“Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” Exodus 15:11
Mrs. Chisom Okeke was not a member of the Watchman Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement, but a young man who lived with them was. And each time he came back and gave her a copy of the Charismatic Signs magazine, she would just fling it to a corner and forget about it. She did not wish to read it. But there was a problem in the family. She had been pregnant twice and the babies had both died in the womb. She was so troubled. One day, as she was searching for something, she stumbled on one of the magazines she had been given and which she had refused to read. This time, she decided to read it. And in it she saw the testimony of a woman whose baby had also died in the womb, and how God restored its life after prayers were made by a Watchman pastor. That marked a point of beneficial decision in her life. She and her husband were persuaded to come to the Watchman Fellowship Centre, Agric Parish in Lagos, and they came. They were prayed for and God ended their ordeal. Today, they are proud parents of a lovely baby. Below is Mrs. Okeke’s testimony:
“I WANT to share with you today the testimony of what the Lord has done for me. My husband and I were married in 2009. And not long after our wedding, I took in and carried the pregnancy for nine months. On February 26, 2010, I went to the hospital and was examined by the doctor. The previous night, while I was in bed, I did not know what happened, but I felt a hand touch my stomach. And when this happened, my body changed, and I knew that something had gone wrong. When I told my husband what happened, he suggested that I should go to the hospital the following morning. At the hospital, the doctor checked me and said that something was wrong. When I asked him what the problem was, he said that he could not hear the heart-beat of the baby any more. He said that he suspected that the baby was dead. Eventually, what he said turned out to be true. I was thinking that they would carry out a cesarean section on me to remove the baby, but they decided to induce and the baby was successfully brought out, dead. The only thing I did was to check if the baby was a boy or a girl. I found out that it was a boy.
At the end of the day, I went home dejected and sorrowful. Neighbours and loved ones came around me to sympathize with me. With time, I was able to overcome the shock and forgot about what had happened. In no time, I took in again and though I was carrying the pregnancy, I was afraid because of my previous experience. I attended church services and prayers were made for me. In February, the following year, though nothing was wrong with me, I went to the hospital and after thorough examinations they said everything was okay. I was assured that all was well. But that same night, the previous experience repeated and once again my body system changed. When I told my husband about it, he advised that we should go to the hospital in the morning. Meanwhile, I had registered at another hospital hoping that their services and attention would be better than what obtained in the former hospital.
When we got there and the doctor checked me, he pronounced that the baby in my womb was dead. I was at a loss and wondered what was happening to me. Again, the doctor suggested inducement and I was placed on admission for three days. The pregnancy was seven months old then and I tried to deliver it. The pain was too severe for me and I feared that I might not be alive to conceive again let alone deliver safely the next time. Instead of the baby coming down, it was going up and they gave me several drugs to force the baby out. After several attempts, I thank the Lord that the dead baby eventually came out and it was a boy again. I didn’t know what to do.
There was a brother who was living with me who attended the Watchman. I never had interest in reading the Charismatic Signs magazine he always brought home. Whenever he gave me a copy, I would just dump it somewhere. But one of the days, I didn’t know what I was looking for; I was just ransacking the whole place when I stumbled on one of the magazines. I was moved to go through it. And as I did, I saw the testimony of a woman who said that although the baby in her womb had also died, and she had continued to carry it about, when prayers were made for her, the baby was revived. After reading this, I asked myself why I had not seen this testimony all this while. When my husband returned home I showed him what I had read in the magazine and suggested that we should go and exhume the body of my baby so that they would pray, and the baby would come back to life. I argued that if that woman who shared the testimony could have her baby revived, the same thing could happen to our dead baby too. But my husband argued that since the baby was dead and buried, if anyone saw us trying to exhume it, they would think we had some evil agenda. So I had to drop the idea.
Later on, some brethren from the Watchman visited me and by this time one of my sisters had joined the church. They encouraged me to come to the church and assured me that everything would be over and that I would carry a living baby by the power and grace of God. That was all I needed to hear and I believed them because I saw a proof of it in the Charismatic Signs magazine. I made up my mind there and then and began to have fellowship in the Watchman. I met the pastor and he counseled me. While praying for me, he prophesied that the second loss was going to be the last I would ever experience. He said emphatically that nothing would happen to my baby if I became pregnant again. Soon, I took in again, and everybody, including the prayer warriors prayed for me. This time, I did not wander about from one room to the other as my manner was anytime I took in because of fear. The pregnancy took its normal course.
On March 29, 2012, though there was some delay, God took His glory. I thank God for the Charismatic Hour fellowship of that week. I was called out and prayers were made for me. The next day, I delivered a bouncing baby girl without much stress. I want to thank the Lord for what He has done for me. Sometimes I tell myself that if I had not come to this church, who knows how many of such ugly experiences I would have had. I must not forget the pastor, the prayer warriors and every other person that felt concerned about my problem and helped in one way or the other. I thank you all and may the Lord God bless you in Jesus’ name. Praise the Lord!”
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