THE ULTIMATUM

THE APPARITION

Sooner than I expected, the 5 minutes were already over but I decided to give God an extra 5 minutes, being the nice guy I was.

"The bride will most probably be late anyway. It wouldn't hurt to take 5 more minutes for myself." I muttered to myself.

I leaned more comfortably into the chair and rested my feet on my bed, admiring my black leather brogues. I still was unable to pray, so all I did was take deep breaths and whistle hymns to relax my nerves. Soon again, time was up.

"God, so You really didn't come? Wow!" I laughed, also knowing that I wasn't really expecting Him after all.

I stood to my feet, brushed my sleeves with my hands, and then took off my neatly tailored navy blue suit jacket from the hanger, suspending on a nail behind my door.

"Ready?" I heard my brother's voice behind the door after he had knocked twice.

"Yes! A minute." I quickly responded.

As I fitted my arms into the sleeves of the jacket, I felt two hands fix my collar and brush the padded edges of my jacket. I froze immediately, knowing very well I was the only one in the room. I didn't want to believe it was real, but I felt it. I know I did. I began to convince myself that it was all in my head, yet, I was afraid to turn.

"Sorry I'm late." A sweet, jolly, silently soothing voice pierced right into my body and my soul. My knees had lost all sensation, and my feet couldn't support my body any longer. I fell flat on the ground like a dead man.

"Nii", the voice called out my name. "Look up, I'm here."

"You...You know my... my name?" I stammered, crying, with my body quivering. I wouldn't dare lift my head. In a matter of seconds, my tears had already wet the rubber carpet.

"Haha! Of course, Nii. Look up." He reiterated.

I could not see Him yet, but I could feel His smile. It's not easily explainable, but that was the reality of that moment. His voice sounded like He was standing right before me; at the same time, I could hear its resounding echoes coming from behind me. My eyes were tightly shut the entire time and as I attempted to open them, I could see a brilliance before and around me. I was encompassed in a presence and it felt as though I wasn't in my room.

"Lord, I'm sorry!" I continued to cry. "You were not late! You are not late! In fact, You can never be late! I was late, yes it was me." I blurted out weeping.

After a brief moment, I could feel Him move closer towards me on the floor and then I felt His hand pat and rub my back. He said no more words. I forced my eyes open, but the perfection of His countenance was something my eyes were not prepared to contain. There was a cool breeze emanating from the walls, and I could hear a flowing river in my room. I wanted to check, but I just couldn't. In that moment, Jesus' body was over me as though He was incubating me. I could feel His warm embrace and His hair on my neck and right ear.

"You are real! I can feel You! I can feel You!" I affirmed to myself as I proceeded to cry some more.

"I can feel you too." He humoured.

I became so calm and relaxed, enjoying the tangible experience. I wanted to look upon Him and around me, but my eyelids were too frail and numb. I gave up my ability to see anything as I lay still on the floor. I felt the Lord's hand slide a note into the inner pocket of my jacket, and in the speed of light, He was gone. The apparition appeared to have lasted for an hour, but I wasn't bothered that I was late. I would give anything up for it and wouldn't change anything if I had the power to rewind time.

"Bro, Bro wake up... the 5 minutes are up." My brother gently tapped me on my thigh. "How did you doze off?"

I opened my eyes and realized I had been sitting in my armchair all that while, with my feet still on my bed. I took a minute to bring myself back to full consciousness and to reorganize my thoughts. My brother pulled me up from my seat and helped me wear my jacket. I dashed to the sink to clean my face while a million thoughts ran through my mind.

"Was I dreaming? Or did all that really happen?" I wondered.

I left home for church with my family, awaited my bride, got married and settled in another town. One year on, my wife discovered a note in the inner pocket of my suit jacket on our anniversary, and believe me, it was the most... wait! That's a story for another day.

THE END

-Iambrokofi