Dear Jesus,

My poor phone on my bed kept vibrating incessantly as the messages rolled in. Since I began my marathon fast, I hadn't connected to the internet. Now, with my data switched on, my phone was legit crying in pain.

I was before my wardrobe's full-length mirror, carefully brushing out the tangles from my hair, after having a hot bath.

I wore my jacket over my ankle-leng and sat on the edge of my bed to tie my low wedged boots' laces. I glanced at my phone and saw the previous messages from my buds and other Hangout and WeChat group feeds popping rapidly across the screen as notifications.
I really should change the tone from that annoying cricket-and-birdie-like chirp.

Many messages and doc files were delivered from Shelly. My girl. Faithful as pup. And my oh my, the workload has piled. Will get to it soon, hopefully.

Holy priesthood gang and their lively banter as usual...
Apparently, Fredrick had gloated there that he'd seen me and I was more than fine. Now, they were all demanding for explanations.
I chuckled as I read my lovely Kathy's messages, defending me, telling them all to chill that I'll explain everything in time.

The group for my department was swarming with the latest gossip as usual.
I frowned as I scanned through the chats. Seemed like The Scar were really on their move of terror. A girl was raped two days ago, thievery had escalated, more sacrifices.
The minor cults want to revolt so there's tension in the campus air.

Not to talk of the fact that more of our test results were already being released for all to see. Many students are now being tagged as either an Einstein, a Dunce or an Equator. Funny names.

Strangest thing was that for every profane word and lewd sticker used, I saw a strange demonic encryption. Like a virus. But then, as I'd swipe through them, I saw tiny drops of blood-your blood-and they'd shrink away. It was really weird seeing spiritual undercover interactions on the internet.

I sighed and dropped my phone back to the bed as I buttoned the cuffs of my shirt's long sleeves.

It would take me a long time and a bucketful of courage to reply to all those messages.

The rain outside had let up to a drizzle. My parents were getting ready downstairs. We were all going out.
Mom had originally intended for me to follow her grocery shopping today, but since there'd been a major change in plans, that was scrapped.

After dropping Mom off at Viscer Mall, which was the main city mall, Dad drove straight to the greater seer's Ministry, 'Watchers on the Tower' (The ministry's anchor scripture, as scrawled beneath the logo depicting a man with a trumpet, was Habakkuk 2:1. Cool). It was located in the heart of Mangrone Strait.

During the long drive on the slippery, wet road, with the car heater on, I asked Dad if it was okay for us to just bump in without a prior appointment.
He said that Pastor Fremont (Dad calls him MOG Vic), like him, was pretty easily accessible but he could get pretty busy some times, so we should just pray and hope he'd be available.

I remembered then how Pastor Fremont had been one of the few men of God who believed Dad was innocent and had provided support with prayers during the whole rape scandal against Dad last year. Those are times I'd rather not relive.

As we drove into the spacious parking lot and I examined the place, all I could say was 'Whoa!'

The rain had washed off the late harmattan dust, and everything was bright. There was this soily, foresty scent in the air.
The mid-morning sun was up, warming my skin as we strode towards the entrance of the main church building.

The building was cathedral-like. I was awed by the gigantism and complex architectural design of the structure.

We entered and it was all I could do to keep my jaw from mopping the tiled floor.
This place was almost thrice the size of the 1000-seater hall of The Redeemer's Love.
There were flanking galleries in the main hall. The adjoining detachment was what housed the offices, vestibule, conveniences and other spaces.

I have rarely gone to any other church, but this... this blew my mind.

Nathan, oh, Nathan. Ever the humble lad. He's so going to get it from me the next time we see. He never even hinted that his Dad church was this huge.

I should have taken pictures, but I was too preoccupied with the sights to remember.

Let me not even begin to detail the flurry of divine spiritual activities going on there. That will take a thousand sheets of paper.

Let me just summarize it by saying that all the angels here were super tall (ten feet minimum). When I looked up to try to get a glimpse of their faces, their eyes were piercing like super lasers. It was unnerving, yet at the same time comforting, to say the least.

"Good day, Mister," Dad greeted the young man at the lobby that adjoined the pastor's office warmly and gave him a handshake. I curtseyed sweetly when the man glanced at me.

"Please, we've come to see Pastor Victor Fremont. Is he in today?"

"Yes, he is. You're Pastor Abraham, right?" the man asked. Dad nodded.
"Why, he's been expecting you! You're very welcome, sir. Let me ring his intercom."

I shot Dad a look and mouthed 'How?' He only shrugged and gave me a knowing grin and wink. Supernatural knowing was Pastor Fremont's thing, so that explained it.

We were ushered into his office.
The first thing I noted was there was the faint scent of misty sandalwood in the air. The office was spacious.

Stacks of books sat on imperial shelves. Comfy and ancient-looking, beige, leather chairs faced the main burgundy desk. Modern gadgets were there too: a flat screen TV, an AC, a mini fridge, a PC and two CCTV cameras hidden from view in the ceiling which my hawk eyes caught as I scanned the entire room (I honestly think the CCTV was a smart idea).

Dad and Pastor Fremont did that back slapping, dad joke thing that older men who haven't seen each other for long do while I observed the room to acclimatize.

Not that I see my Dad as old, per se.
I like to think Dad is still very, very young. Pfft. Who am I kidding?

Anyways, when their mild ruckus had settled, Mr Fremont set his dark brown eyes on me, smiled like a proud mentor and asked, "And how is our young seeress doing today?"

By him, on both sides were two angels with their wings tucked away and no visible weapons.
They looked sage-like and fierce, like eagles, like they'd seen all there is in the universes of aeons. The sight was enthralling.

I felt my face heat up at his (or their) perusal and focused on my boots. "I-, I'm fine sir."

Dad's phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, glanced at it and barely suppressed a groan.
"MOG Vic, please, you'll have to pardon me. I have to be on my way. There's a church board meeting by noon and it's a long drive back."

Pastor Fremont nodded in understanding and said, "Official stuff? I know what that means. Let's not delay you then."

I shot Dad a distraught look that read, "Hey, that wasn't part of our deal,"
and squeaked, "You're not staying?"

"No, Radiance. You can take care of yourself. You said so yourself, right? You're a big girl," he addressed me with a triumphant comeback glint in his eyes.
Urgh! Dang it! Dad was reiterating my proving to-be-independent speech.

He rose and pressed some wads of money into my palm, then kissed the crown of my head, which was more shampoo and oil than hair (Ew, sorry Dad), and left.

Was it just me or the air felt thicker as the door closed after Dad? I gulped.

"Do you drink orange juice, dear? It's Chivita," Pastor Fremont asked with a big smile, peeling my gaze from the closed door.

"Anything you give me is fine, sir."

He brought the drink out of the fridge, set it before me, urged me to open it myself and smiled again at me. My tension eased. This man smiles a lot.

"My son has told me that you're acquaintances."

"Yeah. I mean, yes sir. We have a mutual friend, sir. I do hope Nathan's fine."

"He is. And no need to be so uptight, Radiance. Feel free to call me Victor." Not on my life.
"Now, to serious matters. You wanted to see me urgently. I knew you were coming. God revealed it to me yesterday."

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised," I mumbled.

"That's right," he said with a grin, and then turned 360° serious. "I would be correct if I say the veil has been completely torn, right?"

I nodded vigorously.

He sighed and steepled his hands on the burgundy table before him and leaned forward. "There are some things you should be aware of now-" I hesitantly raised up my hand, interrupting his train of words.

He smiled, looked at me, impressed, and said, "You want to ask for permission to record this conversation and take notes, right?"

I stared at him in shock and managed to nod.
Does he read minds too? Levels!

"I am not omniscient, Radiance. No one is. Except God. You can go ahead. I'm impressed at your willingness to learn and retain. This teachable spirit is probably why God has entrusted such a high calling to you."

I brought out my phone, pressed the record button, and took out a legal pad and my pen. Yes, I came prepared. Wasn't going to waste this precious privilege.

"Okay, where was I? Maybe we should start this way. I'll tell you my own experience and how I got to this point.

"My gift of vision had been with me as a child. I was many times plagued with nightmares and dreams that came to pass. I could see things that weren't there. When I was still very young people thought it was just my hyperactive imagination, but as I grew, I was soon considered crazy. I was afraid, lonely, embittered by this 'curse'.

"You see, unlike you, Radiance, I wasn't born into a Christian home so I was in a mighty fix for a long time. I'm glad that Jesus revealed himself to me before the enemy tried to play smart and hijack me. I was twelve when that life-transforming encounter happened and by thirteen I got filled with the Holy Spirit. God used me to rescue to my family from the clutches of an ancestral spirit. They all came to believe in Jesus.

"At age sixteen, Jesus appeared to me again and gave me specific details for my ministry. Here I am today. It's been a rough road. As people misunderstood Jesus' ministry, I have been misunderstood and slandered by those whose minds are being manipulated by deceitful demons till today."

He paused for effect, leaned back into his swivel chair and said, "That basically sums up everything."

"Wow!" I breathed, my eyes glassy. "That's- that's intense."

"I pretty much left out the gory details, but you can say that again, my dear. Let's head into this crash course on what you should know now that you've unlocked this same gift, shall we?"

My pen was ready.

"Lesson one. The gift of God is irrevocable. Believe it or not, you're stuck with this. This has its pros and cons. It means the enemy cannot take it from you, however if you don't fan it to flame, it can become dormant and eventually fade.

"Another important warning: my dear, you must be very careful. Because this gift is irrevocable, there's the danger of falling into presumptuous sins, the worst of which is pride. Remember King Saul and Samson..."

I raised my hand again. He nodded for me to speak.

"Um, sir, that has been one of my greatest worries. If this gift might eventually make me fall, then I'd rather not have it."

He smiled. "Your heart is pure, burning for the Lord alone. That is really good. I was about to address that particular concern.

"Lesson two. You have to depend on God completely. You see, the kingdom of God doesn't operate like the kingdom of this world. With men, independence and self-sufficiency is applauded, but, with God, you have to realize that you are nothing on your own. You have to stick like glue to the Holy Spirit every step of the way. You have to be constantly yielded. Your relationship with God must be stronger now than ever. You have to be connected always.

"It's just like a light bulb. You see, it's been designed for the specific purpose of bringing light and warmth to a room. It can't be used as a spoon or bag or anything else. Now the problem is, unless that bulb is screwed in to the lamp holder and then the switch is on when there is power supply, can it shine its inherent light? No!"

"Lesson three. The final one, and I want you to get this really well. You're now in the high ranks of the heavens, Radiance. Your life is at risk of danger because major principalities will know that you can see, and they'll fight you with all they've got.

"Here is where you must address the issue of fear once and for all. You cannot allow fear near you at all. You have to charge up your faith. You have to understand your authority and utilize the power you've now been given with boldness. This is what most blind Christians unfortunately do not get, and that's why the enemy toys with their lives.

"I pretty much believe that these things aren't strange to you. Your guardian has been doing a good job."
He smiled knowingly.

I realized he was staring at Gloria who stood behind me. I followed his gaze and saw my guardian all decked in her best official-warrior mode. I bit back my laughter and smiled back at him.

Comfortable silence filled the next few minutes as he allowed me to digest all he'd told me.

"Can I pray for you Radiance?"

"Yes sir, please do."

He stood and motioned for me to kneel in the free space of his office.

"I'm going to pray for you right now and anoint you. Don't panic if anything happens. Know that it's God resetting you for His work. Are you ready?"

My heart thundered in excitement as I nodded and knelt down before him.

He placed his hands on my head (I felt nothing at first) and began to pray/speak casually.
I wasn't even sure when to say Amen. He was just talking.

Soon, he stopped for a while as if listening, then he began whispering in other tongues beneath his breath.

I closed my eyes shut, but, oh boy, it was as if my eyelids became transparent, or rather like I had astral projected out of my body and was floating in a corner of the ceiling, watching the scene below with complete fascination.

Now, I understood why his office's floor wasn't tiled like the rest of the church but rather overlain with thick, dark Persian rug.
Twas for two effects: to muffle the echo of conversation or screams of people under the anointing, and to ensure that when they fell, they wouldn't injure themselves.

I saw as all angels in the church converged reverently and concentrated on what was happening in the office.

The two guardian angels of Pastor Fremont suddenly rose and spread their wings. Gloria did the same.
Then, they began circling us, slowly at first, then so fast, they were a blur of lightning and wings.

I watched my body convulsing as spasms of glory washed over me, just like what I experienced not too many nights ago alone on my bed.

As Pastor Fremont slowly uncorked the glass bottle of olive anointing oil and tipped it over my head, I watched as my body fell on to the carpet like melting wax.

Everything went black.

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Author's note: Lovely human. Happy Sunday!😇 How are you today?😄 Hope you went to church and got blessed in God's presence.💫

Pretty please, in case you noticed any plot holes I might have overlooked, e.g. maybe saying someone knew something in previous chapters and now in the current one they don't, or maybe I gave someone purple hair in the first book and now it's green, please help me.🥺🙏 These things happen. 😅

What did you learn from all that Pastor Victor Fremont taught Radiance?
Do you have questions of your own? Let me know. 😁

Thanks for reading this chapter. More drama loading... 😋
Keep me in your prayers, peeps. I also need grace to bring this story to you as God wants it.😔

And don't forget to vote, comment and share. 🤳⭐🤓

God bless you. ✨