A rogue petal from yesterday’s flower girl basket still resided under the pew in the front row of the church.
From the sixth row back, Linc jiggled his leg, nerves flooding his system. Zoey had headed somewhere after the service—the restroom, maybe. And Amelia had left right away with Mama D for lunch at the Burger Barn again—which he figured was Amelia’s way of apologizing to her for their last disastrous outing. Never mind the fact Linc was paying for it, having slipped Mama D a twenty-dollar bill during the closing song of the service. The congregation had also cleared out, leaving Pastor Todd alone at the front of the church, humming to himself as he flipped through his sermon notes.
Linc jiggled his leg faster. He should go up there, ask for prayer. Zoey was praying about them, sure, and he’d tried a few times, but this—hisfamily—seemed too important to not have backup.
But he felt glued to the seat. Pastor’s words from the sermon, some verse he read from in John, rang in his mind.You did not choose me but I chose you…
He wanted to know what that meant. Because it sounded a little too good to be true.
Zoey would probably know, but they hadn’t had a chance to talk about anything yet, including that kiss. Amelia calling him Dad had temporarily distracted them from the obvious Thing between them. Or maybe he and Zoey had let it distract them on purpose. This new element to their relationship seemed so fragile, dissecting it might completely break it.
If so, Linc was okay withnottalking about it for now. Noah’s words from the boat lingered.Relationships take time to develop. And he and Zoey had time, didn’t they? Their entire marriage to figure it out. Because, like Zoey kept saying—she wasn’t going anywhere.
So why the fear…the sudden urge to get extra prayer…to make sure God agreed with Linc on this one?
Before he could change his mind, he stood, hauled himself to the front row. Pastor Todd looked up from his Bible with a jolt. “Oh, Linc. Good to see you.” He held out his hand, which Linc shook. “How you doing?”
“I need prayer.” He blurted the words out before he could keep them.
“I’d be happy to pray with you.” Pastor smiled, his dark goatee sprinkled with gray. “Any particular topic?”
He swallowed. “Family. Marriage.”
“That’s right, I heard the good news. Congratulations.” He rested his hands on his podium, angling toward Linc. “Everything going well on the home front?”
Couldn’t fully get into that, and definitely couldn’t lie to a pastor. Linc hesitated. “We’re all adjusting.” There, that was the truth.
“Ah. It can be tough, blending families so suddenly.” He tilted his head, studied Linc so hard he shifted his weight. “What else is on your mind, before we pray?”
Man, the guy was good. Linc pushed up the sleeves of his shirt. “You read a verse today.”
He dipped his head. “John 15:16.”
“Yeah, that one. I guess I’m struggling to believe it.”
“That God chose you?”
No one ever chose him. Linc nodded, throat tight. He glanced over his shoulder for Zoey, hoping she didn’t catch this. The last thing he wanted right now was to look weak in front of her.
“The good news about the Bible, Linc, is that it’s truth. And that truth remains true whether we believe it or not.” Pastor Todd crossed his arms over his chest, his smile open and welcoming. “So I suggest we start by praying for God to help you believe it.”
That sounded…nice. “Okay.”
Pastor winked. “And while we’re at it, we’ll pray for your marriage and your daughter too.”
Throat burning, Linc nodded again, afraid to speak.
Pastor clapped Linc on the shoulder and began to pray, his voice low. As he spoke, peace washed over Linc. The fear he always carried wasn’t completely gone, but it was significantly lighter. Something he could only assume was hope pierced through the shadows in his heart, letting him believe there could be a future for his family after all.
He should have prayed like this weeks ago. If he could fully believe that God chose him…that God wasn’t going to leave…then maybe he could believe God also cared about his family as much as he did. That God, like Zoey kept saying, would work things for good.
Even all of Linc’s mistakes.
The sanctuary doors burst open. He looked up as Zoey rushed inside, eyes wide. Pastor’s voice broke off mid-amen.
“Are you okay?” Linc’s heart stopped, jump-started again at Zoey’s quick nod. Then he drew a sharp intake of breath. “Is it Amelia?”
“No, she’s fine too.” Zoey rounded the last row of pews to join them up front. The red dress she’d paired with a denim jacket flared around her knees. “I just saw Ms. Bridges outside.”
