The Switch

His parents insisted he must not study religious studies in school

They were not Christians and he had a future as the leader of his people in their religion

His father as at then was the religious leader of the community

They had practiced the religion before the advent of Christianity

His father wouldn’t have chosen to the school because of its Christian leanings

But there was no other school in their community at that time and he determined to equip his son for the future

The community had only a public primary school and all the teachers told his father it would be a sin worthy of hellfire damnation if he doesn’t send his son to school

His son was the most brilliant pupil all the teachers had ever taught in their lives

The headmaster practically begged and pleaded that the boy’s education be furthered

His father witnessed this on the prize giving day

His son cleared it all

His son was the overall best student in every subject for the first time in the history of the school

The joy of seeing his son so highly celebrated moved him to tears

His Father decided his son would further his education in the Christian High School

Just to rub it in the faces of the bible totting people

His father made him promise that he would not follow the Christian way

He eagerly made the promise

He hated Christians!

He swore an oath to that effect, a blood oath!

He was 12 when he resumed in the Christian high school

Totally determined to uphold the tenets of his faith regardless of whatever jargon the school was preaching regarding a dead prophet

What an apostasy!

What a fallacy!

What a blasphemy!

To equate a man with God!

He was one of the most brilliant students in the school

The school leadership noticed and panicked

What would the authorities think?

The Principal told the teachers not to coerce him

He had seen how messy things got when men decide to play the role of the Holy Spirit

“The Lord knows his own children, he calls his sheep by name! If he was a sheep of God, God would speak to his heart!

Until then he was untouchable

He loved the immunity that gave him

He could miss the Christian religious knowledge classes if he wanted to

He could miss the student fellowship time if he wanted to

He was the only one practicing another religion apart from all the Christians in the school

And the school had practically changed the rules to suit him

On prize giving day

He got the best student in all the subjects apart from Christian religious knowledge

It would have been a clean sweep but for that

His parents heavily dressed in their religious togas stood beside him as he took pictures

His father saw another parent with their son also taking pictures

His father asked him

“Were you not the best student in every subject?”

“I was Father”, he responded

“How come that boy over there was also taking pictures and looking so elated”

“He was the best student in Christian Religious Knowledge sir, the course you forbade me from taking”

His father looked at the crowd

He was their religious leader and he had promised them his son was the best student in every subject, this was technically true but they were in a local community and many of his friends and religious follower who came to celebrate with him didn’t understand the fact that there was another celebrant!

He doesn’t want to be seen as a liar –“

A week after the prize giving day, his father called him

His father: I want you to be the best student in every subject the school has to offer

He: I am sir

His father: No, there was another Christian boy there sharing the stage with you

He: He was the best in that subject because you said I shouldn’t take the subject…

His father: Take the subject now! I don’t care what it is! And be the overall best student next year

He: Okay sir

When school resumed he told his teachers his father said he should take the subject

He was given a bible and told to read the book of john first before the other gospels, he had a lot of grounds to cover

He took the Bible and started reading but he could neither make heads nor tail of it

He went to the principal’s office

He said: I thought this book will be like the one for my religion, easy to memorize in order to be the best but I find many of the lines jumbled together and contradictory

Principal: Where did you find the contradictions?

He: it said somewhere that he was in the father and the father was in him, what logic does not make?

The principal was a born again Christian and understood perfectly well what the young man was driving at

Principal: Next time, before you read the Bible, say this: Holy Spirit, please teach me the Bible I will like it broken to me so that I can understand it. The letter would make no sense to you without the spirit that wrote it

He: I will understand it that way?

Principal: It shall be made clear to you

That night he prayed the prayer and started reading, and the word that had once been bitter started becoming sweet to his stomach

Wow!

He read that New Testament Bible almost 50 times before the end of the academic session!

When the resulted for the end of the year was released, he was the overall best student!

His father brought his friends and followers again and nobody dared to share the stage with his son

His father was happy

His son has proven to better than all the Christians in their own religion

Woah!!

What his Father didn’t bargain for was the power of the Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit had ridden his father’s ambition like a Trojan horse and invaded his son’s heart

He didn’t tell anybody but he had started communicating with the Holy Spirit

While he was at home throughout the holiday, he performed his religious rites with diligence but would often go back to his room and the comfort of his bible

The only time he found real joy was when he was reading the Bible

One of his father’s followers noticed something had changed in him and discussed it with his father

“Your son leads the Morning Prayer but his heart felt as if he would rather be somewhere else”

His father assumed it was girl problem and talked to him sternly about focus

“Girls will flock towards success in a man and away from failure in a man, keep your heart on point” said his father”

He understood his Father’s warning as a fair one

He adjusted

When school resumed, he was named the time keeper of the school

In those days, this means he would most likely be named the senior prefect the following year

What a joy!

He would never have been considered for such a lofty position by the politics playing Christians who were moved more by feelings other than facts!

That night, the night he was made the time keeper, he saw Jesus!

Live!!!

He was sleeping and he noticed someone was seated beside him

His head was on the person’s laps and water was being poured on his head

He felt as if he was floating

It was an extremely pleasant moment!

He knew the person was Jesus but he couldn’t open his eyes to confirm

His head was washed and he heard the voice

“The oath had been broken!”

He woke up speaking in tongues

Kabaya!

A strange vibration was coursing all over his body

His hands and feet were hot and flailing

JESUS!

The next day there was a student’s fellowship meeting on campus

He went to the meeting out of curiosity

He wanted to know if every believer in the meeting feel the strange vibrations he was feeling

He got there

They started praying

The invited speaker made an altar call

He responded

Confessing Jesus as Lord and savior

The power surged

All those around him fell under the anointing

Ha! What was happening to him?

The invited preacher told held his hands and proclaimed to the students that he was an evangelist

The news spread after school to the entire community

The next day his father came around

“What was this I heard that you had become a member of the opposition! Have you crossed carpeted?

He wanted to deny it,

He couldn’t!

He just kept quiet!

His father got the message and disowned him

The principal took up his course and provided all he needed till he finished secondary school

By then he had become renowned for his exploits for Jesus in his community

He graduated and got admitted to the University almost immediately

He worked at a local canteen to support his education while another Christian organization paid hi tuition

He studied engineering and graduated with flying colours

His Father and entire family had nothing to do with him

But Jesus said though your father and mother forsake you, I will be with you

Today he works as a consultant to many oil companies and preaches the gospel to all to cared to listen

He is blessed with a wife and four children

Through him the name of Jesus had been gloried in businesses, destinies and lives all over the world

PS: You don’t have to walk in the dark, Jesus is the light of the world

You don’t have to live a tasteless life, Jesus has made us the salt of the earth

You don’t have to walk in deceit, Jesus is the way, the truth and life

Call upon Jesus today and see the salvation of the Lord!