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"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler ways of the world." (Ephesians 2:1-2 NIV)
Last Friday, we continued with the story of my brother, Jimmy, and the choice he made to not protect Himself with God's Armament. We've seen how he changed from being a loving big brother to someone who exploited little girls. We've seen how a pastor ended up driving his own mother to bankruptcy and nearly killing her from neglect. I wish this was the end of Jimmy's story; but there is one more chapter, and I feel compelled to tell it to its end.
As I mentioned last Friday, the stress of living with my brother pushed my mother from occasional forgetfulness to moderate Alzheimer's in a matter of weeks. She was no longer able to live alone, and thanks to a timely court order, she could no longer go back to living with Jimmy. We tried to sponsor her so that she could come to Canada, but with her neglect-induced medical issues, she couldn't pass the medical exam required. There was no choice but to put her in a retirement home, and my uncle found just the right one.
We, of course, were in Canada, but we came to visit as much as we could. We would take my mother out for walks along the Belgian coast and stop for ice cream. It made her so happy! Fortunately, the nurses were wonderful with her. One nurse, Ingrid, even told me that my mother was her best patient, and we could see how she smiled every time Ingrid came into the room. We became friends with Ingrid as well, often corresponding via email and facebook. In the end, I called her my "sister", and we were even invited to stay at her house whenever we came to Belgium.
Jimmy was in prison at this time, due to his sex crimes, and the apartment my mother had lived in had to be cleaned out and sold. My uncle took charge of this. He would later tell me about the thousands of porn magazines he found on the second floor where my brother had taken up residence. In addition, my uncle indicated that this second floor was covered in human feces that he had to clean up.
Jimmy eventually got out of prison. Upon his release, there was a good sum of money waiting for him from the sale of our mother's estate. Her portion was in the hands of a lawyer, and it was substantial enough to maintain her for many years in the home. The money waiting for Jimmy should have been enough to sustain him for years to come as well. Unfortunately, he spent it in a matter of weeks. He then found himself homeless, and that's when he finally began to visit our mother. The nurses would tell us later, however, that he didn't come to spend time with her; rather, he came to steal her food. When they asked him to stop, he reportedly laughed at them.
Jimmy also contacted us at this time. His first letter said there had been 20,000 Euros in the apartment, and that we had stolen it. His next letter increased the accusation to 30,000 Euros. He then went on to say that our boys were going to university on his money. As there was no truth to his accusations, all we could do was shake our heads and wipe away our tears.
Eventually Jimmy did stop stealing our mother's food. In fact, he stopped visiting her altogether. We did not know what had become of him, or even if he was still alive. A cousin reported seeing him begging for money outside of one of the city's cathedrals. We didn't even know where to contact him when our mother died.
At this point in the story, I'd like to remind you of the vision I had been given years earlier for my brother. I had seen him in the market place, packed with people, when a hail storm struck the town. Interestingly, in my dream, Jimmy was the only one struck by a hailstone… It was on a few months after our mother died that Jimmy was found dead in his apartment. He was alone, and when he was found by the meter-reader, he had already been gone for several days. Autopsy reports showed that he died of a massive heart attack. He failed to heed God's warning in the vision I had been given, and true to the prophecy, he was "struck down".
What a sad, sad ending to a life that had so much potential.
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This has not been fun for me to write about my brother. However, I felt compelled to do so as a warning. If you follow my brother's example, if you refuse to take God's armament, you could very well end up like he did. But the solution is simple: "We take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Cor. 10:5 NIV).
Our Father loves us. He died on the cross so that we can be saved. All you have to do is accept that gift of Salvation, and you will fine happiness and peace for Jesus truly cares for you: "For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends." (2 Corinthians 10:18)
Look for genuine love, peace and follow in Jesus' steps. Jesus truly loves you!
We will continue this series by taking a specific look at what God's Armament actually is. Please join us on Friday, for God's Armament, Part 16.
Rob Chaffart
P.S.: Thank you Ingrid for being my sister. You are the best!
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