Have you, like me, ever wondered what can be done to end the brutality that has ravaged the African continent? How on earth is it possible that one human being can brutalize another as if it is nothing?
Look at the wars that have taken place on the continent eg. the Liberian war, the war in Sierra Leone, and don’t forget the Rwandan genocide to mention but a few. Even now as I write, war rages in the DRC and there are killings daily in Somalia and Mali.
We often think of murderous people as less than human. But they are not. They are human beings just like you and I, with a soul. I have long considered that these warlords/rebels are under demonic influences and all one can hope for is for them to die so that their evil treachery will cease. However, they were created by God just like you and I. So therefore they can be saved, just like you and I.
If we believe that nothing is too difficult for God then certainly he can turn their hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. And to prove this, I have a testimony to share with you that I saw the other day. It blew me away, to say the least.
The testimony of General Butt Naked whose real name is Joshua Milton Blahyi.
Joshua was at one stage believed to be one of the most inhumane and ruthless guerrilla leaders in Africa’s history.
SOURCE: http://docuwiki.net/index.php?title=Image:The-Redemption-of-General-Butt-Naked-Screen5.jpg
After the former General Butt Naked confessed his past to Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in 2008, one internet blogger asked: ‘Is this the most evil man who ever lived?’
Today he is an evangelist proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
SOURCE: http://docuwiki.net/index.php?title=Image:The-Redemption-of-General-Butt-Naked-Screen0.jpg
If you consider all that he has done and all he was involved in, you can only see God’s awesome mighty power at work. His testimony points directly to the cross of Jesus, and that is exactly what our testimonies should do.
One sometimes feels helpless seeing and hearing about all the atrocities in our continent, but do not lose hope; God is still on the throne.
Dare I suggest, that instead of becoming despondent, we pray for those who persecute others, and not against them. Imagine the harvest if all these lost souls turned to Christ …..