The Storm is Here

By Femi Aribisala

Roughly two months ago, God gave me a prophecy that I then preached during a Sunday Service at Healing Wings, Chapel of Faith, Lagos. I entitled it: “A Storm is Coming.” I said on that occasion: “There is a storm coming. Therefore, prepare for battle. But those who dwell in the secret place of the Most High will not be affected.”

The prophecy came to me in a vision. In the vision, I was talking to a friend of mine, Benzak Uzuegbu. Suddenly, I became like one of the sons of Issachar who had “understanding of the times.” (2 Chronicles 12:32). I looked up and noticed a change in the clouds. Although it was daytime, the sky suddenly became dark and I said to Benzak: “Look, a storm is coming.”

Then the scene changed. I was no longer with Benzak but with the Head of State in a strange house. I knew instinctively that the Head of State was the Lord God Almighty. From the house, we could hear armoured tanks of soldiers rolling in the streets. Automatically, we knew they were headed to invade the residence of the Head of State. Perhaps it was an attempted coup d’etat.

But we laughed at them because they had been fooled. The Head of State had inside knowledge of their plot. That was why he was not in his official residence but with me in a secret house. So, they would get to his residence and find no one there. As we were laughing at them, the vision ended.

Scriptural backing

This vision brings to mind the second psalm: “Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, ‘Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us.’ He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep displeasure.” (Psalm 2:1-5).

As a result of this vision, I concluded that a storm was coming. Those in authority may send the military to move against the people. But those who dwell in the secret place of the Most High would not be affected. That is why the psalmist continues:

“Now therefore, be wise, O kings; be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled but a little. You shall break them with a rod of iron; you shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’ Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.” (Psalm 2:10-12).

I did not know the precise nature of the storm I saw or when it would happen. Therefore, after telling the members of Healing Wings about it, I insisted that we should commit the vision to prayer. I delegated seven people to lead us in prayer about it over the next seven days. We normally have a one-hour Zoom prayer meeting in Healing Wings every night at midnight that links our members in Nigeria with those in Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, Great Britain, and the United States

One of those who led the Midnight Prayers afterward was Mrs. Joy Obi. Like me, she is called as a prophet. She received a confirmation vision of this prophecy that was far more distressing than mine. She said many people were killed and there was a lot of bloodshed. So, we had to pray against bloodshed.

Confirmation

I had forgotten about this prophecy when, on the morning of Monday, 19th October 2020, I got a phone-call from Benzak Uzuegbu. He said to me: “The storm that God told you about is happening now. It is coming to pass through the ENDSARS protests.”

It was only then that I linked the ENDSARS protest to God’s prophecy. I find it significant that it was the same Benzak, who was there in the vision that God gave me, that then came in-person to alert me about the realization of the vision.

Before then, I had not paid much attention to the ENDSARS protest beyond the fact that it made it very inconvenient for me to go from my house in Lekki to my office in Victoria Island, Lagos, and back. One day, it took me over 5 hours to return home. I came back home at 10 minutes to midnight; just in time for the midnight prayers that I coordinate.

But after he spoke to me, I now believe he is correct. The storm that God warned us about is coming through this nationwide ENDSARS protests. That same morning, another friend, Chibuzor Nwosu, phoned to tell me that the protesters had completely blocked the Lekki expressway from Ajah to Epe; and that they are now demanding that “Buhari must go.”

That means the stakes have been raised considerably. Since I heard tanks rolling in the streets in the vision God gave me, I believe the army will sooner or later be brought in to quell the ENDSARS protest. That will take it to another level because the army boys do not seem to have any respect for Nigerian lives.

If these young boys and girls start getting killed, then we are in for a big crisis that might tear the very fabric of this country apart. But I hope and pray that it will not come to that.

Word of caution

So, what is the point of this prophecy? Why did God give it to us? My conclusion is that God wants his children to pray for Nigeria so that His will shall be done with minimal repercussions. The members of the Nigerian government should be careful not to take strong-arm measures against these protesters, otherwise, they will have to answer to God.

I commend to them, the wisdom of Gamaliel: “I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it — lest you even be found to fight against God.” (Acts 5:38-39).

The psalmist says God will break the powers-that-be with a rod of iron; He will dash the government to pieces like a potter’s vessel. Therefore, they are duly warned.

But the protesters too should not get too carried away by their newfound strength. They must be prayerful. This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: “‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the Lord of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6). The protesters must not allow hoodlums and the violent to hijack their struggle. “In righteousness they must be established, and they will be far from oppression.” (Isaiah 54:14)

God has largely spared us in Nigeria from the scourge of the COVID-19 pandemic. Before some label me as a prophet of doom, please be reminded that I declared at the beginning of this pandemic that: “There is no Coronavirus in Nigeria.” If you still cannot see how God fulfilled that article of faith (it was not a prophecy), I cannot help you.

But this one is a different kettle of fish. Children of God all over Nigeria, it is time to seek the face of the Lord. He says: “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14-15).

Culled from the Vanguard