MY RICH WIFE
A Story by Ayodele Adeoye
Episode 11
I ended my dry fasting with with dry bread later in the evening. I had spent one week in custody, before I was charged to court and later sentenced to six months imprisonment. Six months in jail seemed like six years. No member of my family was aware I was in jail. Pastor Lanre and his visitation team came once in a while to check on me in prison. Visitors were allowed to bring food for us but it had to be cooked or processed food. Days when Pastor and his team came around were like days of jubilee to me. They didn’t just give me the physical food, they also fed me with the word of God.
Days and nights seemed longer in prison than outside the prison. 24 hours were like 240 hours. Prison life is better imagined than experienced. The isolation and boredom can not be overemphasised. No friend to relate with, no place to go to, nothing to keep one busy.
But Instead of just staying idle in prison, I began to invest my time in prayer and studying of the Bible. I became a prominent member of the prison fellowship, a very vibrant fellowship of convicted inmates.
While in person, I began to retrace my steps back to my Lord. I became closer to God and fully rededicated my life to Christ. Other Christian bodies and religious organizations always visited us in the prison to encourage us with God’s word and to pray for us. My commitment and dedication in the prison fellowship got me to the position of the assistant secretary of the fellowship. My experience in the prison really humbled me.
Our fellowship president became my mentor and role model. Bro Ishaku was sentenced to life imprisonment and had spent twenty years already in prison. His faith and trust in God despite his condition, was a motivation to all of us who were his disciples. It really takes strong faith in Christ for a condemned inmate to talk about God the way bro Ishaku did when he gave us exhortations.
Pastor Lanre was not able to contact my people until a month to my freedom from prison. When my father was worried for not hearing from me for such a long time, he sent one of my uncles to trace me to Jocelyn’s family house where we held our traditional wedding but he was shut out on hearing he was from my kindred. When my father and mother finally visited me in prison, we all wept together when they saw my suffering. I assured them I will be fine knowing I would be out of prison soon.
Even though I stayed beyond six months in prison, I was released on the 21st of August.
I, who was thrown into prison as a backsliding Christian, came out as a fire brand. I learnt my lessons well with hunger and hard labour.
Upon my release, I was warned never to step into Jocelyn’s house or anybody close to her ever, else I will be sent back to prison. I came out of prison without a place to go. All my things were still in Jocelyn’s house but I was told never to step there again. Thanks to pastor Lanre, a man with a good heart. He admitted me into the church mission house. He gave me hope and a new life. My faith in Christ waxed stronger by the day seeing how pastor Lanre and the church rallied round me to give me shelter when I had no one, food when I was hungry and clothes when I was n***d. Pastor Lanre tried to get me a job but that wasn’t realistic without my credentials. He begged Jocelyn to release my credentials to me but she refused. She had since stopped attending our church, after I was thrown into prison. Pastor Lanre engaged me as one of the staff of the church even when there wasn’t vacancy. I was engaged to do special duties. As special duty officer, my job was nothing more than running errands for the church and staff of the church. This time, I ran those errands not just because they were my official duties but I did them as a service unto God.
MY RICH WIFE
A Story by Ayodele Adeoye
Episode Twelve
All my efforts to hear from Kauna proved abortive as I learnt she later relocated to the UK to cover the shame our action had caused the family. I was reliably informed also that she gave birth to a baby girl and may never come back to Nigeria again. Mrs Kalu became my informant, she was a member of our church and a staff of NNPC. She was the one who informed me that Jocelyn in annoyance had burnt all my things in her house, including my credentials.
Pastor Lanre began to talk about reconciling with my wife and her family but I saw this as a dream that may never come true. The damage done to Jocelyn’s family by my action can never be repaired. The scar of the the wound will also be there and will cause the seed of bitterness and hatred to ever bear fruit anytime they see me. I know Jocelyn will never forgive me, if for everything, not for impregnating her younger sister. Even though I knew I needed Jocelyn’s forgiveness and that of her family, getting it seemed elusive.
I began to give consideration to pastor’s suggestions on reconciliation and restitution but how will I go about it? Who will convince Jocelyn I am a new creature? Who will tell Jocelyn’s father to take me back again as his son-in-law? It was a serious bridge to cross. I started a chain of prayers for God’s leading and guidance.
Pastor Lanre had said I cannot marry another woman while Jocelyn is still alive. I was not getting younger and my parents were getting closer to their graves by the day. “When are we going to embrace our grandchildren” was a popular song in the lips of my parents. I wish I could tell them they already have a grandchild but I may never see this child all my life.
I moved out of church mission house to a one room apartment to enable me start a new life and re-plan my life. Pastor Lanre through Mrs Kalu traced Jocelyn to her new church and began to talk to her pastor on the possibility of our coming together again. The first meeting arranged by Jocelyn’s pastor to discuss our reconciliation was fruitless. Jocelyn walked out immediately she realized the subject of the meeting was our reconciliation. It took her pastor a month’s rigorous follow up to be able to make her return back to the church. She threatened never to attend that church again if anything about me is ever raised. The matter was put on hold for another one year. One year of loneliness and silence.
Many sisters were interested in me in the church but pastor Lanre had warned me never to give attention to any of them. You are a married man, you can’t date any sister in church. This he has said several times to me. Among these sisters who danced around me in church, sister Eunice was different. Epitome of beauty and humility. Her smiles are good enough to heal the sick. I wished I could get closer to her but pastor Lanre would not let that happen. Sister Eunice was a total opposite of Jocelyn, she will make a perfect wife, I thought.
I cannot disobey pastor Lanre but sincerely I am falling in love with sister Eunice.
Patrick….!!!๐ lol๐
