âIâm not leaving you to travel through Mexico by yourself.â
The very idea made Owenâs blood pressure rise.
Bernadette patted his hand. âYouâre such a gentleman, but Iâve been taking care of myself for a long time. Iâve traveled to other foreign countries alone, my Spanish is fluent and Iâm familiar with the culture. Iâll really be safer withoutââ
âNo, you would not be safer without me!â Owen protested. âLetâs have this out once and for all. You claim to be so good at interpreting men. Did you not see the way that federale was looking at you?â He leaned in, nose to nose. âYou. Are. Stuck. With. Me. Period.â
THE TEXAS GATEKEEPERS:
Protecting the bordersâ¦and the women they love
ELIZABETH WHITE
A native Mississippian, Elizabeth White now lives on the Alabama Gulf Coast with her minister husband, two teenagers and a Boston terrier named Angel. Beth plays flute and pennywhistle in church orchestra, teaches second-grade Sunday school, andâas an occasional diversion from writingâpaints portraits in chalk pastel. Creating stories of faith, in which a man and woman fall in love with each other and Jesus, is her passion and source of personal spiritual growth. She is always thrilled to hear from readers c/o Steeple Hill Books, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY, 10279 or on the Web at www.elizabethwhite.net.
On Wings of Deliverance
Elizabeth White
I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.
âPsalms 34:4â5
To Mary Ann,
who has prayed faithfully for this story.
I would like to express my gratitude to fellow author Jane Meyers Perrine, who translated my Spanish when she had her own stories to write. ¡Gracias!
Appreciation also goes to Karen M. Wise, whose entertaining and often funny Internet journal of her bus adventure through central Mexico enriched my story with details. Great pictures!
Thanks to my children who put up with me during marathon writing sessions. And to my husband, who came through with great ideas and encouragement when I needed itâall I can say is I love you!
Dear Reader,
Writing Bernadette and Owenâs love story has been a soul journey for me. Over the years I have counseled so many Christian women who struggle with issues of shame and condemnationâremnants of an old life before Christ came in. Words never seem to come to me in the right way when I listen to such heartaches, doubts and fears. My natural response is to write a story to illustrate how God deals with our stumbles.
Bernadette is a character who has begged me to complete her story for years. She was outwardly strong and full of faith, but full of inner feelings of inadequacy and unworthiness. The process of creating for her a hero whom God would use to heal those doubts was eminently satisfying. Owen is to me a picture of Godâs agape unconditional love.
The Bible, of course, is full of word pictures of lives transformed by grace. Rahab. Mary Magdalene. The Samaritan woman at the well. Itâs amazing how we can know âin our headsâ that Jesus washes us clean when we come to Himâand then still act in fear. I hope youâll go to the Bible to reread these wonderful stories, and discover anew the hope available in Jesus!
Blessings,
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
EPILOGUE
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico
âSo there I am, all fat, dumb and happyââ Owen Carmichael ducked under the Cessna to check the propeller mechanism ââwhen my birdâs engine goes out and I see the ground coming at me like a pie in the face.â
Kyle Garrett, the fifteen-year-old missionary kid helping Owen with preflight inspection, gently set down the sand crab heâd been playing with. âSo whatâd you do?â His freckled face was alive with curiosity.
âAbout fifty feet off the ground, I pull the nose up real quick, like you rein in a horse. Hand me that wrench, would you?â Owen gestured toward the tool chest sitting on the sand near the boyâs feet. âThen I adjust in the opposite direction so the tail wonât slam into the ground. The wind creates enough lift on the blades to slow the landing.â
âMan, thatâs so cool that you can fly a chopper and a plane.â Kyle squatted under the wing to watch Owen work. âIâm gonna take flying lessons when I go back to the States for college.â
âTell you what, next trip down here Iâll take you up for a lesson.â Deep under the belly of the plane, Owen squinted into the bright sunlight that flooded the beach, which also functioned as a makeshift airstrip.
From Owenâs perspective, the kid didnât have much to complain about. The Gulf of Mexico lay just twenty yards away, and the ocean spray left a pleasant salty taste on his lips. He wished he had a few more days to spend here before heading back to the south Texas desert.