...The SaintsAwards Project...

While the prayer was going on, a group of armed bandits stormed into the church compound and demanded for the offering. We hesitated because there was no offering yet. This was a night vigil, we came to pray, to seek God's counsel and mercy over the unimaginable frustration and experiences we Nigerians are passing through. There has been a power cut for couple of nights now, so there was little efforts on clear visibility at night. This was a handful of widows, frustrated young men still clinging on forlorn hope, and others.
I didn抰 see some ladies but scarcely few?br> This is Friday night, despite the self-made darkness and excruciating poverty we live in some parties still strike a comfort, this is where my sisters have found some solace, some are actually young but many are above 30, mockingly employed and no man is showing any reliable interest, so my dear sisters had to seek a recourse. The temptation is just rife my dear, but for a night of some minutes of marriage that抣l not only fetch money and some comfort off the heat and frustration in Africa my sisters had to yield to at least this one bold temptation.
This is why not so many of them are here in tonight prayer, Sunday worship is better preferred, at least there will be some dancing and a free lunch from one randy brother.

One member of the armed bandit corked his gun and threatened to shoot us all since we claim to have no money, the Prayer leader a young man with a zeal to pray off this evil that has plagued the entire country stood up and interfered into the sudden business that has taken over our night of prayer, and got shot in the head, a woman screamed THE BLOOD JESUS, and the gun wielding bandit ordered everyone to keep calm, the poor widow shouted again THE BLOOD OF JESUS and got shot in the head, who would dare keep quiet in a burning hell, you just must scream my brother, who would like to keep living in this branch of physical hell, it must be a borrowed life you抮e living in. this poor old lady got children, she is not a widow by the demise of the husband but Mr. Husband had been rendered irresponsible by the careless and fraudulent society we live in and had walked out of home in shame because he could scarcely fend for himself not to mention the family and there was little anybody has done to assist him in anyway even his church, so he packed his stuffs and left the country to no where and the lady, who is gone by the bullet now is a petty trader with children to cater for, you see, only God can intervene in her situation and this is why she braced the darkness and dangers lurking everywhere and decided to go a pray watch in the night.

The pastor on hearing the sound of gun shots was forced to join the already subdued crowd, and the armed bandits asked the same question; where is the offering?' give us the money quickly, and my dear clergy, in a hushed voice tried to calm them down, there is no money in this church at the moment we don't... He didn't finish the last sentence and got shot; he lay there dead in his own blood.

The armed bandits zoomed off with some loot and we cried, not because of the unanswered prayer and all the screaming we had done through the night before those brothers of darkness came visiting, but our sister, our brother, only the pastor should have been taken so he could take this horrible Nigerian cases to God, while we pray on but they're all gone!

But why the good lord would chose not to answer in such a time of emergency; we certainly have called in the time of trouble like he'd promised to intervene. This is a sure mystery to one whom all authority is subject to, this reminds me of the story of the Potter and the clay and I am going to leave it at that.

The Idea of Prayer;
Prayer is warfare, a religious warfare between good and evil, a spiritual exercise, a petition and solicitation for what is naturally above human capability. As a warfare, you could hardly fight a successful battle without proper planning, you could hardly win any battle if you're not honest to your state of mind and weaponry. As a spiritual exercise, there are rules you must follow to achieve positive result, and as a petition, you must be honest to your request, there is certainly little you could cheat on when you table your petition and if you are going to ask for a help from a divine and supreme authority it automatically means you are helpless and needs one. But what happens when the help craved for fails to come when needed from an Almighty God who is merciful and loving; and if it's all about a warfare, who are we fighting against, who is this faceless enemy; certainly it's not all about a Satan the devil because at the mention of the name JESUS CHRIST alone after every prayer you have victory.

In the Bible, it does state that every other authority, powers and dominion is subject to the authority of Jesus Christ; (Eph. 1:20-22) and this, a 90% majority hold some firm belief on.
Africa has been a praying machine of a continent with Nigeria in the lead, some 21st century Moses have been imported for more prayers. through the political offices run down to even private individuals a breed of self acclaimed clergies has emerged as Spiritual Mothers, Priests Mummy and Daddy' with some threatening titles while a sorry spiritual crisis rages and some moral questioning known only to savages and people of depraved minds.

There is an Africa prayer watch, Nigeria been praying and fasting, there have been a throng of desirous praying crowd at a Reinhard Bonke Gospel Crusade across Africa, I was at a Mountain and Fire Praying Camp with a teeming crowd of praying people dusting their way through the bushes at late night, a scene similar to Rev. Jim Jones' Guyana People's Temple Camp in Jonestown. Once I was stuck in traffic hold up for hours resulting from an overflowing crowd of praying people and a bumper to bumper car park along the roads to a Redeemed Camp somewhere in Lagos, the throng of people pouring in and out of those praying places have become lawless defying all rules and order, anyway, it is inter-denominational - meaning anyone could go there and pray regardless of a church identity, then we were going to observe a one month praying and fasting session for the new year back in my local place of worship, prior to that, one brother claimed to have done a 100 days praying and fasting.

The hard looks on Mr. Harrison's face could tell what ordeals he must have gone through as he struggles to teach the mixed crowd of worshippers why men ought to pray, the Intercessory Department of my local church is on a Seven days Dry Fasting, The pitying gaunt appearance of the praying leader is explanatory, Mr. James felt loved by his religious authorities that urges him to pray on until one day while the 30 days 6 to 6 PM prayer session was at its peak he staggered into his Deacon having a quite time over a bottle of beer in a nearby bar, He stuttered,"I came for a sachet of pure water sir, that was his unsolicited introduction, since he was uninvited in the first place, he took his sachet of pure water and quietly walked away'

There was Mr. Ebenezer, he could pray through a glass wall and on 40 days like Moses and Jesus did, there was Tony fondly called Pastor 'T'and Sister Buki who has almost become a Prophetess, they could all fast 7 days a stretch climbing some sacred mountains, there was a place called 'The Chosen' 'The Embassy' 'The Synagogue' All praying outlets and miracle inventing camps littered across the country to an extent you can hire someone to speak to God on your behalf like Moses did during the great exodus while excessive failures and lack hunts us Africans around like a wild game.

The need to pray;
The birth and death of Jesus Christ gives every believer of God the right to speak to God directly without a Moses or an Elijah. There certainly must have been a myriad of problems human being are incapable of managing when Jesus Christ said 'come to me with all your load of care' Math. 11:28

There certainly was a myriad of problems emanating from the great exodus that Moses had to do an 80 nights of Praying and Fasting to get a proper direction and the best way forward to move that mixed crowd of Israelites forward. We have done more than 80 days in all religiosity yet we sink abysmally deep in morality, crime, wickedness and failure.

The prayer that fails;
After the entire humiliating sacrificial rigors of going to pray in an all night dusty prayer camp that could end you up in a hospital for lung cleansing somewhere up there in Lagos for no crime other than 'satan Did It All' - All the misery, All the joblessness caused by some fraudulent individuals in the government among us Africans, Electric Power failures that has forced many struggling industries to shut down in Nigeria despite their Oil wealth, All the greed and selfishness that will influence one man to steal government monies meant to build schools, good roads and decent hospitals and donate it to the church for a praying crusade, All that lawlessness and abuse of privilege, All that wickedness and depravity of mind that will make you see your brothers, your own people in pains and hardship yet you go ahead and extort monies from them to buy a Jeep Car and you pray over them because in your little imagination God is blind and your people stupid, All that selfishness and you feel comfortable to whine -'Satan Did It All'/p>

It was morning, cold dusty morning at that dusty camp and the majority of exhausted poor folks who had come to pray and faint, praying all through the night had to go home to expect answers but I was shocked that none of the vehicle owners was willing to help any of their own people get out from that jungle to the nearby Bus Stop so they could manage their way home, at least we have prayed together the whole night, one particular driver of a mini-van was so fierce and outspoken, warning, "nobody should touch my car", his own people were only begging him to help them out to the Bus-Stop still at the prayer camp, he drove off empty dusting us all behind with only him, the wife and two kids all seated in the front of the van.

Some of the folks who came here to pray had been owed salaries for months, working without pay and that prayer leader has asked them to call down fire upon the witches that makes their life hard, he may pray but God will choose to answer or keep calm' there is certainly little you could cheat on when you table your petition before the Almighty God.

The General Manager of a Newspaper house owned by one of Nigeria's sitting governor owed his staff over 6 months salary and was religious enough to donate a large sum, to one of those praying crusade while he selfishly refuses to pay the meager salaries due his staff for reasons best known to him, I saw the men and two ladies crying for crass injustice and wickedness meted to them by their own folk, begging him to kindly consider that they have worked in all honesty for the company and pay them their due rewards, without one stint of remorse the man in his middle 40's simply drove off to the camp to pray...this is no fiction!

Mr.James, the gaunt prayer leader in his late thirties had a project, he discussed his project and it was worth investing on and could employ other young people gainfully if given the encouragement he deserves, Mr.James was so poor but intelligent that he had to consult his religious authority who were all well able to assist but they turned him down, the Project died in his hand, he left the church frustrated, a poor wretch in his 40's now, if he has guts, he will pick a gun and rob the church whom could burn half a million cash just for a Church Picnic at the Lekki Beach somewhere in Lagos like the bandits that visited us at the night prayer meeting.

Every religion I have had the privilege to study shares one thing in common and that is Love, Forgiveness and Service. And on these three principles I was able to build a belief of an Almighty God on and found out he does answer prayer in all honesty of purpose.

And the God of mercy and grace said; For I desire steadfast love and NOT sacrifice the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings?(Hosea 6:6) and in the other side of the Bible this three principles characterizes the attitude of the Jesus Christ we do pray in his name as a sign of belief.

The bandits had the gut to shoot the pastor and other poor folks in the church out of frustration, young people got no job and when he gets one, he worked on airy promises that rarely get fulfilled. You feel failed by virtually everything in the society including yourself. When the church took over the place of factories and industries where these young people were supposed to be working in as is rife in Nigeria today turning them into prayer camps, and they don't care replace them with any skill acquisition center or a place of employment to assist the failing economy and when they do that it's a crass mockery of the poor Jesus Christ had asked us to take care of on his behalf. A Church School is charging a whooping N250, 000 (About $2000 USD) tuition fee per session for a higher education and they're comfortable with that in a society that really needs help from her own people and not all that external forces that take us Africans for granted.

Conclusion;
My brother, God balances humanity through the training of the mind, care of the body and Soul and not Spirit alone: for only God is Spirit, therefore there is a limit humanity can get and the crude animal in him will resurface because his body not only feel pain but is perishable and this has been our situation in Africa.

Our wickedness and selfishness to our own people is driving us all to the extreme of animals and though we keep praying and shouting, God chooses to answer or watch how we make a mockery of our pitiable self.
Jesus Christ! How could one man be so stupidly rich and his own people are hell stucked in cringing poverty and you feel no remorse about that other than pray over them and ask them to expect a miralce.
My brothers, all that prayer will fail because we don't trust the God we pray to in the first place, we prefer to sacrifice a cow while our own people could hardly afford a chicken, even in the days of animal sacrificing, there was provisions for those who couldn't afford a bull (Lev. 5, 7-13) God will not honour that sacrifice! This is why we are enmeshed in this entire grab and run game without anything to show for all that miracle crusade and praying other than depravity, corruption, crime and wretchedness.

Service to humanity is service to God (Matth.25, 31-46) and that means helping to address simple and basic social concerns in all honesty using biblical guidance that will give our own people the sense of belonging and humanity and not this all time threatening of a hell of fire we are already practicing its lifestyles only to take advantage of ignorant common people in the name of a Prayer watch.
Thank you and God Bless.

Long Live Africa
saintjerry75@gmail.com