So, am I saying we should not plan? Or think? No. What I am saying is we must hold our own plans loosely while we seek Father’s heart closely. What an amazing thing to discover that our plans are His plans because we’ve learned how to lean in. How to listen. How to obey.
We learn how to pray with Him, not at Him. We hear His heartbeat.
But what about the times, like Mona struggling with a cancer diagnosis, or Karen grieving over her grandmother’s death, when we can’t hear His heart? We can’t discern His whisper? Those are the times we cling tightly to the precious memories of His past faithfulness. His vast mercy. His unchanging Word.
George Fox, the long-ago founder of the Quakers and lover of God, said it like this: “When at any time my condition was veiled, my secret belief was stayed firm, and hope underneath held me as an anchor in the bottom of the sea, and anchored my immortal soul to its bishop, causing it to swim above the sea, the world, where all the raging waves, foul weather, tempests, and temptations are.”
Hope underneath, holding like an anchor.
It’s my prayer today that if you don’t know that Hope, you will find Him. His name is Jesus.
Discussion Questions
Callie and her friends felt called by God to build Hope House yet encountered overt opposition to their plans. Have you had this happen? How did you respond? Did you ever question what you thought God had asked you to do?
After meeting Sharlene, Callie struggles a bit with her thoughts toward the younger woman. Callie recognizes at one point that she is not being as kind to Sharlene as she could be, and that Sharlene sometimes rubs her the wrong way. How does Callie deal with this realization? What do you do when you are faced with this situation?
Could you relate to Callie’s situation when Mona was diagnosed with breast cancer? What has been your experience with walking alongside a friend or loved one who has received a scary diagnosis? Have you ever experienced God’s healing in your own body or that of a loved one? How would this story have been different had God not healed Mona’s body? Do you think that would have changed Callie’s relationship with Him?
Callie often hears the voice of the Holy Spirit. Do you hear God’s voice? If not, do you want to? How would you go about doing so?
The older gentleman, Kenny, struggled with shame, guilt, and many regrets. He resisted coming to God because he didn’t think God would forgive him. Have you ever felt that way? Read 1 John 1:9. What does God say He will do if we confess our sins to Him?
Because of past experiences, Callie struggled with her deepening relationship with Todd throughout this book and the previous one. What do you think was the main issue she was struggling with? How was this finally resolved by the end of this book? What issues do you struggle with in relationships? How could you find God’s wisdom to help you resolve these issues once and for all?
Now, a Sneak Peek at Book Three
TO ERR IS HUMAN
Chapter One
I spied my mother’s suitcase at the far end of the baggage carousel. “There it is! The enormous black one with the purple bow on the handle.”
Before I could grab it, Mona hefted it off the belt and thunked it down next to me. “Wow. What does she have in that thing?”
I laughed. The bag was almost as tall as my friend and more than half as wide. “My mother does not like to go anywhere unprepared. But Dad said he only had a duffel bag.” I glanced at my phone. “I wonder what’s taking them so long?”
“It’s only been fifteen minutes since their flight landed, Callie.”
“I know. But I haven’t seen them in three years.” And I was more excited to see them than I thought I would be, which was a good thing. My parents were missionaries in Zambia and had only been back in the States for a couple of weeks. “I can’t wait for them to meet you. I’m not sure they realize—”
A huge man pushed in front of me, stepping on my toes and blocking my view of the carousel. He held his phone to his ear, speaking rapidly in another language as he studied the luggage slipping by. Why was he wearing a sweat suit on a sticky July night? I could see the sweat glistening on his brown forehead. And smell it.
I backed away, and Mona clutched my forearm, pulling me further from the man’s excited gesturing. “What a jerk,” she muttered. “Must be either a really good or a really bad conversation.”
“Yeah.” And I’d hate to be on the receiving end of a bad conversation with that guy. He looked like some kind of professional athlete. I’m five-eight, and the dude towered over me, muscles bulging under his hoodie.
Mona glared at his back, her favorite Texas-shaped earrings quivering. “I don’t like rude people. He didn’t even care that he almost knocked you down.”
Obviously. I turned to search the weary passengers coming down the escalator into baggage claim, hoping to see my parents. “I hope they didn’t get lost.”
“Nah. Austin-Bergstrom is not that big of an airport. They probably stopped in the bathroom.”
I pushed my glasses up on my nose and focused my attention on the baggage carousel again. A grey, military-style duffel bag caught my eye. My dad’s. I would know that particular bag anywhere, especially since I could see the red stain from when I had spilled Kool-Aid on it about thirty years ago. “There’s Dad’s bag.” I stepped around Mr. Rude to grab it.
Before I could reach the handle, the man snatched the bag and turned to leave, still talking on his phone.
“Hey! That’s my friend’s bag.” Mona scooted in front of him.
Oh, dear. We didn’t need an altercation in the airport. Maybe he had accidentally grabbed the wrong bag. I stepped toward him. “Excuse me, but I—”
“Callie Erickson. Callie Erickson. Will Miss Callie Erickson please report to the nearest information desk? Callie Erickson.”
I froze, dread washing over me. Why was the airline paging me? Had something happened to my parents?
“Callie! He’s leaving with your dad’s bag!” Mona’s frantic shout from the exit snapped me back to reality.
What in the world? I sprinted toward Mona as the man melded into a crowd, the sliding doors whooshing closed behind them.
“You chase him, Callie! I’m calling the police.” The doors slid open again, and Mona herded me out into the humid darkness of the passenger pick-up area.
Chase him? The guy had disappeared. I scanned the vehicles idling at the curb, their drivers waiting to pick up the arriving passengers. Exhaust fumes hung heavy in the air. Where did he go? Could he have jumped into a car in the fifteen seconds it took for us to follow him?
Mona pulled her phone away from her ear. “The police are telling me to report it to the airline, not to them.”
I sucked in a deep breath. Maybe it wasn’t even my dad’s bag. Maybe his was still taking a slow ride around the carousel. But why was the airline paging me? Maybe—oh, no. “I left Mom’s suitcase in there.” I whirled toward the door. I’d have to deal with Dad’s bag later.
Mona bustled along behind me, continuing her tirade. “I hope no one snatched hers too. What a bunch of baloney. He stole your dad’s bag, right under our noses. And they’re not going to do anything about it. I can’t believe someone could do that and get away with it. What if there was some super important stuff in there?”
I ignored her, my pulse rate jumping as I spotted Mom’s rolling suitcase right where I had left it beside the carousel. At least I hadn’t lost both bags. “Thank God. Thank you, Jesus.”
My relief was momentary. I had Mom’s bag. But I didn’t have her or Dad. I jerked the suitcase handle up and headed toward the escalator, wishing my boyfriend, Todd, was with me. Todd always knew what to do. And he was a cop. That came in handy more often than I’d like.
I yanked Mom’s suitcase onto the first step of the escalator. “Come on, Mona. Let’s find my parents.”
I stared at the woman behind the information desk, then down again at the piece of paper in my hand.
Callie, we had to take care of a
problem. We will see you in a few days. We love you. Mom
What? Supposedly the message was from my mother, but it was not her handwriting. And if this was from my mom, why hadn’t she simply texted or called me? The knot in my stomach tightened. “I’m not understanding. Who left me this message? Did my mother physically hand you this paper? Or did someone call in a message and a person here at the airport wrote it down for me? Or—?”
The woman stared over my shoulder at the line forming behind me. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I have no way of knowing that. And no one handed me anything personally. I’ve only been on my shift for fifteen minutes.”
In other words, go away.
And do what? What had happened to my parents?
Mona pushed up to the counter and stood on tiptoe to lean closer to the unhelpful woman. “Can you at least verify they were on their flight? That they arrived here in Austin?” She tapped her long purple fingernails loudly on the counter in front of the monitor.
I held my breath while the woman stared at her screen for an eternity.
“Their flight originated in Atlanta, is that correct?” She didn’t look at me.
“Yes, ma’am.” I checked my phone for the twentieth time in the last five minutes. Come on, Mom. Text me. This can’t be happening.
“It appears that your parents did board their connecting flight in Kansas City.”
I blew out my breath. “Which means that they should be here in this airport somewhere.” Maybe this was all a huge misunderstanding. Maybe the message was for a different person named Callie. Yeah. That had to be it. “Would you please page them? I think they’re probably just lost. They’ve never been to this airport before.”
Mona threw her arm around my waist and squeezed tight. “I texted Todd for you,” she murmured. “I think it’s gonna be a long night.”
Five hours later, Todd and I sat holding my Aunt Dot’s hands in the surreal pre-dawn. Her husband, Harry, stood behind her wheelchair, his hands on her shoulders.
“What do you mean, they’re ‘missing?’” Aunt Dot searched my face. “I talked to Bettina minutes before they boarded the plane in Kansas City yesterday afternoon.”
“I know. I did too. They were so excited to see all of us.” I sank back in my chair. The last few hours had been a nightmarish whirlwind of phone calls, reports and questions, but no answers. Where were my parents?
“I’m so sorry, darlin’.” Aunt Dot squeezed my hand hard. “What could have happened? Did they somehow miss their flight in KC? But if they did, why didn’t they text you?”
Todd’s blue eyes sought mine, and I nodded. Aunt Dot and Harry needed to know the whole thing. Todd cleared his throat. “The airline has confirmed that Jerry and Bettina did board their plane in Kansas City. It was a direct flight to Austin. Their luggage arrived in Austin.”
“So what happened?” Harry squinted at Todd. “Are y’all suspecting foul play?”
Todd paused before answering, and I knew he was choosing his words carefully. “We have reason to believe that Callie’s parents may have, um—” Todd cleared his throat again. “It appears Jerry and Bettina willfully disappeared after arriving in Austin.”
“What?” Aunt Dot’s hand flew to her throat. “Why would they do such a thing? They were so thrilled at the thought of spending this year with you, Callie. There must be a mistake.”
I wish. I laid my head against the chair and closed my eyes, as if I could fend off the hurt and bewilderment in my aunt’s voice. I didn’t have any answers, either. My head was spinning like I had gotten off a merry-go-round after twirling around one too many times.
Harry growled. “I’ve never met Dot’s niece and her husband but seems to me that folks who are servin’ the Lord on the mission field wouldn’t have any use for shenanigans like that.”
I kept my eyes closed. Jesus, please help me. I’m so weary. “None of it makes any sense.”
“It’s very early on in the investigation to say what happened for certain.” Todd laid his hand on my knee. “Callie, I know you’re wiped out, but you need to tell them about the luggage.”
I might as well get it over with. I pushed myself up to look into two anxious faces. “I got Mom’s suitcase, but some guy grabbed Dad’s bag off the carousel right in front of me and ran off with it. Mona and I tried to chase him down, but he disappeared.”
“Oh, my. He stole it?” Aunt Dot exchanged a meaningful glance with Harry. “Maybe that’s what the Lord has been showing me.”
Harry steepled his fingers under his chin. “I believe so, sugar.”
“What do you mean, Auntie?”
“As I’ve been praying for your parents lately, I’ve seen like a…a…it’s hard to describe. Like the old-fashioned kind of knapsack that someone might have carried years ago.”
Todd wrinkled his brow. “Like a little sack or bandana or something tied to the end of a stick?”
“Yes, exactly.” She beamed at him.
I pictured my dad dressed like Huckleberry Finn and carrying a knapsack. Of course, I was going on twenty-four hours with no sleep, but I couldn’t see the significance. “What do you think it means?”
“That, darlin’, is what we need to pray about.” Aunt Dot sat up straighter, a gleam in her eye. “But I know this whole situation didn’t take God by surprise.”
“That’s right. And we’ll have people working on it twenty-four seven until your parents are home safe.” Todd wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “And this girl needs to go home and get some sleep.” He tugged me to my feet.
I got a head rush and plopped back down on the chair, putting my head between my knees until I could think straight again. “I can’t sleep,” I mumbled. “What if one of them tries to call me? Or what if you guys find out something?”
“I assure you that your aunt and I will be awake and praying, Calendula,” Harry boomed.
I was so exhausted I barely noticed Harry use my given name, Calendula. He was the only one who called me that…except the angel. The angel in the hospital a few months ago called me Calendula. I could use a few more angels right now. God, please send Your warrior angels to protect my parents right now. Release your ministering spirits to comfort and strengthen them…to sing songs of deliverance over them…shield them by Your power…
Todd looped my hair over my ear, startling me. “If something important happens, I’ll come wake you up and tell you.”
I lifted my head, the vision of angels disappearing. “Promise?”
“Promise.” He extended his hand, and I stood, slowly this time.
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