It was a Friday afternoon and I was over at Samedi's house. This is Tony's grandfather, the man who has worked at the Adventist Hospital for thirty years. He started there as the janitor and now is doing surgeries. He has at least 25 family members living with him and there was a little construction going on over at his house so I went over to check it all out. Tony told me that his brother Weiba's wife was hit with something in the night. The people here have so many crazy voodoo ideas of what is going on with their lives that I tried to understand what he was telling me but it just didn't make any sense. But what I did get from what he was trying to explain to me was that she was trapped with evil spirits tormenting her. She is about 15 or 16 years old and just had a baby 3 weeks ago. She never goes anywhere and so Jamie and I were thinking that maybe she was crying a lot because she has postpartum depression and that the people here just don't know about things like that. But then while I was there I could hear her cries, they were piercing. I felt for her. It was so much that I kept thinking about her long after we were gone.
Later that evening I asked Tony if he would go back over to their house with me because there is another little 2 year old girl (Temda Tammy) that is sick and I wanted to check on her and also talk to them about Weiba's wife and see if she was doing any better. I was brought into their salon where they have what is like wooden patio furniture in there without any cushions. I immediately feel a wall of heat in the room, it was like walking into a brick oven. I am shown, by Jolie Tony's grandmother, where I should sit. She comes to shake my hand again after sitting down, which is a ritual that they do. You are greeted with a hand shake when you first get to their house and then again once you sit down, it is very time consuming but part of the culture and you actually get use to it. Temda was doing much better but they are still concerned about Weiba's wife. They said that she is now having fainting spells. She is possessed by three of her dead brothers which insulted Samedi and Jolie and insisted on receiving money. I was thinking to myself, even the dead is asking for money. They did give her money and the spirits settled down for a while and let the girl rest but now she is having these fainting spells. While we are in this room talking about her, she comes walking in without my knowledge. Then I see her behind me on this big rug that they have. Weiba is right behind her as she walks toward the wall. All of a sudden it was almost like she ran into a wall but from the side of her like she was hit with a board and then she falls straight to the ground without bending her knees to protect herself. When I saw it I couldn't believe it and I was instantly full of fear. The room was very dark and as I am witnessing this it feels a little darker. I instantly look over at Tony and he covered his face with his hands. I felt fear at first and then as I was able to process it I felt a comfort in knowing that I am safe because God IS with me. I had a real feeling like I needed to pray for her. I just sat and listened to Samedi and Jolie as they talked about the poor girls fainting spells like this. After the conversation settled down I could feel my conscience telling me that I needed to pray with her and for her. I am a missionary and this is the exact thing that I am here for to be used as a tool to push Satan away. So I looked at Tony and asked if he thought it would be ok for me to pray with her. He looked at me with a proud smile and said that it would be good. He told his grandparents what I had said and they instantly stood up and said, "koura" which means thats good in Nangjere and I followed them to her room.
We walked outside and music was playing by the many children that were wrestling on the mat right outside her room. Samedi said something in Nangjere to them and the music was turned off and every person in that compound entered the room with us. I respectfully took my shoes off outside and walked into a dark room. I could see her laying on a mat next to her newborn baby. I felt so much compassion for her. I knew that what I was getting ready to do was what God wanted me to do. My insides were turning. I was doing a lot of thinking of what I needed to say to God in this very important prayer. I began to pray. I knew that the only person in the room that knew what I was saying would be Tony and even though I was in a room with about 25 people I felt alone with God. I prayed. I begged for mercy on her part and claimed promises that God has given us in the bible and demanded Satan to leave this girl in the name of Jesus Christ. When the prayer was finished the Holy Spirit could be felt and I felt so peaceful.
Tony and I walked back home in the dark. I asked him what he was thinking and he told me that what I did for his family was very very good and he gave me a big smile. I just thank God for giving me the strength to be here for doing what He wants me to do.
Sent from my I-phone
Jamie Parker
Director of Maintenance
Hopital Adventiste de Bere
Chad, Africa
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