Based on “I Once Was Dead” by Cedric Kanana

When God saves us, he transfers us out of
the domain of darkness, bringing us from death to life. For Cedric Kanana, this
transition was literal. Cedric was lost, separated from God by his sin and the
powers of darkness, but God delivered him and now calls him his son.

“I Once Was Dead: How God Rescued Me from
Islam, Drugs, Witchcraft, and Even Death” is the incredible story of how God
transformed Cedric’s life. This riveting narrative shows that even the most
insurmountable obstacles can be overcome by God’s redemptive power.

Cedric knows what it is like to be claimed
by the powers of darkness. He was born as the son of a Muslim sheikh and a
priestess of an African god. After the 1994 Rwandan genocide, his heart became
filled with bitterness. He chose to fill his life with drugs, thievery, and
violence.

After narrowly escaping trouble with the
police, Cedric decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a great
imam. He began to seriously study the Koran, and used his knowledge to attack
Christianity in public debates. His frequent victories over Christians gave
Cedric great popularity in Muslim communities.

But just as Cedric’s star was beginning to
rise, the powers of darkness claimed him for good. In a moment, his mind
snapped, and he was thrust into an all-consuming madness. Though his family
sought healing, Cedric’s condition only grew worse. After all other options failed,
his mother brought him to a Christian church. The ministers prayed, and
miraculously, Cedric returned to his right mind. For Cedric, “The conclusion
was painfully obvious and also very confusing. When every other power has been
tried and has failed—pagan gods, Western medicine, and the Qur’an—only a
stronger power could succeed. I was stuck with the fact: Jesus must be
stronger.”

But Cedric wasn’t yet ready to leave the
darkness. As a prominent Muslim leader, if Cedric revealed that Jesus had
healed him, he could lose everything. So he kept silent. As the secret festered
within him, Cedric agonized over the hypocrisy of serving Allah when he knew
that Jesus had the greater power. But in a single moment, everything changed.

Suddenly, Cedric died. After suffering
from a sudden stabbing pain in his lungs, Cedric died a painful death and saw a
vision of four demons attacking him in Hell. All hope was lost. The destruction
of his life had finally caught up with him, and he was lost to the powers of
darkness for ever.

But then, Jesus appeared.

Jesus drove away the demons, once again
saving Cedric from a horrible fate. Lovingly smiling, Jesus told Cedric that he
had died for him, so Cedric should no longer deny Jesus’s power.

Cedric returned to life moments before his
body was buried. Suddenly filled with joy, Cedric began to shout about the
incredible power of Jesus—the God who can deliver from even the power of death.
He was so filled with zeal that he immediately gave his life to God—and led
over thirty other people to Jesus on the spot!

Cedric writes that, thanks to Jesus, “Whatever
curses had been laid on me, they were undone. Whatever lies I had once believed
about myself, they were shown in their falsity. Every lie, every ancestral sin
and family curse, every destructive path, and every evil bond … was broken.”
Through the changed life that God has given Cedric, countless people have given
themselves to Jesus—even Cedric’s parents!

Throughout this book’s action-packed plot,
one central message shines through: Jesus is stronger than death, than
addiction, than Islam, than traditional religion, than curses. Cedric’s
incredible story reminds us to put our trust in Jesus alone.

Though Cedric was lost, now he is found.
Though Cedric was dead, now he is alive. God is able to save anyone—even the
last people we would expect. No matter how far gone we are, God loves us, cares
for us, and will never stop working to rescue us.

How has God transformed your life? How did you get saved? This blog will give you great insights into the transformative power of God. He is able to save anyone.

Get your copy of I Once was Dead: How God Rescued Me from Islam, Drugs, Witchcraft, and Even Death on Amazon or from Oasis International Distribution partners in Africa.