[Desert Roses 02] - Across the Years by Tracie Peterson

thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.’ ”
    She glanced over to see that Natalie had fallen back to sleep. Her even breathing left no doubt that she had found her comfort and peace once again. Ashley replaced the marker and closed the Bible. She turned off the lamp and left the Bible on the nightstand before leaving the room. A strange peace was upon her. A peace she hadn’t known for some time. Could it really be that simple? she wondered. Could merely reading the Bible—God’s Word—give that kind of comfort to her soul?

CHAPTER FOUR
    Ashley sat beside Natalie in church, hoping her nervousness wouldn’t show. Grandpa sat on the other side of Natalie, and both were beaming from ear to ear because of her attendance. This only served to make Ashley more edgy. What if she said or did something that embarrassed them—made them sorry she’d come?
    They picked up hymnals as directed by Pastor McGuire and turned to the page he directed. Ashley looked at the words to the song while the organ introduced the melody. When the singing began, Ashley followed the words in silence, mesmerized by their powerful effect.
    “Oft my heart has bled with sorrow. Not a friend my grief to share.” How very true, Ashley thought. She listened to her daughter sing the words with great enthusiasm and conviction.
    The congregation moved to the second verse. “Once I sighed for peace and pleasure, felt a painful void within.” Oh, the words were like affirmation to her soul, and Ashley couldn’t help but eagerly seek the next refrain. “Life was gloomy, death a terror.” Oh yes, she thought. Yes. Death is a terror. It threatens to steal away all the joy I’ve worked so hard to own.
    The chorus interrupted her thoughts. “Is there here a soul in trouble—whosoever needs a friend? Jesus’ love your heart will gladden, bless and keep you to the end.”
    Could it really be that simple? Could turning your heart over to Jesus—accepting His love—really be the key? If so, why didn’t everybody do it? Ashley teetered between complete confusion and an intense desire to understand. God had seemed so distant to her when Ethan died. She’d attended church most of her life—her mother had insisted. After all, they’d purchased an entire pew at the front of the grandcathedral and no one was ever allowed there but the Murphy family. It was important to be seen in church. It lent an image of worthiness and respectability, her mother had said. This time, however, church seemed different.
    The congregation concluded the song and Pastor McGuire began to pray. He prayed for peace for each individual and then prayed for God to speak through his words. Ashley could hardly concentrate. Her thoughts were still lost in the words of the song. Had she missed something all those years ago?
    Throughout Pastor McGuire’s sermon, Ashley kept coming back to the words of the hymn. Is there here a soul in trouble—whosoever needs a friend? That could certainly describe her, but could she accept that the solution was in seeking God? God, who had taken away her husband and turned her parents against her? What kind of friend would that make God?
    “Why do we suppose when bad things come that God is the only one to bring them?”
    Ashley heard Pastor McGuire’s question and snapped to attention. She looked up to meet the older man’s gaze. It was almost as if he’d been waiting for her acknowledgment.
    “Sometimes the trials we bear are the consequences of our own actions. We know better than to touch a hot stove. Should we put God to a foolish test and touch it anyway? We know that standing on the railroad tracks in defiance of a speeding locomotive is sure to bring us death. Do we stand there anyway, just to see if God is powerful enough to keep us from harm? Of course not.
    “If we put ourselves in harm’s way, purposefully seeking our own pleasure and benefit, and then find ourselves in