Hoodoo

His wife and her mother became 
the problem
His mother-in-law was into the 
intricate details of their marriage
His mother-in-law's voice was 
practically the voice he hears 
sometimes when discussing with 
his wife
He didn't marry early
He took his time sampling 
He wanted to get it perfectly right
As things always panned out
He got it horribly wrong
He decided to get married the day
his uncle's wife told him that unless
he got married, she will never allow
any of her daughters to visit him
at home!
He had grown up with his uncle
and he considered all his uncle's
children as His siblings
The jibe from his Uncle's wife got him
thinking
He was thirty-eight and had been an
eligible bachelor for over ten years
He decided to tie the knot
Soon after that, he met his wife
She was a recruit at a travel agent 
that handled his travel documents and
came to his office to deliver some 
documents
That was how they met
He liked her instantly
She had a spirit that resonated with
his own
She was friendly and jovial and very 
warm
He was drawn to her instantly
After a few weeks of exchanging calls
He asked her out
They started dating and things were
perfect
The first time he traveled with her,
she just asked if he would be free
to travel with her on such and such
a date
They travelled to Ilesha
She took him to a church, she said she
was "owing" a vow
She collected some money from him
to pay it
Then she convinced him to have a
cleansing bath of a sort in a river
He didn't see it in the right perspective
He had the bath
But on the way home, he hated 
himself
His conscience was heavy and his
heart weary
When he told her how he was felt 
about the whole thing
She told apologized
She told him she used to attend the
church before she met the lord and 
wanted to clear the debt of conscience
she owed pertaining to a vow she
made years before
He took her word for it
As soon as they were six months in
the relationship
She told him her mother wanted to 
meet him
He understood what the meeting 
would be about
His babe was thirty-five and mothers 
usually want to tie their daughters 
down to a man at that age
He met his wife's mother
He was very well received
Then his wife's mother told him about 
her church
She said the previous year, his babe 
suffered a disappointment in a 
relationship and was taken to meet 
the Prophet
The prophet did some spiritual work 
for his babe
The prophet promised them his babe
would get a husband within six months
The prophet also instructed them that
once his babe gets a man, she must
bring the man to the church for prayers
This must be done within the first six
months of the relationship
He didn't know what to think
Was he supposed to be nice and subject
himself to some spiritual jargon in the
name of getting married?
If his babe has a spiritual problem,
why should he willingly be a part of
that?
He could walk away
He didn't have to get entangled in 
anything
What he wanted was "love", if she was
offering more than that, he has the
option to walk away
He kept quiet as his babe's mother
spoke on and on
When his babe's mother was done,
she said she had made the arrangement
for him and his babe to meet the 
prophet the following day
He said okay
Later in the evening, his babe saw
him off to his hotel
He didn't say anything
The next morning, as early as 6 AM
He checked out of the hotel and took
the first bus back to Lagos
By the time his babe called him at
9 AM to ask if he was ready for church
He was already in his flat
As far as he was concerned, the 
relationship was over
His babe arrived that evening
She was in tears
She couldn't believe he did that 
to her
It was a mean and heartless move
But he had his principles
He was a believer, full of the Holy
Spirit
His babe was also supposed to be 
such a believer too
Rituals and fetish things are a reality
he has resolved never to dabble
into
He was disappointed his babe went
that far out of desperation
Now the glory of their relationship
has been given to one prophet
He wished he never met her
He felt it was either he had been 
spiritually manipulated and
compromised or his wife had been
lied to
It couldn't be both!
The only way out of the spiritual 
hoodoo was to sever ties with 
his babe
He told his babe his thoughts
He was very frank
His babe ran to his mentor
He had introduced her  to his mentor
when things got serious
His mentor told him he shouldn't
be so rigid
What matters was the genuineness
of their feeling for each other
As long as he didn't partake of the
fetish nonsense and his wife did
not partake of anything of such 
anymore, they will be fine
He was reluctant but his mentor 
had never stirred him wrong
His babe begged and promised 
never to engage in such unchristian 
practices again
They navigated the discontentment 
of his babe's mother somehow
His babe's mother was set in her ways
His babe's mother still claimed she was 
the one that did something with the 
prophet that made him take his babe 
back
She was like a bad body odor
Unwanted but persistent!
They got married a few months later
The marriage was simple
He was able to curtail all the excesses
of his mother-in-law
He didn't know it was like keeping a
snake under his bedsheet
His wife got pregnant
Suddenly she had to travel to see her
mother every month
Every first weekend of the month
He didn't want to act as a sort of police
so he overlooked it at first
Until he noticed that his wife had
a strange bathing soap and sponge
She also does not allow the water
she used to have her bath flow out
of the bathroom
She would stand in a bucket to bathe
and take out her bathwater by hand
later in the evening
When he complained, his wife said
she was given a prophecy that
she dare not ignore
Fear!
The weapon of the devil himself
He wondered why his wife couldn't
see it
The season of sacrifices had died
Jesus was the once and for all time
sacrificed made for every believer
The fetish practice of burning candles,
incense and killing goats and fowls
had long been canceled by God 
himself according to Acts 9
He preached as much as he could to
his wife
His wife kept giving excuses
"It's mummy", 
"Mummy had a bad dream"
"It is better to be safe than sorry"
He was at sea as to what to do
His wife's mother had practically
taken over his home
The very month his wife was to
deliver their child
She took her maternity leave
and left for her mother's house
immediately
She was with her mother until
their son was born
He was informed via phone call
When it was time for the naming 
ceremony
His wife's mother insisted it had
to be done by her prophet
He said NO!
Unless the child was a bastard, he
and his family are naming the baby
in Lagos
Reluctantly, his wife returned home
They had the naming ceremony
He didn't know his wife had a plan
On the day the baby clocked 40
days, his wife took off for her
mother's house again
She said it had to do with a prayer
of thanksgiving
Within two years of getting married
He had lost his home
His spiritual energy was spent on
curtailing his wife and his 
mother-in-law's excesses
Especially since they had a child  
he didn't want the child to be 
exposed to spiritual jargons
His mentor tried to counsel his wife
His wife was always mentally in 
agreement with them but 
practically  doing something else
There was a day he saw his wife 
wearing a waist bead made of white 
clothes to which seven crosses 
were attached
He was shocked
When he asked her why
She said to ward off spirits that 
wanted to occupy her womb while 
she was nursing her baby
He shrugged and let it go
When his baby turned six months
He got home and found some marks
on his baby's knees
They looked like incisions
He asked his wife what it was
His wife said there was a prophecy
that his son might have a challenge
with crawling and walking if the
incision and some other things
were not made
Wow!
By this time he had become very
tired of the whole thing
He didn't recognize his own home 
again
His wife was no longer a born again
Christian in his opinion
She listens only to his mother's
puppeteer and obeys without asking
any questions
His church pastor also tried to help
but nothing worked
When he prayed, he prayed alone
His wife and his mother-in-law
would mock him to his face
He knew it
They believed he was spiritually 
blind and had been "finished" by 
the enemy
He applied for a job and was given
an interview date
Somehow he didn't check the time
for the interview
He got to the office by 12 PM
Three hours after the appointment
His wife got to know and went to
make inquiries
His wife told him it was the work
of the enemy
Two of his family members 
He couldn't believe it
His parents died in a motor accident 
when he was ten years old
His uncle raised him like a son
His uncle made sure he got the best 
of everything
His Uncle led him to Christ
His wife insisted his uncle was 
behind his "predicament"
He told his wife he had no
 "predicament"
He had a good job and only 
considered changing jobs for his 
own reasons
That it didn't work out was not "evil"
But his wife wouldn't listen
His wife started acting somehow 
towards his uncle
She really believed in that prophet
She believed the prophet more than
she believed in God
It was irritating
It was Idolatry
It was unchristian
She had practically thrown the Holy
Spirit out of the window
The prophet was her Messiah!
He couldn't bear it anymore
He decided to leave the marriage
He was going crazy
The day he made the decision
When he got home from the office
he met his wife, his mother-in-law
and the prophet
The Prophet had the audacity to
come into his house
His wife welcomed him and told him
to sit down
His wife said "My mother and
the prophet came in a few minutes
ago! The prophet said he heard as
he was praying that since they didn'
do the sixth-month ritual they were
supposed to do when they were
dating, he would decide to leave
his wife anytime from that day!
The prophet said If he had not
been contemplating it before that
day, the thought would surely
start coming to him and they
needed to do something about
it before it scattered their home!
It was so accurate
He almost let down his guard at
that moment
How could the thoughts of his
heart be so plain to the prophet
Was he kicking against the gourd
all along?
Had his disposition been wrong?
But then he looked at the scriptures,
would God joyfully allow any of 
his children become spiritually
dependent on another?
No!
The gospel created a fellowship of
equals
The brotherhood of the Firstborn
This was not the relationship here
The Prophet would be like Moses
unto them, not like Christ Jesus
to His disciples
He couldn't say anything
The prophet prayed
After praying, the prophet told
him to come with his wife to his
church when their child clocks one
He was to bring a ram
They would slaughter the ram
His wife would use the leg of the
ram to bathe him to ward off
some evil from his life
The prophet said if he failed to do
as told, there would be a spate of
calamities that would affect him
and his family
He nodded and said Thank you
Later that night, he couldn't sleep
He had become like King Solomon
He knew the truth and had gradually
been wearied into letting go of
the reality of the gospel for the 
lie being peddled by the prophet,
his mother-in-law and his wife
He kept digging deeper and dipper
into the hole
He called his mentor
His mentor told him the Holy Spirit
will provide a solution
Two weeks to his son's birthday
His mentor gave him the link to
contact the brother in Jeans and
T-shirt
He wrote to the Brother in Jeans
and T-shirt on Facebook messenger
He explained everything
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt
arranged to have a meeting with
him two days to the journey
The Bother in Jeans and T-shirt
held his hands
They prayed in tongues together
for seventy-two minutes
The Bother in Jeans and T-shirt
told him to return home and
play along
He bought the ram on their way to
Ilesha on Friday
By ten AM Saturday, they were at 
the church
The prophet laid hands on the ram
three times and said some things
Then the prophet came over to
him and laid hands on him
That was it!
The prophet started screaming
At first, as if he was in the spirit 
or in a trance...
Suddenly the prophet took off, 
he ran straight into the bush like
his tail was on fire
Those attempting to kill the ram 
stopped what they were doing
The prophet had gone mad!
He and his wife got up from their 
knees
Their ram was still alive and watching
the show with a very keen interest
He wanted to laugh but he couldn't
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt
had told him anybody that laid
hands on him for any spiritual or 
supernatural purpose without his 
consent shall encounter the 
Pneuma!
WOW!
It took almost one hour and a
lot of bruises before they were
able to catch the Prophet
They sent for older prophets and
some of his colleagues
Nobody could cure the prophet
He was frothing in the mouth and
his eyes bulging 
It was a terrible day
Everybody blamed him
His mother-in-law, his wife, the 
prophet's church members and other
prophets
They said his head was contaminated
It was a tough night too
His wife and mother-in-law cried
so much
His mother in law said she had been 
marked for life
Nobody will ever want to pray for
her or consult for her again
They were looking at him with the
evil eye
They knew he had done something
The next morning, he told them he
knew how the prophet could be
cured
Two hours later, they started their
return journey to Lagos
The prophet, his wife (prophetess)
and one member rode in a car while 
he and his family rode in in another
He called the Brother in Jeans and
T-shirt as soon as they left Ilesha
He explained everything
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt was
just laughing
The got to Lagos around 2 PM
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt met
them at the parking lot of his office
He told them to release the prophet
The prophet came down from the car
himself
The prophet was perfectly fine
Nobody knew how or when he was
healed
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt said
to the prophet
"Demons can convince you that you
are what you are not. 
And you will believe them and act in 
that capacity until you come in contact
with the truth!
Neither of you (husband and wife) are 
Prophets of God
Nothing you are doing is in line with
the gospel.
What was your job before you got
the white uniform?"
The prophet said 
"I was an electrician sir"
The Prophet's wife said 
"I sell Ice Block sir"
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt said
"Go back to your businesses and prosper!"
The prophet and his wife knelt down
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt prayed
for them and blessed them
Soon after, they were driven away
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt turned
to leave
His wife and mother in law stopped him
"Please pray for us sir, the prophet
has laid hands on us and done all sorts
for us, please pray for us"
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt 
blessed them 
He also blessed their baby
Then he told them what the gospel is
and encouraged them to believe and
walk in it

PS: It's been two years
The mother-in-law stopped living in 
fear
She got the gospel
So did the wife and the husband
They attend the same church the
husband was attending before he met
his wife and they are both steadfast 
believers there
The prophet and his wife are back
in ministry
The prophet and his wife became 
evangelists and missionaries working 
in a town on the road between Osun 
and Kwara States.

PS: Some of us think "getting" result
is what it means to be a Christian
We think our dexterity at manipulating
reality gives us the edge in life 
This is not true
Demons deliver result to many
At the end of the day 
It is short term gain and long term
loss
If you engage in any extra-gospel
activity to make it in life
You have practically invited demons
into your reality
The Holy Spirit is more than able to
save and guide all his children
If you consult with strange spirits
and demons after you have received
the Holy Spirit
You do not believe in the gospel