Quotation (Jude 1:22)

And to some people, have compassion, judging issues thoroughly

Life on earth is very strange, sometimes very sad and that makes us wonder why?
I was fortunate to have some Liberian students in my course group at the college. My first hand experience with the Liberian civil war issues was in 2007, when I was privileged to watch documentary on GTV(Ghana Television) where at Tema Harbour, where people were bringing food and aid to these refugees fleeing war, when the ship carrying them docked at Tema port. That day, I heard stories that make one chill in the inside and ask the question, God, Why?
From that encounter, I developed a kind of compassion for these people.

So when Lawrence Yu-war joined our class, I was very interested in him from the first day. I made sure I strike acquaintance with him and I did. I visited him, talked with him and was very close to him. He didn't understand why, but trusted my friendship and interest in him. This opened him up to talk and to share with me his life and troubles.
On one of such interactions at the college Botanical Gardens, he exposed me to an experience in his life that caused my head to spin around like the moon orbiting around the earth, which also changed me and made me clinched closely to God.

Lawrence said, he lived with his uncle, who was the Finance Minister, as the war came to Monrovia, the Capital of Liberia. And he knew the members of the government, and their families were targets for the rebels. And one day he was in the bathroom taking his bath when some gunmen entered the house. They belonged to the Killing Squards, and they were just shooting and his family were screaming. He jumped out of the window naked and soaked in soap and water. He went into hiding. He went to hide in a friend's house. But one day, he ran out of luck, he was caught by this killing squad, and brought to a ware house, to joined with other victims. Come and see torture, beatings and suffering. After three days in that camp of horror, the squad brought five pick-up cars, and screened the victims by tribes and affiliations to the ruling government. A bunch were loaded on to the cars, and he was among them. They sent them to the Rubber Plantation farms for execution. When they got there, they were brought out and lined them up. He estimated their number to be between 50 to 70. They were told to run, and as they run, the squad spray them with bullets until all were dead and nothing is moving. This is more than horror film from Hollywood. I asked him, then he was a ghost, how did he survived? He laughed. He said, he wasn't a ghost but had luck. He ran ahead of some people. The people behind him received the bullets for him. He tripped and fell and others fell on him. They were shot so he was covered with blood as three people lied on him. Lucky? He pretended as dead. The squad had no time to come and inspect, the only stand and watch for movement. When nothing was moving, they got into the cars, and drove away for their next victims.

Lawrence said, as soon as they were gone, he got up and saw to his horror death and dead people all around, shot by guns. He ran to safety, walking through the plantation, avoiding towns, surviving on fruits and whatever he may find. And after three days of exhaustion through bush and forest, he arrived at Liberia -Cote D'Ivoire border, where he received help. He was sent to joined other Liberian refugees, and later were brought to Ghana. When he finished speaking, I shook my head in disbelieve, had pity on him but also filled with sadness. His story actually changed me because I saw how close he came to death. I learned for the first hand that a different spirit takes over wars, no matter where it is fought, whether in Cambodia, Rwanda, in Europe or Middle East or anywhere. The spirit of lawlessness, wickedness and evil, enseless killing is in control. As I left Lawrence, I understood the mercy of God. He thought he was lucky, but his case goes beyond being just lucky.

Jude exhorts us to show compassion to some people, judging their situation thoroughly, because what some people have experienced in life, what they have gone through, they just need our love, sympathy and compassion. Thank God I have lived by that scripture and continue to live it, and Lawrence was a beneficiary of it.
So as you go through the day and live life, please consider to have compassion on people. Most of them have become victims of life and scripture says they need our love and compassion to become normal again.
May you be kind, loving and compassionate to people and may what you give revive, refresh and strengthen them to become normal people again. May your day know peace and blessing of God in Jesus name. Amen

pray with me

Thank you Father for the lives of people, whom your mercy have reached and continue to reach. Cause us Lord to show compassion to people and may our lives fill them with hope, faith and grace of God so that they can recover from the trauma and massacre they have experienced in life. Bless us Lord and keep us from those senseless killings in Jesus name. Amen

Shakom, life and grace to you
Moving people unto God's purposes

Thanks for reading,

@johnsonkoranteng @sirknight #Steemitghana