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Romans 10:15 KJV
And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!
In the heart of the raucous Oshodi neighborhood, Emmanuel Baptist Church was approached by a 2019 Toyota Yaris.
A short while later, the driver of the vehicle descended to open the door to the left of the back seat.
Pastor Ezekiel Solademi stepped down with his tablet in one hand and a Bible in the other. He muttered thanks to his driver as he walked away.
Silence resonated through the church auditorium as he walked through its corridor towards his office.
“Good Morning, Sir.” His secretary stood as he walked in.
“Good morning, Brother Jide,” Pastor Ezekiel said in response as he nodded.
This time, the man bowed and said, “Welcome, Sir.”
He moved to go into his office when his secretary called after him; “Sir,”
“Yes;” he swung around again.
“The evangelism unit representatives are in the main waiting room.”
“Oh. They and I have a meeting scheduled for this morning. Give the church secretary five minutes to send them.”
“Alright, sir.” He nodded in appreciation as he walked into his office. The air conditioner was already on and running, so he quickly made himself comfortable in his chair.
“God, please lead us as regards this outreach.” He prayed silently as he picked up a document that lay on his table. He nodded as he skimmed through the contents, cancelling and including something as he read on. Then, a knock on the door was heard.
“Can they come in, Sir?” his secretary asked as the door opened.
“Yes please.”
“Okay, Sir.”
As if on cue, a young man in the company of a young woman entered the office.
“Good Morning, Sir.” The man spoke out.
“Good morning, Sister Lizzy and Brother Femi.” The two in response made a small bow.
The Pastor cleared his throat before speaking on; “I have gone through your proposal for the outreach. You must see to it that the three days of fasting and prayer are observed by everyone who will participate in the outreach. Taking the word of God there indicates that you are proceeding in grace even though this location has long been a hotbed of prostitution.” The duo nodded in agreement.
“Also, make sure everyone is paired appropriately, preferably two sisters and a brother. Everyone should also watch out for each other.”
Lizzy made notes as the pastor spoke.
The pastor reapplied his glasses and picked up the document he had earlier dropped. “You noticed that the outer area is generally crowded about five o’clock, right?”
“Yes, sir.” It was Elizabeth that responded.
“It’s okay. Please proceed wisely at all times. Anyone who starts acting agitated should be left alone. Just concentrate on the people you meet outside the structure. Don’t even think about going inside since you won’t be allowed. The Lord will go with you.”
“Amen, Sir.”
“I want the report at least two days after the outreach.” He directed that to the evangelism coordinator.
“Alright, sir.”
He nodded in satisfaction, “Let’s pray together briefly before you go.”
“Thank you, Father, for your children.” He started.
“Thank you, Lord, for the great commission that you have committed into our hands. Thank you, Lord, because a call has come from this place at this time. We know you also died for these ones. ”
“Father, I pray that you will prepare us for this outreach in Jesus’ name.”
“Amen.” The duo responded.
“We pray that everything that will be done in this outreach will bring about the massive salvation of souls. Begin to work in the hearts of the people in that place and let them long for the truth. Begin to put them in situations where they will be tired of their present situation and they will cry for your help. In Jesus’ name, we have prayed.”
“Amen.”
“Brethren, thank you very much. God bless you.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Both responded and stepped out of the office.
They muttered thanks to the secretary as they passed by him. The duo walked in silence till they were out of earshot.
“Sister Lizzy,” Femi called, “please send an announcement to the Whatsapp group that everyone who wants to be a part of the outreach must participate in the fasting and prayers.”
“On it, Sir.” She replied as she brought out her phone to type the message.
He stopped suddenly; “That reminds me.”
She looked at him. “How is the convert from our last evangelism together doing?” Her name is Dupe, right? ”
Elizabeth chuckled before she continued typing on her phone. “Dupe is fine oo.” She sighed with a smile plastered on her face.
“Is everything alright with her?” Femi asked with concern.
“If not for the grace of God, I would have told Dupe to leave my place for good. Sometimes I can’t help but doubt her salvation. She has refused to allow God to take a lot of excesses from her life. She now sees prayers as boring and has even said she wants to get her own apartment. ” She explained.
He stared at her in shock. “What did you tell her?”
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. “Honestly, she doesn’t see me as her mentor or anything related to that. I was taken aback that she informed me ahead and didn’t just pack her things and leave the house.” She stopped to put her phone back into her handbag.
“I told her there was no problem, but she should let me know when she sees one so I can also check it out. We don’t want her mixing with the wrong crowd again.”
Femi sighed. “It is well. Please let me know how things eventually go. Also, please help me inform her that I would love to see her at the outreach, so she should be a part of the fasting and prayer meetings.”
“Alright, Sir.” Elizabeth nodded.
“Thank you very much, Sis Lizzy. I think that’s all for now. ”
“Alright. Bye, Sir.” They exchanged pleasantries as they walked outside the church compound and each turned towards home.
Elizabeth began the not so long walk down the street towards her house. She chuckled as she imagined Dupe’s reaction when she delivered Bro Femi’s message.
Dupe hadn’t always been disrespectful and arrogant. They had met her at a delicate period in her life. Elizabeth smiled in the present as she remembered that day. She and the evangelism coordinator had just left the church premises to visit some of their unit members when they met Dupe, crying and clutching her stomach in pain.
They had rushed her to the hospital where they discovered she had just aborted a pregnancy for someone who had left her jilted. They had taken care of her and eventually she said she wanted to give her life to Christ. Elizabeth had led her to Christ.
Since she and her boyfriend had been living together before their separation, there really was no home to go back to. Lizzy had taken her home, and the church had assisted with getting clothes and other necessities for her.
The pastor’s wife had singlehandedly taken her to a fashion design school to learn, and Dupe learned so quickly that she soon started receiving contracts from people.
Two years down the lane, and everything was going on well until one day, Lizzy woke up and saw her roommate crying.
“Sis Lizzy, am I not attractive to men again? Why are men not interested in me? ” The lady had asked.
Lizzy wrapped her in a warm embrace; “Dupe, you should be focused on building your life right now, not men. What happened to building a fashion brand? ”
“We both know I’ve been doing a good job in that,” the lady sniffed. “Sis, Lizzy, will I be single forever? Do you think no man will want me because I have aborted before? ”
Elizabeth sighed; “Dupe, don’t think like that.”
“Hmm! I hope you people have not told everyone in the church my story.”
Elizabeth’s eyes widened in shock; “No, Dupe. How can you even say that? Your secret is safe with us. ”
Her roommate only stared at her as she spoke.
“It’s just that you should build your spiritual life and work on your brand before thinking of going into a relationship.”
She wiggled out of Lizzy’s embrace. “Thank you. I think I know what to do. ”
Lizzy shook her head. “Dupe, please don’t rush into a relationship you will eventually rush out of. Please just wait for God’s best for you. ”
“Alright. I have heard you. ” She nodded and laid down to sleep.
Lizzy sighed as her thoughts faded away.
“God, please help Dupe to stay in the place of making. Break her and mould her Lord. ” She prayed silently as she walked into their compound.
She was about to move towards the front door of their apartment when her ears picked up movements coupled with the voices of children from the apartment beside theirs. She stopped. The apartment had been empty for about a month and Mr. David, the agent, never mentioned that someone was moving in. She moved to check out those who were there.
The voices became clearer as she drew nearer. “Daddy, I and Diadem will take the room adjacent to the kitchen while you take the bigger one. I think we will do just fine for the main … ”
The main entrance door was left ajar, so she put her head slightly into the sitting room before calling out. “Good morning.”
Three pairs of eyes turned sharply to look at her. The girl who she guessed had been speaking before she interrupted looked to be about 12 years old. An older man, who she felt had to be her father and was probably in his late forties, stood with a questioning look on his face. Another little girl grasped his hand. The three were staring at her suspiciously.
Lizzy laughed lightly. “I’m so sorry for interrupting. My name is Elizabeth and I stay next door. ”
The man nodded. “Oh. I see. We just moved in this morning. ”
Lizzy nodded. “You are welcome to this community. If you need directions on where to get anything, you can always ask me or my flatmate. We would be glad to help. ” They would definitely need help.
The man smiled in gratitude as the older girl spoke. “Thank you Ma, but we won’t stay long here.”
“Oh.” Lizzy looked at the man in confusion.
The man pushed his shoulders without speaking.
His daughter’s questioning eyes turned to him. “Right Daddy?”
“Hmm hmm.” He nodded.
The younger girl deemed it safe to interact with her “Daddy will win a competition.”
“It’s a contract.” The older one cut in.
“Anyway, he will be able to get our house back from those wicked banks.” She said confidently.
“Diadem…” Her dad looked at her.
“Sorry.” She covered her mouth.
Lizzy smiled, having grasped so little about them.
The man turned to her. “I am sure you already know so much about us.” Both of them laughed.
“I am Daramola James by name. You can just call me Mr. Daramola. ” Lizzy nodded in understanding.
“My daughters are Davina and Diadem.” He pointed to the older and younger ones, respectively.
“It’s great meeting you all.” Lizzy stretched forth her hand and shook hands with the three of them. The older girl had this ‘now are we done here?’ look on her face, but Diadem just giggled.
Lizzy chose her next words carefully; “You have wonderful girls.” Davina pouted at her words.
“Yes,” He said. “I was left with them after my wife’s demise. There was another girl with us, but she suddenly left. I guess her leaving actually retuned my attitude. ” He sighed. Lizzy could sense regret underneath his words.
“Oh, you have another daughter?” She asked softly.
Davina hissed. “She is just our cousin.”
“But she was like our older sister.” Diadem added in a whisper.
The older girl looked at Lizzy. “She just left us for God knows where and for whatever reason. Well, she is probably dead or working as a prostitute now.” Lizzy gasped at Davina’s words. Her eyes caught a slicker of pain in the girl’s eyes. The person in question definitely left the girls when they needed her most. They loved her and probably still do. Only they were passing off their grief in different ways.
“She used to play with us.” Diadem’s words broke into her thoughts.
“Perhaps she had a reason.” Lizzy said softly.
“Stop defending her the way Dad does.” Davina shouted out in anger, causing Lizzy to move back a bit instinctively.
“Perhaps it was my fault.” Their dad whispered. The girls fell silent and stared at their dad in horror. Lizzy could once again feel guilt oozing out of him.
She cleared her throat. “It is well. You will all be fine.” She said to bring down the thickened air.
“Amen.” It was their father who responded.
“Which church do you attend?” Diadem squealed excitedly.
Lizzy smiled. “It’s not so far from here.” Davina lighted up at her statement.
“Wow.” She was amazed they were this excited about attending Church.
“We started attending church two months ago after Dad said he became born again.” Davina explained.
“Awesome.” Lizzy smiled.
The girl wasn’t done. “His friend took us to the church he worships at, and I enjoyed the songs. The talk was usually so long that I eventually got distracted.”
“It is referred to as a sermon, not talk.” Her father corrected her.
Davina pouted. “Sorry. Anyway, I would love to go to church. ”
Lizzy looked at their dad. “Well, if your father would approve, you can attend our services.”
“Daddy?” Davina called, dashing her eyelids furiously as she waited for his response.
Her father smiled. “Okay.”
“Yay!”
“Thank you.” The sisters shouted joyously.
Lizzy and their father burst into laughter.
“I will come get you guys on Sunday morning then.” She announced
“Davina,” Diadem called out, “Have you arranged the teddy bears on our bed?”
“No….” The girl replied as she moved towards a box.
“Do you need help?” Their father asked
“We’ll be fine.” She replied without turning back.
Lizzy watched them carry the box and walk towards a room. She turned to their father.
“You have an amazing relationship with your children.”
He smiled sadly. “It wasn’t always like that. They used to be closer to their mother. It was recently that I became a better father.” He kept quiet for a minute, but Lizzy could tell he wasn’t done speaking.
He continued, “The girls marvelled at the change, but since it has always been me since their cousin left, they just flowed with me.”
“Can I ask why the girl left?” Lizzy hoped she wasn’t crossing the line.
He scratched his head. “I guess I didn’t act like a responsible guardian around her.”
She looked confused for a minute. “Wait, I don’t…” Understanding dawned. “Oh! Did you…” She left the question hanging as she backed away from him subconsciously.
Mr. Daramola shook his head. “No. I didn’t get to do that. The fact that she left the house made me realise my wrongs and I became a more responsible father. Meeting Christ months ago made me better. ”
Lizzy sighed and suddenly thought of something. “Have you tried getting in touch with her? It would be great if she were reunited with your family. ”
“I searched for her but had no luck. It would be nice to reunite her with the girls. They have not forgiven her for walking out of their lives. ” He groaned. “I will have to tell them myself when they are much older to understand the situation.”
Lizzy shook her head. “I understand. God will take control of everything.”
“Amen. Thank you very much for coming around.” He smiled.
“You are welcome.” She turned to go when the girls ran into the parlor.
“Miss Elizabeth, you are leaving?” Asked Diadem.
Lizzy smiled at the girl. “Yes, dear. We will see on Sunday morning, but perhaps we may even cross paths before then. ”
The girl nodded in response.
“Bye girls.”
Diadem smiled mischievously at her and she wondered what was going on.
“I like you.” The girl spat out.
Lizzy blushed. “It’s mutual.” She wanted to say when Diadem rushed to hug her.
Elizabeth stood dumb for some seconds before she bent down to hug the girl back.
“Thank you.” Lizzy whispered softly.
Diadem wiggled in her embrace, signalling the end of the hug. “Bye.”
Both waved at each other with big smiles on their faces. Davina and their father couldn’t help but laugh.
Lizzy turned and walked out of their flat.
“What a beautiful family.” She soliloquized as she got to the front of their door. As she lifted her right hand to knock, the door opened. Dupe stood behind the door and was staring at her in amazement.
“Sis Lizzy, I saw you enter this compound about thirty minutes ago. Where have you been? ”
Lizzy smiled in response and moved to enter as the other woman left the doorway for her. “I just met our new neighbors.”
She wrinkled her nose. “The same ones that woke me up with their noise?”
Lizzy gasped. “Dupe, did you just wake up?”
“Yes, my sister. I cannot kill myself. Moreover, I am not going to shop today.” She waved her hand irritably.
“Tor.” Lizzy sat down on the sofa with a thud.
Dupe sat down on the arm of the chair. “How about their mother? I only saw a man with them.”
Lizzy shook her head. “She has passed on, but the girls turned out well anyway.”
Dupe pouted. “With that demanding attitude of theirs? If you witnessed how they were babbling like babies and talking to the man, I pitied him.”
Lizzy chuckled. “They were just excited.”
“This one that you are defending. I hope our house will not become their playground.” Lizzy burst into laughter at her words.
Dupe spoke on, “Well, I am moving out soon anyway.”
Lizzy stared at her. “Are you still working on that?”
“Yes now.” Dupe sighed deeply. “Honestly, Sis Lizzy, I am grateful for everything. I just think I need to find my space. ”
Lizzy nodded. “It’s alright. Brother Femi sends his greetings.”
“Alright.” Dupe responded.
“He also said I should tell you that he wants to see you at the fasting and prayer meetings in preparation for the outreach.” Lizzy added.
“Hmm, the truth is I may not fast throughout, but I will attend the prayer meetings.” Dupe explained with a serious tune.
“Okay then.” Lizzy smiled. That conversation went better than she had envisaged.
…..
What can you say about Dupe’s concern about her relationship life?
Do you think Lizzy should try to convince Dupe to remain with her to be able to monitor her Christian Life?
What do you think about Lizzy’s new neighbors and the past which seem to be weighing each of them down in different ways?
Do you have ideas about how this story will definitely go?
Share with us in the comment section of the blog.
Apologies for not publishing this episode yesterday. See you next week Tuesday for the next Episode of O.R.S.
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