Faith

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The rest of the day was very sad for Mari and Emmy. They treasured their friendships with Rick and Ashlyn very much, and the thought of those two not being in their lives anymore cut them like a knife, but they knew that good had come out of them taking Ashlyn to church--she received Jesus. Now, if only Rick would do the same...

That night after she put Emmy to bed, Mari went to her bathroom to take a shower before she turned in. She realized she had veggie shreds stuck in her teeth from the salad she ate during lunch time, so she decided to brush her teeth while in the shower. As she spit out the toothpaste, she hoped she wouldn't accidentally step in it before it made its way down the drain and that it wouldn't clog the drain. It didn't clog the drain, and she didn't step in it. When she looked closely enough, she discovered that her toothpaste turned the water a turquoise color. She decided to keep a sample of that the next time she brushed her teeth to show that water can take on a turquoise color.

Once she was done with her shower, she started to climb into bed when Emmy pushed open her door. "Mommy, I can't sleep. Why does Ashlyn's daddy hate us so much?"

Mari sighed. This would be a little difficult to explain. Suppose Emmy thought Rick hated Christians and Emmy wondered if it was wrong to be a Christian? She might eventually feel like it was wrong to believe in Jesus and walk away from the faith. But Mari knew she had to tell Emmy the truth. She'd just choose her words carefully. She patted her leg, and Emmy came and sat on her lap. She gave her daughter a hug and a kiss and said, "Sweetie, he doesn't hate us. He doesn't understand that what we believe is the Truth, so he thinks we are telling Ashlyn things that aren't true. For whatever reason, he doesn't believe in Jesus. He thinks there is no proof that Jesus exists."

"But His Word says he does!" Emmy exclaimed.

"That is true, but Ashlyn's daddy isn't ready to believe yet. We just need to keep him in our prayers," Mari told her.

"Can we pray right now?" Emmy asked.

Mari smiled and hugged her again. "Sure." She and Emmy closed their eyes, and Emmy prayed, "Dear Jesus, thank You for the gift of salvation and for Mommy, Ashlyn, and Ashlyn's daddy. Please help Ashlyn's daddy to believe in You and to stop being angry and let me and Ashlyn play together again. Amen."

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