NO BIBLE NO BREAKFAST DAILY BIBLE REFLECTIONS AND MORE

Being rendered redundant there was no reason to wake up early; as usual, I checked my messages before going to take my bath. It was rather unusual to receive more than two hundred WhatsApp messages and twenty missed calls early in the morning. I sensed something was not right.  It was obvious my wife and child had gone to work and school respectively. I decided to check the missed calls first and I found out that they were calls from my Bible schoolmates. I suspected that they might have heard about my scandalous news and wanted to find out what was happening. I went on to scan through the myriads of messages and most of them were from my church members. Some were making derogatory remarks about me whiles others sympathized with me in those trying times. Most of the messages expressed shock at my promiscuous act. I had no idea something more devastating than the messages was happening since I had not stepped out.  

I gathered the courage to call the last caller who attempted to reach me five times. He was my roommate from the Bible School. With a worried tone, he said “Sammy what is going on between you and one Mr Boahene, your church member. What I am reading about you is image-damaging and scandalous.” I got confused and asked,

“My brother, has Mr Boahene called you?”  He replied sarcastically “Call me? where do I know him from?, it appears you are ignorant of what is going on around you. Please step outside and grab today’s edition of the ‘24/7’ newspaper.                                                                                   

Immediately, I grabbed my car key and dashed out of the house to get the newspaper. When I got to the newspaper stand, the newspaper vendor and other five people who were standing to view the headlines on the front pages of the newspapers displayed were vociferously discussing the issue concerning my adulterous conduct as a pastor. I could not get down from the vehicle so I blew my horn and ordered the vender to get me a copy of the News 24/7. He was unable to make me out though my picture was on the front page of the newspaper. I drove about 1 kilometre away from them and had another shock of my life. 

My picture was at the top left corner of the front page captioned “Pastor, Impregnates Church member’s wife!” The full story was on page 3 of the newspaper. It read “A pastor of the ‘The Redeemer Cares International Gospel Church (RCIGC)’, popularly known as Pastor Sammy has impregnated Mr Boahene, his church member’s wife under the guise of a performing a miracle, a gross misconduct the pastor confessed to before his dismissal from the church.”  

The entire article portrayed me as a hypocrite and one who took undue advantage of the ladies in the church. My mind went to the fact that the whole nation will hear about this and I will become the subject matter of people’s discussion. It quickly came to mind that I check what was going on at the radio stations. My sorrow was further deepened at the rate radio stations were talking about me. People whom I had never met before called the radio stations to vilify me. I was tending on social media for the wrong reason. I felt the whole world was against me.  

I decided at once to drive straight home to avoid being recognised by people. My mind went dark and I was completely lost. I was driving past I junction and failed to see a bus entering the lane I was driving on. I crushed into the side of the bus. When I became conscious I was under intensive care at the 37 Military hospital with my mother standing beside my bed. My legs were fatally fractured with bruises and cut all over my body. The pain was unbearable; I began to shout for solace. My mum, could not hold back her tears. She kept crying whiles trying to calm me down. The pain was so unbearable that I began to scream like a baby.

 “Mama, I want to die, I prefer to die than to live and suffer like this” A nurse came to inject me with a pain killer and after about twenty minutes I felt a little relieved. The Doctor walked in and told me that I was due for an emergency surgery. Within a short time, I was hauled to the theatre. Later, became conscious but could not come to terms with the reality that I was no longer the same. 

The next morning after my surgery, I ignorantly tried to move my legs but I felt my left limp had become very light. Coincidentally, the doctor came in to check on me, it was there that he broke the most terrifying news to me.  

“Mr. Sammy, we are sorry we did all the best we could but only succeeded in putting a metal bar in your right leg and completely amputated your left leg. The severity of the impact on your lower body was fatal. This was the best we could do, with time you shall need a walking aid and our physiotherapy department will help you with that.” 

 I cried and cried uncontrollably about the thought of not being able to walk actively again, my mum kept consoling me. Later in the day my dad and siblings also came to comfort me. For about a week my wife did not show up at the hospital to check on me, I kept wondering what could possibly prevent my wife from coming to visit me at the hospital. I enquired from my mother if she had informed my wife and her family that I was at the hospital. She assured me that they will come soon to visit. I could sense mum was cooling me down in order to prevent me from any form of anxiety which could interrupt my healing process. 

After a week at the hospital, Pastor Derick gave me a surprise visit and in his hands was a hamper of gifts. He was led to my bed by the nurse on duty; he could not hide his sorrowful facial expression. Immediately, he held my hand I began crying. He consoled me and reassured me that he had forgiven me all that I have done to him and his deceased wife. He advised me to remain focused in life and not be carried away by the material things of this life. 

“Sammy all those who had encouraged and conspired with you to destroy and frustrate my ministry were in my house last three days to plead for mercy and forgiveness. In this life when you avail yourself to God he will use you as an instrument of transformation but if the devil gets a grip of you he will manipulate you and leave you disgraced and crushed. You need to be strong, I believe the Lord will make a way in your life again”

He gave me an envelope of thousand Ghana cedis to help me defray my medical bills.  

 At this point, I was convinced beyond reasonable doubt that this was indeed a true man of God. I had missed a great opportunity to grow with him in ministry. My mum was overwhelmed by the kind gesture of Pastor Derick. She could not hide her gratitude, she knelt down, held the hands of Pastor Derick and kept saying repeatedly “God bless you my Bishop, God bless you!” Her eyes could not hold back the tears of joy that run down her cheeks.  

The next day, a few of the church members regardless of what they heard about me came to visit me with cash donations. They prayed with me and wished me a speedy recovery. I asked my mum the whereabouts of my car and she told me that “Your car is beyond repairs my son; we were all surprised you made it alive out of that dismantled car. Our God is a miracle-working God”  

Though I felt lucky, the thought of losing my car completely brought me untold pain and frustration but there was nothing I could do about it. I felt I was the most pitiable and miserable person in the world. 

I called my wife on phone to hear from them, perhaps something was wrong and hindering them from visiting. It was more than a week at the Hospital and I had not heard from my wife and my son. I was glad the call went through and after calling about five times my wife picked up the call and in a hash tone said, 

“ Yes, Sammy, What do you want?!”  

I was hurt but gently replied, 

“Juan, please I had a fatal accident and have been in the hospital for over a week now and have not heard from you and our son”

Her reply made me dumbfounded, “Sammy, I am aware that you are at the hospital, I have been busy and besides your mum is with you. When I get the time I will come and visit” then She hung up on me.  

As I laid on the hospital bed, I reflected on my life and asked myself 

“Sammy were you really called by God to become a minister of the Gospel?”  I had caused great pastoral mischief to the people I was supposed to care for and love.

The question kept on lingering in my mind, a question I kept on ignoring for some time on the hospital bed. I began to replay my life from when I decided to become a pastor. I realised that I was drawn to the blessings of the call than the responsibilities of the call. Being unemployed, I was ambitiously yearning for power, fame, beautiful ladies and all the material things that came with it.  My spiritual foundation was weak. My priorities and motivation to become a servant of God were borne out of materialism. I found the church to be the means to my insatiable physical needs.  

I stood against the very people who loved me sincerely and gave me the opportunity to study and serve as a pastor. Pastor Derick and his wife were a blessing God brought into my life, instead of showing gratitude, I betrayed their love for me. I became the weapon of their enemies against them. I was never content with where God had brought me in life. I had a beautiful and hardworking wife and a church that cherished and valued my ministry. Why did I do this to myself? Why have I brought disgrace to myself and my family? God, please have mercy on me and take your anger away from me. I have failed you and have come to realise that your call cannot be taken for granted.  

The revelation which came to me clearly after my reflection was that I had been a pastor for all these years without first and foremost giving my life to Jesus Christ. I worked as a pastor without conviction, hence my fall in the face of temptation. How I wished I had another chance to serve the Lord again but there I was lying down with my amputated leg and having lost my dignity and integrity. Pastor Derick, on my day of ordination, said to me,  

“Sammy, responding to the call of God is a life and death affair, if you serve God genuinely with your whole life he will bless you, even in challenging moments of your ministry but if you don’t serve Him well, you may regret responding to His call. May God strengthen you, my brother”  

Upon remembering these words, I wept bitterly. The nurse on duty not knowing what was going through my mind and how traumatised I was emotionally, came to administer to me, a painkiller to ease my pains.

In my third week at the hospital, the doctor saw a great improvement and had decided to discharge me. He told me that initially, I would have to do with clutches till the wounds on my amputated leg are completely healed then I could start using an artificial leg which will ease my mobility.  I was indeed happy that I was going home to my wife and child. It was time to start a new phase of my life. Though I had lost my job as a pastor, I was determined to use my first-degree certificate to look for a new job or perhaps with the financial help of my wife become an entrepreneur, whereby I can travel to Dubai to import telecommunication gadgets to sell in Ghana. I had decided as part of my new life resolutions to change my phone number and maintain a low profile life when I return home. My family would become my priority. I would work hard to take care of my other children whom I had out of wedlock, they are mine, and I could not neglect them in any way. My mum was also excited that finally, we would be going home. She joyously said to me, 

“My son, I told you God works in miraculous ways. I told you, you will not die because God is in control. Tomorrow by this time we shall be in the house. I smiled at her and replied “Thank you mama, God bless you for all that you have done for me”  

 The next day, before my departure from the hospital, my wife and child came to visit me at the hospital. Upon seeing them my heart bounced with great joy. Her face looked rather indifferent whiles my son looked curiously at me. I could tell he was wondering what happened to me. All the same, I happily said to her “Sweetheart, I am coming home today” she replied in a cheeky voice,  

“Which home?, for your information Sammy, the house was a gift from my parents to me and as such, all the documents are legally in my name, I have sold the house to a Bank, it will become the official residence of the bank manager”

In the state of shock I retorted, “You did what?!, where do you want us to live and why didn’t you inform me before taking such a delicate decision?”

Her reply rendered me completely speechless, perplexed and petrified, 

“Sammy, I can no longer live with the disgrace you have brought upon me, you have made me a laughing stock amongst my friends, subordinates and adversaries. I have filed for divorce and my lawyer will take the matter and complete the case while my child and I relocate to the United State of America. We are on our way to the Airport. This is a sum of two thousand Ghana cedis for your medical expenses. Goodbye Sammy, I wish you all the best in life” 

 I held her wrist firmly, and begged her passionately to forgive me and stay with me but she refused and broke loose. She carried our boy and they left for the airport and that was the last time I ever saw my family.  

After I was discharged from the hospital, I had no other option than to return to my father’s house, my old neighbourhood where I had begun life from. It was an unbearable situation but I had to cope with it. I managed to use the money Juanita gave me to rent a shop to start retailing water and non-alcoholic drinks in my neighbourhood. Since then I have been attending the Presbyterian Church in which I was baptised. I have received soo much support from the church and my family. 

Pastoral ministry and service to God is a precious and serious calling no one should take for granted, I hope my story will encourage you to take the call of God serious even as you serve Him in which ever ministry you find yourself in the Church. Serve God with all your heart, strength and mind.

THE END.