WAITING FOR GOD

STORY, STORY

Two Sundays ago I stepped out of where I stay to stand by the road to wait for my youth pastor who had promised to pick me for church.

‘Should I still wait for you, sir?’ I called after waiting for a couple of minutes. He replied in the affirmative stating he was just coming out of his house. So I waited.

But strangely, I was worried at a point. I could not explain why. I was thinking he might have forgotten and could have passed me by and gone. To worsen everything, a grey car zoomed past and the driver was looking my way. I thought it was my pastor but the car did not stop. I kept on waiting. While standing and waiting, few people came out by the gate and I had to explain to them I was waiting for someone who was supposed to pick me for church.

When after few minutes that the grey car passed by and my pastor did not show up, I began to worry again. What about if that car was Pastor Andrew’s own and he has gotten to church already?
Then he would have to call me that he forgot I was waiting. Ah, Pastor Andrew, if I get late to church it’s not my fault o.

I was tempted to start trekking down to the junction and stop a cab. But I restrained myself and held on. I figured that my pastor could not forget. After all, he promised he would stop to pick me and he still asked me to wait when I called him earlier.

With mixed feelings I waited, though I could not fix why I was having those frets. I was checking my phone for the time at regular intervals. Then after what seemed like eternity (around 7.15am) a white car pulled up in front of me. I hesitated but when I saw my pastor and another choir member I entered.

‘Did the car look strange to you?’ My pastor asked.
‘I was expecting the grey one’, then I sensed he did not understand what I answered so I quickly added, ‘Oh, is the car white? See me o, I’d always thought it was grey.’
‘Don’t tell me you don’t know the colour of my car all this while?’ He was obviously surprised.
‘Maybe a grey one is on the way’, I replied.

Now, this is my message. This experience I had was like an allegory to me. You see, the way I was worrying is exactly the way I fret when I am waiting for God for the fulfillment of any of His promises. I don’t know if it also happens to you, but it happens to me. But it is foolish to think God has forgotten when He has promised us He will show up, after He has asked us to wait. If you would rate my doubts about whether Pastor Andrew would come as silly, then it shows how silly we are when we doubt God’s commitment to His promises for us.

Look, what you need is patience and trust. Why? It is because you tend to think time is running out while waiting and you are explaining to everybody why it seems as if you are still on the same spot. It is also possible for you to think God has passed you by as it was when I saw the grey car. You could also create a shortcut or an alternative for yourself. Assuming I was not patient enough and I left my waiting post I would have used my energy to trek, gone through the rigour of entering cabs and trekked again from the main road to my church. Sure I would get to church, but I would have paid unnecessarily. However because I eventually waited, I received the ‘promise’, enjoyed the AC in the car, did not pay any driver and didn’t have to trek!

I am sure you have gotten the message I’ve been trying to paint. The long and short of everything is:

Wait patiently for God

Even when it seems He is delaying

He will come right on time.

Remember Abraham, after

Waiting patiently, obtained the promise.

 

I wrote this article with bubbles of love in my heart for you. SHALOM.


*This article was first posted on November 1, 2010 as a note on my facebook page.

I need to share this testimony:

About two of my colleagues kept coughing last week and I kept telling myself that thousands may cough by my side and ten thousands by my right, I would not cough. Alas, I found my throat dry and coughing too one day like that last week. Where was cough coming from? No oh.

But it persisted. So I decided to take a cup of minty tea. Some of my colleagues who saw me when I went for the tea asked if I was fine. I told them my throat was misbehaving. But I added that it was not possible for me to be coughing that the cough was just joking. And so right there I said to the cough, 'Cough, you can't continue to disturb me, get off.'

I have not coughed since then. Oh that I make use of my authority as a 'god' that I am more and more. My words carry power. I reign here on earth as a king and a priest unto my God.

O'LEVELS

I was blessed to make my O'Level WASSCE (West Africa Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination) once. My lowest grade was C6 and that was in Chemistry.

But I was afraid for my Physics result because I did not do well in the theoretical part at all. This was because I did not prepare well for it. I did not enjoy my Physics in my last two years in secondary school as our teacher did not teach us well. As a result, I lost interest in the subject and I could not read as I should for my exams. On the day we wrote Physics Theory, at the end of the paper, my classmates were all jubilating, telling themselves how simple the questions were. I was quiet as I knew how I perforned. On getting home, when asked how the paper went, I told them it was fine.

I was calculating, hoping and praying I would escape with a C6. And then, my dad refused to give me money to buy a GCE (General Certificate Examination) form--because I reasoned that if I failed Physics in SSCE, I would pass it in GCE and thus could combine my result.

Rewind to SSS2 (Senior Secondary School 2), I failed Physics and Chemistry in the first term exams.  My dad was angry and declared I would have to change to commercial class. I was sad. I failed these subjects because I did not like my teachers. Our chemistry teacher then, everytime we had his class would take enough time to abuse us and tell us we did not know anything, plus his teaching method was boring so that I never looked forward to his classes unlike it was with my Chemistry teacher in SS1. I had problem understanding everything he taught us and though I read for his tests and exams, yet I failed because I did not understand the topics and I did not like him.

My dad was damn serious about my changing to commercial class. Nobody could convince him against it. Thank God for our Guidance-Counsellor. It was he God used for me so that my dad reluctantly dropped the case. It was very tough, to the extent that dad said mum would have to sign if she supported my remaining in  sciences. The next day in class, my classmates knew something was wrong with me because the AY (a pet form of 'Ayobami') they saw was not the AY they knew. I was downcast and they were the ones who advised me to go see the counsellor. Some of my friends even advised me to pray about it, but I was so devastated I didn't know how to form my words wondering if you could pray about such things, I could only groan in my heart.

You can understand why it was important for me to get at least C6 in Physics else my dad would be justified for insisting I changed to commercial class.

Fast forward to the time our results came out. I went to my school to check what I had after which I would go back to pick the statement of result. The woman at the result check point observed that I was nervous, she looked at me and told me not to worry that I passed well. I did not believe her. My mind was on my Physics. As she was calling my grades, I found myself craning my neck towards her table to see what I had in Physics. Then I heard, "Physics-B3". What! How come? My heart burst with joy and praise. This could only be God's mercy. I was expecting a C6, I got a B3.

Now, a funny thing happened. I made sure I prepared properly for my NECO (National Examination Council) O'Level Physics exam (NECO is on a national level and my set was the second set that would write NECO in my country. It was newly founded then). I expected at least a B in my NECO Physics, I think I had C6. I expected at least a B because I was sure of my performance, but for whatever reason, I had C6. Same thing for other subjects, I expected a lot of A's and B's, I got a lot of C's. Anyway, I never collected my NECO's statement of result not to talk of the certificate till date (although I didn't fail or even have a passmark in any subject, but my WASSCE result was much more better) because I really do have no need of it.

IF NOT FOR GOD...

We were going for a training outside Nigeria three years ago. The plane we boarded from Port Harcourt to Lagos on reaching Lagos could not descend. The weather was bad and turbulent so that instead of the vessel to descend, it had to go higher and higher because the visibility was bad. I never had that experience in my life because the wind was beating the aircraft mercilessly and we could hear the noise. It was just as if the plane was galloping in the air. My heart skipped a few beats, but at the same time I was declaring the Word and also knew we would be fine. We floated up there for twelve extra minutes (beyond the supposed landing time) and eventually landed safely. I didn't know people were scared until we alighted and I overheard fellow passengers telling loved ones on phone our ordeal before we landed.

However something happened back in Port Harcourt before take-off. I sat close to the middle of the plane by the window and from this side, I could see the plane's left wing very well. I saw a figure on the wing. It was an imp. I cannot describe how it looked exactly, but I knew it was a demon. I don't usually see things like this, so I was sure it was not a delusion. Immediately I chuckled and  told him I was in the plane so he couldn't operate there, adding that I already sent the blood of Jesus ahead of me to make the journey smooth.

This made me know that the issue we had in Lagos was meant to be a crash, but the Lord delivered and indeed His blood saved and protected not only me, but everyone else in the vessel.
Another time when travelling for another training, at the international airport in Lagos, I was with some colleagues. We were done checking in but went over to a 'Bureau de Change' to change money. I had my passport and some other documents in my hand. From there we proceded to the immigration side from where we would head to our boarding gate. Then I checked my hand, I couldn't find my passport anymore. I looked inside the paper bag I carried, it was nowhere to be found. I was dumbfounded. What would I tell my boss? One of my colleagues went back with me to the places we passed through carefully looking around the floor. No passport. In my heart, I was just asking for God's mercy because I realised I handled the passport a little carelessly.

After dilly-dallying around for a few minutes without success, we saw a custom officer asking people around who owned a passport. We rushed to meet him and behold it was my passport. We thanked him and hurriedly returned to meet our colleagues who were waiting for us. I was grateful the passport was not found by any of those riff-raffs that always move to and fro airport lobbies to steal or dupe. I was grateful I didn't have to call my boss and explain nonsense to him. If not for God....

HE NEVER SPARES THE ROD TO SPOIL THE CHILD

I used to be a 'no-nonsense' little girl. I would never take insults from my older ones, and my younger siblings, enough beating for them if they misbehaved. There was this day I was angry with my oldest sister so that I repeated to her what she said to me in a contemptous way (repeating words in a 'yan-yan-yan-yan' format). She was so hurt and reported me to dad who beat the hell out of me. I cried and cried and cried till my sister who reported me started to pity me and pacify me. Well, I deserved the caning.

Now, if our earthly fathers discipline us when we go wrong, how much more our heavenly Father.
I have been on a course and my instructor has a way of picking any of us trainees to present on a topic he chooses the previous day for us to prepare for. Last week Tuesday, I did not read and so asked the Lord to keep my instructor from calling me. I knew I must not try that again next time as I might not escape. My instructor called another person to present the topic. I was so glad and grateful. The next day was a tiring day for me, so I went straight to bed after classes. I woke up in the middle of the night to read, but the topic was somewhat abstract, so I did not read well and asked the Lord to bail me out again.

Hmm, the following afternoon after lunch (we usually have the presentations after lunch), I was over-confident my name would be skipped. Lo, I was the chosen for that day! Ah, what would I say? I dragged my feet to the front of the class thinking to myself, 'Father, You didn't answer this prayer?' Kai! I could only explain 25% of what was expected of me. I was so ashamed of myself and this event coloured my mood for the evening. I was not happy at all. That was a sound spanking from the Lord. I know I must never go to class unprepared again, or else I will be called.
But it was all my fault, for though I was tired the preceding day, but I could have used the one hour window my instructor usually gives us to work on the presentation topic for the next day. Instead, I was facebooking. This my God, He never spares the rod to spoil the child at all. He well knows how to pamper, but He never indulges. He is my Father and my Daddy and I am glad He treats me not as a bastard. Lord, help that I don't wait to be spanked before I learn again.

Hebrews12:7
If you aren’t disciplined like the other children, you aren’t part of the family.

SMILING BABIES

Today in the train, I noticed a little girl, barely 2 years of age some seats away from me. She had been looking at me before I caught her gaze, and when she saw that I looked up, she waved at me and smiled. I waved back and smiled too. Then she waved her second hand and I waved my second hand too, smiling all the way.
I couldn't stop thinking about her for the rest of the ride. She reminded me of another little boy last week Sunday, a toddler. He would look at you and smile sweetly. Thinking about these bundles of love and joy kept me smiling. It was so so sweet.
Children are gifts from God, beautiful and to be cherished. God bless them.

TOWER OF BABEL.COM

We went for one rural rugged (village outreach) when I was serving. It was held in Ebukuma, a village under Andonin Local Government in Rivers State. As usual, we went around the village for our Victory March. The village children joined us in glee and raised some songs in their language. At a point they sang:

"Awaji owo gbe eh
Awaji owo gbe
Awaji owo gbe eh
Awaji owo gbe"

I was not sure I heard rightly, so I asked one of them to repeat the song for me. Behold, I heard correctly. I couldn't laugh. In their language, the song means:

"Lord You are worthy eh
Lord you are worthy
Lord You are worthy eh
Lord you are worthy"

Now, if you sing that song in public in Lagos, Nigeria, you might get the best beating of your life that day from an angry mob. This is because in Yoruba (which is my language), the song means:

"We have stolen money eh
We have stolen money
We have stolen money eh
We have stolen money"

  Isn't it funny how 'A' in one language might mean 'B' in another? No wonder there was a lot of fight at the Tower of Babel.