The Makeover (55 page)

She grabbed
Cedric’s hand.  “Just repeat after me, I guess.”  When Cedric nodded,
she continued.  “Father God, we come to you together thanking You,
God.  We are so sorry for the mess we have made in our lives and in our
relationships.  We ask You for forgiveness as we confess our sins to
you.  I ask for forgiveness for my bitterness, anger, and
spitefulness.  I ask You to forgive every sin I have committed in my
life.  Jesus, I believe You died on the cross and rose again for my
sins.  I accept You right now as my Lord and Savior.  Please come
back into my heart and take control of my life.  I want to live Your way,
for You, and for Your glory.  Please give me Your Holy Spirit.  Thank
You, Jesus.  In Your Name, I pray, thanking You for all You’ve done this
evening.  Amen!”

And the angels
in the room, and in Heaven, rejoiced that the victory had been won.

Satan roared
and gnashed his teeth. 

And he was
still punching and kicking the minions that had failed when they disappeared.

Chapter 28

Therefore
judge nothing before the appointed time; wait until the Lord comes. He will
bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of the
heart. At that time each will receive their praise from God (1 Corinthians
4:5).

In the morning,
Paulo woke up on his bedroom floor. 

He was sweaty,
had a pounding headache, and a crook in his neck.

But he was
filled with joy.  He did not know what had happened exactly, but had felt
the exact moment the Spirit of God had released him from his intercessory
prayer battle for Phoenix.  Words of praise had still been on his lips
when the Lord led him to sleep. 

Now, he could
not wait to get ready to go to church to further his worship.  First, he
needed to call the woman he loved to determine if things had, in fact, changed.

Clapping, he
sang a song of praise for the Lord for several moments and uttered very simply,
“Lord, thank You.  I love You,
Pai
. 
Please take control of this day.  Order my steps and order Phoenix’s
steps.  I pray she accepts You back into her life on this very day. 
Please protect us and let Your perfect will be done for myself, for Phoenix,
and for James and Cara.  In
Jesus’s
Name. 
Oh!  One more thing, God.  Please confirm for me that Phoenix is the
wife You have for me.  I already believe it is so, but I just need one
more confirmation.  Thank You!  Thank You!”

Paulo, noticing
that it was half past seven, jumped into the shower.  He planned to
surprise Phoenix early with flowers and apologies, and escort her to church,
whether she wanted to go or not.  He prayed she would forgive him for
their disagreement.  He was anxious to find out how her night had gone,
considering he had spent almost six hours in prayer on her behalf.

Most of all, he
could not wait to see her eyes again.

He whistled as
he got dressed, already planning a nice lunch for them in a restaurant in
Westchester County.  He wanted to go shopping with her at a mall in
Yonkers, New York.  He loved that the outdoor mall had a Macy’s, a
Zales
, and a couple of small family-run jewelry
shops.  Valentine’s Day was quickly approaching and he wanted to
oh-so-casually take her to jewelry counters and stores to determine what she
liked in jewelry.

And of course,
if the Lord confirmed his question as requested, Paulo knew he would present
Phoenix with a ring very soon…maybe on Valentine’s Day, even if it was a
cliché.

Thoughts of how
to propose to Phoenix plagued Paulo as he ate a bowl of cheerios and
bananas.  “I know, I know, Father.  I am getting ahead of You. 
But, please, just give me the okay to propose!  The moment she makes her
final commitment to You, she has to make one to me!  God, I love her so
much. I am going over there, God.  Please go before me.  I’ll be looking
for Your confirmation of what I already know to be true.  Thank You, Lord
for whatever You’ve done!  I know You did something, I felt it! 
Thank You in advance of whatever it is!  I love You!”

Both the Lord
God and His Son smiled from their places on their Thrones.  Father God
regarded His Son.  “You know I invented the sense of humor, don’t You?”

“I was there
when You did, Father,” Jesus smiled, already aware of His Father’s plans.

“As much as
that one has learned, and as many strides he has taken, a small part of this
one’s heart
still
tries to remain in control.  He has already
mapped out their day, an engagement, a wedding date, and their lives
together.  He doesn’t yet know what will happen this morning, let alone
for the day!”  Father God said.  “I love his efforts though.  I
am fond of them.  I still have work to do on my son’s heart before he will
be ready for all I have for him.  However, let Us answer his requests,
shall We?  Of course, I will do so in a way that is exceedingly and abundantly
more that he could have ever thought to ask for, or imagine.  I am
still
God.”    

The Lord Jesus
smiled as He sent His Spirit to order Paulo and Phoenix’s steps.

Phoenix woke up
on the living room floor around eight with a start.   She had no idea
what jerked her awake.  She looked around bleary-eyed, trying to get her
bearings.  She became aware of a snorting, honking sound next to
her.  Turning, she saw Cedric sleeping and snoring on the ground. 
Drool pooled at the corner of his lips and she cringed. 

“Man, wake up!”
she said in disgust, nudging him.

“Huh?” Cedric
looked around and ran a hand down his face.  “What?  What
happened?  What time is it?”

“Time for you
to head out, brother!  It’s like eight in the morning.  We must have
fallen asleep after praying for so long.  But as beautiful as that was,
you have to head out.”

Cedric gave her
a knowing smile.  “Got church with your future husband?”

Phoenix
returned a bright smile.  “Yeah, you could say that.  I have to call
him though.  Anyway, I’m going to call and try to catch him.  While
I’m looking for something to wear, go freshen up.  I think I have extra
toothbrushes—”

“I know where
you keep them, Fe,” Cedric said, already heading to the bathroom.

Phoenix jumped up,
called Cara, and left a message.  She rushed to her room to find a
beautiful maroon knee-length dress that Paulo had brought her when she could no
longer fit Cara’s plus-size clothes.  She looked at them, packed neatly in
a suitcase, and realized what she wanted to do with the bag of clothing.

She would bring
them to her mother’s house.

The phone
rang.   Excited, Phoenix picked  it and shouted, “Hey, girl!”

.  “Hey,”
Cara answered with a weary voice. “James and I, we’re going to the evening
service today at six.  We were up really late praying and we are
exhausted!  I hope the Lord worked out your issues,
Chica
,
‘cause I ain’t’ had a prayer marathon like that in years!”

Phoenix’s heart
fluttered.  “God had y’all still pray for me after I left?”

“Yup,” Cara
laughed.  “I told you, one day You’ll see how He works for yourself.”

“I have
something to share with you, but I’ll wait until I see you guys.  Thank
you for praying for me, thank you so—” Phoenix’s voice broke.

“
Awww
, don’t cry.  See, the one thing about having
Christians for friends is, we may give you bad advice once in a while, but we
pray to the God who can fix it no matter what.”

“Thank
you.  I
gotta
get ready.  See you tomorrow
maybe?”

“You got it.”

Cedric came out
of the restroom, fresh and clean after a quick shower, and no longer wearing
his sweats.  “Good thing I left one bag of clothes still in the hall
closet.”

“You still had
clothes in my closet?” Phoenix arched her eyebrow.

“Yeah.  I
guess forgot it that day your man moved me out.”

They shared a
laugh about that.

“How did you
leave it behind when the Brazilian Ex-Squad was here?” Phoenix giggled at the
memory.

 “It was a
small bag of fresh laundry I put in there when I was rushing to get to an
interview last summer.” Cedric laughed.  “Wow, this talking to God thing
is the truth!  After brushing my teeth, my coworker called and asked me to
head out to service with him at ten, at his church in East Harlem.  He
originally invited me to another church in Times Square at three o’clock, but
since he got family coming by, he changed his mind.  So I was standing
there thinking, dag, I would love to go but I
really
need a shower and
to change.  Out of nowhere, bam!  The memory of me putting the bag of
laundry in the hall closet comes to mind!  I find fresh drawers,
wifebeaters
, socks, my favorite button-down, and khakis and
other stuff.  Boom!  Fresh and clean for church.   I always
carry deodorant so I’m good.  It’s like God saved the bag for me ‘cause He
knew I was going to be here last night to pray with you and clear the air.
 Now, I can just go to church with my boy from my job.  I don’t have
to head downtown to change, and head back to east Harlem on the train and
bus.  I can meet him without being late.”

“The amazing
thing is, the church in Times Square that has three o’clock service? 
That’s where I’ve been going with Paulo! And I think the one in East Harlem is
my church’s sister church.” Phoenix again had to shake her head in awe. 
“Wow.”

“Wow,” Cedric
said, echoing Phoenix.

Because the
only thing anyone could say when considering the Living God was “wow.”

After thanking
God for what He was doing, for working out their issues, and for bringing their
prior relationship complete closure, Phoenix headed to the restroom to get
ready to meet her man for church.

She couldn’t
wait to share what the Lord had done for her, and Cedric, the night before.

And most of
all, she wanted to throw her arms around him and thank him for praying for
her. 

She knew, deep
in her heart, that he, along with their friends, had never stopped.

Unable to wait,
she grabbed her house phone and dialed Paulo’s number before she began brushing
her teeth.

***

Paulo was
whistling as he perused an array of flowers at his favorite neighborhood
bodega, right on the corner of Phoenix’s block.  His cell phone vibrated
and his heart warmed when he saw Phoenix’s number flash across the
screen.  He was about to pick it up when he decided to let it go to
voicemail.  He still had plenty of time to surprise her and that was what
he intended to do. 

After
purchasing beautiful white Chilean lilies, he stopped to get two fruit juices
from an organic juice stand.  He thought that the guava, pineapple,
carrot, apple, ginger, and wheat grass drink would give them energy, fill their
stomachs, and hold them over until the lunch he had planned for them.

As he turned
the corner, his steps quickened.  He marched up West One Hundred
Forty-Ninth Street, feeling his anticipation build with every step.  He
was practically jogging past the brownstones and buildings when he saw her…

Coming out of
the building, in the early morning…

With Cedric.

With Cedric.

“With Cedric?”
Paulo’s jaw dropped.  “Did he spend the night?  No, she wouldn’t, but
she is…”

Coming out
of the building,

In the early
morning,

With…

Cedric!

“Jesus, help
me,” he breathed as he dropped the bags of juice and flowers on the
pavement.  “No.  No.  It can’t be.  It can’t…Father God,
please… I drove her away and she ran back to him as she said she would. 
Oh, God, please, I can’t…I thought…”

But the words
of prayer died on his lips as he watched the woman he loved hugging her
ex-fiancé long and hard on the stoop of her building.

Clearly
something had transpired between them!

The pounding in
his heart quickly climbed to his throat as he growled Portuguese words
promising pain and suffering and bloodshed.  He started to storm off
across the street, towards the building, fully intending to grab Cedric by his
neck and snap it, when it hit him.

God had
answered. 

He had asked
the Lord for final confirmation that Phoenix would be his wife.

And He had
confirmed that she would not.

He had no right
to be angry.  He was a Christian and God had to come first.

He could not
lash out because He had misunderstood the Lord.

The Lord had
used Him for a purpose and it was over.

Tears sprang to
his eyes. 

Phoenix would
not be his wife. 

Dejected, he
swallowed his tears, and his howl of disappointment, and turned around. 
He walked quickly back down the street before Cedric and Phoenix could notice
him, not that they would, as they stood laughing together, enjoying each other,
on her stoop.  Cedric did have a bag with him, and it was apparent that
Cedric had, in fact, spent the night. 

Moaning from
the pain swirling in his stomach, he whispered, “Okay, God.  I love
You.  Thank You for showing me.  Your will be done.  I don’t
like it, Father, but Your Will be done.”

At that moment,
his phone vibrated.  He hoped to Heaven it wasn’t Phoenix calling him
again.  Glancing at his phone, he was grateful when an unrecognizable
number flashed on his screen.  “This is Paulo,” he barked.

“Mr. Elias,” a
man spoke loudly into the phone.  “We’re outside your building and—”

“Wait,” Paulo
snapped.  “Who is this?”

The man chuckled. 
“Sorry.  This is David Smith from Window Fix It.  We had an
appointment today to fix your front window?  We’ve been out here for about
ten minutes ringing the bell.  Are you in?  We need to come in to
replace the stain glass you ordered.”