"I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision" (Paul in Acts)

One of the key verses that has sustained my 29 years of ministry is this testimony by Paul recorded by Luke in Acts. Paul encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, and I guess to those called by the Lord, each of us has a conversion story, some dramatic, some not so dramatic. My conversion was dramatic but my call to full-time ministry even more. For weeks, I had visions leading the that vision on the 2nd Sunday of May in 1983 during worship in church, I received the call to devote my life to my Saviour and God. I have not looked back since that day, and despite falling down 7 times I rose up each time and continued on the fateful path. "All my days are written in your book before one of the them came to be", says the Psalmist. And truly God is faithful and true. I was 30 years old four months and five days old when I began that adventure of my life in entrusting my life and the life of my family to the Lord. It's been 29 years and one day today, I can testify that the anointing in my life has just gotten stronger every time I preach in the past month.

Last year, I received invitations to preach every month through the year when the SOP rules were relaxed on 1st May 2022. Now straight after finishing my lectures on 27th Oct last month, I have preached non-stop. I am glad I have a couple of weeks' break before 5 more sermons over two weeks including the Christmas weekend. I am right in the middle of this great adventure of following Jesus. I have moved at least 21 times, not counting short hotels stays of a week or less. It is just half of what the Israelites went through before they crossed the river Jordan into the promised land. 

Did I have a vision in this latest move? Not really, but a short passage of Scripture from Prof 24:27 LXX came to me time and time again. By the fourth time, during a Chapel service, I was stirred in my spirit and I felt I had a vision of God enthroned among the cherubim and the host of angels, and He spoke, "I am ready to take you away when you are ready". I was more than ready for the Lord has prepared me for such a moment. Now decision is taken and it is in the Lord's hand for I have not been disobedient to the heavenly vision.