GHOSTS!!!

When they talk about ghosts, many of us think they’re some white creatures moving behind our house in the darkest hour of the night. We never knew that ghosts usually walk during the day too. We also have never known that at times we might have had experiences with ghosts without knowing.

My father once told me a true life story of one of his friends who was a very jovial person. Being who he was, when this man died in an accident, his spirit went home to tell his wife: “Sarah!” He shouted jokingly at his wife who was cooking in the kitchen. “So this is where you are, cooking, when I am already dead!”

“You have come with these your silly jokes again,” The wife responded nonchalantly. “Please leave me jare and let me prepare meal for the children.”

When he saw that his wife didn’t pay any serious attention to him, he said, “Okay o. I have told you sha.” And he left the house through the back door. About five minutes later. Friends of the dead man entered through the entrance door to tell the woman her husband was dead!

If you don’t believe that story, how about this one? When my elder brother died in year 2005, a lady called his phone number from Anambra (where he did his NYSC) and asked to speak with him after about a month. When we told her the person she requested to speak with was dead, she screamed and shouted “It’s not true!”

My understanding from what she said before hanging up was that she spoke with him a few days ago; and that was impossible; even days before he died, he was so weak he could not make phone calls!

I can’t begin to tell you of so many other situations I have heard and seen, but either you believe that ghosts exist or not, there are instances in your life that you might have portrayed the image of those who did not believe in such things that are real but sound so controversial. We all tend to believe that some things can just not happen, and when they do, we say it is demon or somebody telling a lie. Like when Thomas doubted Jesus whom he had confirmed dead could come alive again…

"But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, we have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." (John 20:24-29).

In many situations, many of us have put a tag on situations or people, hence when we hear information that is contrary to our sentiments, we blow up our doubts. Pardon the “scary” stories that I used to start this write up, my first point to you is that there are mysteries to be unraveled in this world; hence when we see strange things we should not just blur them off as though they can never happen. They happen!

My second point is similar: just as some of us believe some situations can never happen (Like I used to doubt similar stories to the ones I mentioned above too until I had close experiences) we say we believe, but indirectly we see some people as though they can never change.

(Maybe I should pause here a bit and tell you this: I posted a poem titled “Bad Guy” on facebook recently and a friend said I can never change to that… Hey! Anybody can change; all we need is praying that when we do, we should change for the better and not the worse person.)

Have you ever heard of the cliché “Benefit of a doubt”? Yes, that person may have weaknesses or failures in the past but they could be likened to the ghosts of the past that are now gone and new creatures existing in their place. So when you hear or see him/her doing better things/rising from fallen states don’t doubt the power that is at work.

As in the case of ghosts, these mysterious changes in people are ways God prove Himself sovereign to us all. He still causes some things to happen the way they do just to strike one or two points (Mathew 27:52-53), so stop putting everything on demons, thereby glorifying demons instead of God.

In conclusion, let me tell you the story of Dipo (real name withheld); a young boy whom we lived in the same neighbourhood when I was younger. I wasn’t into much of secular drama then, but this boy was into it. The directors in the first group he joined saw him as too odd for the drama world (that he could not excel). So they rarely cast him. It got to a point that this boy got frustrated and left for another group. Guess what? He became the number one actor of that group. Sadly enough, his former directors still doubted it was him when they heard how he was doing well until they saw him in a concert themselves. Then they began to call him to come back to their group. I don’t know much about his whereabouts now, but I take his story as a life lesson (and I suggest you do too): If you are not blessed enough to believe I will do better than this, you will be shocked to see me in my better state; and by then, it might be too late for you.