My Father's Gift (5 page)

Reggie sat up, startled. “What phrase?”

“Saying, ‘you know’ is not an appropriate response to anything.  If I knew, I wouldn’t have to ask any questions, understand?”

“Yeah.”  Reggie shook his head in disbelief.

“Excuse me!”

“What do you want me to say?” Cal’s tone caused his lower lip to tremble.

“How about yes or better yet, yes sir.”

“Man, are you for real?” Reggie sat staring as though he was looking at alien.

“Yes, I am for real and I do not appreciate being addressed as ‘man’.  You know my name, either use it or say sir,” Cal snapped.

“Yes sir.  I wasn’t trying to be funny or nothing, but nobody talks like that.”

“Yes, they do.  My children do and most of the boys here, who know me, do.  Ask them.  They will tell you.  The first thing that you must learn is that when you want something from someone else, you play the game by their rules, not yours.  Understand?” Cal emphasized his remarks by tapping on his desk.

“Yes sir.” Reggie’s reply was barely audible.

“Now, the program entails us finding someone compatible with you to do a number of things:  help with schoolwork, take you on outings, get you involved in a church, show you around their business world and hopefully inspire you to become more like them or better.  You must be willing to cooperate with them and be available to spend time with them.  Their time is valuable and time lost accomplishes nothing.  Are you still interested?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good.  I’ll have to make a phone call to make sure that this person is available.  If he is, I’ll arrange a meeting for you tomorrow.  Do you have any questions?”

“No sir.  I think I got it.”

“Good, please close the door on your way out.”

After Reggie left the office, Cal turned the volume up on the radio only to discover that the broadcast had ended.  He had missed the last few minutes.  He would have to get a tape from his pastor later.  He picked up the phone to call Brandon Jordan, one of the program’s mentors.  Brandon owned a commercial real estate company and passed the program’s screening process with flying colors.  He was also the one who had given him a copy of D’Cerner’s book and her phone number.  “Should I thank him or rebuke him,” he wondered smiling.

“Brandon Jordan, please, Calord Recinoire calling,” Cal said when the phone was answered.

“Just a moment, please,” replied Brandon’s secretary.

In a moment, Brandon was on the line.  “Brother Recinoire, how are you?”

“I’m blessed.  Are you still interested in mentoring?”

“I sure am.  Do you have someone for me?”

“I think so.  I’d like for you to meet him tomorrow afternoon if that’s possible.”

“I can make it possible.”

“Good.  I’ll see you then.”

“Brother Recinoire, before you go, have you spoken with Sister Everett again?”

Cal tensed.  “Yes, just recently.  Why?”

“Oh, no reason in particular.  I had dinner with her and her daughter the other night. While we were talking, she mentioned she had enjoyed speaking with you a few weeks ago.  Chantelle and I are dating and it looks like marriage to me.”

“Really?” Cal asked, surprised.  I didn’t think you were the marrying kind.”

“Neither did I until I met Chantelle.  She’s something else.  She’s absolutely gorgeous.  Everyone in our office talks about good she looks.  She’s a legal assistant to one of the attorneys I’ve often used for closings.”

“I hope you’re not thinking about marriage because of someone’s good looks,” Cal said reproachfully.

“No, but it helps.  You should see her mother.  If Chantelle looks anything like her mother in twenty years, she’ll still cause neck cramps.”

Cal’s interest peaked.  “Really?”

“I’m telling you, those two could pass for sisters except for the fact that Sister Everett doesn’t wear her clothes as short as Chantelle.”

“I should think not, considering her position.”

“Even if she did, she wouldn’t look out of place, unless she was in church.”

“Where else would she be?”

“The movies, the library, dinner.  Anywhere.  It’s not like church is the only place she goes, even if she does practically live there.  At least, that’s Chantelle’s opinion.”

“Hmm.  That’s nice to know.”

“Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Thank you.  Have a good one evening.”

When Cal finished talking to Brandon, he thought back to last night’s conversation with D’Cerner.  “Good looking, works with youth, sexy voice, a writer, loves the Lord and doesn’t mind being in church,” he mused aloud.  “This may be the best thing that’s happened to me for a long time.  Father, he said looking up, I hope you know what you’re doing.”  Then he thought about what he said and chuckled.  “Of course you know what you’re doing.  I don’t know what you’re doing.”

Cal stayed at Dexter House for the next hour and half talking to some of the boys and attempting to reconcile the backlog of work on his desk.  He finally decided that the effort was futile and went back to his office at the Royal Chariot. 

For the next two days, Cal negotiated prices with Doug Mason for the new limousines, sat in on the meeting with Reggie and Brandon and constantly prayed that D’Cerner wasn’t going to be angry when he called her.

*****

Unlike Cal, D’Cerner hadn’t been able to accomplish anything because she could not take her mind off their conversation.  She had attempted to get some work done at her office at the Stradus Youth Center, but finding she couldn’t concentrate she left, with instructions to her secretary she could be reached at home, if anything needed her attention.  While at home, she stayed in her upstairs office, praying and pleading with God to help her understand what was happening.

“Daddy, I don’t understand how you could expect me to marry someone that I haven’t met.  I’m not even sure if I like him or not.”

“I know him and that is sufficient for you.”

“But you expect me to spend the rest of my life with a pompous jerk.  Don’t I get to know anything else?”

“He needs balance in his life and he wants a wife.”

So why didn’t you have him call someone else.”

“
Because I had him call you.”

“Okay, I’m wide awake now.  Would you please give me some answers that I can understand?”

“He’s not going to call for a few days and when he does, he’s going to ask you how you keep your skin so soft.”

“How does he know what my skin feels like?”

“He doesn’t.  He’s following directions, just as you are.”

“So what happens after that?”

“The next night he calls, the two of you will sing together and pray for one another.”

“Why?”

“Because I said so.”

“Daddy, I’m not trying to be difficult.  Okay, so I am, but let’s face it, how many times have you done this to people before?”

“Many, from the beginning of time.  I’m your father arranging your marriage.”

“Oh!  Like in one of those countries where marriages are pre-arranged?”

“If people would wait for me and follow my directions, all marriage would be pre-arranged.”

“You’re serious aren’t you?  What if he doesn’t want me?”

“That’s not your problem.  He has the same choice that you do. You are not to seek him for any reason. He is to seek  you.  Under no circumstances are you to correct him and you are to love him, no matter what happens.”

“I’m not to correct him?  You know me better than that.  And love him no matter what?  Okay, loving him I can do because you command it of us.  No matter what happens?  What if he’s unlovable?”

“And what if he isn’t?  Do I make mistakes?”

“No, you don’t make mistakes and I didn’t mean to imply you did, but you’re asking a lot of me this time.”

“Did I ask you to be in my perfect will?”

“No, I told you that I wanted to be in your perfect will.  I didn’t think about the consequences of that statement.  Is it too late to take it back?”

“You know the answer to that.  Have I ever not kept my promises to you?”

“Okay Daddy, I’ll do my best, but you’re going to have to keep a tight rein on my tongue.  That man really knows how to get on my nerves.  Does he ever talk about anything other than his precious pastor.”

“You’re on the verge of disobedience scorning those I use.”

“Okay.  I’m sorry, but does this paragon walk on water, too?”

“That’s enough!  I’ll speak to you some other time.”

“But---,” D’Cerner tried to get back into the spiritual presence of God, but couldn’t.  She knew she had gone too far, but she couldn’t help it.  She sat wondering if this was a preview of what her life was going to be like with Cal in it.

She decided to leave well enough alone and tried to concentrate on her latest book,
Turning Force
.  It was due out in the spring and she didn’t want any last minute surprises.  This one was going to be a stinger.  She knew that not everyone would agree with her position about sexual immorality and the persecution of Christians. She also knew she was writing the book by permission of the Holy Spirit and she would see this through to the end.

The following day, she spent time writing confirmation letters for several seminars she was invited to conduct, as well as a Leadership Conference Cruise, scheduled for the following spring.  “I guess you can never plan too early,” she thought.  She then rechecked her calendar to make sure that there were no conflicting dates for the rest of the year.  She’d have to give this information to her pastor so he would know how to schedule her duties at the church. 

When she thought about him, she smiled.  Pastor Gibson was a great man and treated her as if she were his daughter. He actually wasn’t much older than she was.  It was too bad that his wife had died, but he was recovering from the blow as well as anyone could expect.  Sometimes she wondered if he knew how much he was beginning to depend on her.  It was a concern because his dependence upon her was keeping her from scheduling trips as frequently as she would have liked.  She knew she would be able to pick the pace eventually, so she didn’t allow it to bother her.  Besides, being semi-permanently moored for a while would give her a chance to rest.  She had traveled considerably in the last few years. Slowing down was probably going to be good for her.  “Well,” she thought, “if Daddy plans for me to marry and act like a wife, I guess I’d better get used to the idea of not traveling too often.  That will be a kick.  Me, acting like a wife after all these years.  I sure hope He’s given Cal a clue as to who I am.  I would hate for him to be totally surprised.  Submissive I’m not and I don’t think I want to be.” 

“Hear that Daddy.  You made me this way and I’m not changing.”  The moment she thought it, she was convicted in her spirit and repented. “Whatever you want me to do, Daddy, I’ll do it.”

For the next two days, she stayed at home working on manuscripts and speeches for the seminars she would attend.  She grew tired of patiently waiting for Cal’s call.  Several times she was tempted to call him, but she would always hear a voice telling her, “my word says, he who finds a wife finds a good thing, not she who seeks.”  And people thought God didn’t have sense of humor,” she thought smiling.  “Well, if it’s patience you’re trying to teach me, then it’s patience I’m going to learn.” 

She picked up her bible and after reading a passage of scripture, decided to memorize the verses from the first five verses of the fifth chapter of Romans.  “Therefore, since we are justified through faith, let us grasp the fact that we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Through Him also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand.  And let us rejoice and exult in our hope of experiencing and enjoying the glory of God.  Moreover, let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance.  And endurance develops maturity of character, and character produces joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation.  Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

She relaxed as she thought about how reading the Word always helped her to get through moments of anxiety and this passage of scripture, was very appropriate.  Her patience would be rewarded and she would not be ashamed of the hope she had in whatever the future held.  She decided it was time to go to bed.  After praying, she put her bible behind her in the bed and went to sleep.

Chapter Seven

In her dream a phone was ringing.  Catatonically, she picked up the phone by her bed.

“Hello.”

“Good evening, Sister Everett.” Cal said as cheerfully as if it were early morning.

“Cal, what time is it?”

“It’s just after eleven.”

“Well, at least you made it before midnight.” She yawned as she stretched out in the bed.

“I know it’s late, but this is actually the best time for me to call since the children are asleep and I don’t have to be bothered with other interruptions.”

“Is this late night calling going to be a habit?  I really like sleeping.” She sat up in the bed, rubbing her eyes.

“No, but I do feel that the Holy Spirit has more freedom with us when our defenses are down.”

“What does that have to do with anything?  I don’t put up defenses when I’m talking to people.”

“That’s not true.  When you’re alert, you anticipate things and prepare for them.  When you are not as alert, you don’t have time to prepare or anticipate so you’re usually more honest with yourself and others.” His tone implied she was far too immature to comprehend what he was saying.

“Oh.  So it’s honesty you want.  Can you be equally honest?”  D’Cerner was exasperated beyond measure by now.

“Depends on what you ask me.”

“Are we going to discuss what we heard the other night?”

“No, I’m not ready yet?”