Miracles in Disguise (The Trampled Rose Series) by Michelle Lynn Brown Page B

kind and concerned, obviously reading her fear. He’s not David.
    Fear would have her say no, yet something began to battle her fear. Her bookshelf was filled with wonderful books, but lately, she spent all of her spare reading time pouring through the passages of the Bible. It was so different from how David had presented it, and she had tons of questions dying to be answered.
    “I would love to.” She answered before her fear could stop her.
    “Great, we just started Ephesians,” he said.
    David’s voice reverberated in her head, Ephesian 5:31 says we are to become one flesh, and verse 33 says that you are to reverence your husband. That was the night she had not kept her emotions in check, and he sensed her hesitation when he went to touch her. He had made sure she had understood the meaning of the verses that night. A shiver coursed through her as she also recalled the time she told him she didn’t want to quit working at the school. Ephesians 5:23-24 calls for wives to submit to their husbands, in everything and in every way. She had paid for her disobedience dearly that night. The thought of hearing Nathan rant about submitting to husbands like David made her ready to back out.
    She opened her mouth to say something when Barbara joined them. “Good job, kiddo.” Nathan said to Barbara.
    Before either of them could say anything, Nathan gently squeezed Kristina’s hand. “Well, I better be on my way. I’ll see you at seven o’clock on Thursday,”
    What have I gotten myself into!
    By the time Thursday rolled around, Kristina’s stomach was in knots. She was ready to leave by six o’clock, and nervously paced back and forth in her living room.
    “What am I doing?” she said, kicking off her heels and sitting on the couch. This was the third time she’d removed them.
    She leaned her head back and closed her eyes, willing her stomach to settle. She had faith that God is and will always be who He says He is in His Word. Nathan’s gentle voice reached through her fear as she recalled what he said about Barbara's mother. And from everything she had been reading in the Bible lately, God wasn’t anything like David had presented Him to be.
    David used God to manipulate me, and Nathan would never do that…would he?
    She put her shoes back on, and headed for her car before she could change her mind. When she arrived at the church, Nathan was pulling into the parking lot at the same time. As she gathered her things, he jumped out of the truck and opened her door.
    She was engulfed in his nearness as she climbed out, and his deep, gentle voice felt like it was rumbling in her belly. “I’m so glad you came.”
    Nathan’s natural warmth and charming personality was so infectious that his smile just pulled on her heart like it was on a string, and she found herself smiling and confessing, “Me too, but I'm a little nervous.”
    “Is this your first Bible study?” Nathan asked without a trace of condemnation in his voice.
    She searched his face to see if he was mocking her. “I guess you could say that.” She whispered, averting her eyes.
    Nathan placed his hand lightly on her shoulder as they walked to the church. “I grew up listening to my father preach, and we read the Bible as a family and on our own. It wasn’t until I was in high school that I started reading it because I chose to, because I wanted to hear what God was saying to me. That was when the words just came alive; they reached out to me.” Squeezing her shoulder, he continued, “That’s what God does when we go to His word because we desire to meet with Him. I guess a good analogy would be me being cordial to you in the teacher’s lounge because we are colleagues, and that is the right thing to do, as opposed to me inviting you here tonight. Your response to my invitation to join us tonight was more appreciated because of our growing friendship."
    His words sent a flood of warmth into her heart, both spiritually and emotionally. The