A Flame Beyond the Darkness of Pain: A Widow's Wilderness Worship Sound

Copyright © 2013 by Emily Owusu-Sekyere.

ISBN:          Softcover                                 978-1-4797-6579-9

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Contents

Dedication

Foreword

Preface

Introduction

Chapter 1      Once upon a time, I had a husband…

Chapter 2      The Face of Widowhood

Chapter 3      A word for the wilderness

Chapter 4      Fountains in the wilderness

Chapter 5      Episodes Revealed in Dreams

Chapter 6      Christ, our firm foundation

Chapter 7      Lead me through where you’ve been

Chapter 8      A love story of three

Chapter 9      ‘Not just a little water… but also a piece of bread’

Chapter 10      Travailing pains of a widow

Chapter 11      Fruits from wombs of widows

Chapter 12      Broken shackles

Chapter 13      Sold by the grave

Chapter 14      One who is; rather than one who seems to be

Chapter 15      Jump… how high?

Chapter 16      All you have is all I need

Chapter 17      Blinded eyes of the heart

Chapter 18      Tears locked in time

Chapter 19      Seedless Flower

Chapter 20      The God of my father

Chapter 21      Victory before battle

Acknowledgement

Behind the scenes

An autobiography of Emily Owusu-Sekyere

Dedication

To the loving memory of Charles Kwame Owusu-Sekyere, a servant of the Most High God, a dear husband and loving father who transcended and now walks with his Saviour among great men and women of God.

I also dedicate this book to the millions of widows around the world both young and old; from every creed, race and culture who, work tirelessly to rediscover their confidence, identity and strength after the passing of a spouse. I sincerely hope this book will convey a message of hope and comfort in your season of mourning. The death of a spouse is not death to the call of God upon your life, for we are not vessels of God by birth but by calling as our Biblical predecessors have proven this to be true. Our strength as Christians lies in the fact that death is merely a transition from life to glory as the Bible verse below proves.

Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. (1 Corinthians 15:12-14)

I believe that this book was inspired by the Holy Spirit who woke me up to pray and write at awkward hours of the night to inspire millions of widows in the uttermost parts of the earth. I have no doubt that the revelations in this book will lift you up from your pit of despair to hope, fulfilment and purpose in life.

Zambia

Despite my being rooted in you,

You have shared my life with other nations.

You planted your nationality seed in me,

A nation to be proud of

Zambia my beloved country.

Ghana

A nation in the hearts of my sons born of a Ghanaian father,

Charles Owusu-Sekyere.

Ghana, you shall always be their beloved home and

my beloved second country.

Foreword

In her book A Flame beyond the Darkness of Pain (A Widow’s Wilderness Worship Sound), Emily bares the innermost part of her soul as she openly and honestly shares her story with her readers. Her testimonies in the book run parallel with Biblical examples.

It is a book of encouragement, teaching and hope but also a warning of the pitfalls that preconceived ideas can make one fall into. Emily places her husband in his rightful place as the head and spiritual leader of the home and the love she has for him runs through her narrative. She effectively does away with stigmas, cultures and traditions which tend to define who we are and points to Christ as the One who defines who we really are.

Emily allows widows to understand that they are not inferior but that God has elevated the widow. He becomes their husband and they no longer keep their eyes fixed on their loss but on their Creator.

This is a must read for everyone, especially for widows who so often struggle to come to terms with the loss of their husbands. It is also a very helpful resource to married couples as they discover the true meaning of marriage and the importance of placing God at the centre of their lives.

Dr Jeff van Wyk

President and Chancellor—Team Impact Christian University

24th September 2012

Preface

The Ruth Moment

Rather than endlessly despairing in a spiritual barren region, Emily sought after the Lord’s guidance after the mysterious death of her husband. Little did she know that this unanticipated life of widowhood at a young age would position her as a recipient of revelations from God to write her book, ‘A Flame Beyond the Darkness of Pain.’

It is only our Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit who could reveal to the unified spirit and mind of Emily through His infallible Word what widowhood is to a spirit-filled woman. As you turn the pages and chapter after chapter of this book, you see the eternal perspective of widowhood she spiritually received from the heart of God that inspires and uplifts readers to understand that widowhood is a distinctive position; a position that can connect one to God’s spirit of wisdom, His spirit of revelation to bring down deep knowledge and understanding of Him.

Furthermore, it is the Spirit of wisdom and revelation of the knowledge of Him that empowered Emily to comprehend widowhood as a higher calling to become God’s usable instrument to preach the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to the broken hearted. God’s desire is that everyone should experience His infinite love that He exceedingly has in store for all.

By choosing to become a Naomi, Tamar, Ruth or Anna of the new generation, that dwells permanently in God’s presence, widows like any other passionate Christian can experience that love. In intimacy with God, they too can sing and dance to that song found in Psalm 30:11-12; "You have turned my mourning into dancing. You have put my sackcloth and clothe me with gladness. To the end that my glory may sing praise to you and not be silent. As they sing this song in spirit and in truth, they are spiritually pulled into understanding the covenant of peace that God has established with widows as their eternal Husband. It is that peace found in The Great I Am" that enables them to stand firmly and resist temptations to go back to the Egypt of mourning and despondence.

To be a witness of the greatness of God in the wilderness is slowly becoming uncommon and yet great men and women of the Bible encountered with God in wildernesses. Emily boldly brings us back home through her book to make us realize that every wilderness can release not only a song of encouragement to others but also a sound of victory to the ends of the earth. What a revelation!

From the tune of Joseph, sold to Egypt by his brothers as a slave, comes a revelation from God for Emily to view Joseph’s sad moment as a moment of promotion to great heights of becoming Prime Minister of Egypt. Emily convincingly tells us that her widowhood has become a moment of climbing with God to great heights. Widowhood is not a curse. Had it been, Ruth would not have become the great grandmother of David; a widow present in the genealogy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Widowhood is a Ruth moment; a moment of becoming all that a widow can become in Christ Jesus her redeemer. Yes! Ruth moment is a moment of becoming pregnant with the Word of God to deliver great Kingdom works. We can see the Ruth moment in Emily through God’s wonderful work of mentoring her to mentor others through her book,

You are holding in your hands a piece of article written by a very brave woman, a rare book and a great spiritual work that bring the human race closer to our loving God.

Dr. Menzi Meshach Minsie Duka

Holy Trinity Ministries, Senior Pastor, Queenstown South Africa

Introduction

*     *     *

Oh, give thanks to the Lord!

Call on his name;

Make known His deeds among the people!

Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him;

Talk of all His wondrous works!

Psalm 105:1-3

Soon after my husband’s death, I realized that there were decisions which only I could make and these decisions would influence my future with Nana Kwaku and Kwadwo, my two sons. Having been a Christian for a number of years, all my decisions were to be God centred and in retrospect, these have greatly contributed to who I am today. I must admit though that change is a very difficult phase of life but there are times when one has no choice but to move along with the winds of change which may take you to a new place just as the leaves of autumn are wafted away to a new place of unfamiliarity.

The first decision involved my relationship with God. I was at a new place, shaken, vulnerable and alone. The dance of my life had been an elegant, passionate ballroom dance and overnight I was doing the one-woman jive. I had heard of widowhood and in fact seen and interacted with some widows but I never saw myself as one of them in my prime age. The path ahead was daunting, despite my many unrequited questions, anger and pain. I desperately needed someone to help me come to terms with the fact that widowhood had settled in uninvited. I did not need to have the know-how’s. I simply consult Jesus and He showed me the way. I found only Him to be more than qualified to lead me through this wilderness journey. He was there, making sure that in the midst of my crisis, I doubted not of His amazing love for me. I felt His hand of comfort over me, the hand that fashioned me in my mother’s womb and the same hand that specially selected and ushered me into widowhood; a dwelling place of intimacy with Him.

Involving God first has been the wisest and rewarding decision which I made. There are many times when Christians allow God into the picture only when things are not working out. Solomon addressed this when he encouraged us to: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

The second decision was to become all that I could be in life despite the challenges that came with this new life of widowhood. Even though I found myself constantly surrounded with advice from well wishers, the final responsibility to make decisions rested with me. Knowledge from the Word of God and the Holy Spirit as my guide proved to be the best advice for me. I connected with Paul’s teachings on the renewal of our minds which brought about my transformation and with it the ability to accept what had happened. Widowhood was now my new marital status and whether I liked it or not I had to deal with it: "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." Romans 12:2.

Without the understanding of this concept of mind renewal, I could have started believing the negative thoughts that regularly visited my mind; that widows are less fortunate beings who are surrounded by problems and not able to fulfil their destinies. That is a pure lie from Satan. The widows mentioned in the Bible like Naomi, Ruth, Tamar and others whose lives were transformed because of their faith in God have made me realize that God desires a very special and unique relationship with me. These widows experienced breakthroughs in their lives that are revealed in this book. I am indomitable not to allow anything or anyone to stop me from attaining my God-given destiny. One has to uphold a positive thinking pattern even when in the midst of human catastrophe but it’s not without difficulty.

A lot of things could have derailed me along the path—a lack of faith, discouragement and laziness but I thank God for the Holy Spirit who has been exchanging a few words with me and conveying words and songs of assurance of God’s control of my life. I am certain that God created me with the ability to rise above the storms of life. He would not bring me to a situation he could not pull me through; not my God. I also know that when one endlessly holds on to God, He causes the directions of the winds to change. It is through my determination to chase after God that I have discovered who He truly is to me; the Husband to the widow. This powerful revelation that was proclaimed by the Prophet Isaiah brings with it tremendous hope to widows, especially those who still are struggling to find their identity and destiny in Jesus Christ.

Rather than anticipating that living standards would deteriorate, as can so easily be the natural mindset, a Christian widow can find that her dependence on God not only as provider but a ‘husband’ can be very rewarding. I chose to focus on various aspects of my life that would improve my quality of life and that of my children. Chose being the operative word, as much as God has great promises for his widows, the decision to pursue a great life in God as a widow rests with you. I chose God and all He has in store for me.

Apart from crucial decision making, I began to relate to God in a new and exciting way. The writing of this book for example is a product of this intimate relationship. I just could no longer keep the revelations received to myself as surely these could be of great help to another grieving soul. Though the experience that took me to share this part of my life with you was tragic and faith shaking, truly speaking I would not have been able to help heal other widows any other away but by becoming a widow myself. I cannot take you where I have not been as I cannot help you where I myself have not needed help in that particular area.

If life was compared to a book with many chapters, I am giving you an opportunity to open and read a few chapters of my life. Christians are called to testify to the goodness of God in every wilderness journey. Be encouraged as you read this book for in it, are my personal testimonies of what God has done for me and my family. It does not end here; God is still