THE STRANGE PROPOSAL
Part 11
©Franca Uwuigiaren
“Study God’s word. It will illuminate your path, bring you wisdom and understanding. It will strengthen your faith and equip you for spiritual warfare. It will help you discern right from wrong, provide comfort and hope, reveal God’s character and love. God’s word will transform your mind and heart, offer guidance for life’s challenges, and draw you closer to God.”
I sighed deeply and, with a resolute heart, decided to study my Bible every day. I wanted to experience all that the pastor mentioned.
“You must learn to pray. Prayer is key. A lot of Christians are not praying but looking for pastors to see visions and prophecies for them. Obiama, you must pray until you prevail. You must override situations on prayers. Don’t sleep all through the nights. Pray! Pray the River goddess out of your life and family. Pray sickness and hardship out of your family. If you don’t pray, the plots of the enemies will keep prevailing. You have a bad dream, pray against it. Pray, pray, and pray. You must never be lazy in prayer. You need to enforce your victory into reality. You can’t just sit and fold your hands and allow the devil to mess you up.
Pray prevailing prayers. Prevailing in prayer requires persistence and continuance. In Daniel chapter ten, Daniel prayed prevailing prayers. So you must keep praying until you see your desired outcome, just like the widow in Luke 18 who persisted in her request until she received justice.
Prayer is a powerful tool that helps us override difficult situations and align ourselves with God’s perspective. To pray effectively, you must find out what God’s Word says about your situation and pray accordingly.
You must also pray with faith, Praying in faith means being resolute and expectant, trusting that God will answer your prayers. It’s important to make prayer your first response to every situation. You shouldn’t treat prayer as a last resort, but rather as your natural response to life’s challenges. In 1 Timothy 2:1, Apostle Paul instructed us to make prayer our first call in all situations. Faith is important in prayers. When you pray with faith, you release God’s promises and enforce them in your situations. To pray in faith, you must understand that God’s Word is His will. You must find scriptures that cover your situation and pray them out loud, declaring God’s promises over your life and family. This is how you will get into faith and exercise God’s will over your circumstances. When you pray with faith, you must expect answers. What God says is settled, and if He said it, then it is done and final. So, pray with persistence and faith, knowing that you have the authority of Jesus Christ working in you.”
I was already on my feet, moving around. I felt like hugging Pastor Moses for opening my eyes.
“I hear you, sir,” I said, overwhelmed.
“Allow Jesus to take root in you. When Jesus is deeply rooted in your life, spiritual warfare takes on a new level of effectiveness. You’re no longer just fighting blindly, but with divine guidance and strategy. Your prayers become precise and powerful, like targeted arrows hitting their mark. You’re not just vocalizing empty words, but speaking with authority and accuracy, backed by God’s power. This enables you to reign supreme in your spiritual domain, effortlessly overcoming the forces of darkness.
To win in the spiritual realm, you must also break free from the grip of darkness, whether from your past or current lifestyle. A sign of your spiritual dominance is the transformation of your dreams.
Additionally, having supernatural knowledge and insight is vital for your success. This divine wisdom will equip you to overcome the forces of darkness and secure your spiritual victory.”
I didn’t know when I jumped up. I was fully charged.
“Jesus, thank you for not abandoning me,” I said aloud.
I noticed that two women had entered the church and greeted the pastor. They had a short conversation before he turned to me again.
“The women are here to take care of the church. You know today is Saturday. Very soon, the church will be a beehive of activity. Tomorrow is church; please join us for service.”
I hugged Pastor Moses. I didn’t care whether the women saw me.
“Thank you, Pastor. I have learned a lot.”
“You will learn more when you open your Bible. Like I said, pray! The Bible says God’s kingdom suffers violence, and only the violent take it by force. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid to engage in spiritual warfare. The devil is a roaring lion looking for who to devour, but I pray for you today, he won’t devour you and your family in the name of Jesus.”
“Amen!”
He took time to pray with me. When I was about to leave, he brought out some money from his pocket and handed it to me.
“The Lord wants you to have this.”
It had been a long time since I last held such money, so I went on my knees and thanked him. He wasn’t happy that I did so.
“Please don’t kneel for me.”
I left the church charged and excited. I got home and still found my family in pain. There was supposed to be nothing to make me happy considering what my family was going through, but I was still excited and eager to share my excitement with Oroma.
Oroma was still angry with me. She was still lamenting my refusal to raise money for her.
“Anyway, I called my parents and have explained my situation to them, and they promised to raise money for me. I’m not going to die here. You’re indifferent because you’re not the one sick.”
I didn’t respond to her. I just went to prepare food for everyone and then bathed them. Alabo was groaning in pain when I entered. I tried to feed him, but he kept spitting it out.
“I can’t eat, daddy” he cried.
I looked at him, so emaciated. His ribs were showing, and his lips were swollen and blistered.
“Jesus will heal you, Alabo. Don’t be afraid.”
“I know because I have told him. So I am just going to be patient, waiting for him to heal me” he said confidently.
I was impressed by what he said, so I patted his head. When I had settled everyone, I went to my wife and held her hands. I told her she was beautiful. She looked at me and hissed.
“You have included mockery, abi? In your eyes I look beautiful like this? When I die, you will marry another woman, isn’t it?” She said.
“You’re not going to die, Oroma. With what I know now, you’re not dying. Jesus will not permit it.”
I used the opportunity to explain what Pastor Moses told me.
“Oroma, we can’t continue to fight over the issue of your travelling. I don’t want you to go home because your parents are going to consult deities. That’s not what I want. I’m telling you, Oroma, that when you genuinely surrender your life to Jesus, you have handed him your battle to fight for you…and He will give you victory. Please, my love, come to Jesus, and you will begin to enjoy this peace and joy that I am enjoying.”
“I am scared. I don’t want to die. I’m gradually dying, Obiama. Can’t you see it?”
“You’re living, Oroma, and that’s all I see.”
I sat beside her and listened to her cry. Suddenly, I felt there was a presence in the house. My body suddenly had goosebumps; my hair stood. Fear gripped me.
“Obiama, can you feel what I feel? I feel like there’s someone with us…like someone is standing in my front.”
I didn’t want her to be afraid, so I remembered the Bible verse one of my neighbours’ children said the other time, so I started declaring it.
“The name of the Lord is a strong tower where the righteous run into and are saved. This minute, I cover my family with the blood of Jesus. I surrender this house and everyone in it with the blood of Jesus.” I said aloud.
Oroma’s eyes were wide with fear. I left her to the children’s room to check on them. If my wife could walk, she would have followed behind. I prayed around the house, then returned to the bedroom and sat beside her again.
“Obiama, please don’t go to the sitting room and sleep. I…I…know I smell, but I am scared to sleep alone in this big bedroom. Spray more air freshener and stay with me. Please!”
I grabbed my wife’s hand in mine and told her I was going nowhere.
“But you have not been consistent in…”
“I’m promising that henceforth, I will sleep in this room and on this bed with you.”
She stared at me softly before wiping her tears.
“Thank you, Obiama.”
I lay down beside her and cuddled her.
“Oroma, you’re not going to die. I’m not losing anyone in this family. Everything is going to be okay. You know why? Because Jesus is now in charge of the affairs of this family. It’s no longer me.”
She didn’t say anything. I could only feel her breath.
“The way this sickness came is the same way it will go. Soon this will be in the past.”
Not long, she was snoring lightly. My eyes were opened for a long time. I stared at the ceiling fan rolling as I pondered everything Pastor Moses told me. It was almost 11 pm before I slept off. I didn’t know how long I slept, but when I opened my eyes, I saw a woman between me and my wife on the bed. She was so fair and n***d. I jumped out of bed in fear. Where I stood, I was transfixed. I was just like a statue. She sat up immediately, laughing; hahahaha hahahaha hahahaha.
“Get out from here,” I managed to shout.
“I’m here to warn you, Obiama, if you ever visit that pastor again, you will watch me kill your children one after the other,” she said, no longer laughing. She was angry and furious.
“Step into that church again…you better tell him to stop praying for you. Tell him…tell him to stop praying. Pick your phone and call him now to stop that prayer. I said now!” She screamed.
I could feel her anger. It was squeezing my chest. Her eyes were blazing with fire. Suddenly, she was no longer on the bed but standing close to the window.
“Do you know how much wreck Pastor Moses has done to my kingdom? Do you know he is causing great havoc right now? Do you know he has set it ablaze? Call him now!”
I watched in horror as she transformed into a python, her body elongating and twisting. She began to glide effortlessly across the ground, her scaly skin glistening in the light. She began to slither towards me, her unblinking eyes fixed on me like a predator zeroing in on its prey. I was paralyzed with fear, unable to move or speak as she drew closer, her forked tongue darting in and out of her mouth with an unnerving hiss.
Suddenly, I began to shout: “Jesus! Jesus! The blood of Jesus! Holy Ghost fire! Jesus oh Jesus!”
She vanished before my very eyes. I stood on that spot for a very long time, asking myself what just happened. No one in the house heard me screaming. Imagine my wife was still snoring lightly on the bed.
“Jesus, you helped. Thank you, Sir,” I said as I sank on the bed.
I remembered my kids, so I rushed to check on them before grabbing my Bible from the sitting room. As I sat on the chair in my bedroom, I questioned myself whether it was a dream or reality. I glanced at my wife, who had no inkling of what just happened in the bedroom.
I knew I needed to pray, so I went on my knees and began to pray, thanking Him for His protection and asking God to strengthen me and give me the grace to pray.
To be continued…
