Fortified

They got to the man’s house in the afternoon

The man welcomed them very well

He was a chief in their community

A lot of young undergraduates visit him for charms and spiritual consultations

It was the height of cult clashes all over the nation

Misguided youths wasted each other’s lives for fun in tertiary institutions

Sometimes innocent students were caught in the cross fire

He was in 100 level and had witnessed his first cult clash on campus

Two rival factions had a go at each other in broad daylight

Six students were hit by stray bullets

One of the students that fell victim was standing right by his side

He was badly shaken

He couldn’t leave his hostel for over a week

Death was so close!

When he told hi mother what happened

His mother told one of their drivers to pick him up from school immediately

He was the only child of his parent and the incident shook his mother

When his father got home that night, he resolved his son needed to be fortified

The following day, his Father took him to see the chief

The chief listened carefully to his Father

To show them the authenticity of his powers, Chief gave them certain powder to rub on their eyes

They did

Chief chanted some incantation and commanded the wall to beam the image of the street

The street suddenly beamed to them on the wall

Chief told one of those walking on the street to start jumping

To their amazement the fellow started jumping

Chief summoned another street and told one of the people on the street to start walking into a nearby forest

They watched in awe as the fellow walked right into the forest

They were very impressed

His father told chief they were for consultation

The chief consulted the deities

Items of sacrifice were listed

His father wrote everything down carefully

The chief told his Father not to worry

“I will cook him in the herbal concoction of the mothers of the land. He will wine and dine with them. He will be taken to the djinns underneath the earth and the wraiths in the firmament!” said the Chief

His father was very grateful, he told the chief to give him a week to come up with the cash needed for the fortification process

The very next day, he returned to school

Incessant cult clashes had disrupted the academic calendar so much that the school authority decided not to shut down the school when the incident happened

Lectures had been ongoing while he took his short break from school

One of his classmates told him they had a group project presentation that day

He got to school full of confidence

The Chief had given him a certain ring to wear on his left toe

He was assured the ring would ward off unnecessary attention and also protect him from untimely death

That evening, one of his roommates started talking about a fellowship on campus with very set babes

Other roommates joined in the discussion

He was 16 years old

He was the youngest of them all

He listened attentively as they spoke

Guys can be somewhat mischievous when discussing ladies in the hostel

All the curves and cleavages would be fanned until their imaginations caught fire

He liked listening to them

He would sometimes pretend he was reading when such topics come up but this time he felt strangely daring and sat down confidently while listening to them

Guys talk about ladies all the time

Usually when such a talk began, the older guys would tease him

One would say “So and so block your ears before you go deaf! The level of discussion here is way beyond your level”

Another would tell the older guys using colourful languages+ to tone it down because of “Junior”

Junior was the nickname they gave them in the room

That evening, nobody did that

He listened and contributed to the discussion like an adult

Suddenly it dawned on him that it was the ring that made his older roommates treat him as an equal for the first time

As the discussion was winding down, one of his roommates suggested that they take their bath and go fishing in the fellowship

Since the ladies attending the fellowship were reputed to be so beautiful, it wouldn’t be fair to leave them to the “brothers in the fellowship” alone.

They got dressed, strolled to the fellowship

He didn’t know why he paid attention to what the preacher was saying

The preacher was talking about Jesus, the cross and resurrection

He sat there!

At first his eyes roamed through the congregation looking for some of the ladies that had been described in the hostel

But the words somehow sank in still

Eventually he forgot about the ladies

The sermon was very good

It got to him

The pastor made an altar call

He didn’t know why the charmed ring on his toes did not prevent him from making the decision to give his life to Jesus

He ran to the altar

Pastor prayed with him

Pastor laid hands on him

He started speaking in tongues

WoW! Glorious!

On his way back to the hostel, he bought a bible

He started reading the bible as soon as he got to the hostel

One week later, he went back home

His father had purchased all the fortification items

He wouldn’t dare tell his father he had become born again

How would he even say it?

They got to Chief’s house

His father pressed the bell      

Chief rushed outside and shouted: Don’t come in, stay away from my house

His father wad puzzled                      

“It is I, Mr. So and so, kindly open the gate for us?” requested his father//\\

Chief: Ask your son what he did when he was at school,

His Father looked at him

He looked at his father and shrugged

His Father: He said he didn’t do anything

Chief: I see a mark on him, he is not welcomed here!

WoW!

His father pleaded and begged

Chief didn’t budge

They left

When he got home he told his father he had given his life to Jesus

His father and mother became his first converts

They accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour!

He graduated in flying colours three years later

PS: This event happened in Jos

His parents lived in Kaduna

Live this overcoming life! LIVE!!