More heat flowed through her to Cooper. With tears in her eyes, Rachel praised. “Thank You, God. Thank You, God.” As she struggled to stand, a slight pressure squeezed her fingers. Using the bed as an anchor she pulled into a stand. The pressure on her fingers grew stronger as she straightened up. Her gaze flew to Cooper.
“Hi, beautiful.” His eyes were open and his voice was weak, but it was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard.
She leaned down and kissed him. “Hi, yourself.”
“How did you get here?”
“God.”
They whispered I love you’s to each other.
A nurse walked in. Her eyes were bright with unshed tears. She touched Cooper’s arm. “How did I know he would be awake when I walked over here? I don’t know who you are, sweetheart, but you called God down from the most high and brought Him here.”
“He’s better.”
“Not just him. Everyone in this room.”
Rachel focused on her surroundings. Nurses and doctors were rushing around. Patients were sitting up, smiling and laughing.
Rachel’s gaze met that of a young woman, obviously the mother of the young girl she’d spoken with earlier. They looked so much alike.
She mouthed the words, ‘thank you’ to Rachel.
Rachel pointed upwards and said aloud, “Not me. God did this.”
“I had one of my migraines and it’s gone now. And you know what; I don’t think I’ll ever have another one.” The nurse’s eyes were leaking tears. “I never thought I’d see a miracle, but I did today. You gave everyone here a miracle.”
“Not me. God.”
The nurse grabbed her free hand. “I can’t wait to have the doctors check on him.” She pointed at a young man. “When he comes back cancer-free, even they’ll agree it is a miracle. I gotta go. I got people who need to get in here with their loved ones. Thank you so much.”
Rachel opened her mouth but before she could say anything, the nurse spoke again. “I know. Not you. God. Still I don’t think this would have happened if you hadn’t been here today.”
Rachel wouldn’t argue with that.
The nurse rushed off
In the corner of the room, a commotion started. “We need a doctor. Now.”
Cooper tugged her hand.
She turned back to him.
“I disagree.”
“You disagree with what, sweetie?”
“It’s like the time in the Bible when a Roman authority asked Jesus to heal his servant. As Jesus got ready to go to the man’s house, the Roman stopped him. And said he knew that Jesus didn’t have to be in the same place to heal his servant. Jesus commended him on his faith. And the servant was healed.”
Rachel processed that, then leaned over and kissed Cooper once again. “Are you saying I didn’t have to go through all I went through to get here? I could have done it from the comfort of my home?”
He nodded with a silly grin.
“Because you really have no idea what it took for me to get here.”
“I have a little idea of what it must have been like.”
“I’m sure you do. I’m just teasing. There was no way I wasn’t coming to be with you. I just…I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand?”
“What was the difference between this time and the last time? I just don’t get it.”
“Really? And you’re so smart. I can’t believe you don’t see it.”
“Well, I don’t. Can you enlighten me?”
“I can.” He crooked a finger and she moved closer. As their lips met, she savored the moment. When they parted, he smiled at her. “Love made the difference.”
*
“Love.” Nia looked at her.
Rachel nodded. “Love. When Cooper said that word it was like all the puzzle pieces finally fit.”
“Unlike my puzzle.” Nia’s voice was rueful.
“It’s getting there. You’re doing a great job.”
“I still have a long way to go.”
“And all the time you need to finish your puzzle.”
Hope flickered in Nia’s eyes. “You think so?”
“I can’t tell the future, but I do know you’ll have all the time you need to finish your puzzle. We all do. It’s just some puzzles are finished sooner than others.”
Tears welled up in Nia’s eyes.
“Jesus talks about love a lot but the other parts of the Bible do as well. Our heart is very important to God. That’s why I have the verse written all over The Puzzle House. The Bible says faith, hope, and love are all important, but love is the most important.”
“That’s what the sign in the entrance says. Why is love so important?”
“Good question. I’m no theologian but this is what I’ve come to understand in my own life. Faith is about believing in God. Hope is about believing that his promises are true for everyone, including yourself. But you can’t have the faith and hope if you don’t believe God loves you. And that’s why love is most important.”
Nia wasn’t looking at her. Her voice was soft when she spoke. “I don’t think God loves me.”
“Because you’re sick?”
Nia nodded but said nothing.
“Do you see now that God does love you?”
“Maybe a little.”
Rachel smiled. “That’s a good start. Part of loving God is about sharing God’s goodness with other people through your own actions so they can have that same faith, hope, and love, too. It continues the cycle. I receive God’s love. Then I share it. And then that person shares it. And so on and so on.”
Nia tapped the puzzle pieces. “Kind of like this puzzle. All the parts are needed, but some pieces are a little more important than the others.”
Rachel grinned. “I think you’re turning into a great little puzzle worker.”
”I don’t know all about that. So what happened?”
“Oh, you mean after Cooper was healed.”
“Are you talking about me?” Cooper walked into the room.
“You’re back.” Rachel jumped up and hugged him. “I didn’t expect you until later today.”
“Got finished early so I thought I’d surprise you.”
“I hope that means you’re planning on cooking for us. Poor Nia and Brandon have had to put up with toasted cheese sandwiches for the past three days.”
“So this is Nia?” Cooper turned to her.
She nodded.
“I’m so glad to meet you. Rachel couldn’t stop talking about you before I left. She was so excited about you coming.”
“Really?”
“That shouldn’t surprise you. I’m sure she told you that you’re special.”
“I just figured it was something she says to everyone.”
“That’s because…” Cooper jumped in and they both said, “Everyone is special.”
Nia giggled. “Do you guys do that a lot? You know, finish each other’s sentences.”
“Sort of.” Cooper told her. He walked over and looked down at her puzzle. “Looking good, Nia. I can tell you’ve been working hard.”
“There ain’t much else to do but work on it. After all, I’m in the middle of nowhere.”
“Not much to do? Are you kidding me?” He grinned. “Haven’t you been out to see the animals? Or go fishing in the pond? Or take a nature walk?”
“Go fishing?”
“Rachel, I cannot believe you’ve kept this poor girl cooped up in here for days.”
“But—”
“But nothing. I had a feeling that might be the case so I invited someone to stop by.”
“Hi, Grandma.” Her grandson walked in. He leaned down to hug her.
“This is my beautiful grandson, Jarrod.”
“Grandma, I keep telling you boys aren’t beautiful.”
“But you’re beautiful to me. And you can’t stop me from saying it. And you know why?”
“Because you’re my grandma.” Jarrod grinned, and
then looked at Nia.
“So, Jarrod, I take it that you and your granddad conspired together.”
“Well, Grandpa called and asked if I’d pick him up and not tell you about it.”
Rachel grinned. “Keeping secrets from your grandma.”
Jarrod pointed at Cooper. “His fault, not mine. So, Nia, are you up for a horse ride?”
“On a horse?”
“That’s usually how you do it.”
“I don’t know. I never been on no horse before. And…and I’m…” She touched her wheelchair. “It’s sort of hard for me walk much right now.”
“Not a problem. I can push that thing to the barn and then help you on the horse.”
“On a horse?”
“Yeah, that’s the way you ride one. What do you do with horses?”
“Nothing.”
“I love horses. Mindy will be perfect for you. She’s so sweet and gentle.”
Nia’s chin jutted.
Here comes some of her attitude. Rachel sent a quick, silent prayer.
“I don’t need sweet and gentle. I’m not afraid of no horse.”
“That means you are afraid of them. You used a double negative. And everyone knows that makes the sentence just the opposite of what you meant.”
“Fine. Then I ain’t afraid of any horse.”
“Good. Then let’s go.”
Nia looked at Rachel. “But I want to hear what happened. At the hospital. Especially with that guy with cancer. And the pregnant lady.”
“I’ll tell you all about them later. You go have some fun with Jarrod. Brandon’s probably out there somewhere. I’m sure he’ll enjoy seeing you on a horse.”
After the two had left, Cooper hugged her again. “How’s my favorite girl?”
“She’s just fine.”
“You look tired?”
“I’m fine. Just been busy with Nia and Brandon. Haven’t had time for my naps.”
“I’m sure. So what’s she like?”
“She was really angry when she got here. But I’ve seen a change over the past few days. God is working in her. She really is a special young lady.”
He gave her a sharp look. “How special?”
“Time will tell, but I’m thinking very special.”
“Where’s Annie?”
“She went home a few days ago.”
“What did she decide?”
“She’s moving to a facility. Her daughter was a bit upset but Annie convinced her that was what she wanted, so she agreed.”
“Excellent.” He nodded. “Now, I want you to go rest while I fix dinner. I wonder what Nia might like.”
“But you just got home. You’re the one who needs to rest.”
“I’m fit as a fiddle. And I’ve missed my kitchen.”
“And your kitchen’s missed you.” Rachel said fervently.
11
Rachel held on to the banister as she made her way down the stairs. The nap had only managed to make her more tired.
Laughter and giggles were coming from the kitchen.
She’d hoped the two would get along with each other. That would make things easier. For both of them. She forced a smile as she walked in.
Nia was sitting at the kitchen island as Cooper attempted to twirl pizza dough with his hands. He winked at Rachel. “Hey beautiful, did you have a good nap?”
“Lovely. How was your horse ride, Nia?”
“Uh, well, actually it didn’t happen.”
“Really? Why not?”
“I sort of chickened out. But Jarrod said he’d be back tomorrow to try again. I did pet Mindy. And he’s right, she is sweet. She has the most beautiful brown eyes. Country boy thought it was the funniest thing ever when I wouldn’t get on the horse. But what do I care what he thinks?”
“Just ask him to see how he’d do taking the bus from your house to the mall.”
Nia giggled. “Yeah, I have to do three transfers.”
“He probably doesn’t even know what a transfer is.” Rachel added. “I haven’t been out to see the horses in a while. Maybe I’ll go with you tomorrow.” She pointed at the flour-covered kitchen island. “Quite the mess.”
“We’re making pizza.” Cooper said.
“Six of them.” Nia chimed in.
“Six? There’s only four people here.”
“Because Jarrod’s coming and bringing his parents, too.” Nia looked at her. “I didn’t know you had any kids. You didn’t tell me that before.”
“That’s because I haven’t got to that point in the story yet.”
“So as I finish this, why don’t you finish telling Nia about what happened in Atlanta?” Cooper twirled the pizza dough.
“Still want to hear?”
Nia nodded.
*
The doctor walked up to them. “Well, I can’t believe it. But his infection is completely gone according to the blood tests. I’ll release him tomorrow as long as his blood work comes back clean again. I just…I can’t believe it.”
“That is great news. God is so good.” Cooper told her. “Thank you so much, Doctor.”
“I don’t know why you’re thanking me. The antibiotics weren’t working, and then you were just better.” She turned to leave, but then came back. “The staff in the ICU are all abuzz, as you can imagine. They’re saying you healed every person here today.”
Rachel smiled. “God heals not me. But is everyone really better?”
“Everyone.”
“Including the young man with the colon cancer?”
“I can’t give you specifics because of privacy laws. But I’ll say it again. Everyone in this room was healed today. I…as you know, I don’t really believe in all that religious stuff. And yet something definitely did happen here today. Something wonderful. Something amazing. I really don’t understand it.”
“So do you believe now? In God?” Rachel asked.
The doctor smiled. “Let’s just say I’m open to the possibility. And I think I’ll probably go to church on Sunday. And my husband will say that’s a miracle in itself.”
“And what about the pregnant lady who’d been hit by the car?”
“She delivered two healthy baby girls.”
“Two of them? Amazing.” Cooper smiled. “How wonderful.”
“They’re teeny and they’re both in NICU, but according to the doctor they’ll both be fine as long as there are no other complications.”
After she was gone, Cooper shook his head. “What an amazing day, huh?”
“Unbelievable. It’s so…so overwhelming to see God work up close like that. I’m in…I’m in awe. I have no other word to describe it.”
“That’s the perfect word, I think. Remember as I was getting ready to leave for Atlanta, and I asked you if you were ready yet. And you said you might not ever be ready.”
She laughed. “Yeah, and you said God had a way of making things happen when we least expect it. So, what? You decided to help God out by getting this sick?”
“Not me. I really had no idea I was that sick.”
“What did you feel?”
“Just a little achy, and then a lot achy, and then I don’t remember a whole lot after that.”
“I’ve been thinking about what you said. About love.”
“Yes.”
“And I think you’re right. When I tried to heal those other people, I wanted to heal them but I didn’t really even care about them. As people. Certainly didn’t love them.” She sighed. “It never even occurred to me to be concerned about their relationship with God. And that’s more important than any physical healing.”
He nodded.
She felt the tears welling up. “I feel so awful that I didn’t show them God’s love. I didn’t talk to them about how much God loves them and what He did by sending His only Son down to become our Savior. I really feel horrible. I don’t even know if they died without…”
“I don’t think you should feel bad. I know that’s not what God wants from you
. Remember Paul tells us to put the past behind us and move forward. It’s time for you to move forward.”
“You’re right.” She nodded. “It’ll take me a little time to do that. But I’ll get there. In the meantime, we have something else to talk about.”
“Yes…”
She took a deep breath. “If I’m to…you know…do this healing thing, then I’ll need a supernatural love from God for other people.” She shrugged. “Mostly because we both know loving others isn’t my strong suit.”
“I wouldn’t say that. You do a great job loving me.”
“You make it easy to do that.” She patted his cheek. “But I’m talking about love for people as a whole. Even people I don’t know. Even people I don’t particularly like. Anyway, I know that when I ask for it, if I ask for that supernatural type of love, God will give it to me. And it seems to me that’ll change everything.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean if I have this supernatural love for other people, it’ll change the way we live.”
“How?”
“I’m not exactly sure how. Only that it will. And that it will affect your life as much as mine. I don’t have a right to ask you to make that kind of a change.”
“That makes perfect sense. Our lives are definitely connected to each other. Like puzzle pieces. Different shapes and colors. Different jobs, but the pieces fit together to finish the puzzle.”
She stared. “That’s exactly right. Our life—everybody’s life is like a jigsaw puzzle. With so many pieces to figure out where they go and how they fit. I want your blessing before I… we, go forward with this.”
“Oh, dear sweet Rachel. You’ve had my blessing from the moment you opened your eyes in that hospital room and told me that you had a visit with Jesus.”
“It’ll mean changes.”
He grinned. “Big changes. I knew that the moment you told me Jesus asked if you wanted to be healed or to be a healer. And I’m more than all right with it. Change is a good thing.”
“Are you ready for the first one?”
He nodded.
“I want to go home.”
“As soon as the doctor releases me.”
She shook her head. “I don’t mean our house in Cleveland. I mean home.”
Cooper smiled. “Oh, that home. Now I understand why we haven’t been able to sell it.”
Puzzle House Page 11