Even through times of trouble, God was with Gina. Through a dream, God make His incredible love for her known, wiping away her tears …
Being an orphan
I used to be an orphan and was adopted by a couple and was their only child. I enjoyed a fortunate life under their care for many years. They showed me love, and they cared for me with everything they had access to. I was able to receive the best toys in town and I attended the best primary school. The lady who adopted me had been barren for fifteen years but after I came into the family she gave birth to twin baby boys. The next year, she gave birth to a baby girl.
Love is withdrawn
With the birth of their own children, my parents began to withdraw the love, which they had previously given me. My mother swore that she would rather die than see me "who has no background" reap from what I had not sown. Therefore, she began to make my life unbearable and miserable for me. Living on earth was like living in hell. I was completely deprived of the love and care I had once known. It was then that I realized I was not their flesh and blood but an adopted child. My parents hated me and there was much bitterness. They gave me only very basic secondary education.
A period of horror
However, that was not the most terrible thing they did to me. When I was barely fourteen years of age, my adopted parents did the hurtful thing to me. I was taking me to a place for ritual sacrifice in exchange for some money. My hands were chained to my legs. The leader of the cult said that I seemed to be a child of blessing. When they took up a knife to slaughter me, I (for the first time in my life) shouted to Jesus for help. The effect was immediate; the leader of the cult commanded his people to let me go. I ran away, half naked, to the nearest police station I could find. I narrated my whole story to the police but they would not do anything about what happened to me! One of the inspectors in the station took me home and clothed me. Yet, after I had stayed a short period of time with him, he wanted to rape me! I ran away from him.
A temporary refuge
God was faithful to me. A woman who lived alone and owns a car became my provider. She housed me and started to show me care and love. Yet, she turned out to be a lesbian and I ran away from her as well. I went to a church that same night and stayed there with a security guard. I was introduced to the pastor the next day and given a job as his secretary. God also provided me with accommodation through the pastor. Most importantly, it was there while working in the church that I began to grow in my knowledge of God and his words. Yet, good times never last the way you want them to.
Did God love me?
Unfortunately, this man also made advances towards me, and tried to make love to me while we were in his office. I was forced to flee, again, to safeguard my virginity. This time, I ran away from the church with suicide in my mind. Everybody in my life so far has failed and disappointed me. I concluded that God himself had also failed me. I wanted to die since I saw that there was no more reason for me to remain alive in this world.
A dream that changed my life
One night, God came to me in a dream and made Himself known to me. In my dream, the Lord told me that I am a child of destiny and that He is with me. He allowed me to pass through all the pain and disappointments I faced in my life for a purpose. In my dream, the Lord gave me a handkerchief to wipe away my tears, and told me that He is the Father to the fatherless and that is my background. I dedicated my life to serving Him in spirit and in truth.
Reaching out to abandoned children
I now have nine abandoned children under my care. When I saw the first abandoned child on my doorstep, I wept and could not bring myself to turn my back on the child. I have rented a small apartment in one local village in Nigeria where my children and I reside. I am now twenty years of age.
Your life lies in the hand of God
Dearest child of God, I have known that God never fails and so He will also not fail in your life and circumstances. German Evangelist Reinhard Bonke was written off by his father as someone who could never do well in life. In fact, his father had called him Zero (nobody) because he did not show any sign or spark of greatness. He has an elder brother who was quite brilliant, and the father thought that the brother was the one to succeed him. Today, Reinhard Bonke has risen from zero to hero. He is now a great evangelist. So, never underestimate yourself, your child or anyone for that matter. Do not belittle them or yourself. Every man's destiny lies in the hands of God. Unlike humans, God looks at the heart of a person. Nobody is born to be a zero. What is seen as zero in the eyes of men can turn up to be a hero in the eyes of the living God. Your life, too, lies in the hand of this great God.
Do not chase after the things of this world
Determine as a child of God not to be swallowed by what the world could offer you in terms of fame, wealth, glory, status, title and every kind of worldly pleasure. Do not be full of yourself, dear child of God. Learn from the mistakes of great men of both the past and the present. Accept God into your life, and acknowledge his greatness. Dear child of God, never forget to show love to the people that surround you. Remember that God's commandment is that we love God and that we love people. We have shown much love and care to our pet animals. If we could learn to show that same love and care we show to our pets to the people around us, this world would be a much better place to live in.
"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If the anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him" (1 John 2:15).
"This is love: not that we loves God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:10).
