Stirring Up Strife (2010) Read Online Free PDF

hands folded on top of student desks. Each person had a copy of the Bible opened in front of them, along with a few sheets of paper covered with notes, and a pen. Their postures were relaxed and they all smiled at her in welcome.
     
"Who's there?" asked a woman seated closest to the door. She had black hair, dark blue eyes, and unusually pale skin. She also seemed to be trying to figure out who had entered the room.
     
"It's Nathan, Savannah." Nathan called from the doorway. "And this is Cooper." Nathan gestured for Cooper to move nearer to where the woman sat. "Cooper," he said. "This is Savannah. She's the leader of our little group."
     
The woman held out a calloused hand speckled with colorful stains, like a child who used permanent markers and was only able to wash away the surface layer of pigment. Cooper placed her hand into the woman's. "Aha! Another woman who works using her hands!" the group leader announced enthusiastically.
     
As Cooper glanced around, wondering how to make a polite escape in order to locate the actual worship service, she noticed a white cane beneath Savannah's desk.
     
"In case you haven't guessed, I'm legally blind," Savannah said as if she knew exactly what Cooper had seen. "But I can still see shapes and, thank the Lord, colors. I figure out people by their outlines and their smell." She gave a series of sniffs like a bloodhound catching a fresh fox scent. "Let's see, you're Dove soap, aloe lotion, a little guava-scented shampoo, and ..." She inhaled deeply and Cooper inched away even further. "Well, I'll be. I believe you might work on machines. Am I totally off the mark?"
     
"I repair office machines," Cooper answered in surprise, staring at the woman. "How did you know?" She pretended to check her armpits. "Am I giving off a whiff of toner? Maybe some grease? I use baby powder Secret every morning, I swear."
     
Savannah laughed.
     
"Okay, okay," a man who looked like he was in need of a haircut and shave quickly interjected. "Let the lovely lady get situated before we pry her open like a mussel and check out her innards." He held out his hand for Cooper to shake. "I'm Jake. Recovering Catholic, plumber and electrician, and Little League baseball coach. I'm here 'cause one of my buddies started readin' Scripture durin' our lunch breaks and I felt called to learn some more. Come sit by me and I'll get you some coffee."
     
Cooper gave him a grateful nod but didn't settle into the empty desk he pulled over. "Actually, I think I'm in the wrong place," she stated and smiled politely.
     
"We're the Sunrise Bible Study Group," a woman wearing gobs of makeup beneath a helmet of copper hair explained. "I'm Trish Tyler. I'm here because my husband's one of Hope's elders," she said importantly. "And I'm sure you know my name because you've bound to have seen my billboards. My assistants tease that I'm trying to get as many as South of the Border!" She leapt up and placed a business card on Cooper's desk. "No cacti or sombreros on mine, though. Anyway, welcome to Hope Street."
     
Cooper had heard of Trish Tyler, as she was a well-known face in real estate. Her picture was plastered on billboards, moving vans, and on the hundreds of Tyler Realty FOR SALE signs across the city. Trish was seated next to another well-known Richmonder. Bryant Shelton was the meteorologist for Channel 6 news. He was notorious for being incredibly vague in his forecasts, for his string of marriages to women much younger than himself, and for raising funds for poverty-stricken senior citizens.
     
Bryant offered Cooper his best TV smile, nearly blinding her with the stark whiteness of his porcelain veneers, and said, "I'm new as well. Just joined a few weeks ago." He pointed at Trish. "She gave me a business card within the first ten seconds of my arrival too. Personally," he said, raising his voice as he winked playfully at Trish, "I think she puts them in the offering plate so that everyone can see them as it gets