It was a scarcely lit room. On a table beside the bed stood a ten by ten inch picture frame of me and my wife, Rose. Beside the picture frame was an electronic alarm clock. It said 3:16 am. I was fast asleep. My phone lay carelessly, close to my left ear. After a while, it rang. It was so loud that I sprang out of bed. I reached out for it. It was my wife.
“Good morning sweetheart. I guess you are set for your appointment”, she asked.
I turned to look at the alarm clock. It said 3:16 am.
“By this time? It’s still too early.” I replied, adjusting the duvet to cover my bare chest.
“I thought your appointment was for six thirty this morning?”
“Yes it is! I’m meeting with the officials at the Nyanya Motor Park station and from there we’ll leave for the venue of the meeting… Please let’s talk later. I still need to catch some sleep”
“It is six fifteen Carney!”
“No, that’s not true! The time is…” I turned to look at the time again. It was still 3:16 am. I was shocked. It was then it dawned on me that the alarm clock had frozen.
“Honey, my alarm clock froze. Gosh! I’m late! Please I’ll call you later. I need to hurry up.”
I dropped the phone on the side table and jumped out of bed. I zoomed into the bathroom and hurriedly brushed my teeth, washed my mouth, took off my boxers and entered the bath tub to wash up. After washing, I tied a white towel round my waist and rushed back into the bedroom. I made for my wardrobe and brought out my black suite and my red shirt. I put them on hurriedly. My phone rang again. I reached out for it and picked it.
“Carney where are you” my wife asked, worried.
“I’m just about to head out”, I muttered, buttoning my shirt.
“Oh thank God! I thought you had gone out” heaving a sigh of relief. I was taken aback by her response. I thought she would be angry that I was still at home.
“Honey you need to stop whatever you are doing right now and begin to thank God.”
“Why would I do that?” I thought to myself. “I don’t understand what you are saying. What is going on?” I asked, perplexed. “There’s just been two bomb explosions at the Nyanya bus station”, I could almost sense the gratitude in her vocal expression. “What! When did this happen?” I made for my side table, reached out for my small radio and began to tune it for possible news.
“It happened about seven minutes ago. An eye witness to the explosion just called me.”
I turned the radio knob until I got a clearer signal from BBC World News
“…blast went off during the Morning rush hour. Nyanya Bus Park was packed with commuters trying to get into the capital. From the look of the scene it is possible that the bomb was planted inside the buses…” a male reporter reported.
I gently placed my phone on the table and listened to the reporter with keen interest.
“Hello! Hello, are you there?” Rose called out. The radio had my full concentration.
“…there was total panic in the area as those who could, ran for their lives. Bodies and body parts are scattered around the area…” continued the reporter.
My phone rang again. I glanced at it. I was surprised to see Felix calling. I quickly picked it.
“Hello Felix, where are you?” “Thank goodness! I thought you were in the car. I was a few miles away when the bomb exploded. I’m at the scene of the explosion now.” He replied, panting.
I could tell from the ambience that there was chaos in the background.
“Oh my God! Thank God you are alive. Were you able to recognize the car?”
“Yes, but from a distance. The fire service men are here trying to put out the fire.”
“Who and who were in that car? Do you by any chance know?”
“I can’t say for sure but Anica called around 6:25 this morning to tell me that she had arrived and that they were waiting for us”. Felix said. I paused for a moment, weakened by the news. “You mean Anica was in that car?” I was hoping he would say otherwise. “Yes!” Felix reiterated. My phone fell off my hands. I sobbed! My mind wandered to a scene from the past as I lay my back on the bed.
***
I had just woken up from sleep when I saw Anica making up before the standing mirror.
“What are you doing?” I asked, yawning.
“Getting ready for church, have you forgotten today is Sunday? Aren’t you coming with me?”
“No way! Church is not for people like me.”
“Who is it for then?”
“For genuine believers not people like you, you are a hypocrite!” Anica smiled as she combed her hair.
“I’m not! At least I’m not cheating on anyone. I don’t have a husband”.
“You’re justifying yourself… You are a sinner!” I turned and backed her.
“God knows I’m doing my best to serve him. I only pray for you that one day you will give your life to Jesus!”
“Amen!” I replied, jestingly. “Please don’t come tomorrow. My wife will be back from the States.” “Whatever!” She muttered, picking up her bag from the side table. “See you when I see you!” She left the room, not waiting for a response. It was obvious from the tone of her voice that she was angry. I escorted her to the door with my eyes.
***
“Why did you have to leave?” I cried uncontrollably. We didn’t always agree but we were best of friends. I will never forget the day she came to me and said she was tired of having an affair with me, that it wasn’t right. She came up with this whole story on grace and how God loves me and wants to do a new thing in my life. I wasn’t cut out for all that. In fact, I was angry but I respected her for her decision. We agreed to just be good friends, nothing more. I even thought she would change her mind sooner or later, but days turned to weeks and weeks to months and she still didn’t change her mind. That was when I knew that she had actually found a greater love.
I pulled myself from the bed and took another look at the alarm clock. It still said 3:16am. I wiped tears off my eyes and fixed my gaze at the clock, wondering why it froze. Almost immediately, there was a knock on the door. I wondered who that would be. At a second thought I assumed it was Felix. I picked the alarm clock from the table and left the bedroom, making for the living room to get the door.
When I opened the door, I was shocked to see Anica standing there, worn out. Her hair was scattered, her dress tattered and she smelled of smoke.
“Anica!” I whispered, still in shock. I thought I had seen a ghost. She was sweating profusely.
“His love swept low”, she whispered, trying to hold back tears.
“I already got to the park when I remembered I had forgotten a very important document we needed for the meeting. So I was told by one of the officials to go and get it. I had barley left the park when the bombs exploded”. Anica could not hold back the tears any longer. She cried out loud.
“The other officials were in the car” she managed to say, as she looked at me with tears filled eyes. I consoled her with an embrace, still in shock.
After a moment of silence, she withdrew herself slightly, looked at me and asked “You are not known for lateness Carney. What happened?” wiping tears from her eyes.
I withdrew myself further, lifted up my right hand and showed her the alarm clock.
“It froze at exactly 3:16 this morning. I woke up to look at the time and it said 3:16 am. So I slept back. And then my wife called to ask if I was set to go out. At first I was angry that she disturbed my sleep because the clock was still saying the same thing. It never occurred to me that the clock had frozen until she said that it was passed six. I jumped out of bed and began to prepare. I was almost done preparing when her call came in again to break the news. A friend of hers had called her to tell her.”
Anica looked at me with utter amazement and said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him…”
“…should not perish but have eternal life!” I added. Of course I knew that verse of scripture. Who doesn’t by the way!
“Was that what He was trying to tell me?” I asked, almost talking to myself. Anica nodded her head in response.
“John 3:16…God loves you Carney?”
“But how? I don’t deserve his love. I deserve to be punished. If there was anybody that deserved to die in that bomb blast, it’s me” “Exactly Carney but Jesus has been punished for your sins. He, who knew no sin, became sin that you may become the righteousness of God in Christ. He took your place on the cross Carney. All you need to do right now is to believe in what he has done for you and then confess with your mouth that he is the Lord over your life and you shall be saved.”
At that moment, tears created a path down my left cheek. His love found me. “How can anyone reject such a love”, I thought to myself. Anica led me to Christ and we both lifted up our voices and worshipped God who had shown us great mercy.
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