Talk Less -- Pray More

Last month as I was driving to my friend Jane's house, thoughts of conversations swirled through my head.  Questions of "why?"  Wonderings, reasonings, consternation, disbelief and just-below-the-surface anger filled my thoughts.  I heard the Lord speak four simple words into my heart: "talk less, pray more."  Wow.  What powerful instruction from my Commander!

Remembering that time, today I put together a poem that embodies that instruction.

Talk Less -- Pray More

When our pleasant expectations

Turn to many irritations;

When anger turns to conflagration --

Talk less -- pray more!

When that "someone" really hurts you;

When the bills are such an issue;

When your life just needs a breakthrough --

Talk less -- pray more!

When you want to keep on talkin'

'Bout some folks who are a-bulkin'

At the truth in which you're walkin' --

Talk less -- pray more!

When the elephants and donkeys

Make you scratch your head like monkeys,

Till you're feeling rather funky --

Talk less -- pray more!

                  Elaine Beachy

                  August 23, 2012

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

Lady of the House

As a follow-up to the previous post, I want to talk today about a Scripture that has helped me in relating to my husband.  I am well aware that this flies in the face of our current feminist culture in America.  But God's Word is still God's Word: the truth.  Submitting to the Truth is what honors God and lets Him work in our relationships and all that concerns us.

For the sake of context, I will quote the entire verse of Ephesians 5:33 from the Amplified Bible.  The Apostle Paul was talking about how the marriage between a man and a woman typifies Christ and the Church, for he says in verse 25 and 26, "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word."  That whole passage is so good, but I won't take the space to write it out here.

"However, let each man of you [without exception] love his wife as [being in a sense] his very own self; and let the wife see that she respects and reverences her husband [that she notices him, regards him, honors him, prefers him, venerates, and esteems him; and that she defers to him, praises him, and loves and admires him exceedingly.]

I Peter 3: 1-2 agrees:  "In like manner, you married women, be submissive to your own husbands [subordinate yourselves as being secondary to and dependent on them, and adapt yourselves to them], so that even if any do not obey the Word [of God], they may be won over not by discussion but by the [godly] lives of their wives, when they observe the pure and modest way in which you conduct ourselves, together with your reverence [for your husband; you are to feel for him all that reverence includes: to respect, defer to, revere him -- to honor, esteem, appreciate, prize,and, in the human sense,to adore him, that is, to admire, praise, be devoted to, deeply love, and enjoy your husband]."

Relate this to how we'd treat Jesus if he were here in the flesh.  Wouldn't we want to be all those things to Jesus?  Maybe one reason we women have trouble being this way to our husbands is that we don't esteem Jesus the way we should, don't esteem His Word.  (Jesus is called "the Word" in Scripture).  Many women (and men) even attempt to change the Word to make it fit their preferences and selfish desires.  An obedient life is a life blessed by God.  Submission is a dirty word in many circles, but we need a proper understanding of it and order our lives accordingly.

I found it very helpful to understand what the Holy Spirit means by "reverence" for my husband.  It simply means I:

1.  Notice him -- look at him when he speaks or enters a room; learn to read his signals

2.  Prefer him -- give him the best slice of meat, the biggest piece of dessert, the un-chipped glass

3.  Venerate him -- regard him with respect

4.  Esteem him -- set a high value on him

5.  Defer to him -- let him make the final decision on a matter after you've given your input

6.  Praise him -- compliment him privately and in public; brag on him

7.  Adore him -- be extremely fond of him and honor him

8.  Love him -- have a warm attachment and devotion to him

9.  Admire him -- marvel at him, regard him with admiration

10.  Be devoted to him -- be loyal to him; set your heart apart from all others for him

11.  Enjoy him -- have a good time with him; play with him

12.  Prize him -- consider him as one who is exceptionally desirable

One might think, "But wouldn't I be lying if I obeyed these things when I don't see my husband as worthy of my honor or feel "reverence" for him?"

Consider that God's Word says if your husband is acting like a "bone-head," he will be won over by the way you treat him.

I think right now of the movie "Fireproof" and the book called "The Love Dare".  God's Word says that by choosing to act a certain way, it's possible to change both your feelings and your husband's behavior.  It's called "giving grace" where it's not deserved.  That's how God treats us.  A lot of food for thought here.

My story titled "House of Cards" on this blog raises these questions as Monique wonders how she can submit to a husband who is living a bad lifestyle.  Obviously, if a woman (or man) is in physical danger or being abused, there needs to be a separation from the situation.  But I would still say the wife must not denegrate her husband to others publicly or in private.  A woman of prayer never fails.  God can change any husband if we women will submit to follow God's instructions.

Anti-cultural, I know; but I'm sticking with the Word of God.

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy  

Knight in Shining Armor

Francene Grieco-Hayes is a friend and also a former member of Dave's and my Life Group at Manassas Assembly of God before they moved away.  Below this picture is her Facebook timeline post; I liked it so much I asked her permission to use it as my blog post today.  I thank God for the Knight in Shining Armor He gave me in my husband, Dave.



"For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior."  Ephesians 5:23

A wife if vulnerable to emotional exploitation.  She needs her husband's loving care and protection.  Insensitive friends and family can take advantage of her sweet and sensitive spirit.  So, a husband who takes seriously his role of protector is ever vigilant to shield his bride from bad behavior.  What was once a blossoming flower of faith can wither under the assault of rejection and disrespect.  Thus, you guard her heart with your strong stand.

Every woman of faith prays for a godly knight in shining armor who will bear the sword of the Spirit on her behalf.  She longs for a godly man who by faith walks in the fullness of the Spirit: courageous and confident in Christ. 

Are you that husband?  Are you active in safeguarding your wife's mind, will and emotions?  Is her spirit in safekeeping with you?  Wife, your husband is God's buffer against bad people.  So rest; his role is to defend you.  "May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, LORD, is in you."  Psalm 25:11

Men, don't shrink back from stepping up for your woman.  Just like Jesus is the head of the church and gave Himself up for His bride, so you do the same for yours.  Yes, it is daunting at times and we are sometimes defeated, but we do not despair for the Lord is our ultimate defender.  Our battle is with His weapons of prayer, faith and hope.  He saved you to save her from being crusthed by criticism and deceived by lies.  You are her guard.

Ultimately, it is your heavenly Father who spreads His protective coat of character over His children.  Your integrity gives you the moral authority to speak the truth in love.  Courage follows commitment.  Like a calf caught in a hailstorm moves for cover, so you get under Christ's calming cleft.  All hell can break loose around you, but you stay put in prayer at the feet of Jesus.  He will protect you from the evil elements that swirl about. 

Therefore, trust in God's protection first and protect your wife second. She needs you.  "For he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones."  Proverbs 2:8

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House of Cards, Part Seven

The TV program was over.  Jake looked over at her and studied her for a moment, as if he was about to say something.  Monique gave him a smile.

“Why are you being nice to me?”  There: he’d said it.  Better to know the truth and get it over with.  He braced himself for the answer.

“Oh Jake, the most wonderful thing has happened to me.”

“Are you in love with someone else, Monique?  Are you having an affair?”  Jake couldn’t help himself.  He had to know.

Monique’s mouth flew open and her eyes registered shocked surprise.  Now he felt ashamed he’d even asked the question.

“No way, Jake!  She reached over and put a hand on his arm. 

He pulled away. 

“I’m not in love with anyone else and I’m not having an affair!  Why would you think that?”  Monique's lips began to tremble.

Jake stood up and got another beer from the fridge. 

* * *   

Monique’s eyes filled with tears.  “The most wonderful thing I’m talking about is what happened to me about a month ago here in the living room.  

“I feel so afraid and alone when you’re drunk or high, Jake.  Four weeks ago I was feeling like that when you came home drunk and high and yelled at Gib.  I was desperate for help, and didn’t know what to do.  That night I remembered my grandmother saying that a home without the foundation of Jesus is like living in a house of cards.  I asked God to help me.  Then I thought of my Bible I used to read in High School, and I found it in the basement in a box from our last move.  When I opened my Bible, a letter fell out.  Would you like to read it?”



When Jake didn’t say “yes” or “no”, she opened the TV cabinet door, got her Bible, found the letter and handed it to him.  Monique waited in silence as he read.  She prayed silently.  What should I say to him, Jesus? Help me to say it in the right way.  Help me to speak the truth in love.  Please work in his heart to accept Your truth, too.

As he finished the letter, Jake kept his head lowered.  When he looked up, there were tears in his eyes.  “If this is really true, why didn’t someone tell me about Jesus sooner?  I didn’t know He paid for all my sins.  The foster parents I had told me to ‘do this, don’t do that, because the Bible says so’, but nobody ever told me Jesus loved me or paid for my sins.  I could never be good enough to please my foster parents.  Seemed they were always upset with me.”

Monique asked, “May I show you the Scripture I read when I asked Jesus to save me from my sins?”

Jake looked at her as she turned to Romans 10:9-10 and read it aloud.  Would you like to pray to receive Jesus for yourself?”  Monique held her breath.  Surely the Holy Spirit was at work in her husband.

“Yes, I would, Monique; yes I would.”

In a broken voice, Jake began to speak to God in a child-like way.  “God, I’ve made a mess of my life; please clean me up and give me a new life.  I surrender my life to You and say You are my Lord too, like Monique here.  Help me be a good husband and forgive all my sins.  I didn’t know you paid for all my sins.  I thought I had to be good so You’d love me.  Thank You for paying for all my sins.”

In her own heart, Monique was praising and thanking God.  Rachel taught her that Scripture says God's kind of love never fails. This had to be the secret of winning a spouse over to the Lord, just like that fellow Peter in the Bible said.  I can't wait to tell Rachel!

As they stood to their feet, a new husband and a new wife embraced each other. They had exchanged their house of cards for the new beginnings of a house built on the Rock, Christ Jesus.

                                                                ~ ~ ~

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House of Cards, Part Six

A month had passed since that life-changing night she found her Bible in the basement.  Thank God for friends!  As Monique joined Jake in the living room to watch M*A*S*H, she thought of Rachel across the street. 

Rachel brought her daughter over to sell Girl Scout cookies three weeks ago.  Turned out she and Rachel became good friends and they began to study the Bible together twice a week.  Rachel taught her about the free grace of God that lets us live in freedom toward God.  Monique confided her troubles to Rachel, who in turn helped her see God’s truth about love and marriage in the Bible.  She remembered how Rachel prayed with her for Jake and Gib to also make Jesus the Master of their lives.  How wonderful it would be to all stand on the same foundation together!

She especially was grateful for the words in the book of I Peter 3 that Rachel showed her.  Monique had memorized them: “Wives, in the same way, be submissive to your husbands so that, if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives.  Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.  Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.  For this is the way holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful.  They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master.  You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.”

Fear.  Afraid if she didn’t yell at Jake, stand up for herself, he’d walk all over her, take advantage of her.  Could she trust God to take care of her if she stepped out in faith and obeyed God’s Word?  Did that mean she didn’t have a mind of her own?  Wasn’t allowed to say what she thought and how she felt about something?  When was the time to speak up and when was the time to be quiet? 

You can speak up without yelling, Monique.  You have a right to say how you feel and what you think, to speak the truth in love.  Wow, did God just speak into her heart?  She was amazed by the peace that came over her.  Rachel had told her the Holy Spirit would speak to her and give her wisdom.  And He really did!  

God could handle her problems; change Jake and Gib.  Rachel said so, and she believed it.  Yelling and scolding, blaming and shaming hadn’t worked.  Those things only drove her and Jake further apart. 

Rachel told her that when a man is shown respect, he feels honored, which translates into feeling loved.  She also learned that a guy loves to have his girl sit with him and just “hang out” without conversation.  That was an eye-opener, and something she could do.  With all that was within her, she was committed to make her marriage work.  To ask God for help, to give her wisdom.

A question plagued her: how could she respect Jake when he continued his current lifestyle?  What did "showing respect" mean?  She would talk some more to Rachel about that scripture about being quiet and submissive.  One thing she felt certain of: God had the answer, and she would find it, somehow. 

Monique's thoughts were silent prayers as she leaned her head against the back of her cushioned chair and watched Alan Alda, Wayne Rodgers, and Loretta Swit in action. 

To be continued. . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House of Cards, Part Five

Jake heard Monique hum a tune as she ran the Swiffer duster under the TV and across the top.  She smiled at him as she dusted the coffee table.  For the past month she’d been acting weird.  He went to the kitchen, came back with a beer and settled in his favorite arm chair to watch a M*A*S*H re-run. 

“Would you like a sandwich and chips, Jake?”  Monique straightened the magazines on the coffee table.  

Jake felt startled.  Why was she being so nice to him?  What had gotten into his wife?  “Yes, that would be good.” 

He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he wondered why she didn’t yell back at him anymore when he yelled at her.  A sudden thought occurred to him: maybe she’s having an affair!  The thought jolted him.  He didn’t matter to her anymore.  Yes, that must be it.  She was secretly planning to leave him.  Just like his mother had left him all alone when he was five years old.  He felt cold inside.  The cutting pain of that memory fueled every bit of the feelings of distrust, fear and hate that rose inside him.  Maybe he’d go out tonight and get some drugs and forget all this – at least for awhile.  Anything to stop the pain, the self-loathing, the emptiness inside.  But then there was the problem of paying for the drugs and alcohol he’d come to see as the answer.  Things were getting tight. . . But he wouldn’t think of that now.  He downed the beer and went to the fridge for another. 

Monique was in the kitchen putting lettuce, Swiss cheese and pickles on top of a ham and turkey on rye.  His favorite.  He watched her put it on a plate and cut it in half.  He felt cut in half.  His soul felt like that pickle: biting and sour.

Would he dare tell her how he was feeling, what he was thinking?  Deep down inside a part of himself wanted to open up to her, but if she was planning to leave him, he had to defend himself.  Watch his step.  This was no time to go soft.  What would it be like to have a happy family?  To love and be loved without fear of rejection? Where did he and Monique go wrong?  He wished they could go back to those first months of married life when he’d felt so sure Monique could fill the hole in his heart.  Then Gib had been born, and it seemed she didn’t have time for him anymore.  Always busy with the baby.  He admitted it:  he’d resented it.

As his wife handed him the plate with a sandwich and chips, he grunted in brief recognition of the favor she’d done him.  

He bit into his sandwich and was astonished that Monique joined him in the living room to watch TV.  She’d always had something else to do in the house—leaving him alone with his beer and TV.  Why did she now have time to sit with him and watch a show she didn’t especially care for?  Something was up. . .

                                                          To be continued. . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House of Cards, Part Four

 Monique found a Kleenex and mopped the tears from her face, then got a fresh tissue and blew her nose.  After she washed her hands, she unloaded and put away the clean dishes, then re-loaded the dishwasher, put a Cascade Complete tablet in the dispenser, closed the lid, and pushed the “start” button.  Next she wiped down the counters and sink with kitchen disinfectant cleaner.  

 After she swept the kitchen floor and damp-mopped it, she turned off the kitchen light, picked up the letter and returned to the comfort of the chair in the living room.  Gib still wasn’t home.  What if he’s out there with bad company doing God only knows what?  The thought plagued her.   

 Monique opened her Bible to Matthew 7:24-27 and read that the house built on the rock didn’t fall down during the rain, floods, and strong winds that beat against that  house.  It stood firm on the rock.  That’s what she wanted – no – needed.  She was tired and very afraid in this house of cards.  She had to have peace and an anchor.  She found the Scripture in Romans her grandmother mentioned and thought about it.

 Finally, in an attitude of surrender, Monique slipped to her knees in front of the chair and prayed, “Jesus, please forgive me of all my sins and the mess in my life.  I want to have this solid foundation I read about here in the Bible.  I need peace.  I take you as the Lord and Savior of my life, to have and to hold forever.  Please, God, help Jake’s and my marriage to get on the right track, and help Jake to give his life to you, too.”

 Peace and a sense of relief came over her.  As she knelt there, tears again washed her face.  The feeling of being loved was so wonderful – she couldn’t explain it.

 The front door opened and Gib walked in.  Monique stood up, wiped her face with a Kleenex, and looked into the face of her son. 

 “Gib, where have you been?  I’ve been so worried about you!”  Monique walked toward him. 

 He held up his hand in protest: “I don’t want to talk about it.  You and Dad always fight, and I just can’t take it anymore!  You think I don’t know when he comes home drunk?  You think I don’t know he’s doing drugs?  He’s a bum, and doesn’t even care about me.  Just cares about himself.”

 “Gib, don’t say that; your father does love you – in his own way.  He just doesn’t know how to show it very well.”  Monique’s eyes filled with tears as she looked down at the floor.  She wondered if Jake even cared about himself.  Jesus, what can I tell my son?  Please help me.

 Gib headed toward the kitchen through the living room to fix himself a sandwich and saw a Bible lying on the chair and asked, “Is that a Bible, Mom? Why are you reading it?”

 Monique smiled at him through her tears and eagerly showed him her grandmother’s letter, and told how she asked Jesus to take over her life.  “We need Jesus in our home, Gib.  Your father, you, and I each need Him as the foundation for our personal lives.”

 “I don’t know, Mom,” Gib said.  “What would my friends think if I ‘go soft’ on them, and ‘get religion’ and all?  And fat chance of getting Dad convinced.”  Gib turned and went upstairs.

 “Don’t you want a sandwich?  You must be hungry since you missed dinner.”

 There was no answer.

 Monique knelt by the chair and stayed on her knees for a long time after Gib went to bed.

                                                              To be continued. . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House Of Cards, Part Three

 Monique switched on the lamp by the overstuffed chair in the living room, sank down into the chair’s welcome softness and opened her Bible.  An envelope fell out.  What was this?  The envelope was still sealed and as she turned it over, she saw her name on the front.  Monique took the envelope to the kitchen, turned on the overhead row of bulkhead pot lights, cleaned off a paring knife, and quickly slit the long edge open.  Leaning against the countertop, she took out a letter, dated August 20, 1994, addressed to her:

Dear Monique,

By the time you read this, I may already have passed on to the other side. But I want you to know that my prayers for you are still alive; they never die. I also want you to know that I love you very much.  

I will admit that I am distressed you’ve chosen to elope with Jake and are now married. I would have liked the chance to see you walk down the isle of our church and know that you and Jake have a solid foundation for your marriage.  However, that is not the way things worked out, so I want to put a few words on paper for you and pray the day will soon come when you will find this letter I tucked in your Bible before you moved away.

My dear granddaughter, Jesus is the only solid foundation for a life or marriage.  Even if you may seem to lose your way, call out to Jesus and talk to Him.  Read your Bible again, and believe what it says to you.  Find Matthew 7:24-27 and put the words of Jesus into practice in your life.  God is not angry with you. Jesus paid for all our sins, including yours and mine.  All have sinned – there is no one who is righteous without Jesus – no, not one person!  He is waiting for you to come to Him and believe what He says.  Find Romans 10: 9-10; read it, believe it, and do it.

I pray you and Jake will build your marriage on the solid Rock that is Jesus.  My prayers always follow you.

God bless you always.

Your loving grandmother,

Violet

 As Monique finished the letter, her eyes blurred with tears that fell in large drops onto her grandmother’s handwriting as she bowed her head and cried.

                                                                  To be continued. . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House Of Cards, Part Two

 Jake.  She knew he didn’t have an easy life growing up.  He’d been in and out of foster homes since he was five years old, didn’t know who his father was, and was abandoned by his mother on a street corner in New York City. “Wait here,” she had told him; “I’m going inside the bakery to get us a treat.  Now you be good and stay here till I come.  I’ll be right back.”  She never came back.  A policeman had found him crying, and Jake was placed into foster care until he was eighteen.  She knew the scars of betrayal and hurt went deep.

 She had been so sure that once they were married, her love for him would be enough to change him and bring him happiness.  Instead, everything she tried to do to change made him moody and irritable.  So far he'd never physically hit her, but in anger he'd grabbed her and pinned her to the wall. There'd been many word fights; he went out nights more and more, stayed away longer and longer.  The relentless question she dreaded pressed itself into her mind: is he seeing someone else?  Where did he go at  night, and why did he stay away so long?  Her knight in shining armor was badly tarnished.  Why could't she polish him? 

 Monique longed for peace.  She remembered those early days of their marriage, how happy she'd been, how they did things together, how much in love they were.  Feelings of loneliness constricted her throat as she bit back the tears.  After all, she had made her own bed and had to lie in it, just like Mom had said.  Mom.  Where could she turn to for help?  She was sure a phone call to her mother would be unwelcome and so humiliating.  “If you leave this house, girl, don’t you ever come back to me for help!  I’ve had it with you!”  Her mom’s final words still had its effect, and she'd kept her distance -- physically and emotionally.    

 In desperation, she thought of her Bible.  She tried to remember where she last saw the Bible she had read sometimes as a teenager.  Probably still packed away in the moving boxes from six months ago, she said to herself.  Seemed they were always moving from place to place – since the day she and Jake moved far away from her parents and family. 

 Monique looked at the dishes piled in the sink that couldn’t be put into the dishwasher until she unloaded and put away the clean ones.  Jake had tracked in mud when he came home and the floor needed cleaning.  What to do first?  That was the question.  Priorities.  Yes, that was it.  Set some priorities.  Get moving – do something.  Don’t just sit here and brood.

 She got to her feet just as Gib came bounding down the stairs and snarled, “I’m going out.  Don’t bother to wait up for me.”  Her question of “Where are you going?” was lost to the air as her teenage son disappeared out the front door, slamming it behind him. 

 Stunned by his rude behavior and tone of voice, Monique covered her face with her hands and let herself have an old-fashioned cry.  As she sobbed, she heard herself say, “Oh God, oh God.  Please help me.  Help my family.”  She hadn’t prayed in years.  Where was that Bible?  A feeling of hope began to invade her mind as she realized her first priority.  

 In the basement, Monique began opening boxes and searching in earnest. It just had to be here somewhere.  An hour passed, and her arms and back ached.  She found her grandmother’s picture in a box with some clothes from ten years ago.  Why was she keeping those clothes anyway?  The thought irritated her.  If she wouldn’t have so much to unpack, she’d have found the Bible by now.  People said she looked a lot like her grandma.  Monique wondered what she’d look like in a 50’s hairstyle.  Maybe those people were right. . .

 Her hand found a book; quickly she flung aside an old bathrobe and bedroom slippers and pulled it out of hiding.  It was her high school yearbook.  Shucks.  She’d have to keep looking.  As she pawed through skirts and blouses, Monique’s fingers closed around another book, and as she pulled it out, there was her Bible!  She hugged it to her chest, fled upstairs with her Bible and Grandmother’s picture, and left the basement in a mess.

                                                                 To be continued . . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy

House Of Cards: Part One

 Monique felt sick at heart.  Once again he’d come home drunk and high; she hoped he’d just go upstairs and sleep it off.  She was tired of making excuses for him, hiding his addictions from their son Gib, and phoning in sick for him.  Tired of cleaning up his messes.  Gib was fast losing respect for his dad, and no wonder; she had lost respect for Jake as well.  The pain in her heart found its way to her head and she searched in the kitchen cabinet for an Advil to kill the pain.  If only life’s messes could be fixed by a pill. . . 

 Her thoughts trailed away –  wishing she’d been more discerning before marrying Jake, wishing she had heeded her mother’s and grandmother’s warnings, wishing they had been married in a church; wishing, wishing, wishing.  She washed down the Advil with a glass of water, and then sat down at the kitchen table.  Maybe she should eat a soda cracker or two with the Advil . . .  Putting her head in her hands, an old saying she’d heard somewhere came to mind:  “If wishes were horses, beggars would ride.”  

 Hot tears threatened to erupt as her mind replayed her mother’s words: “You’ve made your bed; now sleep in it!”  The memory still cut.  For the first time in a long time, she felt regret she’d chosen to distance herself from her family.  She felt so alone.  Hadn’t spoken to her mother or grandmother in years; somehow it just seemed easier to go on living without the entanglements of a meddling family and difficult relationships. What was it she had heard her grandmother say once?  Her head throbbed.  “Build your house on the rock, Monique; a house built on the sand is no better than a house of cards.  It’ll be destroyed by the storms of life.”

 Now she was living in that proverbial house of cards.  A house that would surely crumble and be scattered to the wind if it blew any harder.  She toyed with the idea of leaving Jake.  But if she did, what would happen to Gib?  How would she make a home for the two of them?  She was already working long hours at a job that drained her. 

 What would happen to Jake?  What would it do to him?  Would he spiral out of control even worse than he was now if she left him or told him to get out?  Where would he go if she did throw him out of the house?  Was there hope of getting a new start, a solid foundation, a house built on rock, like her grandmother said?  Were there any second chances?  The questions swirled through her head like the spiral arm in a slushy machine.

                                                                    To be continued. . .

Copyright © 2012 Elaine Beachy