Sunday 3rd April 2022 Devotion
Scripture:- 1 Samuel 5:1-12
Topic:- This Girl Has Already Been Used
This girl has already been used for Sacrifice oo.
She has been accepted by the god she was sacrificed to.” “We cannot even use her at all. Go and get another person.”
You say what? I didn’t know whether I should be excited or concerned about what the old man said.
My name is Grace Olaoluwa and I was returning home on the last night of “IMPACT” the Youth Convocation Programme organized by my Church when I boarded a wrong cab.
None of me and the two passengers in the cab knew that the driver and the ‘passenger’ in the front seat were both partners in crime and they were in fact, kidnappers.
The driver pretended to take a detour which was a road rarely used by vehicles and as soon as we got to a deserted area, his partner who I eventually learned was Dayo brought out a gun and pointed it toward us.
He collected our bags and phones. Only then did the truth dawn on us: We had been kidnapped.
As soon as I realized what was happening, I started praying within me.
Strangely, as I tried to pray, the song the Guest Music Minister, Dunsin Oyekan sang, “Receive this living sacrifice” was just coming to my mind.
Eventually, I gave in and started singing the song softly.
The two people beside me: an elderly woman and a young man who I guessed should be in his thirties were so scared and were already whimpering especially since one of the men had guns pointed at us.
For reasons beyond me, I was calm. The vehicle soon arrived at a remote place.
“What is this place?” I wondered.
I took a few minutes to take in the environment and noticed that there were only three structures there with one looking like a shrine.
At that point, my tongue went loose and I started to pray in tongues.
The man and the woman beside me heard me and they looked shocked.
The vehicle stopped and as if on cue, two hefty men came out of one of the structures that looked like a lodge and trotted towards the vehicle.
The Driver and his partner didn’t highlight it. I concluded their own was just to drop us and leave.
“Baba has been waiting for you since morning.” One of the men who I observed was limping as it looked like one of his legs was shorter than the other said to the Driver and his partner.
“Sorry, there was a bit of hold up. You know those Deeper Lives are doing the program.” Dayo explained.
“Okay.” The man who had spoken earlier replied and nodded towards his partner who had been silent all along.
The latter came to the side of the back seat and opened the door.
I watched as he dragged the shouting woman out of the vehicle and towards the shrine with the other man leading the way.
“You know the drill now?” The man shouted back at the Driver.
“Yes. We will wait to see if they will all be accepted.” He shouted back.
“Exactly.” The man replied and I watched as they walked into the shrine.
“Auntie, you cannot pray ni? You look like an SU.” The young man beside me whispered in a shaky voice.
I looked at him pitifully. I didn’t even know what to say.
Eventually, I spoke; “I know that God will not leave me here. I’m sure of that.
If God is your father, I’m sure He won’t disappoint you.”
“Please…” He started when I and the guy noticed that the other man who had gone with the limping man had stepped out into the open and was now walking towards the vehicle.
The driver saw him too. “That woman was accepted, sha…”
I shivered.
“Lord, do something to take me out of here.” I prayed within me.
I watched as the man came to my side of the door.
“Father, what did you say about me being the apple of Your eye?” I groaned.
The door opened beside me and the man stopped.
He looked at me strangely from head to toe.
My tongue went loose again and I started praying in tongues audibly.
“Malik, you sure say this girl no be Kumuyi child whey them dey do program for?
Are you sure this girl is not one of those Kumuyi Children they are doing a program for?” He eyed me suspiciously.
“I no know oo. I just carry her not too far from the place.” (I don’t know. I just carried her not too far from the place.) The Driver replied without confidence.
The man shrugged; “No P. Baba go dey furious if she no works oo.” (No problem, Baba will be furious if she doesn’t work.)
He cautioned as he pulled me out of the car with his rough hands.
“Pray.” The young man inside the vehicle shouted after us. He was so scared out of his wit. He knew prayer worked but he didn’t know how to do so.
As the man pulled me on, I continued praying.
We soon arrived at the front of the shrine and we stopped.
“Ago oni le, sha ka wole?” (Landlord of the house, should we come in?) He shouted three times as I watched to see what will happen.
I watched in amazement as the wooden door opened of its own accord. I grimaced.
The man moved and pulled me after him and we entered the shrine. The door closed behind us.
I naturally have a very sharp sense of smile so the first thing that had my attention was the smell of fresh blood.
The limping man who had brought in the woman earlier was standing at attention beside a pile of clothes.
Pile of Clothes? No! I looked at it well.
My stomach turned as I stared at the lifeless body of the elderly woman. Her head had even been cut off. Gracious Lord!
My legs gave way and I fell to the ground as tears rolled out of my eyes.
“Bring her here.” I heard a small voice command and it was then I lifted my head and noticed a man standing behind an altar.
He was a short fat man. His head was bald and he had a red towel tied around his loin.
He had a traditional-like bead around his neck and his wrists.
Then I noticed something else: he was using spectacles.
Silly me, I burst into laughter amidst tears.
The men looked confused.
“Kilosele? (What is wrong?)” The old man asked furiously.
“I thought only literates use spectacles.” I spat out.
His eyes looked like fire would come out of his eyes straight at me.
“Bring her here.” He commanded in anger.
The limping man shook his head at me in pity.
I felt hands pull me up from the floor as the man who had brought me in muttered “fool” behind me. He dragged me with him towards the altar.
The older man was now standing at attention beside it.
We got to the front of the altar and the reality of what was about to happen dawned on me.
I started praying in tongues loudly and the Priest looked furious even more.
The man who brought me in was looking at me with pleading eyes to stop and not provoke him any longer. I ignored him.
“Let’s get this thing over with.” The older man said as he dipped his hand inside a calabash on the altar which I hadn’t seen earlier and brought out a hunting knife.
The tongues I was speaking changed at that point. It became more fire-charged. I could feel the presence of God wrapping me up.
“If I use this thing to touch your forehead and it remains in my hand, it means you have been accepted by the gods.” He explained mockingly.
“But if it falls, you leave here.”
I swallowed as he put forth the knife to touch my forehead. I closed my eyes.
What happened the next second is unexplainable.
All I know was that something hit the wall and I heard the man cry out.
I opened my eyes to see the knife had flown a distance away from where we were standing and Baba was on the floor.
I looked shocked. “What happened?” I even bent to help the Baba up.
“Don’t touch me.” He shouted out as he flung my hands away angrily.
The limping man who had since stood guard by the doorway ran near to help him up since his partner was holding me.
“Baba, what happened?” The man asked as he helped him up.
He looked thoughtful for a minute before answering. “It was as if someone plunged the knife away from my hand.”
“Doesn’t that happen when….?” The man holding me said frighteningly but he didn’t complete it.
“You are right.” The Priest replied sharply.
“Young lady,” for a second, I could have sworn the old man was looking at me in concern.
“Think carefully, have you been taken somewhere like this and you didn’t know.”
“Taken Somewhere? Me?” I asked back surprised.
“No me.” He said back irritably.
“See, let me tell you something. With what happened, it means you have been accepted as a sacrifice by a powerful being.”
“Henn.” I looked at him shocked. “Henn, the power just claimed ownership over you.” Baba completed.
“Of course, I am a child of God. I am a Christian.” I said confidently.
“Shut up.” He shouted out. “Don’t I know you are a Christian before?
What I am talking about is different. You have been sacrificed.”
I was Blank. What was he saying?
“What happens to anyone who tries the acceptance procedure twice in this situation is not palatable.
It means you are competing with that power over the person.”
“I lost my friend to that so I know what I am talking about.
He didn’t know the lady had a spirit living in her since childhood, he wanted to connect her to another spirit of which those two spirits are not from the same geographical kingdom so they don’t see eye to eye.
He paid for it with his life.” He explained.
“So?” I asked. “You are leaving this place immediately.”
“Thank you, Jesus,” I whispered.
“You better don’t thank anything yet and go and investigate.
Ask your father and mother if they have given you any power. This thing is a serious something.”
He said emphatically. “Take her away.” He commanded.
Within minutes, I was led out of that stinking place.
They didn’t even touch me because no one wanted to anger the powerful person that owned me.
The Driver and Dayo looked surprised to see me. The young man looked encouraged.
I entered the back seat quietly as they dragged the young man out.
“Wetin happen? (What happened?) ” The Driver asked the man.
“Her case is complicated, you have to return her to the exact place where you took her.”
He replied and without another word turned and left with the young man.
“What happened in there?” The Driver looked at me bewildered.
“Well, the old man said something about me being a sacrifice to somebody.”
“Henn.” The Driver shouted out and looked at him pitifully.
“That’s serious Indeed.” His partner, Dayo shook his head.
“Really?” I asked. “Yes. You better go and do deliverance when you get home.”
Ha! Deliverance. What were these men talking about?
I was grateful I would be going home alive but I was concerned about all that had transpired and all the men were saying.
“Oluwa, (Lord) what sacrifice are they talking about now?” I wondered out loud and one of the men shook his head at my predicament.
“Kunle is coming back.” The Driver elbowed his partner.
I stretched in eagerness to see if he was returning with the young man, but I was disappointed.
“I guess we are good to go.” The Driver said to Dayo and he turned on the ignition.
The man he referred to as Kunle came beside the vehicle and stretched some amount of money to them.
“₦80k since only two worked out.” He said.
The Driver frowned; “Isn’t it supposed to be ₦100k?”
The man stood straight as his countenance changed; “₦20k has been deducted for bringing a wrong person.” With that, he turned and left.
The Driver looked like he wanted to go after Kunle and beat him up as his partner hit the dashboard in anger.
“How Baba go dey do that? They think say getting people easy! Why dem no do am themselves?”
How can Baba do that? Do they think getting people is easy? Why can’t they do the job themselves then?
My head did the Calculations; ₦100,000 meant one person for ₦50,000.
A tear dropped out of my eyes. A life for ₦50,000? Was it poverty that drove these men to this?
“Abeg take your bag.” (Please take your bag.)
Dayo threw it into the backseat as he moved to check the murdered victims for valuable properties.
“Shikuru, let’s get out of here. My wife and children will be waiting for me.” He said to his partner.
So he had a wife and children and had led someone’s wife and son to their death?
I shook my head in irritation as I picked up my bag and checked to make sure all its contents were intact. It was.
The Driver put the Vehicle in motion and we left the place.
I observed he drove through another route entirely but I just wasn’t sure of where we were.
I checked my phone to discover I had missed 36 calls.
My Mom, my Dad, my Flatmate, my Elder Brother, and my Pastor in Church had all called my line.
My Flatmate must have informed them since she couldn’t reach me.
My Pastor had made it a habit to always check up with us all since the onset of the Convocation to know if we had all arrived home. He would be so concerned.
I tried calling my Mom Back when; “Don’t call anyone yet. When we drop you off, you can call.
They can wait for 20 minutes more.” It was Dayo that said that.
I pouted in irritation but I had no choice.
I relaxed against the back seat and some minutes later, I realized the Vehicle had reached a familiar environment.
I sat up and saw that we were in front of DLICC.
“Stop the Car,” I shouted out.
“But this was not where we carried you?” The driver said.
“See, stop the Car. She is old enough to know where she is going.” His partner who was tired of the whole incident said.
“Okay.” The Driver agreed and he drove off the road to the roadside.
Without a word and fearing they could change their mind, as soon as he stopped, I opened the side door and fled the Vehicle.
I ran as my feet could carry me towards the DLICC gate. The gates were closed as of course it was past midnight already.
I started banging. Not too long, I started hearing voices.
“Who is that?” Someone asked.
“Go and call the Officers on duty.” Another voice instructed.
“Help! I was kidnapped. Help!” I started shouting and didn’t stop banging the gate.
“Wait, Pastor Kayode mentioned they are looking for a girl.
People are even gathered to pray inside one of the halls.”
My heart swelled. I trusted my Church Family.
“What is your name?” “Grace Olaoluwa,” I shouted back.
“That’s the girl’s name oo.” “What is going on?” A new voice asked.
“Officer, it looks like the girl they are looking for is the one outside.”
“Okay. Open the gate.” He instructed.
I heard “battles” of padlocks and keys for seconds and the gate was eventually opened.
I was already shivering from the cold air so one of the security men helped me inside the premises.
“Take her into the security house.” The Officer instructed. “And someone should call that Pastor.”
I was assisted into a room in the security control post and even though they had not confirmed my identity one of them used his Cardigan to wrap me.
I couldn’t have been more grateful.
They waited for Pastor Kayode to arrive. Not too long, I heard my Pastor’s familiar voice as I struggled to stay awake.
“Grace! Thank you, Jesus.” He shouted out.
“Officer, thank you, she is the one.” He confirmed.
“Thank God oo. Please get her to tell you what happened. We need to report the whole situation so we can apprehend these people.”
“Please let that be tomorrow, the girl has gone through a lot already.”
I heard the voice of Pastor Kayode’s wife. I didn’t know she was present.
“Mummy. …” I called. “They killed two people.” And I started weeping profusely.
Silence filled the room. She drew near and hugged me tight without saying a word.
I was like that for a minute as I kept crying.
“Let’s get you to our Quarters.” She whispered as she helped me up.
I stopped for a minute to remove the cloth I was lent earlier and I returned it gratefully.
The owner nodded and Mummy led me to their Vehicle.
Daddy got in the Driver’s seat and Mummy stayed with me in the back seat.
The Vehicle soon arrived at “Goodness Quarters” and I saw people had gathered in front of the building and had heard I was back.
Mummy assisted me out of the Car while Daddy carried my bag and I was led into the house.
“I have called your parents to that you are back. I have reassured them that you will be taken care of.
I’m sure they will be here as soon as day breaks.” Daddy Kayode explained to me.
“Thank you, Sir.” I nodded and Mummy led me to a room.
I had a warm bath and drank warm tea as I told Mummy that I didn’t want any meal.
Mummy prayed with me and the last thing I remembered was she was singing from the Hymn Book on her phone to me and was also patting me.
I woke up around 3:00 am. Mummy must have left the room as soon as I fell asleep.
I sat up as I began to think back to the events of the night.
I thanked God for sparing my life and I wept at the thought of the two people who were killed.
Suddenly my mind zeroed in on statements about me being a sacrifice to a powerful being and all.
“God, I’m grateful but please let me understand what happened. And what does that Priest mean?”
I didn’t get any response but I felt the presence of God become stronger in the room.
I then decided to play Dunsin Oyekan’s Ministration for the fourth day of IMPACT since I had downloaded it.
I plugged in my earpiece and I sat down to listen.
I listened to how Dunsin appreciated Daddy and Mummy Kumuyi and how he started addressing the Congregation, and he sang; “I bring more than a song today, I brought myself.”
I felt the Holy Spirit calling me and saying; “Come, let us reason together. Let Me show you something you don’t understand.”
As soon as I heard Dunsin Oyekan’s voice say “Accept this Living Sacrifice …..”
The Heavens opened and I began to hear;
“You sang that you gave yourself. You told me to accept you as a sacrifice. You told me to receive you as a sacrifice. I did.
I accepted you.
You said you wanted to be left at the Altar with Me, therefore you cannot be attached to any evil altar.
I laid claim on you that very moment. You are Mine. I have accepted you.
No other power has claimed you. You are Mine and Mine alone.
I wrap you up with My presence. I go before You like a fire.
You carry My mark. You are Mine and Mine alone.
If anybody dares try to take you from Me, they will know who I am.
Grace, nobody can pluck My children from My hand. I am Yahweh. You are Mine.”
At this moment, I was already weeping, singing, and praying in tongues.
The presence of God filled the room.
I could hear myself saying by the gift of interpretation of tongues; “I am Yours. Nobody can touch me.”
I was like that for hours before I eventually slept off.
Pastor Kayode’s wife came to wake me up the next morning and I got up to freshen up.
Not too long, my parents arrived and their joy knew no bounds when they saw me.
They soon took their bundle of joy home with them.
At the next Global Crusade which will hold in Oyo State, I have decided I will share my testimony before the people of God, especially so everyone who was at Impact will understand that God meant business with us during the program.
We should all live our lives like we mean business.
We should never of our own accord, approach an evil Altar. We should stay at the Altar with our Father.
The Father has accepted us, we are His. Nobody, no power can touch us. We are secured in His hands.
And I will tell the people to join me as I am also telling you to join me to sing;
“Receive this Living Sacrifice, I am Your Worship.
Accept this Living Sacrifice, I am Your Worship.”
Prayer Point:-
Oh Lord God, never allow Your presence depart from me for once henceforth by fire, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Happy Lord’s Day! www.timogundelejesu.com
