The Words of the Adams Family
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The Words of the Adams Family |
After
Sunday service at the headquarters center in Lagos.
Annerose Adams is the German missionary to Nigeria. The material in her report, especially that dealing with the spiritual phenomena, has been greatly condensed. Readers wanting a more detailed account may write to the editor.
Soon after the Declaration of the Day of Victory of Love in 1984, members all over the world realized that a Pentecost of the Completed Testament era had begun, and that Heung Jin Nim, Jesus, and Heavenly Father could reveal themselves and give direct guidance at any time and place. In the history of the Unification Church of Nigeria the year 1986 is very special, because since January spiritual phenomena have been showing us that God definitely wants this Pentecost to come alive in Nigeria. This year our living Heavenly Father came down and spoke to us and led us all to an oasis of new life.
The year began with much repentance. We felt we had no external results to offer Heavenly Father. Then at 3 a.m. on January 13, while deep in prayer, our sister received her first revelation from Heavenly Father. He told her to meet and teach a very important Nigerian citizen who was needed to fill the John the Baptist position in the country. Incredulously, she followed God's exact instructions and indeed met this very prepared man. Our members could immediately begin teaching him Principle lectures.
Meanwhile, despite our continuing economic hardships, a time of intense activity began. We prepared fundraising product throughout much of the night, often by candlelight in the usual "blackout:' Members also practiced lecturing intensely for 120 days. Our main hall accommodated four or five blackboards, all occupied by brothers and sisters teaching from midnight until daybreak. All elder members joined in a 120-day condition of prayer, with fasting on each 40th day.
In June, 12 members also began praying one hour each, every night between midnight and 6 a.m., for 21 days. The sixth month of the year was especially difficult for us. The pioneers suffered, members got sick, money was lost and stolen, and one business project we had set up to earn funds became a total financial failure. Everything seemed to be bleak. Yet a little voice of intuition awakened within me and said very clearly, 'A great blessing is awaiting your' I managed to remain hopeful as we prepared to enter the eighth month of the year and, perhaps, a new beginning.
All-night
lecture practice.
On August 1, immediately after pledge service as we were waiting to receive some guidance and reports, sister B. turned to all of us, bowed, and greeted us with: "Good morning, brothers and sisters. My name is Jesus Christ." Remembering the experience of Faith Jones helped us to realize that the situation was quite serious. Jesus' message of encouragement and love was short, and then he said his brother Heung Jin Nim wished to speak. Sister bowed again, and Heung Jin Nim introduced himself. He chastised the members, asked for repentance, and spoke about the grave seriousness of the situation in Nigeria.
At the end of the speech sister collapsed. Then another member, sister also trembling and gripped by the spirit, now hastily dictated the names of a number of elder members who were to immediately meet in the prayer room. We assembled quickly, and thereupon we received more incredible revelations from many heavenly sources. Jesus came again and spoke through a Ghanaian brother, clutching a small picture of Jesus to his chest. Heavenly Father's own words were dramatically given to us through one of our elder sisters. God expressed His personal love to us by word and by gesture and commissioned all of us, one by one, to unite with our central figures and each other and to go out and witness to the churches. Before Heavenly Father, shedding sweat and tears right in front of us, what else could we do but try to immediately I change our concepts?
At the same moment, in another room where members were gathered, Heavenly Father began to speak through our brother Ola Oluwa. Ola was commissioned by God to testify to his own father. He was also told to go to a specific church through which God wanted to begin a process of judgment in the country. Later the same day Ola received the message that Heavenly Father wanted to speak through him to all the members of the church on Sunday, August 3, at 6 p.m.
We who were present that August 1 were not the same after these experiences. Our minds and hearts had begun to be filled with something inexplicably new and precious.
On August 3, in anticipation of the unknown, we tried to prepare ourselves internally. Altogether, about 70 members gathered on that Sunday afternoon; three home members were also selected to attend. At 6 p.m. Ola stood up and, with closed eyes and outstretched arms, was guided to the front of the room. From there he addressed the members for 70 minutes.
During the message 10 different members were individually called upon by Heavenly Father and given encouragement or new direction in their work. The message was conveyed with great empathy and dignity. Heavenly Father exhorted us to begin a 40-day condition of internal guidance and fasting once a week, and He said that the money saved from each fasting day should be sent to the True Parents as an offering.
Gradually we recovered from the shock and deep impact all these spiritual events had made on us. From the following Sunday, August 10, the internal guidance and fasting condition began. We were now left with the heavy responsibility to realize all the instructions from our Heavenly Father, and this process is still going on today.
A
session at the 5th annual PWPA-Nigeria conference.
Despite an impressive potential, a nation plunged so deeply in sin as ours needed a lot of restoration work in order for Heavenly Father to have made such a substantial manifestation as this. Over a period of time known only to Him, numerous conditions both internal and external had been laid in Nigeria before He could come to us in this way. The following is a brief account of the ways in which Heavenly Father guided us and the conditions we made that helped create the base upon which He could speak.
The growth within the Nigerian mission, especially from 1981, was based on the foundation of the first missionaries who arrived in 1975 and patiently underwent many internal and external trials. Heavenly Father then prepared some sisters from far away in England, who joined in 1979. Vera Ukommi (now Shandalala) was chosen from them to return to her native country at the end of the same year, and she soon became an invaluable support through her wholehearted investment, her evangelical spirit, her tearful prayers, and her round-the-clock dedication. Additional support came with a second sister. The active spirit of these two members, coupled with their deep faith and their strong personalities, was an essential seed for the growth in tradition and spirit of the Nigerian church.
From 1981, under a new mission leadership and finally in a larger center, a whole new generation of life and activity began. Fundraising gradually became very successful. From March of 1981, the first new members joined. Hope and deep excitement came to those of us who had endured for a long time. In our activity, we hardly knew the difference between day and night. Teaching, studying, praying, and a lot of stimulated discussion took up most of our time. People joined, assisted by spirit world giving them dreams, visions, and testimonies about the second coming of the Messiah. Truly we knew that, after years of lonely trials, a time of renewal had come.
Also, any resentment on the part of Nigerians against white people seemed to be comparatively rare. We missionaries were so far from perfect, yet the support we received from our younger members was genuine and faithful. I always believed that their faith in the Principle, their hard work, and their open- mindedness would move the heart of Heavenly Father and console Him.
Hardly was the first minimum foundation of about 12 center members laid, in early 1982, when our West African family was organized into one French-speaking and one English- speaking region, each with its own regional leader. Nigeria was chosen as regional headquarters for the English-speaking region -- a first indication of larger responsibilities to come. A deeper test came along quickly in the form of a more internal challenge to not only grow in numbers but in depth of heart, and especially in tolerance, understanding, and forgiveness.
ISUM,
July 1986
The Ghana mission had gotten off to a good start since 1975, and there were several elder members in that country already. Those members were among the first to come to Nigeria to form fundraising teams. In February 1982 a bloody revolution in Ghana resulted in a difficult socio-political and economic situation. It was therefore decided to let the mission of Ghana be based in Nigeria. Initially, this was quite hard for brothers and sisters from both families. In overcoming a lot of misunderstandings and differences of character and culture for a period of three and a half years, these members are now working together closely; the bond of heartistic unity created between the two mission countries has made it possible for both nations to receive God's blessing as brothers.,
After two years of many blessings, a time of trial inevitably had to come. The kind of pattern in which Satan and God closely follow each other became very clear to us in those years and made us feel that we were definitely on the front line and could not afford to relax. So we trained ourselves to retain our hope for a piece of "heaven" even in the midst of struggles. Overcoming all the challenges facing us required a high degree of patience and the wisdom and courage to remain connected with the truth and the example of our True Parents. So much of the basic strength and internal stability of the church is owed to our central figures, Mr. and Mrs. Kijima, through their unfailing example of love for the public mission and their readiness to forsake their individual desires. With one central couple not shying away from the front line, the way could be opened for others to follow in their footsteps.
A period of depression began in 1983 on various levels at the same time. Suddenly aliens were made very unwelcome by the Nigerian government, and many of them were expelled. This naturally weighed down our Ghanaian brothers and sisters. Witnessing activity became more sluggish. A drastic change in the economic situation of the country was the heaviest blow. After the collapse of the oil market, and with gross overspending within the nation, Nigerians became more money- conscious and fundraising became much more difficult for us. This was the beginning of a dry period, since our fundraising could not keep up with the higher expenses. The coming years, therefore, became a test of the faith and endurance of each individual member.
The economic pressures became most painful to us when some of our most fundamental human needs could not be taken care of, such as when we had to stand in long lines for an item of clothing or for simple medical treatment. Despite these difficulties, new developments in our movement still took place. By 1985, pioneering centers were established in nine states. Also in 1983 Albert Shandalala, Vera's husband, came to join the mission. His coming became a great blessing for the mission through his love for God and True Parents, his unreserved dedication, and his capable leadership. Although the overall external result and our growth in those years seemed to be small, many of the members proved very faithful as they sincerely and successfully tried to overcome many obstacles. Despite the deprivations encountered, there was rarely a spirit of complaint.
Albert
Shandalala (standing, fourth from right) and his wife Vera (standing,
far right) with the members of the New Generation team.
In those early Pentecostal times, our PWPA activity was successfully begun. A seminar in 1982 was attended by only a handful of scholars from West African countries, but their interest was carried to many universities. A great number of academicians organized an annual conference and eventually set up a structured body for a Nigerian chapter of PWPA. Nigeria has about 25 universities, 12 of which are federal and the rest state-owned. There is also a large number of technical and educational colleges, law schools, and other institutes of higher learning -- a potential second to none in Africa. In the complete absence of experience or academic understanding on our part, credit must be given to our professors who endured with us throughout the past three to four years. Their cooperative spirit of participation has gradually allowed them to inherit many points of Father's worldview, vision, and ideals. Today, after a three-year battle, our young chapter of PWPA-Nigeria has finally obtained legal recognition from the government authorities.
Throughout our True Father's 13 months in prison, all Nigerian members suffered a 21-minute prayer condition at 6 a.m. every day. The whole church tried to repent, although it was often not easy or successful for some.
During the final 40 days before Father's release, we tried to lay the best possible foundation upon which to receive him. Activities of prayer, witnessing, and internal guidance were intensified. During that time, unexpectedly, professors of all nations gave their names in support of a statement about Father issued by PWPA International entitled "Proud to Know Him." The names of 12 Nigerian professors appeared on the statement -- the third-largest number of names from any one country. We were thankful that they were chosen to contribute to the welcoming of our Father and thus to the building of a more significant internal foundation for Nigeria.
Another factor leaves us in deep gratitude -- the fact that a Nigerian, Christopher Oduwole, was a roommate of Father during his stay at the halfway house. A number of times I asked myself, "Why should our nation deserve this?" Our central figure and I were very lucky to meet the man in New York very soon after Father's release and to hear from him directly about his encounters with True Parents. The whole situation reminded us of Simon of Cyrene, the black man who helped Jesus carry his cross.
In October of 1985 we were asked, as were all mission countries, to try to find 10,000 associate members. Although we were late getting started, everyone joined in the campaign. We even set up a competition among the various departments and pioneering centers. Our young members, the "New Generation Team;' were given the chance to work full- time on this project. With simple associate membership forms, brothers and sisters went out in an effort to turn Lagos upside down.
We gratefully acknowledged the wonderful freedom in which we could spread Heavenly Father's word and give everyone the opportunity to make this small condition. One day, a group of policemen arrested us for illegal parking, but instead of charging us they signed associate membership forms! Our goal had been to reach the 10,000 mark within 40 days, but after only 21 days we were able to hold a victory celebration for a total of over 14,000 associate members.
God's
Day 1986
There is something special about Nigeria. Many people seem to fear this nation. Like many other foreigners, I had thought that if I came to Nigeria I might be killed here. How little I knew this nation! Its greatest potential for "killing" is in getting rid of the old self and helping the new self to be born. From the outset, I found life full of surprises and excitement.
Having previously worked underground in a country with a strong military regime and then under the spiritual constraints of an Islamic nation, I was touched to my innermost heart at the freedoms I encountered in Nigeria. It is so easy to relate naturally to Nigerians, especially on religious issues. The spirit of familiarity and friendship can be evoked quickly, even among strangers, and generosity and warmth of heart are common.
More and more I came to realize how much the spirit of freedom can be used for God and His providence, if only good leadership is provided. I was particularly astounded by the religious freedom and the generally peaceful coexistence of Christians and Muslims worshiping God in their own ways. Both Sundays and Fridays are respected here as holidays for believers. Indeed, in Nigeria any faith can be practiced, and anywhere.
The practice of prayer further illustrates the freedom in Nigeria. Apart from our own church centers (where our night-time prayers often resound into the neighborhood) we are able to pray with people anywhere and in any kind of situation. At one point during a difficult period of our fundraising, we even prayed with our fundraising contacts -- mostly directors of companies and other businessmen -- before asking for a donation.
As for fundraising, some do disappoint and cheat us, of course, but many others respond out of their deep love for God and contribute to our providential work with whatever they have and with uncommon generosity. Missionaries and members from at least nine different African countries came to raise funds in Nigeria during 1981-1982. In that way Nigeria could begin to serve the entire continent at a relatively early stage.
Beyond everything, I have one striking realization: that of the providential role and importance of Nigeria. With 100 million people, it is the most populated African nation. Lagos, a breathless island metropolis, always reminds me of New York; the city and state together count for some 7 million inhabitants -- the population of several other African countries combined! As an extremely active business center, Lagos is indeed a melting pot of people from all races, nationalities, religions, and walks of life. The 19-state federation is a land of beautiful extremes of nature from north to south and east to west; at the same time it is a land greatly blessed in mineral and other natural resources. Nigeria has freely offered her soil for the development of all kinds of enterprise to an extent rarely found anywhere else in Africa.
Unfortunately, though, the recent oil boom, Nigeria's "gold rush" has had sad consequences for a people who could hardly refrain from yielding to the temptation of the quick acquisition of material wealth, thereby betraying human values and precipitating the society's moral decline. This situation is quite similar to the state America is in now. Nigeria contains almost one fourth of the population of the whole African continent. Could it be that the position of Nigeria within Africa is the same as that of America in relationship to the rest of the world? From the start this was my conviction, and I felt that living and working in Nigeria meant living and working for the whole of Africa. The mission of Nigeria is crucial. She has to realize that the abundant blessings given to her by God are not for this nation alone but for the entire continent.
Now we know it is up to us in Nigeria to humble ourselves and overcome our narrow concepts of how, when, and where to work for God and others. On the strong foundation set by our members, Nigeria must go toward her destined victory and then do the same for others as Heavenly Father did for us. I hope that the internal revolution of heart generated here in Nigeria quickly spreads around Africa and throughout the whole world.
The
national fundraising team, with Mrs. Annerose Adams at the center,
carrying fundraising products.
Good evening, my beloved children. In the name of the True Parents, you are all welcome to this gathering. How are you all feeling? Is any of you having doubt? There are many things I want to share with you at this moment.
Last year, in this same month, True Father left the prison. And then after he went home triumphantly, he spoke to the members that all the failures of the past 40 years in the wilderness had been liquidated. But how do you members feel about that? You took it lightly, and you still continue to play with the mission. Don't you believe the True Parents? I have determined to speak directly to you. Then you shall all know that I am indeed the Lord God.
I will speak to every one of you if you are willing. If you want me to come into you, I will. Now my message:
My dear children, the time is short. Now I am fully stretching forth my hands to all the corners of the earth. Anyone who lifts a hand against my True Son and True Daughter shall see me first. I will cause the earth to tremble. I will fulfill all my prophecies. Then you shall all know that I am the Lord God.
You have wasted much time doing other things, and you still cling to material pursuits. All of you are rushing for that which will soon perish. You are all spiritually so low, so low. Can't you consider the True Parents? Have you not been taught how much they suffered? My son Jesus Christ came to this earth 2,000 years ago and worked to fulfill the same will. But the world misunderstood him. Do you want to misunderstand again? If you don't want to misunderstand, then stand up on your feet.
The time has come for many of you to go to many nations even if you do not speak the language; but you will be sent there, and you must pioneer. What is the basic principle that guides everything? Is it not the word that I gave through the True Parents? Is it not the Principle? But how many of you are investing your time in really studying the Principle? Many of you spend your time doing other things, reading other books, when you have your Father's words. But even when you read them you do not understand. How many of you are ready to take up the cross?
There are many things that must be voiced at this time. What is the root of sin? Is it not fornication? Do you want to be involved in unnatural lust? Satan is tempting many of you. You must be prepared to combat him, because this is the last struggle between him and myself.
Let me tell you: The time is coming and it is now. But I want to forewarn you: Every one of you must memorize the Principle, because without it you cannot confront the other Christian churches. Do you know what the communists do? Do you know how much their children memorize the words of Karl Marx and the words of Lenin? You are all in a position to do the same thing with the Principle. Learn and pray for wisdom and understanding. You must memorize the Principle, because soon you will be the ones to answer the questions; you will be the ones to proclaim the True Parents. The way is wide open; you are free to do the will of the Father. If you have any doubt in your minds, go to your leaders. Ask them questions and take their instructions. My children, you have worked so hard for this day when I could come to you. You have waited so long to hear my voice. This is not the end.
I want you to sing for me song No. 13. (Singing.) Thank you very much.
This is addressed particularly to those who are to be blessed. All of you who are under preparation to be blessed must now search your hearts. You must go deep into yourselves. Otherwise, you will be surprised that when you appear before the True Parents you may be rejected. Many of you will be rejected. Go deep into repentance and let me come into you so that you can become acceptable beings before the True Parents. The True Parents are desperate to give out the Blessing. Satan is also desperate to make an end of it. Prepare very hard. Shed more tears, shed more blood, shed more sweat, so that when the time comes you will meet the True Parents victoriously, and upon seeing you they will feel happy. If they are not happy, you know I myself am not happy.
Therefore, I charge every one of you who is to be blessed to prepare your heart; otherwise you will see that the Blessing may be postponed many times. It will not be because of the True Parents, not because of the blessed members, but because of your behavior. You do not have love enough. You must love all the people around you. Love is the music of the Unification Church, isn't it true? But many among you have deep resentments, even against the ones closest to you. Go deep into yourselves. Be prepared; the time is coming!
My children, I depend on you. Will you continue to be sleepy? Do you know that you sleep too much? Now is the time to wake up from your slumber! Many times the True Parents have warned you that after pledge service you should not go back to sleep. Read the words of the True Parents. Go out and fundraise! Go out and witness! Study so that you will have more knowledge. Too much sleep has deteriorated your foundation. Do you believe this? Wake up from your sleep, my children. I love the True Parents very much because they never give up. They still have hope, and they have faith that restoration will surely come to this continent, to the third world countries.
I want to tell you plainly that anyone who will not abide by my Principle is definitely going to perish. Do you believe this? I cannot be silent any longer. For 6,000 years no one could understand me. Now True Father has doubled the years that my son Jesus Christ lived, and he has done so much. Therefore, get yourselves strongly into the Principle. Study the Principle all night. Were you not told by the True Parents that when your enemy sleeps one hour you should not sleep at all? I depend on you. Don't let me go back. For if I go back from Nigeria, there will be no more hope for African nations. I charge every one of you, with your faith and with all the hope that you have in True Parents, to go out! Go out and proclaim! Go out with the Principle!
The established Christian churches have gone astray. I am no longer with them. Now I rely on you. You must go out to meet them -- the churches must hear the Principle. Eleven years in this nation must not be wasted. You must work harder. You must be prepared to go forth and face the persecution; let persecution come upon you. Give everything so that the True Parents may have a nation to be called the chosen nation. Prepare, because if no nation accepts the True Parents before they come back to me, then you will know the trouble that will befall this nation. It is then that you will understand and remember this day.
My dear children, don't feel upset about the way I speak. I say these things because I want you to go deep into yourselves. Happiness comes after service. I know you have suffered, but I beg you to suffer a little more. Victory is at hand. Suffer a little more for me. For 6,000 years was I alone. Two thousand years ago I had Jesus Christ. Now I have the True Parents. You must be able to take up the cross. You must be able to stand firm on your faith and defend the Principle. You have a great mission. Show me how I can use you. Do you want me to fall back?
My dear children, I love you so much; I want you all to experience my love. I tried to give you my love many times, but your attitude blocked the way. I want to speak through each one of you. My son Ola, who is speaking my words to you, is not pure, not worthy, and still has second thoughts about whether I can speak through him. All of you are in the same state. But I want to speak through you, I want to work in every one of you. When you go out to the public, speak out and let the people tremble. I want you to speak out, because the time is near.
My dear children, prepare your hearts for the True Parents. Be truthful in all that you do. Mismanagement of money should stop. Give a full account for whatsoever you are given. By this you can purify yourselves. Then I can come into you. Do you understand me?
I love you so much, but I have not seen my love in you. I want my love to reign.
I want to tell you about one of the greatest barriers you are facing today. Do you know what it is? The language barrier! Dialects! It is one of the most important things that Satan depends on, because he knows if that barrier is there, unity cannot come about. Therefore, I want you all to promise that you will depend on the language that all of you can speak, the English language, which is next in importance to the Korean language. Do you promise me that? Will you all speak the English language? Then do you promise to build a harmonious relationship among yourselves?
My dear children, please come together, live together. Let your fellow brother and sister understand the sorrow of your heart, so that he or she can share with you. If you offend one another, confess; surely forgiveness is in your hands. I am pleading with you because I have so many places to go, so many places to speak. You want others to be found, don't you? I want you to find them all. Satan has made a prey of them. Wake up, my children, wake up! There are so many people I have prepared in this nation to receive you. Many of them are in the churches. But because you do not work hard enough, you have not met them. Some of them are tired of waiting. They don't know what to do any more. I want to charge all of you to go and meet these people.
Don't make my son Jesus Christ cry any longer. Let anyone who wants to follow, follow. In your church services pray in the name of the True Parents. If anyone asks, "Why do you pray in True Parents' name?" explain to him, and then he will come closer. Many have come, but many have gone because they didn't understand. They were waiting for wonders, but wonders are no more! This is the time of reality. You must work hard, for I am always with you. Have the desire to die for this nation, then I will resurrect you. If any of you is sick, go out and have the desire to die, so that I might heal you. Do you believe this?
My dear children, I want you to work together in harmony. Work together with your leaders so that my love can be shared among you, so that when someone enters into my premises he may feel my love. Do you want to do this for me? I want you to sing for me song No. 1.
(Singing.)
My children have gone astray. They have all gone astray. Many of them now are not even interested in education but want to involve themselves in unnatural lust, which leads to the dungeons of hell.
My children, I want you to work together. Be happy with those who are successful among you in doing my will. Do not grudge. Do not be jealous, because if you are, you cannot prosper -- you cannot rise. It is the Principle. If you work together with the person who is successful, surely you yourself will be successful. Do you understand this? This is very, very important. If you don't know how to witness, love the person who witnesses and brings forth result, and you yourself will become a good witnesser. If you don't know how to fundraise, love the person who knows how to fundraise and you yourself will become a good fundraiser.
My dear children, you must work together, you must love each other. I want the True Parents to have hope in you just as I depend on you. Do you believe this? My love I leave with you. Be prepared, for I will speak through many of you. If you prepare, I am ready to come into you. I will work in you, and then you will know that I am the Lord God.
My dear children, victory is at hand, victory is at hand. Do you believe this? You will see how many things shall be accomplished. With authority you will speak to the churches. And they shall hearken unto you. You will go to them, and you will work with them. You will proclaim my truth to them. You will tell them about the danger of communism. If the professors of this nation fail me, I will chastise them. Therefore, I want you to pray fervently for all of them. Pray for this nation.
Beware! Henceforth, until 1990, many of you will fall. Even if you are blessed, many of you will leave the Unification Church. I want you all to be strong and firm in your faith and connect yourselves to the True Parents. Pray for the True Parents' success. The True Parents have one more great mission. They want to go to Moscow. Do you want them to do that? I, too, want them to do that. But while the free countries are not yet secure, how can the True Parents leave you comfortless? Do you want them to leave you comfortless?
Whatever mission you are given, take it with love and embrace it with love. You will know that whatever circumstances you are in, as long as you follow the instruction and guidance of our True Parents, success will come. My dear children, prepare yourselves. Gird yourselves strongly.
Could you all bow your heads in prayer.