CLOUD OR CROWD 2

"So, Sandra, with these few instances, I hope you can see for yourself that she's not wrong. I know it will be hard for you to come to terms with this truth. I was there too, but thank God for enlightenment," Pst Joe concluded.

My peace didn't return, but at this time, it was inconsequential. People who have seen God more than I have cannot be wrong. Something didn't sit well with me, so I concluded that, although I wouldn't engage in those activities, I still wouldn't judge them.

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It's been four years, and almost everyone I've interacted with seems to have apprehended this "truth." I didn't know why it wasn't sitting well, but who cares about Sandra?

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"Derah, we can't criticize these people simply because we don't understand their revelation about God. We know in part," I retorted.

"2 Tim. 2:19 - The foundation of the Lord stands sure, bearing this seal: the Lord knows those who are His, and _let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity_. Every generation is peculiar, yet God's Word has never changed. You know the sad thing about this?" He asked.

"No, tell me," I answered.

"God will not lower, bend, or compromise His standards, even if all of us in the world believed wrongly..." He said.

Those words left me troubled, and I sought in vain to pacify the voices raging in my mind. Three days later, I called him.

"Bro Derah, I'm very troubled. I can't fight the wars raging through your voice and the voice of my mentors," I cried out.

"There are many voices, but you should seek the voice of the Lord. The weapons of your warfare are designed to pull down every voice that exalts itself above the knowledge of Christ. Sandy, God doesn't delight in keeping you in the dark about His will. Ask Him," he ended.

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Bro Derah was our new church keyboardist. He seemed to keep a lot to himself, and I felt that it wasn't a good feature of the brotherhood. He wasn't someone I could learn from - at least, he didn't look like it initially.

Before you think I was catching feelings, I was already getting a lot of "green lights" from the "main brothers" in church, so there was no space in my heart for this brother. I was simply reaching out to him with pure sisterly love.

However, after a few months, I discovered that we seemed to have been born from the same womb in the spirit. He answered almost every question in my heart. He was also very passionate about God. But why wasn't he opening up? Why wasn't he allowing people to drink from his stream? No! I think the most important question was - why exactly was he in this kind of church?

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"So, why are we just watching a seemingly endless relay race? This greenhouse racer... what happened? Kai! With the way the first three racers ran, I was sure the trophy was coming to them..." I said.

He wouldn't answer.

"I don't like tragic movies. It's not fair. Why did they choose such a person to join their team? He has ruined their efforts...", I kept talking. I was getting uneasy with both the turnout of the relay race and the fact that he wasn't answering me. Since I couldn't shout at him, I simply put my face down.

"HEB. 11:40 - For God had something better in mind for us, so that _they without us cannot be made perfect_," He spoke for the first time.

I turned to look at him. Why bring a scripture from the middle of nowhere? How does this concern this bad turnout?

Then he said, "How do you think the first three sets of runners will feel seeing that this last racer is not running well? Moreover, don't you think it will be more painful seeing that he's not aware that these other racers are depending on him to be crowned winners?"

I was still trying to understand where all these were emanating from. We went to a cinema; shouldn't we watch a beautiful movie? Why are we watching sports and one with a bad ending at that?

He smiled; for the first time, I'd see his face through the dark. He looked gorgeous with a set of sparkling white teeth. Before I could appreciate his other features, I heard a stern voice:

"What folly for a generation to think they're independent of another? What utter deception to think that an eternal God inspired a time-limited book? Generations have passed, and batons have been handed down generationally. The fathers have run every bit of this race and are simply waiting for you to complete your race. Why, then, have you been found with so many excuses?"

Then I knew it was the Lord. How could I have been with the Lord without knowing? I couldn't tell His smell. I couldn't discern His voice. How? But He interrupted my thoughts:

"For the one who said it is hard to live without immorality, Joseph is standing as the first racer. For the one who said the world is now so perverse to be righteous, Noah handed down his baton faithfully. I can count on and on and on."

"Will your excuses hold water when you stand before Joseph, Abraham, and the patriarchs on that day?"

"They without you cannot be made perfect, BUT you having them have become inexcusable. A clan is waiting to reclaim victory for the Lord, and the baton is in your hands. Will you frustrate the efforts from the eternal past? Will you run like a man without hope?"

Just then, a scripture came alive in my spirit:

"So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others, I might be disqualified." 1 Corinthians 9:26-27 (NLT)

But a thought came again, "but everyone is doing it."

Then He said, "Sandra, whose accolade do you desire? The CLOUD or the CROWD? Your response to this will change everything you do from now."

Then it clicked.

"HEB. 12:1 - Seeing then that I'm encompassed by so great a CLOUD of witnesses, I'll take the responsibility of putting away weights and sins that so easily beset me."

"Lord, have mercy on me. I want to be ready when You come. I want to hear you say Welldone" I cried.

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It was 9am already. I missed my Anatomy lecture, but I'm grateful that I didn't miss the Eternal lecture. I turned in the direction of my phone, which was buzzing; it was Bro Derah calling.

"Hello..." my voice fizzled from my room.

The End.