She sighed as her eyes fell on the calendar. The new month had dumped a bag full of expectation on her laps. “Everything will be all right,” said the doctor. Now, as she recalled that visit to the hospital, she bled hot tears. The sign she desperately watched for had been flushed down infertility’s drainpipe. Meanwhile, bills, so hard to come by, had crawled up to her neck.
“I have been searching for God’s gift of the fruit of the womb for more than a year,” said Mrs. Ovoke Charles-Udo. Her journey, punctuated by frustrating stops at “several things” and “several hospitals,” meant diapers, baby cot and toys were a painful distance away.
Besides her diagnosed fibroid and her husband’s “sperm motility problem,” Ovoke battled satanic powers sworn she would never have joy. “Whenever I take in,” she said, “I get an attack. And the next thing I realise is that the pregnancy disappears.”
Faith however had been growing deeper roots and larger boulders in the hearts of Ovoke and her husband. Following “advise to have in vitro fertilisation (IVF) or intra uterine insemination (IUF),” the couple concluded enough was enough! They decided it was time they trusted God “from whom children come”.
Then came December 2016 at the Synagogue, Church Of all Nations (SCOAN). The Man of God, Prophet T.B. Joshua turned to the congregation. Arm outstretched, he proclaimed: “Be free in the might name of Jesus Christ!”
The congregation thundered: “AMEN!”
“Be free in the mighty name of Jesus!” he came again.
Once more, the worshipers roared: “AMEN!”
One woman who had come for the special year’s end programme logged her faith into the anointed words. Although her shrill “amen!” was drowned out by the multitude’s, Mrs. Ovoke gave confidence the right of way, and she wasn’t disappointed.
Suddenly, she felt a hotness in her tummy and fell down. She knew a spiritual operation had just happened in her body. An evangelist rushed to her side and helped her back to her feet. She would never forget the words the lady whispered into her ears. “GO AND RETURN WITH YOUR TESTIMONY!”
The following month, “I persuaded my husband to register us as Emmanuel TV Partners, which he did in February. That same month, we also prayed with the Prophet during the Sunday mass prayer on Emmanuel TV, ministered the Morning Water, and then met as husband and wife.”
Her many months of travail ended, Mrs. Ovoke Charles-Udo exclaimed: “I AM PREGNANT AT LAST!”