My Redeemer Liveth

My beloved reader, have you ever heard of a great man called George F. Handel? If you haven't, let me civilize you a little by informing you that he was one of the greatest classical music composers ever to grace this planet. He flourished as a musician in the 18th century and his music still inspires people to this day.

Personally, I have come to love listening to the music of Handel, especially his famous oratorio known as "Messiah". The oratorio is sublimely beautiful and edifying.

My all-time favourite movement of that oratorio is "I Know That My Redeemer Liveth". I sometimes play it on my piano keyboard over and over again which tells of how greatly I love the movement.

And for sure, I know my redeemer liveth; I pray to a God who lives and loves me. His eyes are always on me as they are on the sparrow. And because my redeemer lives, I recently found myself thinking of all the ways God has redeemed me from depressing moods in the past. Okay, let me tell you about them.

In 2008 after I was discharged from Thika Nursing Home where I had been forcefully admitted when I was apprehended after going astray at the university in JKUAT, I didn't want to go back home due to the boring menial tasks I would be ordered to do. So as my father was taking me home, I ran away from him and went back to JKUAT to hang around as I had been doing before I was apprehended.

And guess what! When I went back to JKUAT, I felt dull and hopeless. I also became sick, probably as a result of abruptly discontinuing the medication I had been put through at Thika Nursing Home. So sick did I become that one morning, I felt like I was dying after I unsuccessfully tried to awaken myself from slumber several times.

While still in that state of dullness, hopelessness and sickness, I happened to go to a JKUAT classroom whose walls were full of graffiti. And among the graffiti was one message that touched me; it said, "Cheer up! The worst is yet to come."

Looking back, I now believe that graffiti message on the wall was God's way of trying to redeem me from depressing moods. And in the past few weeks whenever I have been in the doldrums, I have found myself remembering that message, "Cheer up! The worst is yet to come."

Then in 2010, in those days I used to feel deadly dull and guilty, I inadvertently found John Mason's Conquering an Enemy Called Average while ransacking my father's collection of books. And wow! What an inspiring read it turned out to be! The book rejuvenated my spirits and made me fully alive again. That was God redeeming me.

And then in late 2010, God redeemed me from yet another depressing mood by making me cut weight easily. As I have explained before on this blog, I gained a lot of weight in the years 2009 and 2010. People who had known me for years commented on how plump I had grown, comments that didn't impress me at all since I had always wanted to be lean and athletic.

One time in 2009 for instance, my brother Paddy remarked that my cheeks were puffy. He uttered that remark in a tone that suggested he was displeased with my excess weight. To bring my weight down, I went on a fast which I didn't enjoy. And it didn't work.

It therefore delighted me when I finally lost weight in late 2010 and regained my youthful swagger. I attribute that weight loss to the lots of walking I did while commuting to the University of Nairobi where I had matriculated to pursue a degree in political science, history, economics & public administration. When I think about that weight loss now, I believe that was God's way of redeeming me from the depressing state that was being fat.

My redeemer liveth for shizzle. I am therefore now confident that no matter what happens to me in this life, God will always find a way of lifting my spirits as he has done in the past. He will turn my frustrations into blessings and make a way where there is no way. That's what I believe. And you?

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RECOMMENDATION: If you've enjoyed the above story on how my redeemer liveth, you might also enjoy another one on "Salvation is Free Folks!" which I wrote sometime back. Just click on that link in blue to dive straight into the story.