Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Cleave: To adhere, or to separate (10/09/25)
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TITLE: When God Hires Your Next Secretary | Previous Challenge Entry
By Marilyn Meiners
10/14/25 -
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“Oh-oh,” she muttered. “Something’s wrong. Mark never comes home early. Not unless someone died or the copier caught fire again.”
She braced herself.
Moments later, Mark trudged through the kitchen door looking like a man who’d just lost a duel with a stapler. His tie was halfway off, and his suit coat flew in the general direction of the sofa.
“Bad day?” she asked carefully, trying to sound casual while she diced celery at double speed.
“The worst.”
“Want to talk about it?”
Mark sighed, dropped into a chair, and buried his head in his hands. “I can’t believe this.”
Maggie wiped her hands, poured two glasses of iced tea, and sat across from him. “Alright, let’s have it. Who died? Who sued you? Or did your coffee maker finally quit?”
He looked up gloomily. “Jazleen quit.”
“Wait—your new secretary? You just hired her!”
“Five weeks ago. She was perfect. Smart, organized, punctual—everything I’ve prayed for in an assistant. She told me she’d stay with the firm forever. Then today, out of nowhere, she says she’s quitting.”
“Well,” Maggie said, taking a sip of tea, “people don’t usually quit perfect jobs for no reason. What happened?”
“She’s pregnant.”
Maggie blinked. “Pregnant? How old is she?”
“Forty-two,” Mark said, like he was announcing a tragedy.
“Well, praise the Lord!”
“Praise the Lord?” Mark gawked.
“That’s wonderful news!”
“She told me in her interview that she and her husband had been married fifteen years and couldn’t have kids,” Mark groaned. “She said she was ready to focus on her career—her exact words! “
Maggie laughed before she could stop herself. “Mark, think about it. God is blessing them in their forties! That’s beautiful!”
“Beautiful? She was the best secretary I ever had!”
“Oh, come on,” Maggie teased. “Everyone can be replaced—even you.”
Mark gave her the famous “stink-eye” that had made junior associates quake.
She grinned. “You know it’s true. Besides, God has a plan in this. Isaiah said: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.’ Maybe this isn’t a disaster—it’s a divine rearrangement.”
Mark grumbled into his glass. “I prefer my divine rearrangements with more notice.”
“Let’s invite them for dinner,” Maggie said. “We’ll celebrate their miracle and give some encouragement.”
“Whatever,” Mark muttered, which Maggie wisely took as agreement.
Friday night came, and Maggie went all out. Roasted lamb, mashed potatoes, sautéed asparagus, and lemon fluff for dessert. She even broke out the good china.
At six o’clock, the doorbell rang. Maggie greeted their guests, who looked both elated and terrified—standard for first-time parents over forty.
Dinner went smoothly, until dessert. Jazleen cleared her throat and said, “Mark, I know my news came as a shock. I really did intend staying with your firm for the long haul. But God had other plans. So… we’re on to Plan B.”
Mark raised an eyebrow. “And what, exactly, is Plan B?”
She smiled. “I might have already solved your problem.”
Mark blinked. “You… what?”
“I have a friend moving back to the area. She’s a widow, has thirty years of experience working for attorneys, and she’s brilliant. I told her about you—and she’d love to interview.”
Maggie beamed. “Look at that! God’s already ahead of you.”
Jazleen chuckled. “You’ll probably love her more than me.”
Mark opened his mouth to argue, but the lemon fluff was too good, so he just shrugged. “We’ll see.”
Three months later, Mark bounded into the kitchen one evening looking far more cheerful than the day of the “Jazleen Incident.”
“You’re not going to believe this,” he said, grinning. “Margaret—my new secretary—is incredible. She’s efficient, professional, and she actually laughs at my jokes!”
Maggie smirked. “That’s a rare skill set.”
“She’s already reorganized the filing system, negotiated a better copier lease, and she even reminded me to send flowers to your mother.”
“Wow,” Maggie said. “She is a miracle worker.”
Mark nodded, his grin softening. “Jazleen was right. God really did know what He was doing.”
Maggie gave him a knowing smile. “He usually does. You just take a little convincing.”
Mark chuckled. “I think next time He rearranges something, I’ll try trusting Him sooner.”
“Good plan,” she said, “Now, speaking of divine timing—dinner’s ready.”
Scripture: Isaiah 55:8 (NIV)
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