Christian Stories

Sunday, 30 July 2017

Gods of the earth - chapters 11 &12




Chapter 11

Joy didn’t like the church…it wasn’t like the one she was used to, where the pastor cracked jokes and there was a lot of music and choreography and drama…everyone had an opportunity to exercise their gift depending on which activity group you joined; but this church was oh so boring!

But she knew she had to remain, after all she was being paid to be a member of the choir, and quite a sum of money at that.

All she had to do was to report back to Mr Akande every Sunday evening about the activities of the church, especially of Wunmi and Mary the main worship leaders.

She had been curious as to why she had to monitor those two ladies in particular, but knew enough to know that there was something big at stake.

Mr Akande had recruited her along with three others from his office…they were used to running different kinds of errands for him…mostly ‘spiritual’ errands…they were what you would call witches.

She remembered the party Mr Akande had organised for his  core staff and they had thoroughly enjoyed themselves…but the next night she found herself in a ‘meeting’ in a dream that was so real, she still remembered every detail of it…that was where she had been informed that she was now a witch…she and others had eaten something which had covenanted them.

At first she had been terrified and wanted to tell her parents, but every time she tried, there was a strange monkey like creature that sort of ‘lived’ in her that would begin to suffocate her…he had introduced himself to her at the ‘meeting’ and told her he had taken up residence in her permanently to ensure she didn’t tattle under pain of death.

She had tried to call his bluff and had nearly died…so she never tried it again.

But that was like three years ago…she had gotten used to the ‘meetings’ now and things weren’t so bad after all…for instance, Mr Akande saw to it that they never ran out of money…in fact, they didn’t even live off their salary…that was mere extra savings for them now.

Everything about them was taken care of…their accommodation was top class…they even had their own cars…so life was good as long as they did their bit.

Through the years they had received promotion based on merit…on trust…and now Joy had been given abilities…they had told her that the Familiar that lived in her could help her do certain things such as transporting her spirit in the night to go and spy on those she had been assigned to…among other things.

Sometimes when she got angry, she found she could express her anger externally by just thinking about it…she could move chairs and other objects violently with her mind…but then she found out that it was really the Familiar doing it…he simply projected out his power through her mind.

All in all she had no regrets about being a witch…so Mr Akande would be delighted about what she had found out recently…she hoped she would get gifts from him…he liked her more than the other witches in his office…at least she thought so; or why else would he prefer to sleep with her so often?

She turned her head to look in Wunmi’s direction…she was whispering to her cousin Mary. Joy closed her eyes and listened to them with her mind…quickly the Familiar made the connection and she was able to hear what they were whispering about.

“As I laid my hands on him I could feel the heat transfer from my hands to his body and gradually his twitching subsided and he fell into a deep sleep,” said Wunmi.

“Thank you Jesus! That was definitely the gifts of healing in operation!” said Mary joyfully.

“Sometimes I feel that everything I get from God comes at a price,” said Wunmi.

“How do you mean?”

“Well it’s like, something bad happens then God uses me to fix it,” responded Wunmi.

“Well I suppose that is the meaning of bible verses such as I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me; and let the weak say I am strong,” answered Mary.

“Yeah”

Pastor Adewusi opened his bible right after the announcements were over…

“This morning I woke up with a strong sense of urgency in my spirit. We don’t have much time left. I know we keep hearing it over and over again that Christ will return anytime  from now…and we are beginning to sound like a broken record but the truth is that there is really nothing left preventing him from returning for his church today.”

“So today, I just want to show you a few things from the scriptures that will prepare you for the Rapture. All through the scriptures of the New Testament, there is reference continually being made towards being worthy. To be worthy of something means to have proved yourself fit or qualified for it and I will show you from scripture that it takes a whole lot more than just being born again to enter into God’s Kingdom.”

“Here are a few scriptural references and they will be projected for you to copy after the Service.”

1Thess 2:12 That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory. 

2Thess 1:4-5 So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure:  
Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:

2TH 1:11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:

These scriptures point to the fact that God requires our conduct in life to be such that it can be befitting for Him to value and praise.
Jesus Christ said in Matthew 5:20, that except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

The Pharisees were extremely self-righteous…they didn’t commit adultery or fornication…they followed the Ten Commandments religiously, they obeyed the letter of the Law, but strangely I see all around me that born again Christians who are supposed to be the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus cannot even compete with the righteousness of the Pharisees, let alone surpass it,” said Pastor Adewusi.

Joy yawned and turned to look for Nike…she was already dozing…Nike always dozed in church!

Pastor Adewusi was bringing the Service to a close when he felt himself breaking into sweat in the cool atmosphere of the church, but what bothered him the most was the strange weakness and dizziness he began to feel…his words were slurring as he called for Offering Time.

That was all Pastor Adewusi knew till he found himself falling in slow motion and heard people running around and shouting…he saw his wife suddenly appear by his side along with several other people before he finally passed out.

In the commotion a middle aged man stood up unnoticed and walked out of the church auditorium…he wasn’t alone…the commotion was a signal for Joy and Nike to leave as well, for something was about to happen.

Mr Akande walked briskly to his car and drove off. His secret instructions from their leader – Mr Oduyela was to ‘smite the shepherd and so cause the sheep to scatter’. It was the beginning of a build-up of lack of faith in the ability of their pastor to protect them.

The Familiar held on for dear life as Pastor Adewusi’s body went rigid and he began foaming at the mouth.

Joy watched the church members begin to panic…she could see their prayers were from fear not from faith…they were all panicking about what had happened to their pastor. Some had had the presence of mind to take him off the stage and into the vestry.

She was mildly amused as she turned to look for Nike in the pandemonium and winked at her.

They had been taught at their ‘meetings’ that Christians were basically cowards who could not stand pain or persecution; that they were very fearful people and she had come to find that it was true. It was really very easy to intimidate a Christian.

How different from the bible kind of Christians she had been told stories about as a child.
Joy and Nike left the church quickly, the pastor may possibly die and they didn’t want to be near the vicinity when it happened.

The pastor had been deceived into accepting a spiritual attack in the name of stress…all the symptoms of stress had been present and at the instant Pastor Adewusi had admitted to himself that the way he was feeling was caused by stress, he had given the Familiar an inroad into his body.

Joy and Nike watched as his wife and other pastors drove him off to the hospital before getting into their cars and driving off…if he died, the activities of the church would be severely curtailed…but more importantly; Wunmi and Mary would be on their own without his ‘protection’…it would make them more vulnerable to attacks…it was only a matter of time before they weakened sufficiently enough to be compromised…Mr Akande’s plan had been sheer genius!

Chapter 12

Mary tried to reach her husband on the phone but it was switched off.

“Try my husband too,” said Wunmi as she stepped on the accelerator. She wasn’t sure what hospital they were taking the pastor to, so she meant to keep the car in sight.

“What do I say to him?” asked Mary.

“That our pastor collapsed and we are following the car to the hospital to see if we can be of assistance. He will understand; he knows how he came about his healing.”

“Okay”, said Mary and made the call.

“I still didn’t like leaving the children with the music director and his wife, but it seemed like the best choice in an emergency,” Wunmi said, as she caught sight of the speeding car turning at a junction.

“Yeah me too, don’t you know anything about them?” asked Mary questioningly.

“Nope, nothing more than you do” said Wunmi; the speeding car in front of them finally turned into a large compound…the large signboard read: Welcome to MercyLand Hospitals.

As they drove in, Mary linked her hands with Wunmi’s…

“Has the Holy Spirit said anything yet?” she asked.

Wunmi knew exactly what she meant…did she feel any heat like she did with her husband?

“No. I will have to trust him on this one, pray with me,” she said after parking the car.

The hospital was clean and quiet, but as soon as they brought in Pastor Adewusi, it suddenly burst into life.

Wunmi watched as Mrs Adewusi, the assistant pastor and other elders of the church surrounded the still unconscious pastor, holding hands and praying till they nurses came in with the stretcher to wheel him away.

“If you don’t go now, you may never be able to get through to him again,” whispered Mary.

“But I don’t feel the heat; shouldn’t I wait till the Holy Spirit manifests the heat in my hands?”

“No I don’t think so; I think this is a faith thing. Just because you felt the heat the first time does not mean you will always feel the heat. He said you shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover, he didn’t say you shall feel the heat and then lay hands on them,”

“Thanks for that Mary, you are right,” replied Wunmi, suddenly bolting after the hurrying nurses.

“No wait Wunmi, they won’t allow you in there, what are you doing?” shouted Mrs Adewusi, but Wunmi was already gone.

 Two nurses blocked her way…she made as if to turn round but as soon as they relaxed she ran through following the nurses wheeling the pastor.

Once she got close enough she laid hands on her pastor…

“I rebuke you spirit of death in Jesus Name!” she shouted out much to her surprise.

She had meant to say “You are healed in Jesus Name”, but her tongue twisted as she was about to speak and other words came out.

Pastor Adewusi sat up spluttering as though he was choking on something.

The nurses stopped suddenly and one of them began thumping him on the back, staring at Wunmi in surprise.

The other nurses who had tried to prevent Wunmi from entering the private area suddenly showed up with a couple of security guards, but by then Pastor Adewusi was already on his feet.

Wunmi escorted him back to the reception area along with at least seven nurses who still looked pretty shocked, talking all at once among themselves.

Mrs Adewusi saw them coming and began jumping up and down, praising God till her head tie fell off…not that she cared.

The nurses quietly gathered around Wunmi, kneeling down and asking for prayers.

“It was the Holy Spirit, not me,” she said in dismay.

“Yes but pray for us to have the Holy Spirit too,” they said.

Wunmi looked at her pastor, wishing he would take over but he simply nodded his head in encouragement.

“Thank you Wunmi,” he said later just before he left the hospital with his entourage.

The Familiar spirit had felt a terrific blow in his midsection that careened him out of the building…he was still soaring as the pastor left the church…he watched them leave with a grimace of pain on his face…he had failed and there would be consequences…severe repercussions.

He was very low in the Hierarchy on earth…but this had been an important job…a job that could have gotten him a promotion…now he would get some sort of punishment…especially if their Prince got to know. He had heard that the Prince over his territory was a really bad one called Janut!

Kola was terrified…he didn’t want to remain at home alone so he went to the nearest fast food joint…the Translucent Man wouldn’t bother him in public…he would wait here until his wife arrived. She had called already to say she was on her way back from the hospital, but had to pick up their children first.

Suddenly his ambition to develop cutting edge software had died…his craving for knowledge promised by the Translucent Man had disappeared…now he loathed the microchips that were in his body…they made him feel less than a human being.

It was as if his eyes had suddenly opened and he found himself in chains.

While he was in hospital, he had seen the Translucent Man in another form entirely…he had looked horrible with his burnt and scarred, huge broken wings…he had told him his real name was Janut and that he would certainly not survive the night…he had not been alone…there were at least three others with him, though they didn’t have wings…they all leered and laughed at him.

Then he had seen a white light from afar that came closer and as it approached it became brighter.

 Janut couldn’t seem to be able to stand it and began shrieking in pain or anger…Kola wasn’t sure…but they all fled as the Light finally arrived. A huge hand held him firmly as the Light permeated his entire body which appeared to be transparent…then it had disappeared and he had woken up to see his wife with her hand on his chest.

The white light had come because of her! He could have died if she hadn’t come…he realized that now…and she had come probably because the Holy Spirit had asked her to come.

He was familiar with the story of the great battle with Lucifer…but as the years passed, it had also eroded its memory…the Holy Spirit had come to his rescue…maybe he wouldn’t get another chance to repent…that was why he had to do it now…what he was afraid of was that he had already legally allowed Janut to enter his body and life…he had taken something from Janut and hadn’t given him back anything in exchange yet…how could God set him free from that in all fairness?

He had tried calling Muyiwa several times to tell him of his experience but his phone had been switched off.

He would have to confess everything to Wunmi…she was the only one who could help him now…she and the Holy Spirit!

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