then we'll eat. It looks as
though we have enough for an army, so don't hesitate to
join us."
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The pastor, his family, and almost the entire congregation
137
moved forward to a side door to exit, but Reagan was
still in New York as a child. She was aware of things
around her but felt apart and separate, her heart a little
bruised. It took a few moments for the room to quiet down,
and when it did, Reagan finally realized someone was
standing in the aisle staring at her. Her head whipped over,
and her eyes met those of the cowboy from the alley.
"Do you have your bucket with you today, or am I safe?"
Reagan relaxed in the light of his humor and laughed.
When she did, Cash came forward.
"I'm Cash Rawlings," he said, putting his hand out
Reagan shook it.
"I'm Reagan Sullivan, and I've wanted to tell you again
how sorry I am about the water."
Cash shrugged. "Accidents happen."
Reagan shook her head. "You might be more understanding
than you should be."
"I don't think so."
"Actually," Reagan admitted, "Russell Bennett told me
you weren't angry."
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"Do you know Russ?"
"Yes."
"They're here," Cash told her. "Come on. I know they'll
want to see you."
"They go to this church?" Reagan asked as she moved
out into the aisle between the two pews and toward the
door where the others had gone.
"Yes, they do. Did they know you were coming?"
"No, it was a last-minute decision," Reagan said, her
voice having dropped some. She also had come to a halt.
Cash watched her stare at the pulpit as though Pastor
Ellis were still standing there. She then looked to him.
"I think there might be something to this salvation
thing."
"I certainly think so."
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Reagan's eyes widened. "Then you've done it? You
know about salvation?"
"Yes, I do."
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"Salvation from God, from His Son?"
"That's right."
Reagan could only stare at him. Her mind moving faster
than she could keep up, Reagan was unaware of the way
she gawked at the man, making him feel that he shouldn't
question her.
"Cash!" a voice called from without before Russell Bennett
came through the door. "Reagan?" he said in obvious
surprise.
Reagan seemed to snap out of her trance.
"Are you a Christian?" she blurted, nearly accusing Russell.
"Yes."
"But you didn't get your Bible out and try to convert me
as soon as we met."
"No." Russell was as calm as ever. "I wouldn't have
done that for a number of reasons."
"Like what?"
"Well, for one you're a woman, and I wouldn't want to
give the wrong impression. Also, you didn't show any
interest, so why would I shove it down your throat?"
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"That didn't stop certain people in my old neighborhood,"
Reagan grumbled.
"Listen, Reagan," Russell said, having come to a swift
decision as the entire church was waiting, "we need to talk
about this, but right now Cash has to come and pray for
* our meal."
"Oh, right," Reagan began as she started to back away.
"Come and eat with us," Russell invited as his huge
hand took Reagan's wrist. "Holly is right out here."
Cash smiled at the stunned look on her face as she was
then walked with Cash to the front,
"That was subtle," Cash teased him.
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Russell smiled. "I had her this far. I didn't want to let her
get away."
"Oh, here's Cash now," Pastor Ellis said as the men
neared.
"Lef s pray," Cash said when he stepped up front next to
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the pastor and his family. After a few moments of silence,
he began. "Father in heaven, thank You for the work that
was done here. Thank You for the willing hands and hearts
that made all of this possible. We are so blessed, Father, to
have Pastor and Noelle with us, and their children, and by
giving to them we have an even greater blessing. We pray.
Lord, that they would enjoy this wonderful home for years
to come.
"Thank You for this food, Father. Thank You for all who
worked to make it. May we remember Your goodness to us
as we enjoy it. In Your name I pray. Amen."
In the back, Holly opened her eyes and looked over at
Reagan. Their renter was a bit shorter than she was, so it
was easy to watch her expression. Holly had not really had
time to find out how Reagan had come to be there, and she
desperately wanted her to stay but knew that forcing her
would never work.
"Reagan," she finally called her name.
Reagan looked at her.
"I hope you'll want to stay, but please don't feel you
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must."
"I didn't bring anything to share."
"If you mean the food, I brought two dishes, a pie and a
beef and bean casserole. We always have plenty at these
gatherings."
"So you've done this before?"
"Eaten together, you mean?"
"Yeg--i mean, you don't just come and sit in the pews
and then go home?"
"Sometimes we head right out, especially if the children
have had trouble sitting still and we need to get home and
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talk about it, but the majority of the time we visit, and often
we eat with another family or have a family to our house."
Reagan was on the verge of saying she'd never seen
anyone there and then remembered she was always
working. As though she'd said this out loud, Holly asked
her about it
"Did you get the morning off?"
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"Yes. There was a fire in the hotel kitchen last night and
Sally shut the dining room for the day."
"Was anyone harmed?"
"No, nothing like that"
