MOST of us are familiar with the Biblical story of Moses, who was found by the banks of the River Nile and adopted by his enemies – the Egyptian royalty – who raised him to adulthood. At that time, the rule was that all male children born to Israelites were to be killed at birth, but his parents hid him until they could no longer do so. Eventually, his mother was even paid to be his nanny until he was of age.
Raised by his enemies, Moses became a thorn in the side of the Egyptians when he was mightily used by God to devastate their land.
This story is being played out in many homes today, but God is not the author of it, as He is not an author of confusion or pain. The things that occur in secret or behind our backs in many households are unbelievable. These things have been happening for years, but with the advent of Close Circuit Television, CCTV, in some homes, many such acts are being exposed. Perpetrators of these heinous acts once enjoyed 99 days of evil until their cup was full on the hundredth day. But, sadly, often by that time, the damage was already done.
A young mother was informed that, whenever she went to work, at a particular time, her baby would cry inconsolably. Her neighbours told her that despite their efforts to shout or call the nanny, she would never respond.
Not long after, the mother decided to come home during work hours. True to the words of her neighbours, she heard her baby crying unusually. She rushed to the door and forced it open. In the nanny’s room, her baby lay on the bed, crying in a terrible manner, twisting as though some invisible force was attacking him. The mother hurried to pick him up and noticed her nanny was engrossed in something strange by the mirror.
Looking at the reflection, instead of seeing her nanny’s image, she saw images of wild animals, one after the other. The nanny didn’t stop what she was doing immediately, so the mother, along with her neighbours, who had also witnessed the scene, waited for her. The nanny soon emerged, packed her belongings, and left without saying a word – leaving the mother to seek help from deliverance pastors.
Another woman, who had taken the precaution of taking her nanny for prayers before deeming her fit to sleep in the same room with her daughters, later regretted her decision. Although the nanny had a clean slate as far as witchcraft was concerned, she turned out to be a certified lesbian. She introduced the woman’s two daughters to lesbianism, exacerbating the siblings’ rivalry. By the time the mother discovered this, she could only dismiss the nanny, but she couldn’t change her daughters’ new sexual preferences. At the time I heard the story, the mother was frantically seeking solutions for her daughters.
Another mother shared her experience, noting how her children feared the nanny more than anything. When anything went wrong, and the nanny was at fault, the children would rather take the blame than implicate her. One day, the mother stayed home and pretended to be asleep. When any of the children misbehaved, she heard the menacing voice of the nanny, followed by the sound of a knock on the head.
Curious, the mother hid and observed. When her six-year-old daughter made a mistake, the nanny ordered her to come over. Trembling, the girl approached. The nanny dragged her and gave her a loud knock on the forehead—‘kwak’. The girl started crying, but when the nanny raised her hand as if to strike again, the child swallowed her tears and sat quietly.
The mother recounted how she gave the nanny the beating of her life before dismissing her. Unfortunately, the damage was done – her children were already bearing a black mark on their foreheads, which she had previously dismissed as something inherited from their father’s side. Now, she has had to enrol her children in after-school lessons to avoid needing a nanny.
The downfall of many families is the complete trust placed in strangers. A single mother once brought a young girl, related to her stepmother, into her home. From the start, the girl made no pretense of being a saint, but the mother of three thought it was just youthful exuberance. She tried to discipline the girl with love but was unaware that the girl was sexually active and often brought her lovers into the house.
They eventually parted ways after some years, and as expected, neighbours filled the mother’s ears with tales of the girl’s activities. The mother didn’t realise that even dangerous people had gained access to her house.
Sometime later, the family travelled from Pankshin to Jos, in Plateau State, because her eldest daughter was transitioning from primary to secondary school. Upon their return, the woman found that, although her house hadn’t been broken into, many of their belongings – including a music set and foodstuffs – had been stolen. The mother’s suspicions turned to a young boy living in the neighbourhood. She reported it to the police, who persuaded the boy to confess. He revealed that it was his friendship with the girl that gave him access to the house keys, which were carelessly left hanging on the doors.
There isn’t enough space to recount the case of a relative who, despite being treated like a daughter, arranged for the kidnapping of her uncle’s wife. The family endured a terrible time only to discover that the person behind the ordeal was someone they loved and cared for.
Some families have not been as fortunate and have died at the hands of those they trusted. One case that stands out is that of an Abuja woman who was savagely murdered by her trusted worker, who then hid her body in a deep freezer. His goal was to steal and sell the cars in the house. However, fate caught up with him when the woman’s husband alerted the police after being unable to reach her. The horror they uncovered was akin to something from a nightmare.
These stories are not shared for entertainment but to make us wiser in our dealings. Many people are wolves in sheep’s clothing, even young ones who seem innocent. Be spiritually sensitive. Learn to judge character wisely – it could save you a lot of pain, even death.
And instead of leaving your innocent children in the hands of strangers, why not enrol them in daycare? It is safer. Workplaces should also consider providing nursery facilities for nursing mothers. This is because most of the hired hands in whose care we put our children more often than not turn out to be the enemies within.