On the 12th of February 2019, I had just returned home from our usual Tuesday choir rehearsal. I was really hungry and exhausted but too tired to prepare a meal for myself. I decided to make a little oatmeal, so I put a cup of water in a big kettle on fire to boil. While the water was boiling, I decided to call my husband who was out of town, while gisting with him, I was trying to open the oat container and it slipped from my hand and poured completely on the floor, I said to my husband ‘Ouch! There goes my dinner’. I left the kitchen, continued ‘gisting’ and forgot to switch off the burner. (This was about some minutes to eleven O’clock). My husband and I talked for over an hour and said goodnight to each other. By this time, I had totally forgotten about the water on fire. I told myself I was going to watch TV for some time and then turn off the generator and go to bed. I dozed off after a few minutes! I was woken up hours later by the siren that goes off when PHCN (Power Holding Company of Nigeria) brings the light. I got up from the bed and changed over to NEPA. I looked at the time and it was 4:36 a.m., I thought to myself, ‘it was almost my wake up time anyway’ and decided to go boil some water for tea. I was in shock when I got to the kitchen and saw my kettle still on the gas burner!!! What! I exclaimed! I ran and switched it off; but to my greatest surprise, nothing happened! Nothing happened! No smoke, no fire, no smell! Am I dreaming? I asked myself.
I ran out of the kitchen and knelt down on the ground crying and praising God! What just happened? I still thought I was dreaming or maybe dead and waiting in-between heaven and earth for the angels to come to get me. I decided to call my husband to confirm I was alive. As soon as he picked the call, I said, ‘Ogbe, please start thanking God for deliverance, I left the kettle on the fire and nothing happened. We praised God together and I dropped the call. I just want to thank God for delivering my son and me that night. So many things could have happened that day, but God who watches over Preye, who neither sleeps nor slumbers said No! It was like I put the water on the fire for 5 minutes, and God stopped time, waited for me to come to switch it off. It was the SUPERNATURAL becoming NATURAL! The UNUSUAL becoming the USUAL!
My kettle didn’t even get black. When I told my help who resumes work at 6:30 a.m. what had happened, it was hard for her to believe it. We kept using that same kettle until we noticed about a week ago that there was a little hole under the kettle and we stopped using it.
Sometime before this incident, I had become more aware of the Holy Spirit Who has His residence in me, I took time to study more about Him. He became more real to me and I decided to start calling Him personal names like my Boss, my Coach, my standby. I made confessions like ‘Holy Spirit, my Coach, you’ve got my back’. He proved to me that day that, He isn’t just a character in a book I read but a person who lives with me and in me. He showed Himself strong on my behalf. He proved to me once again that He loves me and has got my back.
Do not take lightly everything you hear preached on this pulpit, no Word of God ever returns back to Him void but accomplishes what it is sent to do. Direct the Word of God, engage it and see what it will do for you.
Thank you, Pastors, for teaching us the undiluted Word of God, and for also being great and genuine examples to follow, I don’t take it for granted. It has changed my life.