| |
Al sat in a small alcove near the narrow upper opening in the cliff wall reading his Bible. Below, he could see the greenery of the dense wood of the second terrace, and beyond, the edge of the next escarpment. A bank of clouds hung over the third terrace while a white fog sea roiled up against the escarpment edge like waves against the shore. Every once in a while, a wisp of fog would rise up only to dissipate in the gentle wind blowing along the second terrace.
He had been reading Psalm 91 again, as he had every day since Pam and Little Thomas had been kidnapped. Hearing footsteps behind him, he turned and saw Dave approaching. Dave was also carrying his Bible.
“May I join you?” asked Dave.
“Of course. This is about the only place we can sit to get a little bit of daylight. I don’t mean to hog the location.”
Dave settled down on a stone ledge and stared out into the morning light. Al saw him look at his open Bible. “You must be worried to death about Pam and Little Thomas. It must be hard sitting here and doing nothing.”
Al rubbed his eyes. “It shows, does it? I keep reading verses 9 and 10 in Psalm 91:
Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place—
The Most High, who is my refuge—
No evil shall be allowed to befall you,
No plague come near your tent.
“I have always taken the phrase ‘no plague come near your tent’ as a promise that God would protect my family if I stayed loyal to Him. If I stayed under His protection ...
“But now ...” Al could hear his voice begin to tremble. “How can I still believe this? Pam and Little Thomas have been with Bigelow for many days now. She’s completely in his power. For all I know, he could be treating her abominably every day. Or maybe he’s killed her. And Little Thomas, what’s he doing to him? I feel so helpless! And I have to sit here, waiting for Tandor to tell me that it’s safe to move.”
“She’s really not completely in his power,” said Dave softly. “Humanly speaking, Pam and Little Thomas are in a terrible situation. Still, it seems to me you’re assuming that God will do nothing. Isn’t that what faith is all about? Believing that God will do something? Maybe not in your timing, and maybe not exactly what you expect or even hope for. But shouldn’t you believe He will do something good?”
Al found himself looking at Dave in surprise. This conversation seemed somehow familiar. Al felt himself smile. “Dave, Dave, you keep doing this to me. Remember back in New Jerusalem when I was ranting at Dalrymple and what he had done to my brother through the Dalyites?”
“Yeah, I remember I had a lot of chutzpah chiding you about your lack of forgiveness for Dalrymple.”
“Well your chutzpah has helped me again. I feel chastised, as I should. You’re right—I’m supposed to exercise the faith that God is doing something—if not what I expected. Just because He’s not doing exactly what I wanted doesn’t mean He’s doing nothing, and certainly doesn’t mean He doesn’t care.”
Dave smiled. “I can’t help but dish out a smug ‘I told you so.’ Isn’t Thomas here with you now? Hasn’t God worked that out in an unexpected way?”
Just then, they heard footsteps. It was Linder. “Tandor’s back,” he told them. “We have to move now.”