A few weeks ago, I was moved by the story of a Pastor's son, who gave me a tell tale of how his dad received a vision from GOD in their village home more than a decade ago. Only to see it unfold layer by layer, page by page, year after year.
I happen to work with the young man's wife and our initial meeting happened to be on a plane en-route to Hong Kong where our job positioned us for almost a week. I believe that our meeting was predestined because I for one always love to hear stories of life experiences.
It was a day flight and the weather was good. About six hours into the flight, the young man came and positioned himself on the vacant seat across the isle from where I was seating. We were at the tail end of this Boeing 767-300 aircraft.
A few short minutes into our conversation, he told me in mixed Bauan and Vanua Levu dialect, how he as a child went through a phenomenon within their household that has captivated him since. It all occurred one night when the family was asleep. His dad, who was then a young parent was awakened by the name of a particular place. It kept hitting him again and again until he got up. With the name still fresh in his mind, he took whatever writing tool available within his grasp and wrote the name of that particular location on the wall of his bedroom.
The next day, he spoke of his experience and asked his family if any of them knew where that place was. None of them knew. In fact, they all thought that it was one of the islands in the South Pacific region.
The next few years saw their dad attend a vernacular Bible College at Calvary Temple in Suva and shortly thereafter he received the great calling to move from their village in Vanua Levu to Nadi, in the main island. God surely works in HIS own mysterious ways. They were to Pastor an English speaking fellowship church in Nadi.
WHAT? A family, from a village..... who speak in their own dialect everyday to come to the tourist city and pastor an English speaking fellowship church? Unheard of.......... pure nonsense........ but totally true.
Well, we know that family's have secrets, but this young man let one out to me, when he jokingly said that his dad's first English sermon lasted only about five minutes. Oh my goodness. Only five minutes,..... yes, so I was told.
All wacky tales aside, ........... yes. That was the humble beginning that saw the turning of a new leaf in the lives of this lovely family. It was one of the early stops in a journey that was mapped out years earlier, within the confines of their bedroom in their village home.
For the last couple of years, the church membership has grown steadily. They have spread their wings to assist in the pioneering of another work in a nearby city. But they still share a church building with another church. They still did not have a church building they called their own. Well, not until recently.
Following one of the most difficult time in his dad's ministerial career, they managed to invest in a piece of land. It is located right next to the Nadi-Lautoka highway, somewhere near the Sabeto junction, in a place called Waimalika.
Today, they are working on clearing the bushes where they will be building a temporary shed before the commencement of the construction of their church building.
Friends, the name WAIMALIKA was the name given to the young man's dad that night, years earlier. According to my friend George and his lovely wife Kathleen, the writing is still on the wall of his dad's bedroom today.
The Pastor's name is Rev Jone Mafi, Senior Pastor of Cornerstone Fullgospel Church, Nadi Fiji. If you happen to be in Nadi sometime in the next six months or so and have no place to worship, why not take a ride to Waimalika, which is approximately five minutes drive from the Nadi Airport on the way to Lautoka. Just before you get to the Sabeto junction, you will see a sign that will bear the name of this God given vision - CORNERSTONE FULL GOSPEL CHURCH.
