The Makeover (36 page)

She stared at
the man that had become the perfect gift.  He was perfectly wrapped up in
a gorgeous package.  But it was what was inside the package that made the
gift priceless. 

What had she
done to deserve such a gift? 

Nothing.

And for as long
as she could manage, she would take the gift that had been given to her and do
nothing.

She would have
to leave it on the shelf until she felt worthy enough to unwrap the package and
enjoy the gift that Paulo was.

Chapter 20

You are
the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you
make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless
(Matthew 5:13).

The following
Sunday morning, Phoenix ran around her apartment as if she were on fire. 
On her bed were a total of nine new outfits.  Each one had made her more
depressed than the last.

Paulo would be
arriving for their church date in less than an hour and she had no idea how to
tell him she could not go.

She had
promised and she had promised, the past few days, and had promised the night
before.

And now she had
to go or she would hurt him.

And the last
thing she wanted to do was hurt him.

And she needed
to come up with a valid excuse for why she couldn’t make it. 

And Cara had
given her many outfits to wear, but none were working out.

And she had a
pounding headache.

And her hair
was a mess.

And her makeup
was sweating off from all the running around.

And her stomach
was aching too.

And it wasn’t
like she couldn’t just go the following week.

“Maybe I can
catch him before he comes to get me,” she said, picking up the phone.

But when she
picked up the phone, there was no dial tone.

“Uh…hello?” a
voice said on the other line.  “Phoenix?”

“Hello? Hello?”
Phoenix said loudly into the phone.

“It’s me,
Cara.”

“What? 
Cara?  Oh, Girl, I was just about to make a phone call and you were
there.”

“Really? 
That’s strange.  You sound stressed out, though.  What’s wrong?”

“Paulo is
coming here to get me at nine for the ten o’clock service at your church…”

“Yeah, I know,
Chica
.  So?”

“So I was about
to call him to tell him I’ll make it next week.”

Cara
chuckled.  “Yeah, I knew this would happen.  Happens all the time
when we invite someone to church.  The enemy doesn’t want you to go and
he’ll put all kinds of roadblocks to stop you.”

“I don’t think
it’s all that.  I just don’t want to go this morning,” Phoenix’s voice was
clipped as she stomped around her bedroom.

“Sure,
okay.  I knew something was up when the Lord put you on my mind the moment
I woke up this morning.  I’ll be right down.  Wait for me by the door
so I know which apartment.”

Cara hung up
before Phoenix could utter a word in protest.

Less than five
minutes later, Cara was stepping off the elevator.  Phoenix sighed and
prepared herself for a lecture as she led Cara through her front door. 
“Yeah, hi.”

Cara laughed
and gave her friend a hug.  “Don’t be too excited to see me.  Leave
some excitement for your man.”  She looked Phoenix up and down.  “Uh
huh, nice muumuu.  Let’s see what’s going on here.”

She marched
into Phoenix’s apartment as though she owned the place.  “Nice
apartment.  Bedroom is that way?” She pointed down to the bedroom door.

Phoenix nodded
but Cara was already letting herself in.  “We ain’t got a lot of time, Girl. 
Good thing I already fed my husband and baby.”  She looked at the pile of
clothes on the bed.  “Let’s see what we got here.”

Within a few
seconds, she picked out a brown pleated skirt and cream cowl-neck
sweater.  She went over to Phoenix’s closet and found a pair of chocolate
brown leather riding boots.  She went over to the shopping bag full of
jewelry and picked out a pair of big gold hoops, a wooden necklace and a wood
and gold cuff bracelet. 

“Let me fix
your hair and redo your makeup,” she smiled at Phoenix. 

Phoenix
grudgingly sat on the edge of her bed.  “Listen, thanks for coming but I
could have just gone next week.”

“True, but you
could be dead next week.  Why procrastinate?  Besides, after the way
you’ve called me to describe your date last night, over and over, with all that
kissy-face going on, seems like you
need
to go to church!
”

Phoenix fanned
herself, her worries instantly forgotten.  “Yeah, maybe I do need to get
to church.  I need all the prayer I can get dealing with all this.”

Cara wiped off
Phoenix’s makeup.  “After the several times I showed you, why did you
layer this makeup on so much?  I am going to do it once more because of
the time, but you just have to practice, okay?  You don’t want to look
like a clown.”

“I tried,
Cara.  I thought I had it down, but…”

“Everything
seemed to be going wrong this morning, huh?

“Yeah.  I
woke up with such a pounding headache and I just couldn’t get it together.”

“And every
excuse for why you shouldn’t go came to mind, right?”

“I just didn’t
feel like it all of a sudden,” Phoenix answered, ignoring Cara’s question.

“Like I said,
it was the enemy trying to stop you.”

“You really
think it’s all that?  Why are church folks are always blaming stuff on the
devil?”

“Girl, it’s not
always the devil messing stuff up, but the biggest mistake folks make is
forgetting that there is a devil that
can
mess stuff up, if you don’t
pay attention.  Stop playing.  Besides, if it wasn’t all that, God
wouldn’t have led me to start praying for you the moment I woke up. 
Matter of fact, He may have woken me up to pray for you.  And as soon as
we got dressed and ate, He put it on my heart to call you.”

Phoenix didn’t
want to hurt her friend’s feelings, but she didn’t think it was that
serious.  “Wow.”

Cara
smirked.  “It sounds foolish to you now ‘cause you haven’t been walking in
the power of God for a while but when you do, you’ll remember how He
works.  I ain’t got to explain God to you.  You’ll see for yourself
soon as you get to know Him again.”

Phoenix
remained silent as she wondered how Cara knew her spiritual situation.

In a few
minutes, Cara had repaired Phoenix’s makeup and curled her hair.  “I think
if you’re not going to get a relaxer, you should get braids until you grow it
out completely. Then you can go natural because you have pretty hair.”

“You think so?”
Phoenix said, wrinkling her nose as she looked up in the mirror.  “I
thought about it because it would be hassle free, but I didn’t know what to do
with it.”

“I’ll take you
to that beautician I told you about this week to see if she can do some nice
braids for you.  It will be more convenient for working out.  You’ll
only have to retouch it every few weeks.  You don’t like taking care of
your hair so that’s the best solution.”

She helped
Phoenix change into her understated but flattering outfit.  She glanced at
Cara’s own gorgeous suit.  “You sure this is alright for church?”

“Of course, you
look nice.  And don’t bother looking at my outfit.  I have an
important luncheon to attend with my husband after service so I am dressed
up.  Believe me, our church is a come as you are church.  Some people
are going to be looking like the Royal Family.  Others are going to be
wearing jeans and a tee shirt.  God just wants you to come.  This outfit
is nice enough to wear to church but still comfortable enough for if you and
Paulo hang out afterward.  It’s why I suggested it.  I am sure he’ll
want to hang, since it’s a gorgeous morning.”

Phoenix
smiled.  “Did he mention anything to you?”

“Nope,” Cara batted
her eyelashes.  “But after last night, why wouldn’t he?”

And with ten
minutes to spare, Cara let herself out while Phoenix quickly put the rest of
the garments back in her closet.

“You look quite
pretty this morning,” Paulo said, as Phoenix let him in.  He closed the
door and quickly pulled her into his arms, kissing her on the cheek.  He
squeezed her tightly as he inhaled.  “You smell good too.”

“Thank you,”
Phoenix managed, as he pulled away.  He was wearing a navy blazer, cream
button-down shirt, jeans, and brown loafers.  “You look handsome.”

Paulo batted
his eyelashes and waved his hand.  “Well, I try.”

Phoenix laughed
as she punched his chest.  “Man up, Fruitcake.”

In mock
surprise, Paulo grabbed his cheeks.  “Fruitcake? Me?”  Satisfied that
he got a good laugh out of Phoenix, he asked, “Ready for the Word?”

Phoenix
sighed.  “Yeah, I guess so.”

“Hey, did you
have a rough time getting ready for church this morning?” Paulo said as they
entered the hallway.

She spun
around.  “Cara call you or something?”

Paulo pursed
his lips and shook his head.  “No, I haven’t spoken to Cara.  I felt
led to pray for you this morning as soon as I woke up.  I knew Satan was
going to try something to keep you from going.  He always does.  For
a minute there, I expected you to call me and cancel.”

Phoenix
couldn’t say a word as he led her to the elevator.  
What’s with
the God Patrol?
she thought.

They arrived
for service half an hour early.  They decided to have coffee at the
sandwich shop across the street from the large theatre where the church held
services on West Fifty-First Street.  The Times Square Church seemed huge
from the outside and Phoenix was nervous about going in.  She felt like a
kid who had run away from home, whose parent had been searching high and low
for her.  Of course He knew where to find her, but was waiting for her to
come home on her own.  She had an urge to run again, afraid that her
Father God would be waiting for her with a switch, ready to spank her for
forcing Him to wait so long.

Over coffee and
breakfast wraps, Paulo kept smiling at her.  Her heart swelled every time
his eyes twinkled in her direction.  Her stomach quaked as she tried to
smile back.

Paulo reached
over and grabbed her hand, kissed her knuckles and stared into her eyes. 
His smile widened into a grin.

“What,
pray-tell, are you smiling so much about, P.?” Phoenix said, as she sipped on
her coffee.

“I am so happy
the Lord brought you here today.  I have been praying for weeks and you’ve
finally come.”

“Yeah,” Phoenix
said, looking at the table.

“What’s wrong?”
Paulo asked, his eyes narrowed.

“I don’t
know.  It’s been so long and I…”  Phoenix squirmed in her seat.

“It’s been so
long since…?” Paulo stroked her hand.

“Since I’ve
been to church,” Phoenix responded sheepishly.  “I guess I’m afraid of
what will happen if I go in there.”

“Ah,” Paulo
said.  “Afraid you’ll be struck with lightening for ignoring God for so
long?”

“In a way,
yes.”

“Phoenix, God is
a merciful forgiving God.  Always ready to receive His children. 
Remind me to show you the parable about the prodigal son in Luke 15.  God
always is ready to receive His children that return to Him.  Not only will
He receive you, but He’ll come running towards you when He sees you
coming.  You don’t have to worry about being punished or something. 
Yes, He is a God of judgment but He forgives us when we ask and are prepared to
let Him change us through Christ.”

“I know,”
Phoenix said, shaking her head, “but I’ve done so many horrible things…”

“We all have,
Baby.  That is why Jesus died.”

“Again, I know
all that, P.  I’m just not sure what to expect in there.”

Paulo glanced
at his watch and saw it was eight minutes to ten.  “Well, my dear, we are
about to find out.”

Phoenix groaned
as he helped her out of her chair.

After about an
hour of worship and praise, with some of the most heart-wrenching,
soul-satisfying music Phoenix had heard in a long time, she began to feel less
on God’s hit list and more on God’s mercy seat.  By the time, tithes had
been collected, and announcements had been made, she felt like a visitor in
God’s home.

She wondered if
she would feel at home again.

The beautiful
blond pastor, the wife of the Senior Pastor, took her place at the podium and
led the congregation in prayer.

After the
prayer, the pastor began.  “This message is entitled, ‘What happens if you
lose your salt?’ Let us turn now to Matthew 5:13.   It says, ‘you are
the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made
salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and
trampled underfoot.’  What do you suppose Jesus was saying here?”

The pastor
waited a beat before continuing.  “The Lord Jesus calls us to be salt of
the earth.  What he means is that we, as Christians, are to hold ourselves
to a higher standard than the rest of the world.  As you can see, Jesus
was telling His disciples that although the world of men is rotting, His
followers, as
Christians,
were to function like
salt
in the world. Why? They alone were different from the
world. Like the world, they had also been dead, but from
their
depravity and spiritual death they had been delivered by the power of God and
made alive by
their
relationship with Christ…”

“Amen!” a man
shouted from Phoenix’s right.

The pastor
began to calmly walk the length of the stage.  “When Jesus said, ‘You
alone are the
salt
of the earth,’ this was a high
compliment and great encouragement from the lips of the Sovereign Lord of the
universe. This statement gives every Christian great dignity and self-esteem—”