Crammed with Heaven is a monthly column in which Jenni Pretorius Hill shares stories of hope which bring Heaven’s perspective to Earth
For the sake of my health, I often choose not to read the news. Sometimes, I succumb to temptation and scroll through headlines only to kick myself afterwards; it’s a sure way to lose my peace and sabotage my happiness. A recent report on the extravagant indulgences of politicians at taxpayers’ expense, left me formulating some scathing posts to upload to social media; they thankfully didn’t go beyond my personal head space, but they certainly contributed a fair bit of agitation to my mental state.
I finally pulled myself together with the help of promises from the scriptures, namely proverbs warning of recompense for the wicked. I am not joking. One of my go-to scriptures, when I am disturbed by the antics of corrupt men, is Psalm 37: 1 – 7. Twice, these verses encourage us “not to fret” because of evildoers; God will deal with them. Our job is to trust Him, to delight ourselves in Him and to commit to following His ways. God is not ignorant of wickedness; He does not turn a blind eye to the corrupt egomania of men, and He is not deaf to the cries of the righteous.
You will remember 2010 as the year South Africa hosted the FIFA World Cup. I remember it for reasons other than the soccer; it was the year God demonstrated holy justice.
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In the Eastern Cape, the selling of humans for sex is a real scourge, and as a church, we committed to pray against a potential rise in human trafficking over the time of the competition. Starting five months prior to the World Cup, we hosted monthly prayer gatherings.
At our penultimate meeting, on May 3, I experienced my first notable angel encounter. There were about 10 of us in the room and we had been praying and worshiping when I became aware of an angel. He was so big that only his legs and lower torso fitted into the space; his shoulders and head extended beyond the roof. I recognised him as an angel of war, and I heard the Lord clearly tell me to commission him to protect the vulnerable. It was an uncomfortable request because I had grown up to believe that one should not interact with angels, or even speak to them, and here God was telling me to command him!
So, I told the other intercessors what I was sensing and very tentatively, I gave the commission to the angel to go forth and do the Father’s bidding and protect those who were under threat. It was a hair-raising moment for all of us; we could feel the electric presence of heaven in the room. After that, I didn’t think much about the encounter until months after the World Cup had finished.
It was a Sunday morning, and I was cramming a bowl of cereal before going to church, when the Holy Spirit broke through my scurry and told me to “look at the Sunday Times”. Reading an online newspaper was not something I had ever done, plus I didn’t have a subscription. Nonetheless, I went to my computer, cereal bowl in hand, and started scrolling without knowing what I was supposed to look for. The entire paper was available to me.
And then, as if it was highlighted, I saw a little article – the headline was meaningless, but I felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit: this was what he wanted me to see. It was about the murder of Lolly Jackson, underworld criminal and boss of South African strip-tease clubs, Teazers. At this point, I hadn’t connected the dots, but I knew this man, Lolly Jackson was who the Spirit was pointing me to. I heard him say, “Now, look up the date and time of his death.’’ I went to other articles to search for this information: Lolly Jackson was shot to death on the night of May 3, killed by a fellow criminal. Then, I checked my journal for the date of the angel encounter. As I sat aghast on the edge of my bed, I heard the Holy Spirit whisper: “that’s what happened when you prayed.”
“When he died, shot six times, in May 2010, the cars in Lolly Jackson’s garage were conservatively estimated to be worth R96 million and on the surface his Teazers’ business empire seemed to be flourishing ahead of an expected influx of tourists looking for adult entertainment on the fringes of the Soccer World Cup. But his death blew the lid off a shadowy world of tax dodges, money laundering, intimidation and some very frightening people.”
There are many articles about his death; the above quote is taken from The Witness, March 2012. I remember another headline made by the PAC: “Lolly Jackson’s death will save many women from the sex trade.” A headline that was posted all over the city of East London after the World Cup, read : “No trafficking in the Eastern Cape during the Soccer World Cup.”
God was so kind to allow me to see the fruit of our prayers. We had not prayed for anyone’s death, but we had interceded for the vulnerable, the poor, and the powerless: those whom God fiercely defends. And Lolly Jackson’s demise exposed a dark web of criminals linked with international syndicates and high-powered South Africans.
While processing what had happened, I shared the story with Bill Johnson’s intercessor-wife, Beni, via email. Her take on it was that the commissioned angels had destroyed the covering of darkness that kept Lolly Jackson and his evil networks protected; when this protective covering was destroyed, another criminal was enabled to take him out, and their vile empire was exposed. God’s goodness is seen in His justice. He is our loving, merciful father, but He is holy too and faithful to protect the righteous and deal with the wicked. Be encouraged friends. Your prayers are powerful, and He is willing and able to defend you. Do not fret; He is at work, establishing His kingdom and His righteousness upon the earth. In the end, we win.
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