She cringed and made a low grunt. “Ihatethat you’re both hurting. And it’s so avoidable! To quote the great Destin Diary, ‘Why is he so dumb?’”
He cracked up at that. “So dumb,” he agreed, giving her a little elbow jab.
As she looked up at him, he regarded her face in the sun, the resemblance to her mother overwhelming. Not just the eyes and the freckles, but that inquisitive expression of a person always, always seeking answers.
“I want you to know something,” she said. “I’m not all the way there yet. With God, I mean. I’m not, like, ready to be baptized or anything. I’m still struggling with the whole Jesus thing. Like, I know He was real, but was He just a good guy? A great teacher? A prophet? A liar? A crazy guy?”
“All commonly asked questions,” he said.
He knew that was the journey for many people—sure, there’s a God, but Jesus as savior? He also knew that reading the Bible and spending time with believers would eventually take her to Jesus, but it wasn’t his timing, it was God’s.
“But everything I’ve read and thought about and talked about with those kids at youth group—it makes sense to me,” she continued. “It makes more sense than anything else in my life right now. And that’s because of you.”
His throat tightened. “No,” he said roughly. “Not me.”
“Oh, I know you didn’t push it on me and I appreciate that. And you don’t push it on Mom, either.”
“It’s not up to me, and she has free will,” he reminded her.
“But if only you could prove to her that you’re right.” Emma’s voice took on the particular urgency of a teenager who believed that every problem had a solution if she just pushed hard enough. “My mom needsevidence, Eli. That’s how her brain works. She needs proof.”
“Faith isn’t always empirical.”
“But isn’t there a way to prove that God exists?” she asked. “Like, actually prove it? With data and logic and the kind of evidence she can’t argue with? Can’t you do that?”
He considered the question, knowing that the answer was yes, no, and maybe.
“You know,” he said slowly, “some of the greatest defenders of Christianity started as atheists. C.S. Lewis tried to disprove God and ended up writing the most famous Christian books of the twentieth century. Lee Strobel was an investigative journalist who set out to prove his wife’s faith was nonsense, and the evidence he found turned him into one of the most influential evangelists of our time.”
Emma’s eyes widened. “So it’s been done? People have tried to disprove God and ended up believing?”
“Many times. Most times, in fact. The evidence, when you follow it honestly, has a way of leading somewhere unexpected.”
“Well…” Emma shrugged. “That’s the answer, then. Turn it into a science experiment and Mom will be all over it.”
But did he have enough time to even plant that seed? She and Emma were leaving on Monday.
She pulled out her phone and grunted. “I’m late for hair and makeup. Aunt Tessa is insisting we all have it professionally done.”
“Of course she is.”
“Even Olive, which should be hilarious.”
Eli smiled at her, then put an arm around her as they turned to go back. “Here’s an example of how God works,” he said softly.
She looked up at him, curious.
“He put you through a trial, Emma. A tough one. You were shamed, lost friends, maybe the volleyball team.”
She nodded. “True.”
“You cried and suffered and came here miserable.”
“So miserable,” she agreed on a laugh.
“But God used your pain for good. He grew you. He whispered to you. He put you with kids that changed your perspective. He loved you.”
She took a deep breath as if she needed to inhale that wisdom. “Yeah, He did.”
