Quickened at Christmas 2

Her mother had three of them before
dying on Christmas day in 2004
Three girls
The first was ten years old
The second was eight years old
The third was five years old
Their father was a driver with one
of the popular farms in the country
They were poor but they were
not beggars
The pastor that came to talk to their
Father after the passing of their mother
advised their father to apply for
transfer to another department in his
office or get another job so that he
can stay at home more and nurture
his children
He had been an absentee father due
to the nature of his job
They saw him mostly on weekends
and the “seeing” was mostly knowing
he was at home but sleeping in the
room
Their mother’s “shhhhh Your Father is
sleeping” is usually the sign
He returns late of Friday (They would
have slept), stayed indoors for most
of Saturday (Resting) and by the time
they got back from church on Sunday,
he would have packed his bag again
The job didn’t pay much but it was a
job he really loved
Their mother tried to get him a job
somewhere else but he almost always
dodged the conversation
He was a wayfarer, a man whose heart
had been conditioned to see things
in a certain way
The idea of change for anything other
than his convenience was alien to him
He refused to change when their mother
was alive, despite all her lamentations
about raising the children alone and
not feeling his impact as their father
He wasn’t a bad man
He ensured that he provided for them
as much as he could but he was not
a father in terms of knowing his children,
growing with his children and nurturing
his children
He didn’t take the advice of the pastor
He was given a month off at work to
tidy up his affairs
He buried their mother in a very simple
ceremony and hauled them all off to
his older sister three weeks after
their mother died
His older sister was a widow with
only one son
He explained that it was like killing
two birds with one stone
He had always wanted to support his
older sister but didn’t really have the
means to do so and felt he would be
able to support her as he had always
intended while she took care of them
His older sister took them in joyfully
Their father came around every week
for the first three months and after
then practically stayed away
He sent money for their upkeep but
that was it
They get to see him twice or thrice
a year but he avoided them like a
plague around the Christmas season
They stayed with their aunty for four
years
One day, their aunty just told them
to dress up, got them into a taxi and
took them to a flat
They were ushered into the balcony
with their bags
Their aunty offered no explanation
apart from “Knock on that door, you
will be staying with your father
henceforth”
They knocked on the door
It was opened by a pregnant woman
The woman called forth her husband
Her husband was their father
That was how they got to live with
their father and their step-mother
Apparently, the family didn’t like the
choice of who their father got married
to and decided they shouldn’t have to
help out while he had disobeyed them
Things got tough at that point
Their step-mother apparently didnt
bargain for raising three teenagers
who had grown a telepathic ability
to love and protect each other
against the harsh realities of life
They were old enough to make
their own meals and prepare
themselves for school
They didn’t need to be mummied!
Their step-mother learned that within
the first month of sharing the
flat with them and minded her space
They grew up that way, fiercely
devoted to each other
On December 25, 2010
Their Father had a motor accident
somewhere along Iseyin road
The car was hit by a tanker and was
burnt to ashes
They didn’t get to see his body as
he was given a closed coffin burial
Christmas took a whole new meaning
after then
Their step-mother didn’t have any
reason to stay
She never got pregnant for their
father and was still young enough
to remarry
So she left
The extended family came together
A lot of empty promises were made
After the meeting, the three of them
decided the only way they can stick
together was to fend for themselves
The oldest one was already in the
Polytechnic studying Mass
Communication in Eruwa Campus
She had already rented a room off
campus before their father died
They all moved to Eruwa
They had all learned how to plait
hair and do some level of make-up
That was their saving grace
Their oldest sister studied and helped
out during the weekends
They became quite popular among
the student community
The following year, the second oldest
bought the Pre-ND form and also
gained admission into the polytechnic
They had a roof over their head and
ate three square meals daily
They were also making advancements
in life goal achievements
They didn’t have parents or relatives
but they had God
On December 25, 2015, another tragedy
struck
Their youngest sister was having a secret
relationship with one of the students
(She was still writing her WAEC/NECO
in pursuit of admission into the same
school at the time)
She got pregnant and had an abortion
She didnt tell anybody what was going
on with her
She died on Christmas day
It was a devastating blow
They left Eruwa a few weeks later
The two older ones had completed
their ND programmes but were
determined to support their sister
through her OND before moving on
to either HND or getting University
degrees
They moved to Ibadan and tried to
set up a hair-dressing salon around
Apete area
Things didn’t work out
The cost of renting a house and getting
a shop was too high
They both wanted to pursue their HND
too and the school fees had to be paid
They were both in their twenties
Somehow they struggled through school
and they both graduated the same year
They did their National Youth Service
Corp and started job hunting
It was much tougher than they were
told it would be
They both moved to Lagos to stay
with a friend while applying for jobs
The older one got a teaching job in
a primary school to keep body and
soul together while the younger one
was employed as the manager of
a sachet water factory
Their salaries were very poor but they
kept at it
Working very hard with little to
show for it
In 2019, her older sister caught a
break
A man came to Nigeria to spend
some time with his parents and
relatives during the festive season
of 2018/2019
He was based in Italy
He was a widow with two children
He showed interest in her sister and
things got serious quite fast
It looked as if God had finally decided
to visit them with His mercy
In March 2020, talks between the
man and his sister suddenly came to
an abrupt end due to the Covid-19
pandemic
The man suddenly went dark
Her sister called and called but didn’t
get a response
Her sister fell into depression
She had put all her eggs in that
basket and couldn’t take the crash
Her sister was so depressed that
she couldn’t function anymore
She stopped working and the
burden of the cost her sister’s
treatment, feeding and general
welfare fell on her shoulders
She was usually unperturbed
about issues but her sister’s illness
was the last straw
It got her thinking strange thoughts
and having weird dreams
It seemed to her as if God was
deliberately afflicting her family
members every other Christmas
season
She thought about it for several days
and somehow a nagging thought
crept into her heart
She tried very hard to shake it off
but it was persistent
The thought kept telling her she must
die on Christmas day of 2020
She tried very hard to rebuke it but
the voice kept getting louder and
louder until it was he sleeping and
waking thoughts
Eventually, she gave in
On the 20th of December 2020, she
closed her bank accounts and dropped
the cash in her older sister’s wardrobe
She bought the stuff she wanted to
use to end it all
She continued going to work because
some money would come in for her in
form of Christmas bonus and her
December salary
She wanted to give all she could to
her sister
As far as she was concerned, her race
was over
The salary and bonus was paid on the
24th of December
She slept at the Factory
They were expected to work on Christmas
day till noon after which they would all
go on break for the rest of the day
At 9:15 am, a brother in jeans and T-shirt
walked into the factory
He greeted everybody and told them
He came to celebrate Christmas with
them
He came with white envelopes for
everybody
Then he said “Is there somebody named
R****** here?”
Everybody pointed at her
They had all gathered around him to
collect their envelopes
He walked up to her and gave her the
envelopes
He stood as she shared them
Then he said “The Holy Spirit sent me
here to show you your future”
She smiled
Future? What future? She thought
He held her left and and it was as
if a wind knocked her flat on her face
She started screaming, hot tears
streaming down her face
Oh wow!
She saw tomorrow
First, she saw herself in a garden with
a fragrance so wonderful she could
feel the smell coursing through her
bones
Then she saw herself walking into an
elevator
The elevator lifted her to the uppermost
floor of a building
When the elevator door opened, she
saw her husband and three children
She also saw the year on the calendar
standing on the table in her office
She was the owner of the company
Her name was on the wall and the
calendars
She was overwhelmed by joy
Then he released her hand and she
fell on her knees
He said “You had planned to end it
all because you cannot see tomorrow,
the Holy Spirit sent me to you to show
you tomorrow”
It took her a while to recover
When she opened her eyes the voice
of darkness was gone
She was brimming with joy!
He left her with his phone number
and a strong assurance that God is
mindful of her
On the 26th of December, she got
a call from Enugu
One of her uncles who was a military
man suddenly remembered her and
her sister out of the blue
She was told to mail her CV and that
of her sister
She did and later that same day she
they were both offered good jobs at
two different companies
She called the brother in jeans and
T-shirt
“Where have you been all these while
sir? How come it took this long for
God to show up for us?” She asked
He told her God is never late.

PS: She and her sister will be resuming
their new jobs on the 4th of January
2021
This encounter happened on December 25
2020 at Ikosi-Ketu, Lagos
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt went to
minister to a family in Magodo on Christmas
morning, as he was driving out of the
Estate’s main gate, he heard the name
of the lady persistently three times
He started driving towards Jimoh Balogun
and was led to the Sachet water factory
He had never been there before and
knew nobody there but the Holy Spirit
was mindful of a soul in crisis and
brought succor to her

GSW’s notes: This is why HE is my life!
This is why the Holy Spirit is my joy
This is why the Holy Spirit is my reality
He carries me and works through me
He lifts me and speaks through me
He has full expression in me
He is unlimited in his outworking in
my life
The wonders I have seen him do are
immeasurable and the evidence is
tangible
I worship the Spirit of the Living God
I worship Adonai the Spirit
I fellowship with the Pneuma
I am propped up and bared up by
the Alos Paracletos
The Spirit of Jesus is strong and
mighty in me
Thank you Father for giving me
the Lord Jesus
Thank you Jesus for giving me the
Holy Spirit
Thank you for the wonders of your
glory
Blessed be God!

Announcement: Victoria Orenze will
be worshipping with us at Theikos
Doxa Evangelical Ministry today
This worship concert is a must for
those who are for the reality of the
Holy Spirit
He will pour out his Spirit upon us
and keep us filled until we are drunk
Join us please…