The Brook

The Brook

The rats started jumping ship as soon as
the news filtered through that the government
was planning to take over his business
due to unpaid loans
The first thing he noticed was the number
of unreturned and unpicked phone calls
It was unprecedented
It was as if he had suddenly been diagnosed
with leprosy
He turned to some of his old friends
Some had a sympathetic ear
Some offered to be able to help sometime
in future
Some had their own tales of woe 
Things were not going good at all
He called his wife and told her the news
She was with him right from the beginning
He was a banker once
He was quite good at his job and he rose
steadily
He could have stayed on that career path
but he had a stirring within him to do more
To start and own his own business
To employ as many people as possible
To be an asset to the world and the gospel
He had built his own house by this time
He was a landlord at the age of 36
He discussed his plans with his wife
He had a good business idea
There was a franchise he wanted to buy into
He needed a lump sum of money
The kind of money he didn't have
His wife bought into his vision
They moved into a rented apartment
He sold their house
Everybody said he had gone mad
but his wife stood by him through his
madness
He sold the house and bought into
the franchise
Six months later, he bought another
house
A bigger and classier house in an estate
His risk had yielded a great reward
The business took off splendidly
It was as if he had a robe of many colours
on him
The building he wanted to use for a factory
was practically handed over to him for
free
The owner had a biscuit factory which 
was doing very well 
The wife of the owner of the factory had
cancer and was being flown abroad for 
treatment
The owner wanted to relocate abroad with
his family until the sickness of his wife was
resolved
The owner had been praying for divine
guidance when he showed up
The owner embraced him and made him
sign some documents
The only condition he was given was that
he must maintain the building and keep
as many of the staff members of the 
biscuit factory as he can afford to for
three years with the option of extension
for another year
The owner didn't collect a cent from him
That was how favoured he was
He inherited a wonderful business
structure and model from the owner
Many other young entrepreneurs at his
church approached him
He coached them and helped them to
set up their businesses
He was far ahead of the curve
His company made steady progress
He developed a symbiotic relationship
with other factories all over the nation
He created a model that made the 
importation of raw materials easier 
and cheaper for many factory owners
like himself
He was a good negotiator
Even the government recognized this
and sought his counsel on many of their
policies and proposals
In no time he was a household name
He was honoured by all and sundry
He was the man with the Midas touch
Then the government had a cabinet
reshuffle
The new minister for commerce started
implementing some policy changes
The policies were absolutely wrong and
impractical
He flew to the capital to discuss with
those in power
It was if the new minister was securely
placed in a "No Reasoning" zone
He tried to meet the man, speak with him
It was all to no avail
The franchise he bought into was threatened
and the company had to pull out 
The banks, seeing that the lifeblood of his
business had been threatened called in
their loan
Titanic was sinking!
All his distributors, affiliates and marketers
were all affected
The handwriting was boldly crafted on the
wall
He was going under!
He was going to lose everything
Everything came at him suddenly
Like a whirlwind
It was giving him no tilme to plan or
strategise
He was in reactionary mode
Mitigating losses and managing crisis
It was a bad place to be
The ship had too many holes
He was only one man afterall
His wife told him to drop everything
and go to God in prayer
"You have done all and yet the bleeding
persisted! Let's turn to God like we
have been doing from the beginning"
They went to their country home
The sneaked in late at night because
of the community people
They didn't want visitors thronging
their doorstep as it was in the past
They started praying and fasting
They needed a divine intervention!
That night as he slept, he saw a
He saw a strange vision
He saw a brook and many Ravens
The Ravens were coming to the brook
for a drink
As they drank, they dropped bread and
meat by the brook
After drinking they flew away
A man comes to the river bank to pick 
the bread and meat
He ate them, drank from the brook
and blessed the ravens
The man also blessed the brook
Then he saw the Ravens having a
meeting
They decided they would no longer
take bread and meat to the river
There was a famine 
T
The wise must be prudent and 
conservative
The brook was not owned by the man
Why did they start taking food to the
man in the first place?
They went to drink one day after feeding
and saw how the man picked the crumbs
after they had flown away
It excited them and they turned it into
a sort of custom
Why were they feeding the man for 
free
And it seemed the man had developed a
sense of entitlement
The man should go and get a job
Some of the ravens loved the idea
Some of the ravens were opposed
to the idea
The superior argument was that they
also needed the bread and meat 
and shouldn't have to feed anyone
So they stopped taking bread and meat
to the brook
They drank and flew away
The man had nothing to eat
The man stopped blessing the ravens
The man stopped blessing the brook
Within two days, the brook started to
shrink
The bread and the meat went bad
The ravens started lamenting and dying
off
They didn't know why their fortune
suddenly changed
That was when he woke up from the
vision!
He started crying immediately!
He got the message clearly
His wife roused from sleep and found 
him in tears
His wife asked him what the problem was
He told his wife the Holy Spirit has
shown him the error of his ways
It was from the most unexpected 
source!
The founder of the church he was
attending went to be with the Lord 
about a year before the whole problem
started
The New General overseer was a small
boy who had never really worked for a long
time
People should earn their keep
He felt the boy would be unduly spoilt
if he was exposed to too much money
He deliebrately reduced his pastoral gift,
tailoring it to meet the needs of a young
man with a small family
He also stopped giving tithe and reduced 
his offering
He has heard news of pastors being 
seduced by money and losing their way
He knew churches where pastors fled
with tithes and offerings of the church
to places like America and Europe
He hinted his decision to some people
in the church nd encouraged them to do
likewise
They were not elders or deacons 
They were just members of the church 
that supported the work of the late
General Overseer
He just felt the young man had to prove
himself reliable and worthy before they
expose him to the full benefits of his
office as their spiritual head
Thinking of it that dawn, he realised
it was only him and all those in his close
knit cycle of friends from the church that
were affected adversely by the ill wind!
WOW!
He really had no malicious intention towards
the new pastor
He really liked and respected him
He was just applying some common sense
and trying to guide him remotely
He meant no harm
Apparently, he had overstepped his bounds
As soon as the day broke
He and his wife got into the car and
rove back to the city
He had a culture of providing the edible
need of the late General overseer's 
household
He also gave the general overseer some
money monthly
A sort of stipend
He knew a lot of people came to the General
Overseer for help
He felt it wouldn't be fair to leave the
general overseer helpless to be of help
to the poor and the needy
He had stopped all these practices as
soon as the General Overseer died
When he got back to town, he went straight
to the general overseer's house
He went to do as he had always done
He discarded the foolish ideology that
led him to ruin
Apostle Paul it was his right to receive
physical blessings
Aaron and his priesthood lineage were
given as a right their portions in Israel
Jesus was given his portion as the high
priest of our salvation
The young General Overseer welcomed 
him
They talked
He gave the gifts
The young general overseer blessed him
That night, arounf 8pm, he heard the news
THe president of the nation had slumped
and died
The Minister and the cabinet were removed
a few days later
The wicked policies were reversed
His business survived and thrived!

Ps: As I listened to this elderly businessman
tell his story, I was amazed
Many who knew me and follow my 
teaching would agree that I frown on 
pastors inducing members to give or pay 
anything out of fear or coercion
God loves a cheerful giver
I am a giver and the I preach gospel 
is a "giving" gospel
Our sufficiency has always been of the
Spirit and all his provisions for us in
the faith!
At the same time, I know the Holy Spirit
when He wants to correct...
When He decides to correct...
Hmmmm
His rod and staff are extremely comforting
Today, Baba and several generations
after him will continue to enjoy the
fruits of his obedience and adherence
to correction
Glory be to God!

GSW's notes: Some of us talk on the 
social media as if when we give to God 
in church we are doing the pastor a favour
Many will be so very wise that they will
be saying it with all boldness that the
pastors were living large off poor members!
WHile this is sometimes true (For churches
founded on belly matters)
It is generally not true!
God blesses the obedient
God blesses his children
God blesses his servants
In fact there are some people, ministers
of the gospel who you "things" to simply
because you want to be blessed!
They didn't ask or need anything
and yet the Holy Spirit will say 
"Go and give such and such to so and so"
Melchizedek was not in need
Abraham gave him the best of the best!
God was not in need
Jesus gave Him the best of the best
Don't ever assume you are the reason 
someone is making it in ministry
That thought could dry up your brook
The system God created for the church
to be blessed is supernatural
Key into it or Walk away from it
but don't ever trivilize it or disdain it
Avoid the rod!