on you. I didn’t cheat on you. I was distraught. I kissed him, but we both stopped. We love you. Please, Dale, you have to believe me.” Laura’s pleading voice rang in her ears, but did not immediately register.
Thoughts filled her mind, fighting for organization. She knew how much Laura and Jason liked each other. And she knew how her own drive to succeed had led her to sacrifice precious time with Jason. But Laura was telling her nothing had happened between them. She finally found her voice
“Laura, just tell me, what were you doing there?”
“Dale, I’m pregnant! I told Bob just before Jason got to the bar. He just laughed and said he would help pay to get rid of the problem. I slapped him. He threw a couple of hundred dollar bills on the bar and walked out. Just like that. I know a lot of people think I’m just someone who loves to party, but I could never abort this child. I cannot kill an innocent child. So I just sat there thinking how I had just thrown away my career. I could not believe how stupid I was.”
Laura took a deep breath to regain her composure, and then pressed on. “So when Jason got there I just fell apart. Jason came in and found me like that, and I just totally lost it. He told me he knew Bob was not good enough for me. He told me I wasn’t a loser. He said such wonderful things. I got lost in them and I kinda threw myself at him. Dale, I am so, so sorry. Please forgive me. You know I love you like family. You are my dearest friend and I need you. I was just so upset about everything. I was even upset about what you would think of me. You have always been so good. You have always tried to tell me about the consequences of my actions. I should have listened to you. My life is changed forever.”
It was Bob’s baby, not Jason’s. Jason and Laura have not cheated on me. Dale stilled herself and prayed for strength. Her pain was still fresh, but she felt God’s grace and knew she could forgive Laura. She realized how important it was to demonstrate that grace to Laura, an unbeliever. “It’s going to be okay, Laura. I promise. But where is Jason now?”
“I don’t know; the phone woke me up. I guess I just answered it without thinking.”
“Laura, why didn’t you come to me? I am your best friend.”
“Dale, you are my best friend and I didn’t want to…” She stopped and took a deep breath to stifle the sob about to erupt in her throat. “I have disappointed you. You are so strong and so good, and I’m just …”
“You are just a sinner. You are just like I am, just like everyone is. I am no better than you, and you are not worse than I am. We all come short of what our heavenly Father wants for us. But what we, as human beings, forget is that God wants the very best for us no matter what we do. And because He created us, He is the only one who really knows what that is. So when we make wrong choices that hurt us, He hurts with us. You have not disappointed me at all. You made a decision that was not in God’s will, but He loves you and will forgive you. And Laura, He has plans for us, to prosper us and to give us hope and a future, all because He loves us more than we could ever imagine. Even in the bad things that happen to us or that we do ourselves, He can use those too for good. And now that you are home, the two of us will figure out how we are going to rearrange the apartment, because pretty soon it will be the three of us.”
“Home? Really? Oh, Dale, I love you. Can I ask you just one favor?”
“Anything, my friend.”
“Can I, uh, can I go to church with you this Sunday?”
“I would love that, Laura. We have a new associate pastor, Mike Parker. I think you will like him. He has a way of talking about the gospel that really brings it to life.”
The two held each other, both laughing and crying in the moment. Finally Arthur jumped back on the couch and reminded them that it was well past his feed time. Laura brushed away a tear and ran her hand
Thoughts filled her mind, fighting for organization. She knew how much Laura and Jason liked each other. And she knew how her own drive to succeed had led her to sacrifice precious time with Jason. But Laura was telling her nothing had happened between them. She finally found her voice
“Laura, just tell me, what were you doing there?”
“Dale, I’m pregnant! I told Bob just before Jason got to the bar. He just laughed and said he would help pay to get rid of the problem. I slapped him. He threw a couple of hundred dollar bills on the bar and walked out. Just like that. I know a lot of people think I’m just someone who loves to party, but I could never abort this child. I cannot kill an innocent child. So I just sat there thinking how I had just thrown away my career. I could not believe how stupid I was.”
Laura took a deep breath to regain her composure, and then pressed on. “So when Jason got there I just fell apart. Jason came in and found me like that, and I just totally lost it. He told me he knew Bob was not good enough for me. He told me I wasn’t a loser. He said such wonderful things. I got lost in them and I kinda threw myself at him. Dale, I am so, so sorry. Please forgive me. You know I love you like family. You are my dearest friend and I need you. I was just so upset about everything. I was even upset about what you would think of me. You have always been so good. You have always tried to tell me about the consequences of my actions. I should have listened to you. My life is changed forever.”
It was Bob’s baby, not Jason’s. Jason and Laura have not cheated on me. Dale stilled herself and prayed for strength. Her pain was still fresh, but she felt God’s grace and knew she could forgive Laura. She realized how important it was to demonstrate that grace to Laura, an unbeliever. “It’s going to be okay, Laura. I promise. But where is Jason now?”
“I don’t know; the phone woke me up. I guess I just answered it without thinking.”
“Laura, why didn’t you come to me? I am your best friend.”
“Dale, you are my best friend and I didn’t want to…” She stopped and took a deep breath to stifle the sob about to erupt in her throat. “I have disappointed you. You are so strong and so good, and I’m just …”
“You are just a sinner. You are just like I am, just like everyone is. I am no better than you, and you are not worse than I am. We all come short of what our heavenly Father wants for us. But what we, as human beings, forget is that God wants the very best for us no matter what we do. And because He created us, He is the only one who really knows what that is. So when we make wrong choices that hurt us, He hurts with us. You have not disappointed me at all. You made a decision that was not in God’s will, but He loves you and will forgive you. And Laura, He has plans for us, to prosper us and to give us hope and a future, all because He loves us more than we could ever imagine. Even in the bad things that happen to us or that we do ourselves, He can use those too for good. And now that you are home, the two of us will figure out how we are going to rearrange the apartment, because pretty soon it will be the three of us.”
“Home? Really? Oh, Dale, I love you. Can I ask you just one favor?”
“Anything, my friend.”
“Can I, uh, can I go to church with you this Sunday?”
“I would love that, Laura. We have a new associate pastor, Mike Parker. I think you will like him. He has a way of talking about the gospel that really brings it to life.”
The two held each other, both laughing and crying in the moment. Finally Arthur jumped back on the couch and reminded them that it was well past his feed time. Laura brushed away a tear and ran her hand
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