GOD'S GLORY REVEALED:
By Nick Pettit
Jesus said that the Kingdom of God comes without observation. But, for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear, the presence of God's Kingdom, and His glory are fully revealed. I feel a little like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. must have felt when he spoke to the hundreds of thousands of civil rights demonstrators during a march on Washington, DC many years ago. His message was anchored by the following statement: "I have been to the mountaintop, and I have seen the promised land". No enemy can take away the inspiration and faith which come with a revelation from the Living God.
THE GLORY IS IN THE DETAILS:
In the spring of 2004 Diane and I were planning to return to Congo for a second time. All was set for our arrival on April 18, 2004. All the preparations had been made in Africa and Samuel Dikaniakina had traveled from Nairobi to Congo expecting our arrival. As the last minute to purchase tickets and finalize our plans approached, we could not find God's peace in proceeding. I was experiencing more back pain than usual and Diane's fibromialgia and chronic fatigue were acting up and she was not up to the trip. We both understood that when God gives an assignment, He makes the preparation, He provides the means and the anointing, and He brings forth the fruit, in short, He makes our way straight. Things were not lining up so we called Samuel and told him we could not come as planned on April 18, and put the trip on indefinite hold.
Almost immediately, as soon as we made the decision to put the trip on hold, Diane discovered a lump in my back, right on my spine. We had our doctor examine it and the diagnosis was that it was a large (5cm across) tumor, which was not cancerous. In late April, instead of being in Congo, I found myself in the hospital having this tumor removed. The outcome of the surgery was a great reduction of the back pain with which I had suffered for many years. The surgeon told me, after the operation, that the tumor was pressing on one of the main nerves running down my back.
After several weeks, as I was recovering from this surgery, Diane suddenly began to feel much better and we felt released to resume our plans for Africa. The timing of the trip was perfect. The sequence of events, which could not have been anticipated, was clearly the divine plan of God and bore incredible fruit for the people of Congo.
The day before we left for Africa I was told by my doctor that I had prostate cancer. On the flight to Africa I read a book provided by the doctor and decided that removal of the prostate was the best option for me. I e-mailed my doctor and had him prepare for the surgery shortly after our return. The surgery was performed on July 12 and the surgeon feels confident that all the cancer was removed.
On August 7 we went on vacation with some of our children and their families. After five perfect days at the beach, on August 13, I had a heart attack. It occurred at night while the house was asleep. I had my son, Gabriel drive me to the hospital just as tropical storm Bonnie was passing overhead. The emergency room doctor gave me a "clot buster" and transferred me to the hospital at Myrtle Beach, which has a cardiac unit. The "clot buster" stopped the heart attack and prevented any major damage from occurring. I later realized that, had I had the heart attack at home, Diane would not have been able to drive me to the hospital because of the medications she must take at bedtime, and I probably would have waited until morning. The Doctors at Myrtle Beach wanted to operate right away since the heart catheterization revealed five blockages. Again, Diane and I had no peace about having surgery done there and opted to be transferred to Wake Medical Center in Raleigh. Our surgeon at Wake felt it was not a good decision to operate right away since I had been taking blood thinners. At his suggestion we waited several days for the thinners to work their way out of my system before surgery. If we had had the surgery at Myrtle Beach, on their schedule, we would have run a much greater risk of complications. As it was, the quadruple bypass surgery went perfectly and I am now home recovering.
Some might be tempted to say 'I am under attack' and blame the devil for all this calamity. Others might say "the devil is really mad because you are bearing fruit for the Kingdom of God." In praying this through, I have rejected all such ideas. Instead, I have been to the mountaintop and seen the Promised Land. I have seen the sovereign hand of God move on my behalf with perfect timing and divine order. I have seen my physical body delivered from pain, cancer, and heart disease, all of which I had no prior knowledge of. I have seen this earthen vessel in which I dwell renewed and made ready to run the race that is set before me, until I have no more need of it. In just four months, our wonderful God has done all this as well as fit in an exceedingly fruitful month in Congo. Emotionally and spiritually I have never been stronger and my physical body gets stronger every day. I give glory, honor and praise to my God for His faithfulness and His manifest love.
END
AFRICA UPDATE: 9/3/04
We talked with Samuel and Helen Dikaniakina by phone the other night. They are very excited about their upcoming visit to NC in October. They will likely be speaking at the Sunday services at Fellowship of Christ on October 24 and we hope to schedule a covered dish dinner at the church so all of you can come and get to know this wonderful couple. Also, they report that there have been two incursions by the Rwandans into eastern Congo since we left. Each time they have an invasion, the Congolese replay the TV programs in which we read the prophecy to Congo and they discuss anew how God's word is true and how these invaders will not prevail. Each time they invade they are driven back. God is really getting glory and the Congolese people are encouraged. Samuel keeps telling us that we have no idea how much we are loved by the Congolese. This is an incredible blessing to us.
Samuel told us that, last month, Helen came from Kenya to Congo and, very soon contracted a severe case of malaria, which almost took her life. She was very close to death and the doctors were helpless. This emphasizes in a dramatic way the need for the planned clinic in Kinshasa to be up and running as soon as possible. We still need your generous gift toward the shipping of medical equipment and supplies for the clinic. We also need those who feel led to make monthly contributions on an ongoing basis to keep the clinic supplied with medicine and supplies. Make checks out to Fellowship of Christ and indicate on the memo line "Africa Clinic". If you wish to contribute to Oak Tree Ministries simply put that on the memo line instead. Mail your tax-deductible contributions to Fellowship of Christ, 1788 Kildaire Farm Rd., Cary, NC 27511. May God richly bless you as you seek to serve Him in all things.
Blessings
Nick & Diane