Sally nodded.
Will turned from the vehicle and headed back toward the house. He hesitated and turned back toward her. “It’ll be okay, Sally.”
Did he say that to reassure her or himself?
<><><>
William took a cleansing breath and whispered a brief prayer before re-entering his uncle’s home. He hurried toward the library, hoping to avoid another confrontation with his uncle. However, fate would have it another way, it seemed.
“What on earth are you doing, William?” Uncle George’s scowl was evident in his tone.
“I’m getting Sally’s kapp” Will kept his voice even and calmly walked to the sofa.
His uncle sneered, “That’s not what I was referring to and you know it.”
William clenched his fist and turned to his uncle. “You may not approve of Sally, but you have no right to call her derogatory names!”
“I’ll say and do whatever I please in my own home. And if you intend on bringing that trash onto my property again–”
Uncle George’s words halted when his mouth was met with William’s fist. Blood trickled from his lip, onto his freshly-pressed shirt.
“Get out now, before I do something we’ll both regret!” his uncle demanded.
William said nothing, turned an about face, and walked out the door.
Chapter 8
William reached over and grasped Saloma’s hand. “Thank you for coming with me to church today. Pastor Rob can’t wait to meet you.”
“I’m kind of nervous.” Sally glanced down at her Amish attire.
“Don’t be. I’ll be right next to you the entire time.”
“The whole time? But you will not sit with me on the ladies’ side.” She laughed.
“The ladies’ side? What do you mean?”
“You will sit with the men, and I will sit with the women.”
Will’s eyes widened, and he finally realized her meaning. “Do men and women sit in different places in Amish church?”
“Jah. It is not like this in your church?”
William chuckled. “Nope. We sit wherever we want to, and I intend to sit as close to you as possible.”
Sally gasped. “While the bishop is speaking?”
“We just have a pastor, and, yes, I plan to hold your hand during the service.”
“Do the men go in first?”
“Go in?”
“Into the building where meeting is.”
“We’re going to walk into the church just like we’d walk into the library or a store or a restaurant. Together. The men and women are not separated unless they want to be.”
“Oh.”
Will chuckled. “I guess this will be a new experience for you.”
“Jah. For sure and certain.”
<><><>
Will leaned over and whispered, “What do you think?”
Sally smiled. “He has good words. I like what he is saying.”
That’s good. Sally was listening to the sermon. William turned his attention back to Pastor Rob’s message and nonchalantly draped his arm around Sally’s shoulders.
She gasped and leaned over. “This is okay?”
Will smiled and nodded. He noticed Sally looking around at others in the auditorium, probably trying to determine whether they were as shocked as she was at William’s innocent public display of affection. She quickly refocused her attention on the pulpit.
Ten minutes later, they stood and sang a closing hymn. Will introduced Sally to a few members and shook hands with several people.
Will glanced at Sally. “Are you ready to go?”
“Go? It is over already?” Sally’s mouth dropped open. “It has only been one hour.”
“Yep.” William smiled. “Let’s go get some lunch.”
Sally’s eyes seemed to be searching for something. “Do they eat in here?”
“No, sweetheart. We don’t have lunch at the church unless it’s a special occasion. I meant I’m going to take you out to a restaurant.”
“Oh.”
“Did you hear Pastor Rob? He said we could start our job this week.” They walked to his Jeep hand-in-hand, and Will opened her door.
“Jah. That is gut.”
“Did you talk to your mom yet?”
Sally frowned. “I don’t know what to say to her. I mean, I told her about the job and that I have a ride with an Englisch friend. But she doesn’t know that you’re my beau.”
“Your beau, huh?” Will’s eyes sparkled at her endearing term. “Well, we are friends too.”
“Jah. That’s true.” She gently pulled on her kapp string. “I’m afraid, if I tell her, she will forbid me to see you.”
“Sounds like my uncle.”
“Has he forbidden you to see me?”
“No. I’m a grown man. He doesn’t have that authority over me.” He caressed her cheek. “And, if he did, I’m certain I would defy it.”
“You would defy your uncle’s authority?” Will detected surprise in Sally’s voice.
“If it was the only way I could be with you, then, yes. But it doesn’t matter, because he doesn’t have that authority.” Will rubbed his chin. “I don’t know why, but for some reason he is against the Amish.”
“All Amish, or against me?”
“No, it’s not you. I’m certain that if you weren’t Amish, he’d love you.”
“Do you want me to become Englisch?” Sally became quiet.
“We haven’t discussed that yet, have we?” He briefly glanced at her. “It’s something I’ve been wanting to talk to you about. I guess I’ve just been afraid to bring it up. I don’t want to lose you.”
“I don’t know if I can become an Englischer.”
“It’s not the Amish – Englisch thing that bothers me. My main concern is our faith. We have to agree on what we believe, because, if we ever marry and have children, they will need to be taught, and we have to be in agreement.” Will stroked her hand. “Sally, what do you believe?”
Sally kept quiet for a moment. “About God?”
William nodded.
“Well, I believe in God and His Son Jesus.”
“And what about Heaven? How do you get to Heaven?”
“By believing in Jesus and doing my best and following the Ordnung.”
Will’s brow lowered. “What is the Ordnung?”
“It’s our rules. You know, about dressing proper and all that.”
“So, they’re ordinances.” He nodded. “And if you believe in God and Jesus and keep these rules, then you can go to Heaven?” His brow shot up.
“Well, I don’t know. Only God can say for certain sure. I won’t know until I stand before Him.”
“God did say, in His Word. He said that when we trust in what Christ did on the cross, that those ordinances do not affect us. They were nailed to the cross with Jesus. Ordinances, or laws, cannot get you to Heaven unless you obey them perfectly. And I don’t know anyone who’s perfect except Jesus.”
“That’s why we have to believe in Jesus too, ain’t so?”
“Well, the Bible says that the law can’t make you right with God. The Apostle Paul said, I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain. And he says that, A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. ”
“So, are you saying that I don’t need to be a good person and keep the laws?”
“That is not necessary to go to Heaven. All you need is to place your faith in Jesus Christ.” Will smiled. “Good people don’t go to Heaven; saved people do.”
“But, if I put my faith in Jesus, I still have to do what’s right. I can’t just go and steal something or kill someone. Those things would be wrong.”
“I agree that those things are wrong, and we shouldn’t do them. God doe
sn’t want us to sin, ever. But, as human beings, we will sin. The Bible puts it this way, Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid. Sin is always sinful and wrong.” Will rubbed his forehead. “But once we place our trust in Jesus, we become children of God. We are born again – a new creature. We belong to God. God will never leave us nor forsake us, no matter what we do.”
“But what about our sin? I thought we couldn’t go to Heaven if we sin.”
“That is true, but, as a child of God and a believer in Christ, all of your sins have been paid for. Jesus Christ took the penalty for all your sins – past, present, and future. So, when you stand before God, it’s like Jesus is standing in your place.
“If you ask God, ‘What about my sin?’ He will look at you and say, ‘What sin? There is none here.’ He has removed your sins as far as the east is from the west, and He remembers them no more. This is all in the Bible. I can show you if you’d like.”
“I would like that. Not that I don’t believe you; I do. I would just like to see it for myself.”
“I totally understand. I wouldn’t want you to take my word for it. When the disciples preached to the Bereans, they searched the Scriptures to see if what the disciples were saying was true. I think we should be like the Bereans and always do that, because there’s nothing more important than the Truth.”
Sally seemed to ponder his words.
“And, by the way, the Bible also says that you can know that you have eternal life. You don’t have to wait until you stand before God.”
Sally gasped. “Where does it say that? I’ve never heard that before.”
“It’s in 1 John 5:17. It says, These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life. We can look it up later. But I think God wrote that down because He wants us to have confidence in Him. We cannot truly have peace in our hearts if we’re always wondering if we’re really saved or not. I’m glad that God wrote it down in black and white.”
“Will, I want to become a child of God.”
“You do?” Joy filled his heart.
“Jah. How do I do it?”
“It’s very simple. If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
“I will do that right now.” Sally smiled and quietly bowed her head. “I confess the Lord Jesus with my mouth and I believe that God raised Him from the dead too. Please save me. Amen.” Sally looked up at William, tears in her eyes. “I did it!”
“Yes, you did. Praise the Lord!” He reached up and caressed her cheek. “I don’t think I can ever love anyone more than you.”
“How about God?”
“Well, I wasn’t counting Him. He is everything.” He playfully pulled her kapp string. “You are second.”
“I don’t mind being second.”
Will pulled Sally close and claimed her lips. “Good.”
Chapter 9
William wracked his brain, desperate to find a way to help Sally’s family keep their property. Sally had given him a copy of the alleged will, but he couldn’t make heads or tails of all the legal jargon. He wondered if maybe someone was trying to pull a scam on the Troyer family. He’d taken the will to Uncle George, but his uncle was unwilling to help Sally’s family, to Will’s chagrin.
What would Sally and her family do if they lost their home? William couldn’t bear the thought of Sally moving away. If he was finished with school, it wouldn’t be such a big deal. He would move anywhere to be with Sally. But this semester wouldn’t end for a few months, and he couldn’t go anywhere until he earned his degree he’d been working so hard for over the last few years.
Sally seemed to enjoy working at the church, and he enjoyed the extra time with her, although janitorial duties were not his profession of choice. Since Sally received Christ, William noticed a change in her, though subtle. She seemed happier. Even so, William also detected concern in her demeanor. She carried around an invisible weight. William determined to speak with her about this the next time they worked together, which would be today.
He pulled into Sally’s long driveway and waited for her to emerge from the house. He found it somewhat surprising that her mother allowed her to travel with an Englisch man, although she wasn’t privy to their romantic relationship, as far as he knew. If Sally’s mother did know, he was quite certain she’d put a stop to their relationship altogether.
“Hey, beautiful!” He smiled as Sally slid into the passenger’s seat and closed the door. He longed to lean close and plant a kiss on her lips, but wouldn’t dare until they were in a more private setting.
Sally’s cheeks darkened. It seemed she wasn’t use to a lot of attention, which Will loved to lavish on her.
“Any news on the house?”
“Mamm spoke with Bishop Mast. He’s going to talk to a lawyer about it and see what can be done.”
He reached over and stroked her hand. “I’m sorry my uncle won’t help.”
“It’s not your fault, Will. You have tried, ain’t so?”
“Yeah. I just don’t know what I can do. If I had the knowledge or the resources my uncle has, I’m sure I could help with something. And, if you did lose the house, I would invite you to stay with us, but my uncle would never allow anything of the sort.”
“Well, that would be a gut thing. I don’t know if you and I could live in the same house.”
“You’re right. We’d have to get married.” He smiled.
“I don’t know how this is going to work.”
Will frowned. “With the house or us?”
“Either.”
“I’m curious about something, Sally. What did your bishop say about you having received Christ?”
“Ach, I could never tell him!”
Will’s chin dropped. “Why ever not? Don’t you think he’d want to know?”
Sally looked mortified. “Bishop Mast? Nee. He shunned his own dochder Sarah, over that very thing.”
“I don’t understand. I would think a bishop would be thrilled to hear something like that.” He scratched his head. “So, you have to keep silent about your faith?”
Sally nodded.
“But Christ commands us, as Christians, to share our faith. I don’t know if I could just sit by and watch my family die, knowing that they could be on their way to Hell. Even if I couldn’t speak the words to them, I’d at least write them a letter or give them a Gospel tract – something – to warn them.”
“But I’m not allowed to speak of these things.”
“We ought to obey God, rather than men. If you have to choose between following Jesus and obeying the Amish church, I sincerely hope you’ll choose Jesus. Sally, the Amish church didn’t hang on the cross for you. Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me. Don’t you think your family and the other members of your church have a right to know how to get to Heaven?”
“I don’t think they would believe it.”
“It is not our job to make them believe. That part is between them and God. Our part is to tell them. We do not have control or responsibility over how others respond.” He rubbed her shoulder. “And who knows? You received Christ. Who’s to say they won’t?”
“I’m afraid to. I wouldn’t know what to say to them.”
“How did you get saved, Sally?”
“I just confessed with my mouth and believed in my heart that Jesus died for me on the cross and arose from the dead on the third day.”
“Why did you do that?”
“Because I want to go to Heaven.”
“That’s all you need to know, sweetheart. Those are the words of life. There’s nothing magical, no special combination of words you need to say. The thief on the cross next to Jesus only said Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. His words weren’t anything special, but Jesus saw the sincerity of his heart.”
Sally nodded. “It
will be difficult for me.”
“I know. That’s okay, though. God will be with you every step of the way, holding your hand.”
<><><>
Saloma quietly stirred the pot of chicken vegetable soup, pondering the day spent with William. Will was everything she’d ever dreamed about in a mate – kind, caring, handsome. He treated her like a princess. Marrying him would be like living in a fairy tale, for sure and certain.
She glanced toward the living area when she heard a knock on the door, but couldn’t see who had come to call. She strained to hear the voice. The person her mother spoke with was clearly male.
“Sally.” It was the only thing she heard. She set the wooden spoon on the warming rack and hurried toward the door.
“There is no Sally here,” she heard her mother respond.
“Mamm,” she looked to her mother, then to William’s uncle, “I think he’s here to speak to me.”
Will’s uncle nodded. “That’s right.”
“We can step outside,” Saloma suggested, hoping her mother wouldn’t ask any questions. “Mamm, I left the soup on the stove. Someone should probably stir it.”
Saloma watched her mother nod hesitantly, her gaze curious. She quickly stepped outside with William’s uncle and closed the door behind them.
She leveled her gaze at the man. “Why did you come here?”
He frowned. “Am I not welcome?”
“You have been unkind to me, so I’m guessing this isn’t a social visit.” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“I’ve underestimated your intelligence. You’re right, it’s not a social visit.” He raised an eyebrow. “I have a proposition for you.”
Chapter 10
William thumbed through the pages of his psychology textbook, searching for the answer to a question in his coursework. It seemed as though school had become more difficult since he’d met Sally. He had trouble concentrating on his studies, as his mind often became preoccupied with thoughts of her. However, if he had any hope of marrying her, he must complete his schooling and earn his degree so he could get a decent-paying job, should God bless them with a family in the future.
An Undeniable Secret (Amish Secrets--Book 4) Page 5