Ayanate scratched her head in confusion and frustration. "I thought we'd settled this, Mum?"
"Yes, dear, we have, but..."
"Then, why are we still going down the same road?"
"It's not what you think. I swear, it's not what you think."
"Mum," Ayanate said, hands on her hips, "you remember that swearing is not good?"
"Yes, yes, dear, I'm so sorry about that. It was a mistake and I won't do it again I sw— uh, promise. But won't you just allow me to borrow the small money for your own good? Remember it is nothing compared to your eyesight being restored."
"No way, Mum! You promised not to do it again, and I won't let you compromise."
"But I strongly believe that now is the best time to rally around and get this money. You know how inconsistent our currency is to the US dollars. What if the value depreciates in the future? That would mean that we will have to save more money, and it will take longer."
299
"Who says that you must save up the complete money anyway? Don't you have trust in God?"
"I do, but..."
"Did God not say in his scripture that we should trust in him and lean not on our own understanding?"
"Please, baby, listen to me..."
"He doesn't even need this money to heal me and you know it. But since we are going down the medical route, we still have to rely on him to direct our paths. Don't you know that, Mum?"
Righteous sat down, shell-shocked as though she had just been struck by thunder.
Her daughter wasn't done.
"Besides, as much as I don't like this physical blindness, this is just all that there is to it and honestly, Mum, you have to stop seeing it like it is worse than the internal destruction of a man's soul.
"You see, I'm not denying that I'm blind. I can't see even a shadow not to talk of the real thing. But my situation is not the worst. This physical blindness is way better than spiritual blindness.
300
"Let's stop giving the devil the credit that he doesn't deserve because of the temporal things that we can see.
The word of God, which is eternal life, is ultimately superior to all this."
Seeing her hope crumble in front of her eyes as a result of her daughter's unwavering stand, Righteous buried her face in her hands and began sobbing.
Ayanate shifted closer to her mother and wrapped her arms around her.
"As the good and loving mother that you are, I know you are very concerned about me. I know you love and care for me and my brother and I know you don't like this situation that I was tossed into, and I know that if you could give your life for me to have my vision back, you won't even think twice. I know that if it were possible for us to switch positions, you would gladly give me both of your eyes."
"But, don't we serve a God that is able to do all things? If you, who is filled with so many imperfections, know how to give good gifts, how much more our father who is in heaven.
"Do we not have a God that could take this blindness away in a twinkle of an eye without any help? Do we not serve a God that tells us in his word that he did not only take our sins away on the cross of Calvary but he also took our diseases?
"We see these words coming to pass everyday. Souls are getting saved, people are getting healed from all manner of curable and incurable diseases."
At that, Righteous sharply raised up her head and looked at her daughter through a blur of tears.
301
"Then, tell me something, Ayanate. Why does God heal all those people we've seen but hasn't healed you?"
Righteous' voice cracked at the last part.
"You trust him, you believe in him. I don't even have the kind of strong faith you have in God, I confess, but you have that kind of faith that is greater than a mustard seed. So why do we go to church and attend all those miracle services, and yet, nothing has happened?"
"No, Mum. I believe that's where you're actually getting it wrong. Something has been done. I believe that Christ has healed me because his word tells me that he took all my infirmities and diseases. There are no two ways about it. Either Jesus was telling the truth or he was a big fat liar. And yes, I believe the former.
"Why should I still think that I have what he said he took? Why should I call Jesus a liar to his face because of the physical things that I can see. You remember that I told you earlier that these are just temporal? Paul in the Bible calls them a mirage, and that is what it is."
"I don't know, Ayanate, I don't know!" Righteous cried, shaking her head, her emotions a mess.
Ayanate breathed in and stroked her mother's shoulder.
With a soft voice she said, "Have faith in God, Mum. Don't you remember that faith is evidence of things hoped for and the substance of things not seen?
"The justified can only please God by faith. People get saved through faith. Even though there is no physical change in their body or facial appearance, they still believe that they have been saved by the blood of Christ and
302
have become new creatures. This can also be applied in other areas of our lives and that includes healing for our body."
"So, I'm not giving up on myself until God's word concerning my healing comes to pass, and I expect you to join me and do the same. Whether we get this thing done the medical way or God's supernatural and miraculous way, God's faith will keep me."
When Ayanate finished talking, Righteous embraced her, weeping. "I believe, I believe you, Ayanate. Oh, I believe in God. Oh, God, help my unbelief! Forgive my double-mindedness!"
Although she couldn't see her mother, Ayanate could sense her state of fragility and vulnerability.
"It's alright, Mum. We will be fine," she said, gently patting her mother's back.
After a while, she led her mother, who was unable to stop the tears from trickling down her cheeks no matter how much she tried to hold them at bay, upstairs
Righteous emotional dam had finally broken, and she cried unashamedly like never before. Feeling like a scared baby, she longed to be in the reassuring arms of her parents. Thankfully, her daughter had substituted for her parents.
As Righteous lay on her bed, her daughter, who had seen her emotional state, decided against sleeping in her room for the night. She gently climbed onto the queen size bed, lay beside her mother and wrapped her arms around her, singing and speaking words of comfort to her.
303
A few minutes later, with the arms of her daughter wrapped around her as though she were the mother and not the other way around, Righteous continued to listen to the song her daughter sang as though it was a lullaby and finally slept off.
Ayanate relaxed when she heard the rhythmic and gentle snoring of her mother. With her arms still wrapped protectively around Righteous, she closed her eyes and drifted off to a peaceful sleep, after offering a prayer of thanksgiving and protection to the One who had always loved her and her family.
304