around Wadeâs heart. He smiled and nodded. âThank you, Kristy. I prefer preaching from the ESV.â He turned to Freddy. âItâs a great idea that I will be sure to communicate with our congregation.â
âOh, that reminds me.â Becca snapped her fingers. âI meant to tell you how much I enjoyed the newsletter.â
Eustace nodded. âYes. I liked the addition of a devotional.â
âAnd it looked great at the beginning,â added Kristy with a sly smile.
âYeah,â agreed Freddy. âKinda set the mood to read it.â
Kristy lifted her eyebrows, and Wade offered a quick nod. âThanks. Okay. Letâs move on to the music.â
Eustace groaned. She leaned forward, cupped her cheeks with her hands and shook her head. âI tried to listen to the contemporary stuff. The wordsâwhen I could understand themâseemed good enough, but I just donât see how playing guitars and beating drums is worshipful.â
âSome of those old hymns are hardly worshipful.âBecca sat up straighter in her chair. âChad played several for me, and I was so bored I practically fell asleep.â
Greg looked at Becca. âI enjoy some of the hymns. We sang all of the old hymns in the church where I grew up.â He glanced at Wade. âI usually prefer contemporary, but I still get cold chills when someone sings âAmazing Graceâ or âBecause He Lives.ââ
âHumph. Back in my day âBecause He Livesâ was a contemporary song,â said Freddy. He clasped his hands. âI have to admit there were a few contemporary songs Iâve started to enjoy.â
âFreddy,â accused Eustace. âYou must be joking. What would Dortha say?â
âWell, there was this one song about the oceans and having faith to keep your eyes focused on Jesus and not the waves.â Freddy pursed his lips and glanced at Eustace. âThe song spoke to Dortha, as well. She sang right along when she was dusting the living room.â
Eustace crossed her arms. Becca cocked her head. âYou gotta be willing to give things a try, Eustace.â
âNow, that doesnât mean I donât like the hymns, Becca.â Freddyâs already deep tone sounded more like a growl. âI wasnât overly fond of most of the fast-moving music.â
âWell, we could always go to two services,â said Becca. Eustace clicked her tongue. âIâd rather do that than have someone on stage, banging on drums.â
âThere are several churches that have done the same thing,â Greg said. âOne traditional and one contemporary service.â
Wade lifted his hands. âWait a minute. I donât want to talk about splitting up the church.â
âRight,â Kristy said. âOur committee was formed for unity.â She motioned toward each of them. âThat we couldfind a middle ground, then encourage our friends to buy in to what weâve decided.â
Wadeâs heart pounded in his chest, and he found himself caring more for her. No. His feelings were beyond caring. He was falling in love with her. She would be the perfect helpmate, a terrific encourager. Someone he could come home to and experience reason and refreshment with after a taxing, spiritually draining day.
He cleared his throat and forced his thoughts back to the meeting. âI want you all to hear something.â He opened his laptop and pulled up the song heâd downloaded earlier in the day. âThis song blends a traditional hymn with some contemporary sound. Letâs listen, then tell me what you think.â
While the song played, he studied his fellow committee members. Becca mouthed the words, and Greg silently tapped the beat with his pointer finger on the table. Freddy tilted his head. He didnât make any gestures, but his expression seemed open to the new music. Eustace, however, scowled. Wade offered
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