Mama B - A Time to Dance (Book 2) by Michelle Stimpson Read Free Book Online Page A

talk
to me, but I figured this would be our first and last time going somewhere
together. I didn’t want to get the man’s hopes up.
    “You sure are
quiet tonight,” Dr. Wilson commented as he took the last bite of his shrimp.
    I laughed.
“Well, we’ve never been out before. How you know being quiet ain’t normal for
me?”
    “Libby says
you’re a master conversationalist.” He smiled – surely at his own
exaggeration.
    “Libby is a
character sometimes,” I had to chuckle. “But she don’t mean no harm.”
    “I know. So,
what did you think of the movie?” he switched subjects.
    “Mmmm,” I
hesitated, “it was a movie. Not what I expected from one of my favorite actors.
I don’t usually watch too much cussin’ and shootin’ and carryin’ on. You sure
that show wasn’t rated R?”
    He raised his
eyebrows. “No. I really don’t think much about ratings. I see a good preview, I
go watch the movie.”
    Our waitress
brought drink refills down and, again, tore off the bottom of our straws. She
left the top so we could perform the particulars and keep germs down to a
minimum. I’d be sure to give her a nice tip for that one.
    “Well, you
already know I’m a believer,” I reminded him, “so I had hoped you would take
that into consideration before you picked the movie.”
    He tipped his
head. “I understand. You do realize you’re talking to your brother in Christ,
right?”
    I gave a slight
nod. The word, “Okay,” came out with a question mark on the end of it.
    “Let me guess.
You grew up in a Pentecostal church?” he asked.
    “Half-way. My
Daddy was Church of God in Christ. He died when I was young. My mother’s family
was Baptist, so I spent the last part of my growing years in Baptist churches,”
I proudly informed him. “But I don’t think that has anything to do with why I
don’t test the Spirit in me by listening to vulgar language and putting
violence before my eyes.”
    He set his glass
on a napkin and squinted at me. “You realize that the omnipresent Spirit of God
has heard every curse word and witnessed every sin that’s ever occurred, and
yet He has managed to remain holy.”
    Chile, you could
have knocked me over with a piece of lint! I hadn’t never thought about it like
that.
    Still, I know
the word says to guard the eye gate and the ear gate. So I asked, “You think
it’s okay with God to sit up and watch all kind of foolishness on the screen?”
    He shook his
head. “No, I’m not saying God is pleased by everything we say or do or see. But
I am saying that the Spirit of God is tough. He has to be.
    “Back in my
younger days, I worked in trauma—saw some of the worst bodily mutilation
possible. Saw and heard people in their worst moments. Had a mother cuss me out
because we couldn’t save her son’s life. But God graced me to deal with that.
So, no—I don’t think I’m any less of a believer because I’m not as
sensitive to profanity. I don’t think any less of you as a believer for your
preference, either. I just know the Holy Spirit won’t run out of me because I
watch a rated PG or R movie.”
    Hmph . Something didn’t sound right about his
philosophy. Then again, something did . All my life, I heard people talk
about how we shouldn’t offend the Spirit because He’s sensitive. He’s like a
dove—fly away at the slightest upsetting movement. And now, here come Dr.
Frank Wilson saying the Spirit is “tough.” Sometimes, believers disagree on the
particulars, I suppose, but I wasn’t going to let his thoughts change mine.
He’d probably say the same, too.
    I wiped my mouth
with a napkin and set it on the table. “You sure have given me some food for
thought.”
    “That wasn’t my
goal. I was hoping you’d be able to say that I gave you a pleasant time at the
end of the evening. So pleasant you’d like to try it again.” He flashed his
perfect smile.
    I know it’s
wrong, but I had to wonder if his teeth were real or not. Sometimes you