(By: Noah Nabaho, A most blessed and happy man, Pretoria, Republic of South Africa) 

History... About ten years ago, there was a man who was miraculously saved and transformed by the grace and power of God. The change in this man’s life was  such, that most people who knew him then, didn’t really understand what had happened to him. You see, when there is no hope for a sinner looking through the eyes of other people, there is still hope when God touches one’s life. God loves people and just maybe He spends more time with sinners because He knows their helpless situation. He also is known as the God of love. 

The more this man came to know God, the more persecution he got. The more this man prayed and cried before God for the salvation of souls, the more people turned their backs on him. His family started to think that he was crazy. The day finally arrived when he lost his loved ones because of Whom he believed in. Moreover, one day he lost the presence of the Lord too, because a root of bitterness had sprung up in his heart because it seemed to him then that he had lost everything. An author once said: “Nothing opens the door to sin faster than failures”. This is true. 

Almost ten years have passed in which he fell back into sin more and more. But almost never during those years could he put the Saviour out of his mind. He tried to, but the Saviour would not let go of him! 

Rebecca Malope sings a song including the following: 

“… Can’t say goodbye, You’re forever in my heart 

Can’t imagine life without you 

Can’t say bye-bye, You’re always on my mind …” 

This man became worse in sin and life was sometimes too miserable for him. He experienced broken relationships again and life sometimes seemed to be worthless. 

His best friend encouraged him a few times to return to the Lord. Facing most difficult circumstances, the only way to cope with life was to return to the Lord, the Giver of life. With a new kind of excitement and expectation, he started to spend more time with the Lord. Lunch times became a time of fellowship with the Lord in a quiet place not far from the office. He was chatting to the Lord, hoping that He would be merciful to break again the chains, which were binding him, to forgive him again, and to wash him again in His holy blood, and to fill him again with the Holy Spirit. Small things started to happen in this man’s life. Too small to mention but still great enough so that he realized that God was still around. 

The Test: 

One day he asked God for a sign. He wanted to know if God still loved him, and if there was still any grace left for him. He got to work and forgot about the favor that he had asked God for earlier that morning. 

After work, he went to the Post Office and returned home another way than usual. He passed a café and could not ignore three guys who were standing just around the corner of the entrance, staring with hungry eyes to the woman inside the café, preparing ordered meals for customers. He passed them a few meters. Suddenly the thought struck him that although he was experiencing pain because of an accident a time ago, he was on his way home to prepare a great supper while these people are hungry. He remembered how the Lord had fed people and would not ignore them. With desperation, he returned to these men and invited them into the café. They could choose whatever they would like to have for supper. The orders were placed, the bill was paid, and the three men looked excited and thankful. He decided to leave while the woman prepared the food because he felt reluctant to receive any honor from them. When he was about to leave the café, the woman requested him to pay the bill first, to which one of the men replied, “The bill has been paid”. On his way out, the man said “The Lord bless you…” 

On the way closer to his home, the pain came back in force again. Tears started to roll down his cheeks. Softly he spoke to the Lord, telling Him that he needed Him so much. Through his tears, he looked around him. People were rushing to their destinies. Some looked worried. A few children were screaming for joy while playing in the park. Some people sat on the grass enjoying the last beams of the winter’s sun. Others just hung around in quietness. More tears filled his eyes and he told the Lord that all people need Him so much. The world seemed to be in chaos, looking for an answer. Life seemed to be broken and full of pain. “Oh Lord, what shall we do?” 

Then, in a manner only the Holy Spirit can do, the man was reminded of his prayer earlier that morning. The answer to his prayer came when he was reminded of the words of the hungry man: “The bill has already been paid” 

Tears were flowing freely from his eyes and he thanked the Lord that He was still with him, answering his prayers, although he was still battling to overcome sin in his life. He realized that he himself could do nothing on his own to change himself, but that he had to rely on the grace of God. 

God knew beforehand that mankind would always fail. We cannot please God, except through faith. Moreover, the biggest Gift of Love through all times has been given to the world in advance. His name is JESUS. 

“The bill has already been paid” 

Miracle Upon Miracle... During this blessed man’s struggle to get to the place where God wanted him to be, disaster after disaster seemed to strike him. 

On March 6, 1999, a torn contact lens caused an invisible scratch on his eye. A small “pearl” was visible after a few days. From time to time, the eye was in pain and much discomfort. Visiting an eye specialist, it was discovered that a virus had settled in the cornea of the eye. Treatment was started trying to kill the virus in order to enable the man to see clearly through the spot within the ensuing six months. 

During the first two months after the incident, his world seemed to crumble before him. He was very excited about his job and loved it very much. Some days he either had to leave earlier or didn’t even go to work at all. He started to develop more love towards other people and could not grasp why this trouble had come his way. 

There were many days when he would just cry of pain and despair. Many times he had to go to the doctors for a painkiller just to have relief for a few hours. He had to learn to become dependent on people to help him. He gradually lost sight in the eye until the eye became blind in such a way that he could only distinguish between light and darkness. He felt doomed and on his last day at work, he sent an e-mail message overseas to a prayer group, which included something like this: “If I have to be blind, will our good Lord take away the pain?” 

One day he had to make a call to the emergency number again. A friend rushed him to the Institute. Even before the doctor started the examination, his friend asked God to intervene and bless the doctor with knowledge. The doctor diagnosed what was called an “Acanth Amoebae”, which had settled itself in the eye. Treatment to kill the organism started immediately. What was so confusing about the Amoebae was that patients normally experience severe and extreme pain, while he was not really experiencing the pain in such a way. 

The pain as well as the damage became worse by the day. A biopsy of the cornea and eye tissue was done. Before the results of the tests were available, the cornea became so perforated that there was a danger that the eye fluid could drain if the cornea deteriorated further. A miracle seemed to be the only way out. 

In the meantime… During these days of turmoil, people started to become increasingly concerned. News about the eye spread to members of his family, cell groups, churches and friends. Intercessors were trusting God for a miracle. He attended healing services and could not understand why healing did not take place instantly. He questioned the will of God and tried to understand the reason behind all this. 

People started to have compassion and begged God for a miracle. He himself stopped praying and waited on God for a miracle. Sometimes he would talk to God, telling Him that the people would say that God does not hear him anymore; or that his trust in God was in vain, that he was just another person on earth believing in a God who does not really care. 

While in hospital, a tragedy happened to another family elsewhere. A young 26-year-old woman lost her life unexpectedly. She was an organ donor. Two days after her death, her cornea was transplanted onto his eye. The operation was done by a very skilled specialist and was completed successfully. Six days thereafter, he could thank the relatives of the donor for the cornea. 

This man will never be the same again. He still cannot thank the Lord enough. Maybe people will think he is as mad as ten years ago. He just wants people to know that there is still love, peace and grace. He does not want to lose his family or friends, but he would like them to realize that his first love is still Jesus. He is our Lord, the same yesterday, today and forever. 

Have you ever heard of a man dancing and whistling in church? On the other hand, have you ever heard of a man blowing kisses to God in church? It is from a man that knows that miracle after miracle is taking place in his life. It is from a man that knows now that even if his body or parts thereof may perish, his soul and spirit belong to God. This man did not become religious - He had an encounter with Jesus. He is still blind in the one eye and is waiting for another miracle. He does not want to sin anymore. He knows he is back at the feet of the Lord where he belongs. In fact, it is the best place to be …

PLEASE HELP US HELP YOU SHARE THE BEST NEWS GOD HAS FOR EVERY PERSON BECAUSE...

JESUS DID IT! and...

YOU ARE SO GREATLY NEEDED!

Remember:  All that we do in this life comes back to our God-given purpose which is to serve and glorify God. The money and assets we accumulate, the fame and power we've attained or seek to attain - all of the things of this nature will one day pass away, but those lives of others we impact for Jesus Christ will last for eternity, and we will be rewarded for the part we helped play by impacting those lives ... for eternity. (Matthew 6:19-20 is our assurance)