A Very Special Gift

by Kay Heitsch,

"Help me, Lord, I need help!" How many times have I called out to the Lord for help, and He's sent support just in time. It would be hard for me to count the times. Sometimes the Lord helps me directly with ideas, but other times He sends me gifts, special people.

One exceptional gift is my friend, Diane. Diane and I went to high school together. She was a couple of years younger than I was in school. We attended a boarding school in Michigan and lived in a dorm. I was good friends with Diane's roommate Marcia, so I would see Diane whenever I went to their room to visit. I was only at this boarding school six weeks my senior year when I was expelled.

Among the reasons for my departure, some people felt I had a "bad attitude." That's right, the woman who was given the Norman Vincent Peale Award for Positive Thinking was kicked out of high school for a "bad attitude." How funny is that? I ended up going to another state and graduating from a boarding school there. I guess they didn't mind my "bad attitude" so much in Illinois.

Over the years, Diane and I lost touch with each other. I married and moved many times over the years from state to state. Now our youngest son Brandon was in high school, and we were back in Michigan.

Brandon's girlfriend at that time was Lydia. I'd given Lydia one of the Plus Magazines that had my picture on the cover. This was the magazine telling how I had won the Norman Vincent Peale Award for Positive Thinking. Lydia had the magazine laying out when Diane came to visit Lydia's Mom. Diane noticed the picture on the magazine and told Lydia she thought she knew who it was. Lydia informed her that the person in the photo was her boyfriend Brandon's Mom.

I would have liked to have seen Diane's face when she introduced Diane to Brandon. Brandon got on the phone and called me. He said that there was someone over at Lydia's house who wanted to talk to me. I was surprised to hear Diane's voice. I asked if she could come over since she wasn't from Grand Blanc and was only visiting. Diane came over for a short visit. It had been a very long time since we'd seen each other.

I found out that Diane had also been expelled from the same boarding school. After talking, it was clear we both had walked many wrong roads in life and had made some bad choices, but we were both on the right road now. We exchanged email addresses, and I gave Diane the Plus magazines and the book "Have A Great Day - Everyday!" We started to email each other regularly.

For a long time, I'd known the Lord wanted me to start writing out the positive experiences I'd had on my faith journey. I enjoyed writing, but I felt I needed someone to look the stories over before doing anything with them. I called out to the Lord once again. "Lord, I think I need help. Would you please send someone?" I wrote out a story and emailed it to several friends, including Diane. I asked them if they would read it over, and if they saw anything wrong, please let me know. Diane read the story and emailed her comments. When Diane emailed me, she told me something she hadn't shared with me before. Di said to me in college; she had started as a Journalism major. She went on to tell me that she would be happy to look over any story I wanted to send. WOW, an answer to prayer, big time! I don't think Diane knew what she was getting in for when she told me she would be happy to look my stories over; I've sent her many over the years. Another gift that Diane has given to me is a "nudge from God."

There have been times when I haven't sent Diane a story for a while, and she'll send me an email reminding me to write. I've been blessed beyond measure for all of Diane's expert help and encouragement. The good Lord, once again, sent me help just when I needed it. Thank you, Lord, for the Divine connection and the extraordinary gift of Diane. Thanks, Diane, for being such a wonderful friend and answering the call for HELP.