Hmmmmmm, this message is a long one. I felt like sharing it right after seeing the images and watching the videos of her demise.
In as much as I am extremely confident Maabena is with the Almighty God and will definitely be among the chosen for heaven (a statement I always told King George even when she was alive), it is very painful that she left so soon.
Most people saw her as the dull and “shallow” type. Even individuals younger than her would send her around, and she would carry out their errands without complaint. Let’s be frank for real — most people looked down on her. I did too.
But growing up, I came to realize that she was far more powerful than all of us. Way, way, way more powerful. We just didn’t pay attention.
And in today’s world, it’s even scary how difficult it is to walk in her shoes in the eyes of God. She cared very little for the things of this world. Say the most hurtful things to her face, and she would either say very little or go completely mute. She kept the hurt inside but still moved on.
“Mandy Abbey,” as I called her directly, was principled, but we just didn’t see her principles as our kind. I remember playfully telling her sometime back to dress like other ladies — wearing skirts, makeup, and all that. And she strongly replied:
“In our church we don’t wear those dresses.”
That statement alone made me feel like the whole world had shouted at me, “SHAME ON YOU!!!”
I never tried that again because it felt as though I had been strongly warned not to influence her personality.
Her statement was an inner reflection of herself, the teachings she had heard before, and the values she truly believed in — not simply because of what her church does, because even Ceccy Twum wears makeup. This was Maabena.
That statement from her was the expression of a power we never recognized for years.
“Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”
“Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
We all know who said that.
Maabena came to live it. I would say she had the advantage of experiencing the world the way people saw her, so following God’s expectations may have been easier for her. But what about the rest of us? We know what really happens. We party and do whatever feels good to us. No one tells us what to do.
Hmmmm… that alone makes it scary. It is only God’s grace that keeps us — not because we may live longer or shorter, but because of the lives we are living. It is not by our strength at all, family.
We only pray that even as Maabena has left us, may her life and departure become a reference point through which Jesus shows us mercy, just as God uses Jesus as the point of reference to show the world mercy, so that His grace increases in our lives.
In the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
The Writer is a Freelance Journalist and a teacher- Edmund Asare Sakyi
