HE SAID NO.
EPISODE 29
Grace read the letter, shaking her head and widening her eyes at intervals.
“Wow, wow, wow! Thank God his suicide attempt failed, you know what this means,” Grace said, “The devil is such a bastard you know, dying without Jesus is the worst thing to happen to a man, thank God for his mercies,” Grace continued, breathing in deeply,
“I felt so bad when I read that letter, considering the fact that I abandoned him even when God told me to reach out to him, I allowed my resentment for him to cloud my heart and I disregarded God’s voice. He has been bottling so much inside while walking through life as a hopeless man, “
“Yes, but we thank God for his mercies, and that is why we must always allow God’s spirit to take the lead in our lives. Our obedience or disobedience to God’s voice is key, as our lives and even that of others depend on it. If you had reached out to him on time, who knows, he might never have attempted suicide in the first place, but all the same, we thank God for his mercies and timely intervention.”
“I really thank God for his mercies, and I am grateful to you too, Grace, for being there for me every time. Knowing you has been a blessing, “Mrs. Akinwale said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze.
“It’s my pleasure, I am glad you are happy.”
“You just always seem to have the right words for different occasions, you are such a woman of wisdom, “Mrs. Akinwale said as Grace smiled on. “I just thank God for you oh, I don’t know what would have become of me by now,”
“With or without me, God would still have found a means to reach out to you, he loves you too much to give up that easily, I am just an instrument that God used to reach out to you,”
“Yes, that’s true. All the same, thank you for being available for God to use,” Mrs. Akinwale smiled.
“Its all by God’s Grace and I am happy to be a part of this,” Grace smiled back, “Amifel told me she was here earlier today,”
“Yes, yes… I never expected Amifel to be this nice to me after all I have done to her,” Mrs. Akinwale said, her voice reeked of remorse.
“That is how a Christian is supposed to act, ready to forgive and let go, no matter the circumstance,” Grace said proudly while Mrs. Akinwale paused a bit as if to allow her words to sink.
“I am ready to go back to be with my husband, “she declared as Grace shot her a surprised look, “I have forgiven him wholeheartedly, “ she continued.
“Really? Wow! When did this happen, I mean when did you make that decision?” Grace asked, unable to contain her excitement.
“It was yesternight, right here in the hospital, God led me to read the book of Matthew 18 verse 23 to the end, I was a bit puzzled on that story at the end and I felt like God won’t forgive me until I forgave my husband. Then while I dwelt on it and asked the holy spirit for insight, I realized that the king in the Matthew story pardoned the servant before he required that the servant also pardon his offender.” While Mrs. Akinwale was talking, Grace kept nodding as her heart bubbled with joy.
“Then, the holy spirit directed me to 1 John 1 verse 9 and Ephesians 4 verse 32, and I realized that God has already forgiven me and my response to his undeserved gesture is to also forgive people who have wronged me, the holy spirit spoke to my heart and corrected me by his word. I prayed for God’s help yesternight and I released all the hate and resentment I felt for my husband. After all, God has forgiven me of all my inadequacies so why should I be holding on to a wrong done to me by my husband or anybody else “Mrs. Akinwale continued.
“Wow, boss move! That’s the spirit, I am so so happy to hear this,” Grace said, drawing her closer for a super-tight hug. “This is really amazing, I have prayed and believed God for such a time as this, Thank you father, Glory to God!” Tears slid down Mrs. Akinwale’s face as she held on tightly to Grace. Grace wiped her tears with her palm as she continued.
“I need you to help me preach to my husband, he needs Jesus too,” Mrs. Akinwale said amidst sobs as Grace released her from his embrace.
“I would have loved to, but how about you? “Grace asked,
“Uhnn? Me?”
“You can preach to him, God has empowered you for it. The only qualification you need to preach is to be saved. Listen, When God told me that he was working on you, I did not know that it would be this fast. The work has not ended,” Grace said, “Now, when your husband is more stable to talk, you have to minister God’s love and forgiveness to him, as the holy spirit leads you,”
“What would I say? I have never preached before, “
“You don’t have to memorize a script to preach, you know that Jesus died, he was buried and he rose again, right? “Grace asked as Mrs. Akinwale nodded in response.
“You know more than enough. You know what you’ll do now, pray in tongues till you are edified, and then declare the gospel. A beautiful speech has never saved anyone, what saves is the Gospel which is the power of God!” Grace declared with a quick clap. “Afterwards, let him know that you have completely forgiven him, and you are ready to come back home with him,” Grace concluded while Mrs. Akinwale sighed deeply.
“Okay, “ Mrs. Akinwale said, she had no choice.
“Let me pray with you,” Grace offered as she held her hands and led her to a quiet corner in the parking lot.
To be continued…
Written by Sodamade Olamide Tolulope.
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