Rescue from the Darkness

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.

This blog is based on the book I Once Was Dead: How God Rescued Me from Islam, Drugs, Witchcraft, and Even Death by Cedric Kanana.

How has God transformed your life? How did you get saved? This blog will provide you with great insights into the transformative power of God. He is capable of saving anyone.

Get your copy of I Once was Dead on Amazon or from Oasis International Distribution partners in Africa.