Faulty Foundations, Firm Foundations

This piece is for those who have had similar experiences to mine—those who grew up in love, care, and healthy families but still ended up with faulty foundations. Looking back on my childhood, I remember going to church, being baptized, and participating in rituals. I also recall cows, sheep, and goats being slaughtered as part of my rites of passage. Back then, it all seemed normal; after all, this was—and still is—the reality for many "Christians."

I’m going to share one of the pivotal events in my life that shook my foundations even further. This story is long, but I’ll do my best to summarize it.

The year was 2012. I was in Grade 9, navigating the chasm between two worlds. On one side, my peers despised me—yes, they hated me—but on the other, my teachers adored me. I was a part of a Hip Hop dance crew, performing to a diverse range of music and singing my heart out. Yet, at the same time, I was a dedicated youth member at the Roman Catholic church, caught in the tension between cultural expression and religious devotion.

I spent time with "friends" who, looking back, I realize weren’t truly my friends at all. I was not their friend, but they were my friends, but I didn't know it then. Despite this, I was the head of the Soul Buddies club, the picture of leadership and involvement. On the flip side, my grades were plummeting, a direct contrast to the success I seemed to find in extracurriculars. It felt like I was walking a fine line, balancing between two contradictory worlds.

I couldn't sit still. I would wander around my neighborhood, aimlessly, disconnected from everything around me. And when I wasn’t doing that, I was sleeping—avoiding reality. I was depressed, though at the time I didn’t know it. To the untrained eye, I was just a teenager acting out, caught up in hormonal chaos. But for those who truly knew me, there was an undeniable concern. My parents, too, were caught in that same tension—torn between trying to support me and recognizing the underlying distress. Looking back, I share their concern.

My mom, always rooted in her faith, clung to what she knew—what had always given her comfort and strength. But while she sought help in what she understood, my foundations were crumbling. The very thing that was supposed to provide me with stability—those same religious roots—felt more like a weight, dragging me down further. What was meant to heal me seemed only to deepen the divide between me and God. So, in her desperation, we turned to a "prophet"—someone who claimed to consult both ancestors and God. We went to his house, hoping he might have the answers we were searching for. We waited in his living room until it was our turn. He worked out of his garage, separated from the rest of the house. When our time came, we entered. I remember meeting him—he was bubbly, warm, and welcoming. A candle flickered on the table between us, and he wore a simple white garment. He sat on the opposite side of the room, and the space was nearly dark, save for the flickering light of the candle.

We sat down, and my mother, not saying much, basically said (and I paraphrase), "We’re here because Thandi is acting out of character. Something is wrong with her."

He asked me to open the Bible, said a prayer, and then told me to step outside for a moment because he needed to have an "adult conversation" with my mom. A few minutes later, he called me back in and said, "Don’t worry. I’m going to help you. Your ancestors are fighting for you because your parents were not married. But we have a solution."

That solution? My mom buying a goat for a ritual.

A few weeks later, my mom purchased the goat, took it to this prophet, and we performed the ritual. The ritual involved slaughtering the goat, collecting its blood, and taking it to a nearby river. The prophet rubbed the blood on me, and I had to bathe in the river. Of course, he was there with my mom. I remember her saying, “As he bathes you, ask your ancestors to have mercy on you and bless you.” And oh, did I ask.

As I stood by the riverside, I saw two tiny candles shining steadily. Later, the prophet told me it was a good sign—that I am a seer, and that the ancestors were pleased with me.

The devil is a liar. I was convinced that the flickering candlelight meant something greater, that the ancestors were listening, and I had found my path. But now, looking back, I realize that experience was nothing but false hope. I had been swept up in a moment of misguided belief, clinging to something that seemed to offer comfort but ultimately led nowhere. I had trusted in a ritual that promised salvation, only to find that it was a mirage—empty, fleeting, and devoid of true guidance. The devil, it seems, had deceived me, promising answers that only left me more lost than before.

Now, saints, I don’t know what you’ll take away from this experience, but here’s my revelation: The devil was after me. He tried his best to steal my foundations and build his temple in my life. I am overwhelmed with gratitude when I recall this experience. The Lord came for me. He pulled me out of the pit, out of the blood of many animals. The Lord saved me. He saved me.

When I say "I am saved" and you ask, "What are you saved from?" Oh, let me tell you: I am saved from these kinds of experiences. When I speak of the things the Lord has done for me, I don’t just mean getting a job or buying a car. I’m not talking about material things. When I say the Lord has done great works in me, I think about how He washed the goat’s blood off me with the blood of Jesus Christ. And trust me, this is not the only experience I can refer to.

The Bible says in Isaiah 28:16, "Therefore, thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: Whoever believes will not be in haste.'" And in 1 Corinthians 3:11, it says, "For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." This needs no explanation. No one's foundation should be built on anything other than Jesus Christ. Any foundation laid on rituals, ancestral worship, self, pride, culture, or another person is faulty and needs to be torn down. If your life is based on anything other than Christ, it is bound to be flawed. And by "flawed," I don’t just mean difficult or painful—I mean fundamentally unstable.

Let me explain. There are people who have been introduced to ancestral worship from birth. These ancestral spirits are real—they are spirits that operate in the spirit world and can manifest when the door is open. For example, people who communicate with these spirits essentially open the doors of their lives, allowing these spirits to enter or visit the natural world through their bodies . This often happens through trances or rituals. When you open yourself to these spirits, they claim ownership over your life. I’ve seen people who seem to live "wonderful" lives—everything looks perfect from the outside—not because they are blessed by God, but because they appease these spirits, and in turn, these spirits "blesses" them back.

But I’ve also seen people who follow these same rituals—who appease the spirits—only to face continual misfortune. They struggle to find jobs, cannot have children, remain chronically ill, or are surrounded by persistent bad luck despite their efforts. The reality is that these "ancestral spirits" are demonic. There’s no sugar-coating it. These spirits do not come from God. In fact, God warns us in Leviticus 19:31: "Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the Lord your God." It’s simple: Do not seek out any spirits other than the Holy Spirit. Do not engage with any spirit other than the one Christ ordained.

Why? Because these spirits form covenants with you. They come to kill, steal, and destroy your relationship with your Creator. I’ll share more about how these spirits affected my life in another article, but for now, understand this: no foundation built on anything other than Jesus Christ will stand.

Saints, I write this to help you recognize the faulty foundations that the devil has imposed on us through ancestral worship. Many of us are burdened by bloody foundations—ones rooted in ancestral worship, idolatries, broken families, abuse, loss, heartbreak—the list is endless. We all carry these faulty foundations in some way. But I write to you today to declare that the Lord can be your firm foundation. He is the rock upon which you can build your life. Yes, we may have been washed in the blood of goats, but the blood of Christ speaks of better things. Break free from the old foundation, renounce it, and step into a new covenant with the Lord. Build your life upon a foundation of love, holiness, and righteousness.

As you stand on this firm foundation, remember: according to Matthews 7:24-27, no storm can shake you, no wind can knock you down, because you are anchored in the unshakable rock of Christ. May you find peace and strength in His truth, and may your life be a testimony to the power of a renewed foundation.