Read Online 02 The Secret on Ararat by Tim Lahaye - Free Book Online

sincere and was clearly willing to bare his soul. That kind of humility from a federal agent was rare enough to deserve his full attention.
    “Come on,” said Murphy. “Let’s keep walking, since it’s such a beautiful morning. And you can tell me what the problem is. If I can help you, I will.”
    “Thanks,” said Baines. “You don’t know how much I appreciate it. I’ve been going crazy these past months, and I just didn’t know where to turn.”
    They walked on in silence for a couple minutes while Baines gathered his thoughts.
    “My wife and daughter have been going to Preston Community Church for a while,” he began. “It was my wife’s idea. She thought it would be good for Tiffany, and since nothing else seems to get through to her, I thought, why not give it a try?”
    “So Tiffany’s the problem?”
    Baines nodded wearily. “I’ll say. The last straw was when she got arrested with some of her friends. They were riding in a car, drinking beer and tossing the empty cans at people on the sidewalk. For someone like me, who spends his time trying to catch criminals, trying to keep the streets safe for people like Tiffany andher friends, it’s tough to deal with. And like I say, that was just the last on a long list of stuff—all sorts of misbehavior.”
    Murphy looked thoughtful. “So when did all this start? When did you first think there was a problem?”
    “It sounds kind of trivial,” Baines said. “But it started with her room. She wouldn’t clean up, it was always such a mess. And if my wife, Jennifer, took her to task about it, Tiffany would curse her out. Overnight she seemed to become a different person—loud, excitable, argumentative, always changing her mind, never following through with anything, and angry all the time—almost like she was possessed, like that girl in
The Exorcist.”
    Murphy laughed and patted Baines on the shoulder. “I’m not a priest, I’m afraid, so I can’t help you with casting out demons. But I very much doubt things have reached that stage. It sounds like you’ve just got a somewhat strong-willed daughter on your hands.”
    “Then how come I can’t get through to her? Why does everything we do just make things worse?”
    “Let me ask you a question,” Murphy said. “Does your daughter do anything right?”
    He could tell the question knocked Baines back a little.
    “Well, yeah, sure. I mean, she’s creative, she does well in art at school. And she gets good grades in English. When she can be bothered to finish her assignments,” he added.
    “And what about you?” Murphy asked. “Are you the creative type?”
    Baines looked a little confused. This was supposed to be about Tiffany, not him. “No way. Why do you think Iended up an FBI agent? I like to deal with facts, logic. Everything in its right place. Details. Structure. Artistic people seem so messy and undisciplined to me. And they let their emotions take over. I like to stay calm, be in control of myself.”
    Murphy laughed. “Well, Hank, I think you just told me why you and Tiffany aren’t getting along. You’re just two totally different personality types, is all. She’s spontaneous and creative, lets her emotions run free. You’re logical and controlled. And I imagine you’re a perfectionist too. Only the best is good enough. You two are bound to rub each other the wrong way.”
    Baines rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “So what should I do? Is there some self-help book that’s going to tell me how to act around my daughter?”
    Murphy smiled. “There’s only one book that’s guaranteed to help—whatever the problem. And that’s the Bible.”
    “The Bible has stuff about parenting?”
    “Sure. In the Book of Colossians, Chapter Three, it says,
Fathers, don’t aggravate your children. If you do they will become discouraged and quit trying
. Do you think Tiffany has quit trying?”
    “Yeah, maybe.”
    “And was your father a perfectionist? Was he critical of you, nagging