The Stray

A carnal mind can never ever understand the things of the spirit
How could it?
The spirit speaks on a wavelength of power
The carnal mind reasons on a wavelength of logic
Sometimes the spirit will say "This is the way"
Instead of the carnal mind to follow the leading of the spirit
The carnal mind will throw a tantrum, start fight and pointing accusing fingers
Nobody has accused it of anything
He has only been shown the way for his own good
But the carnal mind will not see the solution as tenable
The carnal mind must have its way
The children of Israel were standing right by the red sea
The way forward was through the sea
Pharaoh was coming right behind them
They turned to Moses!
You have brought us here to kill us!
We will kill you first!
How does that even make sense?
If they killed Moses, would his corpse make a way for them?
The carnal mind is all about blaming others and hurting others
It hated being told to look inwards and amend its ways
You see a believer who has fallen back into the pattern of the world
You reach out in love
"Look Brother, this is not the way for you, please change..."
The brother gets into attack mode
"How is it your business? It is my life! Scam! Fraud! Holier Than thou"
The brother forgot the parable of the lost sheep
The shepherd does not forget the one behind!
He didn't mind the insult and the attacks
He loved his sheep and he was willing to do everything in his power to bring it back home!
Remember the prodigal son?
The Father sat on the roof of his house awaiting the return of his son
From the moment the young man left home, the father didnt assume he was fine
The father's love is boundless when it comes to his children
He will leave no stone unturned
He will make a fire by the seashore and prepare bread and fish
He will call you by name from your ship and ask you to come
He will restore you with his everlasting love
If he had to come down physically from heaven to speak with you
He would do it
And if he had to send an angel, as in the case of Cornelius, he would!
Nothing is as dear to him as his children
He loves you with an everlasting love
He got drawn to Jesus while he was in 200 Level
His mother had him as a teenager and as a consequence he was raised by his grandparents
When he turned ten, his mother remarried and relocated abroad
There was almost no bond between them
She gave birth to him at 18, nursed him for a year
Went to the University at 19, came home for her breaks
Graduated at 24, went away for NYSC
Left the country at 25 for her Masters
Graduated and returned home for her wedding at 28
He had always called her biological mother "Big Aunty"
Her grandmother had always been 'Mummy"
When he gained admission into the University, his grandparents moved heaven and earth
They made sure he had the best despite being retirees
His grandmother especially treated him like her last child
Cuddling, hugging even shedding a tear as they drove away from his school after his registration
She had always looked younger than her age
spritely, vivacious and full of life
It was a shock to him to see her so weak and feeble when he went home for the holidays
She was taken to the hospital and diagnosed of cancer
Her children, all based abroad insisted she must be treated in India
She travelled two days before he resumed his 200L
He made a vow that day to serve the Lord and be useful in the fellowship if God would keep his grandmother alive
Immediately he got back to campus he attended a campus fellowship meeting and gave his life to Christ
He was immediately put through discipleship class and at the same time he volunteered to join the choir
The news he got from abroad was very good
God kept his word! Hallelujah
He became fervent in the things of God
He got filled with the Holy Spirit and started his spiritual journey from Gilgal to Bethel
By the time he got home after the session, his grandmother was back
He was grateful to God for sparing her life
She was his closest tie to humanity as a whole
Without her he wouldn't feel needed by anybody!
His grandfather loves him but he doesn't treat him like a son
Their relationship has this unexplained distance in it, perhaps as a consequence of his birth!
His mother was busy raising another family abroad, they rarely spoke up to three times in a year
He really needed his grandmother to see him succeed, to eat the fruit of his labour
When he resumed for 300 Level, he was posted to a room full of club boys
The boys have no regard for God and the things of God
They mocked his spiritual inclinations and called him a sissy
He didn't mind!
He was committed to the things of God more than ever
Then the news came early one morning, via phone call from his Grandfather
His Grandmother died peacefully in her sleep overnight!
Just like that!
He was devastated!
His fellowship family rallied around him
They really tried as much as possible to console and comfort him
But deep in the night, when the wave of pain and sorrow gripped his heart
When deep darkness of despair held his throat in a chokehold
It was his roommates that he saw!
They empathize with him, sympathized with him and offered him some help
Just a little relief so that he can sleep, they offered him some marijuana
"God made it for such a time as this! A few drags and you will be able to sleep"
That was how it started!
A few drags every morning and every night!
It was soothing and he slept as they promised
Soon he started hanging out with them
A few drinks, some cigarettes, lots of music and fun helped him drown out the pain in his heart
Within two weeks, he had lost interest in God and the church
Christian brothers and sisters came to his room, classroom and met him in other places on campus
He dodged them at first but he eventually stood up to them and told them to let him be
He didn't want anything to do with God and the fellowship again
Can't they read the handwriting on the wall?
Prayer meetings were called, his fellowship buddies paid him a visit
Nothing worked!
By the time he got to final year, he was singing ragga music at live shows on campus with marijuana hanging on his lips
Many believers cried when they saw how he had unravelled
Prayers were persistently said for him
Nothing seemed to work!
They graduated!
He got a job at an entertainment company as a DJ
The rivers flowed on
He got married to a lady he met on the job
A backup vocalist who performed with him at some shows
They had a lot in common!
They smoked, drank, partied and also shared a mutual dislike for anything religious
Ten years after his graduation, three years after his marriage
He got another phone call
His little daughter had caught of a strange illness
Doctors were at sea about what to do
After several weeks and a barrage of tests
Her condition was diagnosed as Retinoblastoma, a form of cancer
He was told it was practically incurable except for a miracle
This was a child he named after his grandmother
A child that helped him feel like he had finally found a place for himself in this world
It took him a while
But he finally made the decision to reach out to God!
He called the brother in Jeans and T-Shirt
"Why is God always this wicked?" He asked
The brother in Jeans and T-shirt listened to his story
"Would you have preferred it if God left you alone and didn't even bother to reach out to you?"
"Yes" He responded
"Even if the consequences was an eternal destiny unworthy of your status as a child of God?"
He kept quiet
The brother in Jeans and T-shirt told him to lay his left hand on his child's head
The brother in Jeans and T-Shirt to his wife to lay both her hands on the child
The brother in Jeans and T-shirt led them in prayer for the recovery of the child
As they were praying
He started praying in tongues again, after many years
His wife started crying, the anointing of the Holy Spirit was electrifying
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt started singing in tongues
His wife gave her life to Christ
He rededicated his life to Christ
The brother in jeans and T-shirt told them God had healed their baby
But the baby still looked very sick!
They believed!
Three days later, the symptoms started disappearing
Their baby was discharged two weeks later, free of cancer!
His relationship with the Holy Spirit was restored
He started thirsting for the living waters again
He got himself a bible and he started reading the book of John
He found a local assembly and joined the church
A decade after he walked away,
The good shepherd located him and brought him back into his fold!

PS: We should be grateful that He doesn't give up on us
We should be grateful that he is as determined to be our God as He is
Many of us, especially the writer, would have been lost forever
I can never forget the cesspool I was dug out from
I can never forget all those who worked hard to help me grow
I can never forget those who refused to give up on me in my "Carnal-christianity beliefs" of the early days
I have never been better than any other believer
I will never be holier than any other believer
I am his beloved
I am his adopted son
Is this true of you?