24/08/2026
A son of mine has gone to be with the Lord now. He died of old age. When he was born again, he was a professor, a very, very clever man. He was addicted to smoking. The last thing he did before sleeping was to smoked. The first thing he did when he woke up in the morning, before saying good morning to his wife, was to smoked. Then he was born again. He was still smoking, and I tried to explain to him,
"Sir, now you're a child of God; old things are passed away; all things have become new."
He said, "I hear you, sir, and I will do whatever is in the Bible."
He said, "Show me where it is written, 'Thou shalt not smoke.'"
I said, "Sorry, sir, you have caught me there. It is not in the Bible."
I said, "Maybe in those days, people were not smoking."
"Show me where it is written, 'Thou shalt not smoke.'"
I said, "It's not written."
He said, "Good. So let's leave the issue of smoking alone."
I said, "Yes, sir."
Then I said one thing. I said, "When I was younger, in my village, when we went to catch a rodent—a rodent is a very big rabbit—they live inside holes.
When we went to catch one, as soon as we discovered the hole, we would get some dry leaves, push it as far inside as possible, set it on fire, and then we began to blow the smoke into the hole. Very soon, when the whole hole is full of smoke, the rabbit would jump out, and we would be outside here waiting for it."
I said, "Would you like to smoke out the Holy One that is in you?"
You want to breathe in smoke to go in there? Let us see how long it will take before him. He has taken so much smoke that he said, I can't stay here anymore.
That was the last day he smoked. He said, "I'm not going to disturb the one who is in there. I want him to stay."
Whatever you have been doing that you yourself know is not what God expects from a true child of God, stop it now. Don't let God leave.
— Pastor E A Adeboye
Transcribed by Adelemoni Philip (philchriz)
