STOLEN WRAPPERS

(THE HEART AND ACT OF RESTITUTION)

I have 3 stories to share and at the end I pray someone reading this will also have a story to tell.

I had gone to a minimart and bought wrappers and when I got back home I noticed the salesgirl had mistakenly given me 1 or 2 wrappers in addition to the 2 I intended to buy. At that point I kept the extra wrappers hoping to return them whenever I went through that path. I never did...perhaps I forgot. Shortly after I moved to another house within the same city and while packing I came across the wrappers, so I moved with them, hoping I would one day be able to take it back to her.

Months passed and I cannot remember what I did with those wrappers, perhaps eventually used or discarded them. I was still hoping I would make up for it, after all it was not my error initially I thought.

A year passed, and one evening while returning from a Home (Church) Fellowship where I had taught God’s word, I saw the same salesgirl who did the error of giving me additional wrappers. She was already working in another minimart. We exchanged pleasantries and something inside me reminded me about the wrappers, and I just resolved in my mind that when next I would see her I would pay her for them. I allowed it to pass.

A year and half passed, I was still in possession of a wrapper “I stole”. Yes, “I stole wrappers!” There was no excuse about that...that was how God saw it; “I stole wrapper”. How did that turn to be? Read on.

One day, I was reading an account about judgement after death and someone who had been taken to Heaven had the following to share: they were in a place where their lives on earth were being X-rayed and people were missing Heaven because of things they considered minor on earth. Someone missed Heaven because he/she had borrowed a match box from a neighbour and taken 12 matchsticks from there without telling the neighbour, and now in the eyes of God that was stealing. The person missed Heaven. Touching! Another person had been hungry and was on a farm where he saw some eggs and had cooked them for food. He was a Pastor. When he was being judged, those eggs had appeared against him, and it had been written that he had stolen them because not only was he not the owner, he did not know who the owner of the hen and eggs were. He missed Heaven. Fearful! We all have been guilty at some points if not of this, but of some others.

Then this man’s turn came and he made it through to the next point of judgement and eventually into Heaven. There was something that helped him he shared. He said he remembered one day he had bought 1 handkerchief but unknowingly had been giving 2 handkerchiefs in error. Then while standing in God’s presence, the Lord said to him that should he die at that point he would not go to Heaven. The man asked why, and God said he was in possession of “a stolen handkerchief”. He checked and found out the extra handkerchief and told God that it was not intentionally and how could he be a thief in that regards and the Lord said that was the reason He (God) was telling him so that he could go and return it and come and tell the brethren/church that he had stolen handkerchief. It looked a foolish thing to do, but he obeyed. This was one thing that saved him from been redirected to Hell.

Now, back to me and the stolen wrappers; I had not taken it intentionally, but I had delayed in righting the wrong and how merciful God was to have kept me and reminded me now and not in eternity. I went ahead and asked for forgiveness for keeping wrappers that were not mine. Then I made time and transported myself to the place I had bought them initially. You see, when you see somebody carrying out some restitution, they may look stupid, but they value eternity more than anything humanity thinks of them. In going back to right a wrong of N60, I entered 2 vehicles and also had to trek some distance to reach there.

When I got there, I asked the owner if she sells wrapper and she said no. I asked if she used to sell and she said yes. I explained how over one and half years ago I had bought wrappers but had been given additional in error and how I have been unable to bring them back. She told me they sold each for N30, and I told her though I could not actually figure whether it was 1 or 2, but I would pay for 2, and I paid N60. The woman looked at me and about 2 times he made these remarks, “You are a Christian”, and what an opportunity to share Christ with her as I gave her a tract on Hell Fire. I returned with joy in my heart

Some days ago, as I shared with a sister she also recounted an experience she had. She was in a stall where shoes were sold and as she picked a pair of shoe she had taken the rubber band of the shoes and put on her hand. Eventually she did not buy the shoes and walked away. While she walked a distance, a voice said to her ‘Do you know you just stole rubber band?’ She thought it was the devil and initially rebuked the devil. But indeed, it was the Spirit of God in her telling her the truth.

How many times do we find ourselves entrapped in things we think are minor, but before God they have eternal weights. I believe when the Bible mentioned that we should “lay aside every weight” (Hebrews 12:1), this also include things we think are minor but are actually weighty in eternity.

“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor. 6:9-10). Thieves will not make Heaven whether they be petty thieves or political thieves.

What do we do? We can practically return those things in our possessions that are not ours. Be sure not to take something that is not yours without the owner’s consent. Personally, in my office, I do not as less use official envelopes for personal use. No. Any unconfessed sin remains unforgiven, so you can ask God specifically for forgiveness as touching some specific things (Known and unknown). As a matter of fact, there are restitution God would want you to make and you would need spiritual counsel and guidance on how to go about them. In this case, never hesitate to talk to your pastor or a counsellor. This is the act and heart of rededication. Above all, let us strive to live unspotted in  the world. This is our testimony: Confessed>>Forsaken>>Forgiven>>Forgotten. Heaven is not by accident or chance, it is serious business. May God help us all.

I may look foolish sharing this, but I was led to, and I only pray God will minister to someone in this light. When you find God raising an issue in your life, it is because He loves you and wants you to finish well. In eternity you will be forever glad you did.