They walked into the town late because the bus driver refused to drive into the city. Nkoli couldn’t blame him. The whole place looked deserted and dark. There were no streetlights, and when Nkoli looked up, she knew why. They had all been broken.
She held her son’s hand tight. Her heartbeat picked up at all the what-could-happens at such a time. She noticed the slight shivering of his little hand. The night was cold, but she knew it wasn’t the reason Benji, her son, shook. She looked down at the boy and forward, still walking on the dirt road.
“Are you scared?” Nkoli asked.
Benji shook his head, looking ahead. “No, I’m not afraid of anything.”
Nkoli smiled to herself. Her brave ten-year-old. “It’s okay to be scared, son, and you can tell your mummy if you are. I’ll keep your secret, I promise.”
“Do brave men get scared?” He asked in a small voice.
“All the time. The point is to continue doing what you need to do, though you are afraid. I am scared too, but I know who is with us, and because God is here, I’m okay.”
“You are scared too?” Benji asked, looking up at her.
Nkoli smiled at him and walked forward, more determined. She hoped her actions would be proof of her faith.
“Yes, but still, I walk.”
“How do you do it, mummy?”
“My mother told me a story that comforts me whenever I’m afraid. Do you want to hear it?”
He nodded.
She drew him along as she started her tale. “There was once a prophet of God in Israel. He was a great man and performed significant feats for his God. Due to his divine wisdom and knowledge, an enemy king couldn’t defeat the King of Israel. When the enemy King kept trying and failing, his servants informed him that the Prophet gave the King of Israel information about their attack plans.
“The enemy king sent an army to capture the man of God, and they surrounded the city where the Prophet lived. When the Prophet’s servant saw the enemy surrounding them, he cried out to his master in fear. Do you know what the master said?”
Benji shook his head.
“He told him not to be afraid because those who were with them were greater than those who came to fight them. He asked God to open his servant’s eyes so he could see, and God did. Do you know what the servant saw?”
Benji looked up at her. “What?”
“The mountain around them was full of chariots and horses of fire. God was protecting them.”
“What happened next, mummy?”
Nkoli smiled. “The Prophet asked God to blind the army of the enemy King, and he dealt with them from there.”
“Wow, is the story true?”
“Yes, son. I need you to have faith that our God is greater than anything we face out here.”
“I’m still afraid,” Benji said, in the small voice again, as he looked around the dark road.
Nkoli understood the boy’s fear. The sounds of the night seemed to grow and gather strength as they moved forward.
“Believe God has sent angels to defend us tonight. Trust God, even though you can’t see them.”
A man appeared at the end of the street in front of them and stopped. It looked like he was waiting for them. They stopped as well, so did their hearts.
Do you believe? Nkoli heard in her mind.
With her heart beating like a drum beaten by an insane drummer, she clutched her son’s hand tight and walked forward. The man could be anybody, even one sent by her brother.
They took slow steps. Benji had to be dragged along at that point. He wasn’t confident like his mummy. Another male figure joined the first one, and they walked forward, striding towards them with purpose. They were two huge men, and that’s all Nkoli could see. She looked around for street corners, checked for possible hideouts, and then decided to turn round.
“He that is with me…” She said to herself, hesitating.
She stood still, waiting and watching the men approach, wondering if she had gone mad. Her heart was still drumming like it wanted to jump out of her chest, and Benji became the one dragging, but this time, backward.
“Mummy, let’s turn back. Let’s run.” He whispered.
The men came closer, walking together. When they were one meter away from her, Nkoli took her first step back. Something odd happened at the same time. One of the men made way for them to pass through on the narrow road.
“Good evening,” both men said, as they passed Nkoli and Benji, who still stood at the same spot, looking at them, their eyes wide and their mouths opening to shout.
“Good…evening,” Nkoli said as she watched the men walk past and away. The two watched the backs of the men as they moved for some minutes. Benji breathed a sigh of relief when they were out of sight.
“Mummy, they are gone.”
Nkoli nodded. “Let’s get to your uncle’s house.”
They walked up the street and turned right, their steps faster. The road they entered was quiet and dark. One house on the left still had lights on.
“Your uncle is waiting up for us. Let’s get to the house with the lights.”
Once her brother opened the door and they entered the house, Nkoli allowed the tears to fall. She hugged him with relief. They told the family the story of their ordeal. How God led them through the night to safety, but what they didn’t know was that angels did guard them.
The King of Kings blanked out the minds of the two most notorious thieves in the city, turning them from hoodlums to gentlemen in minutes. The angels stood in front and at the back of the mother and her son. The one against them was powerless to fight the living God.
Till next time, be transformed!!
Transformation Place 