THE GLORIOUS ARREST OF A FAMILY

When I was going to the University of Ife in 1976,1 made one resolution - to hide myself in the crowd and get lost in the world. I did not want anything about ’God’ around me. Consequently, I threw away my small Bible and everything that reminded me of God. Sincerely speaking, I could not say why I took that decision. I was born into the Anglican Church and the rest of my brothers and sisters were godly. In my secondary school days, I had joined the ’Born Again’ group, and thought I loved God. But soon, all of that stopped, as I slipped back into the world. Somehow, it seemed there was something in me that did not want God really. While at home, I had to do ’church things’ once in a while, somehow under pressure - just to satisfy my family expectations. Now, I was happy to be on my way to the ’campus’ where no one would bother me about God. My going to the University was therefore seen as an escape from God and I kept to it. All through my campus days, the National Service and up to 1983 when I started work with the Union Bank, I kept to my decision to keep God away from me. Somehow, I felt that the ways of God were too tough, and His standards too high for me. I therefore wanted to ’enjoy’ myself and forget about ’Heaven and hell,’ I thought. I went to church again in 1987 just because I was getting married. Soon after the wedding, I decided to quit going to church completely and I told my wife so. All her tears and pleas could not change my heart and at last she gave up. Soon after our wedding, on 20th April, 1987,1 stopped going to Church completely. I would not even go once in a while. I never saw the four walls of any church. On Sundays therefore my wife and the rest of the family would simply inform me that they were going to the church so that I might come and lock the door! That was the situation until May 28th, 1989, when something marvellous happened which changed the life of everyone in the family starting with me! You will get the details later. I therefore thank God for this wonderful privilege of being part of what is now a worldwide event, to usher in the ultimate rule of God here on earth. The Kingdom of God is about to be revealed to the earth. God is about to answer that popular age­ long prayer which Jesus taught at His disciples’ request - 'Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth... as it is done in Heaven...'God’s political time-table is rapidly unfolding and His Ministers - the Angels - are at red-alert. They have indeed gone all out on 'mission possible' - to prepare for the 'landing' of the new Kingdom. Things have begun to happen. Unbelievable things are happening here again. They happened during the Apostolic Age - with the Apostles of the Lord. That was in the beginning of the Church Age. Here they are again - at the end of the Church Age. God is here again to reveal Himself to His people! That God would have me included in this end­ time programme is what I cannot understand! Why should I have expected God’s grace to be so freely poured out on me, in such a way that all yokes are broken! I was not seeking Him. I was not involved in things about Him.