Free Scandalous Truth by Monica P. Carter Page B

grab a copy. He stood right there and read the story. Passersby grabbed papers, too, and he could hear more than a few disparaging comments.
    â€œI always knew that pastor was dirty.”
    â€œAren’t they all?”
    â€œI know we are not going to elect a preaching crook.”
    The comments hurt. This story just seemed to fuel animosity toward a pastor these people knew absolutely nothing about, other than what they’d read.
    â€œThis is bad,” William muttered under his breath. He had tried to talk the pastor out of speaking to the reporter, but Reverend Chance had insisted, saying he wanted to set the record straight.
    The record is straight all right .
    The story detailed Reverend Chance’s gambling addiction ten years prior, with it culminating in the loss of his home and running up tens of thousands of dollars in debt. The pastor said he was free of the addiction now and hadn’t set foot on a casino floor in years.
    But all that seemed lost to William, who couldn’t get that headline and large photo out of his mind. It seemed to be a sinking ship. But he knew he would stick with the pastor until the end.
    William turned to get back into his car when he heard someone call his name. He looked up to see a beaming Spencer looking back at him. Spencer waved, and the light caught on his watch, making it sparkle. The watch had probably cost more than William’s entire wardrobe.
    â€œGreat story in the paper this morning. I see you picked a real winner,” Spencer called from his late model Mercedes. He let out a loud cackle and the window rolled back up.
    William climbed back into his Protégé. He sat in silence behind the wheel, not turning the key in the ignition, not doing anything but listening to his thoughts. He had felt led to be a part of Reverend Chance’s campaign, but how much longer could he remain? He was devoting more time to this campaign than he was to his computer business. And that meant he was generating even less income for his family than before.
    â€œLord, I believe you told me to help Reverend Chance on this mission, but I need some direction. Nikki is right. We have mounting debt. We’re in a house we are having a hard time affording. Our daughter might have a medical condition that requires expensive treatment. I wonder if I should get off this campaign and get back to building my company on a full-time basis. But I know even as I entertain these doubts, sometimes you are working things we cannot see with the natural eye. So please help me to stay on course and keep going in the direction you have for me, even when I can’t see the way.”
    William turned the key in the ignition and headed to the campaign office. He knew his wife sometimes thought he sat passively by and waited for God to manifest changes. But that’s how William grew up. His mom taught him that faith was about trying to hear God’s voice. And to do that often meant he had to wait.
    William appreciated Nikki’s declaration of love for God when they got married. He believed a couple should be spiritually on the same path, so her joining his church eased a lot of stress. Plus it took away one of his mother’s arguments, because his mom constantly railed that William should not be with a woman who was not saved. So when Nikki got saved and baptized, that was a huge relief.
    He knew his wife was a good, strong Christian woman. She had immersed herself in Bible studies and joined several ministries at church, including becoming an usher. She had dropped out of the choir and went to fewer Bible studies now, but she worked hard to do what she knew to be right. On this latest matter concerning Psalm, though, they disagreed. Nikki thought faith meant doing what she could first and letting God handle what she could not do. But William thought faith was about trusting God and waiting to see what happened.
    William didn’t want to think about that right now,