Read Online The Wedding Caper by Janice Thompson - Free Book Online Page A

Lord to speak to you.
    He does.
    I opened
to a scripture verse, Proverbs 17:27-28. It was straight from God’s mouth to my
ears: “A truly wise person uses few words; a person with understanding is
even-tempered. Even fools are thought to be wise when they keep silent; when
they keep their mouths shut, they seem intelligent.”
    Ouch.
    Okay, I
must admit, I had struggled a little in this area. Keeping silent wasn’t a
strong suit. My ability to listen was often preempted by my need to get a word in
edgewise. But I would work on that, with the Lord’s help. After this gentle
reminder, I would focus on keeping my ears open and my lips closed.
    Before
leaving the computer, I faced the ever-growing stack of e-mails head-on. Many
were forwards from Sheila, those quirky things she liked to send to put a smile
on my face. Still others were thank-you notes from clients, grateful for my
help with their projects. And the rest, well. . .
    For a
couple of days, I had refused to open any of the lessons from www.investigativeskills.com.
I’d learned my own “lesson,” to be sure. But by now, the irritable things were
stacking up and curiosity got the better of me, so I opened the next one in
line, Lesson Four, just for a quick glance. Interestingly enough, the title grabbed
me right away: A GOOD INVESTIGATOR HAS EXCELLENT LISTENING SKILLS.
    Yep. The
Lord appeared to be driving home His point this morning. I took a closer look
at the piece, chuckling as I read, “In order to better hone in on clues, an investigator
has to focus on his or her listening skills.”
    A
Sheila-ism popped into my head immediately. Just last week, in an attempt to
conclude a story about an embarrassing moment she’d had at the grocery store,
Sheila made me laugh with these words: “A closed mouth gathers no foot.”
    How
beautifully that little phrase matched the message du jour.
    I scoured
the rest of the article, amazed at the biblical principles found within. Caught
up in the excitement, I almost missed the gong of the hall clock. The final
peal caught my attention. Noon? Already?
    Warren’s
unexpected invitation to meet him for an impromptu lunch had provided a
pleasant distraction and I certainly didn’t want to keep him waiting. Flying
into gear, I grabbed my sweater and my purse, then headed for the door. I arrived at the bank in record time, but found him busy
with a customer.
    Nikki
approached me with a broad smile and an apparent need for conversation. “I just
wanted to thank you for praying,” she whispered. “Amber is feeling much better
now.”
    “Is she?
That’s wonderful.”
    With a
glowing face, Nikki continued on. “So many good things have happened to me
lately. It’s obvious someone’s been praying.” She reached over to give my hand
a squeeze.
    I offered
up a smile of support. “Fill me in. What’s happening?”
    “Well, to
start with, I’m putting Amber in private school.” She hesitated a minute as her
eyes misted over. “She was really struggling at the other school. It’s hard
being the new kid in a small town. And besides—” Here Nikki’s expression
changed. “Lots of the children were making fun of her because she didn’t have a
daddy, that sort of thing.”
    “That’s
awful.”
    “Yeah.”
She sighed. “But I’ve been there. I had a dead-beat dad, myself, and I know how
mean kids can be.” Nikki’s eyes lit as she continued on. “But I heard about the Clarksborough Christian School and went to check it
out.”
    I knew
the school well—also knew it cost a pretty penny to send a child there.
How in the world could Nikki manage such a thing on a security guard’s salary?
    Slow
down, Annie, and listen to what she’s saying. Don’t assume. After all, Nikki
did pull in extra hours at the diner in the evenings. She must really love her
daughter, to work so hard on her behalf.
    I reached
to give her a hug. “I’m so happy for you. And for Amber. I pray she does well.”
    “Thank
you. I just want