Monday Morning Faith by Lori Copeland Page A

was of utmost importance.
    â€œI want you to come on the mission trip with me.”
    I stared at him, stunned into silence. He couldn’t be serious. I knew love was blind, but even Sam should see how preposterous that was.
    â€œYou … but … I …” The idea startled me so that I couldn’t put a coherent sentence together.
    â€œNot for the entire mission. I’m not sure how long I will stay, maybe a couple of months.”
    I swallowed. “How long would you want me to stay?” Johanna! Stop! Don’t consider it!
    â€œThree weeks — a month. Stay a month — long enough for you to see if you take to the mission field. I know you’ve never considered mission work, but the trip will allow you a chance to experience the village, its people. What do you think?”
    There was more to it than just seeing the country, and I knew it. This trip would give me a chance to see if I could live Sam’s life. The tacit, improbable thought seesawed back and forth between us. I sat staring at my hands, which were quivering.
    He managed a smile. “You may speak now.”
    I could? I couldn’t think of a single word to say. Then reality kicked in and I cleared my throat. “Sam, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but it won’t work. I’ve seen the pictures and heard the stories. I couldn’t live like that — not even for a little while.” No indoor plumbing. Flies. Snakes, bugs, disease.
    His hold tightened on my hand. “I don’t expect an answer tonight. All I’m asking is that you think it over. But don’t think too long, because you’d have to get your passport and visa before you leave, and we’re already pushing the paperwork deadline.”
    What was it with people in my life not understanding a simple no ? I shook my head. We didn’t have the same calling, no matter how much I wished we did.
    Sam’s voice came as if from a tunnel. “An extra sixty dollars will expedite the passport process, and I’m a doctor. I can administer the required inoculations.” His straightforward gaze silenced my protests. “I know this is frightening to you. Don’t say yes or no. All I’m asking is that you think it over. Promise me you’ll do that.”
    Oh, I could promise all right, not that it would do any good. I couldn’t leave everything familiar and go to some faraway land because I had fallen in love with this man. “All right, I’ll think about it.”
    What? Someone other than me must have said that!
    I stared back at Sam, resolve weakening. Two weeks … that wasn’t a lifetime commitment. Maybe I could think of it as an adventure, one that I could end whenever I wanted. I smiled. “I do have several weeks’ vacation — ”
    â€œThat’s my girl.” He squeezed both my hands. “But remember, we’re short of time and there is a lot to do.” His gaze softened. “When I lost Belinda I never thought I would find anyone that would fill my heart and life as you have, Johanna. I’m in love with you, you do know that.”
    Words failed me. I nodded. Though we’d never voiced our feelings, our love had become obvious. I didn’t need bells and whistles; what I’d found in Sam I had never dared to hope I would find in anyone. I adored him. He was twelve years my senior, but we were soul mates. That much I couldn’t deny.
    Doubt reared its ugly head.
    What about Mom and Pop? Even though I no longer lived with them, I couldn’t go sailing off to another continent and leave them in Saginaw with Aunt Margaret. And Itty Bitty. I couldn’t go away and leave him. Sam didn’t seem to understand my responsibilities …
    That night I didn’t drop off to sleep as usual. I lay awake, watching the digital clock turn the hours, wondering how I’d gotten so involved with a man I could no longer dismiss from my