when the door opened, He walked through it. Not to show off for His mom, and not to show off for Himself, but because like it said in verse eleven, it was a sign meant to reveal His glory.”
“And whenever Jesus revealed His glory,” Zack said, “it was meant to point to the Father.”
Jennifer’s friend, a girl named Krystal, twisted around in her chair and looked at Zack. “So all the miracles Jesus did, like healing and stuff, wasn’t for the people, but for God?”
A lively discussion followed, during which Jase listened and moderated more than participated. He allowed several minutes of free exchanges and brought them back on track when the subject started to drift. When they drew the conclusion that Jesus performed the miracle so His disciples would start to really see who He was and who He served, Jase gave three claps.
Silence fell. He smiled at the group. “Y’all did some great thinking tonight. You understand Jesus’s reasons for doing what He did. Now, how do we take what Jesus did and apply it to our lives? I mean, none of us can change water into wine.” Snickers rolled. “So what do we do?”
Zack’s hand went up, but Kaia spoke first. “When we do stuff for others, we don’t do it to impress someone or so people will notice us. We do it because we love God and want people to see Him. In us.”
Zack nodded so hard his shaggy bangs bounced. “Yep. She nailed it.” Several others added their agreement.
Kaia’s cheeks blushed scarlet, but she smiled.
Another of the guests, the girl who’d come with Emma, sent a scowl in Jase’s direction. “But, like, how? Gimme an example.”
“Mowing somebody’s lawn without them asking, and don’t tell them you’re the one who did it.”
“Being respectful and obedient. Not ’cause you’ll get in trouble if you don’t but because it’s the right thing to do.”
“Not talking smack about someone even though other people are doing it.”
“Praying before you eat in public places. Even in the cafeteria. People’ll know you’re grateful.”
Answers flew, one on top of the other.
“Smiling at grumpy people.” Sienna’s comment earned a light round of laughter, and she hunched her shoulders and giggled. “Well, giving somebody something good that they didn’t earn or maybe don’t deserve is kind of God’s business, isn’t it?”
“No kind of about it,” Jase said. “Everything God gives us is undeserved because He is holy and majestic and we are not.” Was he listening to himself? He cleared his throat. “Y’all are really getting it. Any other ideas for”—what was the guest’s name again?—“Ashley?”
“Yeah.” Cullen sat forward and played with his cap. “When you find a wallet, and you look inside, and there’s money and credit cards, and you could really use those ’cause your dad’s a deadbeat who doesn’t help, and even though your mom’s working two jobs, you’re still behind on rent, but you take it to the police station and turn it in anyway. And then when the owner wants to give you a reward, you don’t take it because doing the right thing is reward enough in itself.”
A prickle attacked Jase’s scalp. His gaze locked on Cullen’s unsmiling face, and he nodded. “That’s a great example. Thanks, Cullen.”
Cullen sat back and fiddled with the brim of his cap, his expression bland.
Since Cullen had mentioned finding a lost item, Jase grabbed the lead-in. “Cullen’s example reminded me…I’ve lost something pretty important.”
Leesa tilted her head. “Valuable monetarily or sentimentally?”
Jase swallowed. “Both.”
Sienna sat up like a chipmunk, her eyes wide. “What is it?”
Jase glanced at Cullen, who seemed very interested in removing a loose thread from the embroidered design on his cap. “I’d rather not say.” The kids knew about Rachel. Losing her was part of the reason he’d come to Bradleyville, and he’d shared his testimony with the congregation his first Sunday here. He didn’t want to get into the nitty-gritty details of things with these kids. “But I’d really appreciate it if y’all would pray that it’s found.”
Brent grinned. “Is there a reward?”
Sienna whacked him on the shoulder. “That’s terrible! What did we just talk about?”
“I was kidding. Sheesh…” Brent slunk low in his chair, as far from Sienna as he could get without leaving his seat.
Jase chuckled. “My eternal gratitude is about all I can offer, but I hope that’s motivation enough for some of y’all to pray it finds its way back to me.” Time to turn the focus. “All right, I have an assignment