Chapter Five: The Mask Cracks

Alberta arrived early for midweek service, hoping to avoid the pastor. The air in the sanctuary felt heavy, almost suffocating. She could feel eyes watching her. Whispers traveled from corner to corner — something was different about her lately.

After service, as she arranged songbooks near the altar, she noticed the pastor’s office door slightly open. Curiosity nudged her to glance inside. What she saw froze her.

The pastor sat close to another young lady — one of the ushers — whispering softly. His hand rested on hers, and she giggled nervously. Alberta’s stomach twisted. The scene was hauntingly familiar.

Before he noticed her, she quietly slipped away, her hands trembling. Her heart pounded in her chest as truth burned in her mind: He is doing it again… to someone else.

For the first time, anger began to overpower fear. How could this man stand before the congregation, preaching holiness, while destroying lives behind closed doors?

That night, Alberta couldn’t hold back her tears. “Lord,” she cried, “how many more must suffer? Why do people worship him like a god? Open their eyes!”

She felt the Spirit whisper in her heart: “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

It was as if light pierced her darkness. Alberta realized that exposing evil wasn’t rebellion — it was obedience to God.

She decided to gather courage, even if it meant standing alone.

But as she began to distance herself, strange things started happening — sudden illness, nightmares, and messages from “Papa” warning her of divine punishment.

The battle had shifted from emotional to spiritual.

The mask was cracking — but the war had just begun.

Alberta’s decision to pull away from the pastor didn’t go unnoticed. Within days, she became the center of quiet gossip. People who once smiled warmly at her now whispered as she passed. The pastor had already begun to twist the story.

“She’s fallen under a strange spirit,” he told the leaders. “Pray for her. The devil wants to destroy her destiny.”

Those words spread like wildfire. Alberta suddenly felt isolated in the very church she had served faithfully. Every service felt heavy, every prayer meeting tense. Even her close friends began avoiding her, afraid to offend “Papa.”

At night, she wrestled in prayer. “Lord, am I doing wrong by stepping back?” she asked tearfully. Her mind was clouded with doubt, but deep inside, a small voice whispered, “Stand still and see My salvation.”

That voice became her anchor.

One evening, the pastor sent her a message: “You cannot run from a covenant. You belong to me spiritually. Disobedience invites curses. Don’t test me.”

Her heart pounded as she read it. She almost replied, but instead, she knelt and prayed, “Lord, You alone are my Master. Break every ungodly tie. I choose You over fear.”

That prayer marked a turning point. For the first time, Alberta began to sense real freedom — not in her circumstances, but in her spirit.

The manipulation was losing its grip.

But the enemy wasn’t ready to let her go. Strange things were about to unfold — attacks, lies, and spiritual intimidation — all meant to drag her back into bondage.

The storm before her deliverance had begun.

The week after Alberta’s prayer of release was one of the hardest in her life. Strange things began to happen.

She woke up one night drenched in sweat after a terrifying dream — she saw herself chained in a dark room while the pastor stood over her, declaring, “You can never be free from me.” When she woke up, her body ached, and her heart raced with fear.

At work, she started feeling sudden dizziness and heavy pressure in her chest whenever she tried to pray. Even her phone filled with anonymous messages: “You are finished without Papa… No one leaves him and survives.”

Alberta cried out, “Lord, what’s happening to me? Why is this so hard?”

In the midst of her fear, she heard a whisper in her heart: “Fear not. The weapons formed against you shall not prosper.” She opened her Bible and read Isaiah 54:17. The verse became her lifeline. She spoke it aloud daily, even when her body trembled.

Meanwhile, the pastor grew more aggressive. During one church service, he stood before the congregation and said, “Some people have rebelled against divine order. I see a curse following them already.” His eyes locked on Alberta’s direction.

Murmurs filled the room. Alberta felt hundreds of eyes burning into her back, but she kept her head down, tears streaming silently.

That night, she prayed again. “God, I will not fear man. If You are with me, protect me. Let the truth come out.”

It was her strongest prayer yet — a declaration of faith amid the storm.

The battle was spiritual, but Alberta was no longer alone. Heaven had heard her cry.

Days turned into nights of warfare. Alberta continued fasting and praying, clinging to the promises of God. She began to attend a small fellowship outside the church—one that focused on Bible study and prayer. There, she met people who truly loved God without manipulation.

During one meeting, as they prayed, a woman stood up and said under inspiration, “There is someone here who has been bound by fear from a false shepherd. The Lord says, ‘I am breaking the chain tonight.’”

Alberta froze. Tears rolled down her face. She knew those words were for her.

That night, she went home and prayed like never before. “Lord, I renounce every false covenant, every spiritual chain, and every fear tied to that man. I belong to You alone.”

As she prayed, something lifted from her spirit—like a heavy curtain torn apart. Peace flooded her heart for the first time in months. She slept deeply, without nightmares.

The next morning, her phone buzzed with a message from one of the church members: “Did you hear? The pastor’s secrets are coming out.”

Her hands shook as she read the details. Another woman had bravely spoken up, sharing how she had been deceived and used in the same way. More stories followed. One by one, victims found courage to speak.

Alberta knelt on the floor, overwhelmed. “Thank You, Lord,” she whispered. “Truth is finally breaking through.”

It wasn’t revenge—it was justice. What had been hidden in darkness was being dragged into light.

For Alberta, it wasn’t just the exposure of a false pastor. It was the beginning of healing—a sign that God had heard every tear and every whispered prayer.

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