October Joy (Moments In Paradise 1)
Page 25
She smiled. “I slept well.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“How did you sleep?”
“How do you think? I had a beautiful woman to snuggle with. You were in my dreams all night long.”
She smiled. “Who are you, and what are you doing in my honeymoon suite?”
“I’m your husband, and that’s an amazing feeling.”
Yesterday had been a bit of a blur with all the activity and people surrounding them. But today felt real, and they could simply enjoy being together.
“How about if we go for a walk on the beach and catch an early breakfast?” he asked.
“That sounds nice.”
They both got ready for the day and stepped into the cool morning air. They walked down to the water, and he did enjoy the simple pleasure of being with Sarah in a beautiful setting. Yesterday had been nice, but stressful. Today he didn’t have a care in the world.
“I have something to tell you,” she said. “I was going to tell you this on the way here last night, but I fell asleep, and then I had other things on my mind after that.”
“Other things? Like what?”
She smiled at him with a sweet expression. “I was so nervous. Isn’t that funny? All those years of being married, and then suddenly I was twenty-three all over again.”
He stopped to give her some passionate kisses. He could have stood there kissing her for a long time, but he gave her a chance to speak.
“What do you have to tell me?”
She smiled. “Chandler and Heather are moving here.”
He mirrored her smile, and his heart lightened instantly. He knew having Sarah here with him was the right thing, but moving her away from her children and only grandchild had been burdensome to him.
“That’s good news. Did they tell you yesterday?”
“On Friday. I wanted to wait and tell you as a surprise. I know you’ve been praying about that.”
“How soon?”
“Chandler has some appointments already booked up through Christmas, and he has two weddings in January he needs to follow through with, but after that they’ll be coming so he can get his business set up here.”
“Grace will be married by then, so they can live with us until they find their own place.”
“Will you give them your bed?” she teased him.
“Our bed,” he corrected. “And no, they cannot have it. That room is for you and me now.”
“I’m looking forward to that.”
“Do you want to go back to the room and order room service?”
She laughed. “Now you are acting like we’re twenty.”
“I feel twenty,” he said. “You make me feel young again, Sarah Morgan.”
“Like the beginning of another lifetime, huh?”
He’d been having similar thoughts yesterday during the wedding. “Yes, I’d say so.”
They began walking again, and Sarah asked him something else. “Why do you think God took Annika and Levi and left us here to find each other?”
“I don’t know.”
She seemed thoughtful, and he wondered why she asked and what she needed to hear. He thought about her question and tried to come up with a better answer. He’d had similar thoughts before about why God had taken Annika, certainly, and he’d seen answers to that here and there. But why were Annika and Levi gone? Why were they still here? He didn’t know.
Stopping her with a gentle hug and some sweet kisses, he said the only thing he knew for sure. “All I know, Sarah, is this is our reality now. We can’t change the past. We can’t bring back those we loved. But we can choose to live the life God has given us now. We can love each other. We can trust Him to lead us on from here. We can live today.”
She appeared at peace with that answer. “I think today is going to be a nice day.”
“Yes,” he said. “I believe it is. And that’s all I need to know.”
Dear Reader,
Do you ever imagine what Heaven will be like? I think I have for as long as I can remember. My descriptions of Heaven in this story are based heavily on my imagination. I have attempted to be as accurate as possible with the things the Bible tells us, but many of those details are subject to interpretation. My objective for the “Moments In Paradise” series is not to say, ‘This is what Heaven is like. This is what you will see and do when you get there.’ And I don’t want anyone to get stuck in my version of it. So please don’t. God has given you the same Bible, but a different imagination. Use both for yourself when you feel the need to imagine what Heaven is like.
But for the purposes of this story and the message it contains about God, His ways, and our place as His children, I included some heavenly characters, and I hope you enjoyed reading about them. And while my descriptions of Heaven may be fictional, keep in mind that God is not fictional, nor is the eternal dwelling place He has prepared for us, whatever it’s like. God is real. His love for us is real. His truth is real. And today is a day to live in that reality.
Whether your current circumstances are blissful, difficult, or somewhere in between, He is there with you. Seek His guidance, trust in His faithfulness, enjoy His presence, and believe you are dearly loved. What do you hear Jesus saying to you today?
I’d love to hear how God has used
this story to touch your heart.
Write me at:
living_loved@yahoo.com
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Epilogue