She leaned forward. “That’s not true.”
“Give it up, angel. I know who I am. I’m the guy everyone wishes would go away. I’m dirt.”
“You’re not. Every person is special.”
“Says who?” Zach asked.
“We’re God’s children. We have the choice to love Him back, but He already loves us.”
He shifted in his seat, avoiding her gaze. “Yeah, ifGod’s so good, why hasn’t He been good to me? It’s hard to see how awesome He is when I got the short end of the stick.”
“Have you given Him any respect? No offense, but you’ve lived a lawless life. I’m one-hundred-percent behind you as you go forward, but there’s no denying you’ve lived for yourself in the past. Have you realized that you’re not the Almighty?”
Zach jerked back. “Wow. Don’t pull your punches.”
“Come on. I can be straightforward with you, right? You told me once that you think there probably is a God. If you do believe and humble yourself, it changes the way you see God. To be honest, that’s the only thing that needs to change. God already knows you and loves you, flaws and all. All He wants is our belief and obedience.”
“Obedience,” Zach said slowly.
“I know that’s been tough for you too. You don’t like being told what to do.”
“You think?” he asked, playful despite the serious subject.
Lauren reached for his hand, ignoring the twinge in her shoulder. “You could be the salt of the earth. A light on a hill. God gave you the freedom to choose your path because love isn’t true unless it’s given freely. Choose Him. Choose to grab onto that happiness and take it, along with everything that comes with it. You want to be free? You’ll never be free until you believe that Jesus sacrificed Himself for you. You’ll never be free until you humble yourself and willinglytake up your cross and follow Him. Nothing can stand against you as long as He is with you.”
Zach didn’t push her hand away, but he remained still for long seconds. If he didn’t say something soon, she was going to pass out from lack of oxygen. She’d been tiptoeing around the subject for so long, and while she didn’t want to push him too much, he’d given her signs lately that he was ready to take a step.
He didn’t have to do anything. She just wanted a sign that he was listening and thinking about her words.
Finally, he squeezed her hand. “That makes sense.”
“It does? What part?” Color her shocked, but she hadn’t expected him to be quite so agreeable.
“All of it. It probably helps that you’re really passionate when you talk about God. And that you’re smarter than me. It makes me want to believe you.”
“Don’t believe me. Believe the promises He’s already given us. They’re written in the Bible, and all you have to do is reach out and grab them.”
Zach huffed and jerked his chin toward the Bible she kept on the end table. “I haven’t read a book since middle school, and you want me to jump into that?”
“Don’t be intimidated. You’re not meant to understand it all yet. I don’t even understand it all. What matters is that you’re learning and growing.”
Zach’s thumb moved slowly over the back of her hand. “I’ve been doing a lot of that lately.”
“We both have.” She focused on the gentle brushof the pad of his thumb on her skin. “I’ve been working on something, and I hope you’ll at least hear me out.”
“Oh, great. Your projects usually cause me a lot of grief.”
“This one is for you. Did you know Matt Benson is an ordained minister?”
Zach’s brows furrowed. “No, but that makes a lot of sense.”
“I’ve been talking to the Bensons about starting a church in Silver Falls. On the ranch, to be exact.”
Zach straightened his shoulders. “A church?”
“Did you know that everyone who works on the ranch has a criminal record? Everyone except Tammy.”
“You can’t tell me Bella has a rap sheet.”
