I have two children, Chris and Aimee, almost 8 grandbabies (four for each of them). I wish that they all lived close to me so that I could enjoy my babies. My biggest wish is that they be saved and that Chris will find the job that he needs. I would like for my children’s dad to open his eyes and believe that there is a God and to be saved. I would love to have a major break thru for my book and it becomes a best seller. I would love to find my soul mate. We could go fishing, go hiking in the woods, ride four wheelers and go motorcycle riding, boating and all the things that make life enjoyable.
I have a secret wish that is hard for anybody to understand but I would love to have such an anointing on my life that people could see it all over me and that God would give me the gift of singing in the holy language of the Angels (Singing in tongues) and that people would be saved thru this. Also, the gift of healing so I could lay hands on sick people and have them be healed, especially Mary.
“A Basket Full of Wishes”
Mable sat at her kitchen table, eating a bowl of cold cereal for dinner. There was little point in cooking anymore when she was the only one in the house (other than her pets). She was tired from her long day at work and enjoyed the peace of quiet of her home, but it sure got lonely a lot. All of her children and grandbabies lived too far away for her to visit whenever she had the whim (which was always). She stared out the kitchen window at the fading light of day and was surprised to see someone coming up the walk carrying a big box.
Suddenly the doorbell rang. Mable popped up and had it open in a jiffy but the delivery person was no where to be seen. She stepped outside and looked all the way around but could see no one nor any sign of a truck. Well, that was strange!
She bent over to pick up the enormous box wondering how she was going to lift it much less get it through the doorway but it was very light; almost as if it were completely empty. She managed to get it through the doorframe and plopped it onto the kitchen table so she could get a better look at the return address. She guffawed instantly; this had to be someone’s idea of a joke. All it said was “GOD”. The ship to address wasn’t much better: “MABLE”
She went out the front door again and this time circled her property. No one was lurking about to watch their little practical joke play out. No cars were loitering on the street.
“Harumph!” Mable snorted. She went back into the house, got a scissors and sliced the duct tape that sealed the box shut. I bet it’s a bunch of shredded newspaper with fake doggie pooh! She had the flaps open in seconds. No foul odors greeted her nostrils. So far so good…She reached in and pulled out a large wicker basket. “Oohhhhhhhhhhhhh!” she couldn’t help cooing. It was beautiful. The handle was festooned with raffia and real sunflowers, hyacinth, and snapdragons. The obligatory red plaid tablecloth edges peeked out from under the lid. On the handle was a note with handwriting.
“ONE AT A TIME” it read. Mable’s brow furrowed. What in heaven’s name did that mean? She opened the lid, reached in and found a single scrap of paper.
“Open the front door.” It read. Mable put her hands on her hips in disbelief. Now the basket was giving her orders! She reached in to see what the next note would read, hoping it would be something more interesting…like the winning lotto numbers and the winning ticket…”OPEN THE DOOR!!!” This time in all capital letters.
“Well okay!” griped Mable loudly. Great…now she was talking to a picnic basket! Might as well play along…she went to the front door and flung it open.
Mable screamed and jumped back. There on the stoop were her kids, Chris and Aimee with their families and all eight of her grandbabies!!
“MOM! GRANDMA!!” They all tumbled in; taking turns kissing and hugging her. Mable was too overjoyed to question them and ushered them all inside.
“I wish I’d a known y’all were coming – I would have fixed y’all something to eat! She exclaimed. The moment she turned around she found them all seated around the table that held the basket. The oldest kids began to pull things out one by one. First it was a large Tupperware filled with hot fried chicken. Next came biscuits, then corn on the cob, then a green salad and finally a plate of Angel Fluff brownies. The house became filled with aroma of food. “Where did-“ she began to ask then decided not to. Better to play along and see what happened next. She sat down next to Chris who planted a kiss upon her cheek.
“Mom – I have some good news!” he said inbetween mouthfuls of chicken and biscuit.
“What is it, baby?” she said, smiling at him in anticipation.
“I just got a great job and you’ll never guess where the company headquarters is!”
“Here?”
“That’s right! How’d ya know?” Chris replied, his eyes wide.
Mable glanced at the basket. “Uh…a little bird told me.” She fibbed.
“They’re paying for the relocation and everything! Not only that, but they hired Aimee’s husband too so we’ll ALL be moving back…and just in time for CHRISTMAS!”
A strange feeling began to come over Mable. She felt this overwhelming desire to cry and laugh at the same time. She glanced at the basket again; somehow it managed to look like it was grinning at her. She enjoyed her family’s company for the rest of the evening, talking and laughing late into the night. Soon they all piled out of the door, several sleepy grandbabies draped over the shoulders of their parents as they called out their goodnights and promises to be all together soon. Mable closed the door, prepared to do a sink full of dishes only to find that all had already been cleared up.
She craned her neck back and looked up at the ceiling, cupping her hand to her mouth. “Okay, Lord…what next?” she shouted. She jumped almost 3 feet off the floor and screamed when a telephone began to loudly ring from inside the basket! With every jingle the entire thing vibrated violently and began to move towards the edge. Mable dived and caught the basket just as it tipped over the edge; the phone inside still ringing madly. She was almost afraid to answer it.
“Hello?” she ventured, wondering whose voice would be on the other end. Jesus? Moses? The Tooth Fairy…?
“Mable?” bawled the voice on the other end inbetween sobs. “Is that you?”
“Junior?” she responded, pulling the receiver away to look at it as though his face would pop out of the ear piece.
“Make it stop! Make it stop!”
“Make what stop, Junior?”
“Those black things flying around my house all afternoon shrieking like the devil!” Get away from me! She could hear him scream to the things in his house. “Mable, it’s like the pit of hell opened up into my living room! There’s now here I can hide! The shrieking is terrible and they won’t stop pinching me! They keep telling me I’m going to die tonight unless you intercede on my behalf and go down into the underworld!!”
Mable stared at the phone again. “Junior – is this your idea of a sick joke?”
His bloodcurdling scream was the only response she got. She heard the phone on the other end fall to the floor and the voice of her ex-husband pleading. Her heart suddenly became very fearful for him. A warm sensation began to build in her throat, rising higher and higher until it filled her mouth. She opened her arms and mouth wide, closed her eyes and gave in the song that filled the house and rocked it on its foundations. A joyous song filled with overwhelming power. It was so magnificent she couldn’t believe it was issuing from her own vocal chords! The music went into the phone and despite the fact she was no longer holding the receiver to her ear, she could her her ex-husband quietly plainly regain his courage and order the “things” from his home in the name of Jesus. “Keep singing, Mable!” she heard him yell. “Don’t stop! Don’t stop – they shrieking in pain and disappearing! Keep singing!”
Books, vases, dishes, cups and glasses rattled inside the cupboards as Mable’s song grew more and more anointed. Junior kept screaming encouragements until finally, after what seemed an eternity, all evil had been put to flight. He returned to the phone, sobbing like a baby. “Mable?”
“Junior?” Mable clutched the phone, shaking, exhausted and exhilarated all at the same time. “Are you okay? What just happened?”
“You drove them out,” panted Junior, his voice all atremble. “I don’t know where they came from or why but your singing drove them out.” He began to sob. “I’m so afraid, Mable. What if they come back? What am I going to do?” He was absolutely terrified.
“Junior – do you truly want them to never come back? What are you willing to do to make sure they don’t?”
“Anything!” he screamed. “I’ll die of a heart attack and go to hell if they come back! Please, please – tell me what to do!” This is what Mable had been waiting most of her life to hear.
“If you pray with me and repeat everything I say and mean it with all your heart, they will never come back again.” She promised. She could hear that Junior was convulsed with sobs but also that he was listening very closely. After several moments of silence he answered.
“Okay,” he said in a small voice. “I’ll pray.” Mable then slowly and deliberately lead him in a prayer of repentance; unable to resist having him list and name all the things he had done wrong by her and his family. Junior was in no shape to argue or be prideful anymore. He was convinced that if he did not pray at that moment and receive God’s forgiveness then all the demons would return and this time they would take him down the hell with them! When it was over Mable was completely drained and Junior was exhuberant. “I don’t know why in tarnation it took me this long to come to my senses!” he crowed, jumping up and down.
“Because you were a prideful fool who needed the hell scared out of him!” Mable retorted with a smile. “Junior…it’s been a day. You’re safe now and I need to get to sleep. I’m done in and I have to get up early for my first book signing at Walmart.”
“Okay! Okay!” he said, giggling like a little girl. “I’m going to find my old Bible and start reading, right after I dump out all the booze in the house!”
“You do that!” Mable grinned and hung up. She watched as the basket lid slowly floated down and closed and waited some more. When nothing further happened she shrugged and went to get ready for bed. She slept like a baby that night and rose before the alarm, anxious to see what the basket would do next. She opened the lid but all she found was a punch of black felt pens and several bottles of water and some snack foods.
She quickly got ready, a bit nervous. She had never done a book signing before. Her local Walmart had agreed to let her bring a small box of her books to sell but had done nothing to promote or advertise the event. Mable had invited everyone she could through email and Facebook but no one had RSVPd they would come. She’s give it the college try for an hour, then pack it up and do some shopping. She drove in the early morning towards the superstore and was peeved to run into a traffic snarl about two blocks away. She made a quick u-turn and found the less known way back to the Walmart but still was perplexed as to the line of cars snaking in to find a parking space. The lot was completely filled. Must be having some sort of super giveaway she thought to herself, parking in the employee lot where she had a space set aside for her. She walked into the employee entrance with her box of books, pens, water and snacks, entered the main store just inside the book department and froze. About a thousand pairs of eyes all instantly riveted onto her face and the crowd broke into a simultaneous roar of welcome. Hundreds of camera flashes went off; blinding her.
Everything in Mable’s arms crashed onto the floor while her mouth gaped open like a cavern. There was a line of people snaking in and out among the display racks as far as the eye could see. Posters of her book were everywhere with the words screaming out: “MABLE DOTSON – TODAY ONLY! SIGNING COPIES OF HER BESTSELLER!” Some of the Walmart employees rushed to gather up her dropped items.
“Good thing you brought a lot of pens!” a young girl smiled at her, placing them back upon the table. “You’re going to need them!”
Mable allowed herself to be lead to the signing table. The young girl even had to put the first pen in her hand before she could utter a coherent word. “I didn’t bring enough books.” She finally managed to observe out loud. The salesgirl smiled at her and gestured to several dozen cartons.
“We’ve got plenty! Believe you me!” she grinned. For the next four hours, Mable did nothing but murmur hello’s and autograph her name to copies of her book. She vaguely remembered taking dozens of pictures with “fans” who bought a copy but she couldn’t remember a single thing anyone had said to her. By the time the last book was autographed; she was completely exhausted. The store manager came up to her and helped her from the chair her butt had been glued to for the past half a day.
“Mable Dotson, I’m a big fan!” he grinned, clutching one of her books to his chest. “I managed to hide one for myself. Would you mind?” Mable looked up to find a good looking middle aged man with salt and pepper hair grinning at her.
“How would you like it autographed?” she asked, unable to tear her eyes away from his baby blues. She glanced down at his left hand…no ring.
“To Sam,” he said as she scribbled upon the page. “…and don’t forget your phone # so I can ask you out for a date! Do you like to do out-doorsy stuff?”
Mable looked up at him in shock and then bellowed with laughter. He was so forward but in such a flirtatiously delicious way that she didn’t mind. She grinned at him and wrote her phone number down in very large print. Sam picked up the book, took her hand in his and kissed her palm.
“I’ll be picking you up on my Harley!” he said then left to supervise the cleanup of her book signing.
Despite her fatigue, Mable felt exhilarated. She walked on air all the way back to her car and drove home, anxious to open the basket again and see what would happen next. When she walked in the door, instead of the basket all she saw was her well used and beloved Bible sitting open on the kitchen table. A scripture verse seemed to be glowing but before she could look at it the phone rang.
“Mable? Whatcha been doing?” came the beloved voice of her close friend Mary. “Darling – you will just not believe what happened to me today!”
“What?” replied Mable, getting her reading glasses onto her nose so she could read the glowing print better.
“I got a message today to call you and ask you for prayer because tonight was the night God is going to totally heal me of all my infirmities and He wants to use you to do it!”
A thrill went down Mable’s spine and she knew the words that Mary spoke were true.
“Well then, let’s pray right now!” she said. When she was done they were both praising the Lord and giving Him glory. Mary had felt as though liquid honey had been poured all over her from the moment Mable had begun to pray. She could feel her kidneys renewed, her stomach come back to healthy life, her esophagus healed and the gout in her leg recede. Her entire body was tingling with new life and they both knew that at long last, after years of suffering, God had finally healed her.
Mable opened her eyes and was finally able to read the scripture from her Bible: “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11:23-25
“So who gave you the message to call me today?” Mable asked, rubbing her eyes with fatigue.
“It was a note that came inside this crazy picnic basket that some mysterious person delivered to my house today!” replied Mary.
THE END
