The Director of Strategy, Christian Association of Nigeria, (CAN), Rev Babalola Joseph has said that CAN is mobilising its members to come en mass and collect their Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) and participate actively in the forthcoming election.

Joseph said this in an interview with The Nation last week at the 2023 Prayer for Nigeria, organised by the Peace in Nigeria Prayer Group, held at the Light of Life Ministry, Baruwa, Lagos.

Tagged: ‘New Nigeria, New Experience,’ featured prayers, bible teaching, prophetic ministration, and award presentations to church leaders, security operatives, medical personnel, and the media for their contribution to nation-building.

The cleric said that the church believes firmly that God will choose for us at this time, as this is not the best of Nigeria. We also have a civil responsibility to go out and vote in this coming election.

According to him, the church is participating actively in this forthcoming election as members have been encouraged to go and get the encouraged PVC.

“We, at a time, encouraged our members to bring in their PVC to church for inspection and we appreciated those who have gotten theirs. For those who have not gotten their PVC, we are encouraging them to go and get their PVC at a good time.”

Joseph reinstated that God would intervene in the matter of Nigeria and justice will prevail.

“We are about to choose new leaders. We are praying to God to give us leaders. God’s will will prevail. None of the aspirants can on their own do it but God can do it and he knows who he can use among them to fulfill his will upon Nigeria,” he said.

Also, speaking at the event, the Secretary of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, Baruwa Chapter, Pastor Onike Taiwo stressed the need for Christians to come and vote in the forthcoming election saying that it is a biblical injunction.

Earlier, the convener of the prayer group, Rev Johnson Oludele Adekola said that the annual prayer programme is about the quest for a new and better Nigeria.

He said that when we pray and do the right things, Nigeria will be great again.

“For us to have a better Nigeria, we must obey the law of the land and serve the people of the land with selfless love, peace, and strength.

“Are we not being disgraced in our nation? We have crude oil but our refineries are not working, we have the Kanji Dam and other sources of energy, we have no light, we have leaders but no truth, we have churches but corruption everywhere and our people are being disgraced in neighbouring countries,” Joseph said.

The Senior Pastor of General Assembly International Christian Church, Pastor Tunde Kanimodo, recently celebrated the fifth anniversary of his ministry.  In an interview with Adeola Ogunlade, he spoke about his journey from a staunch Islamic background to a pastor; calling into ministry, raising mature Christians as God’s generals. Excerpts

How do you feel seeing the church recently clocked 5; the mark of grace?

I feel so good and happy. My heart is full of gratitude to God for seeing the church clock five. The church clocking five is grace. Some people started ministry at the same time as me but couldn’t continue. With the little, we have done and how far God has helped us within these five years, I’m full of joy.

Share with us about your background, including your rebirth encounter

This is an awesome request that I like, particularly about my rebirth encounter.

I had an Islamic background. We were staunch Islamic believers in my family. It was grace that found me. Before my encounter with Christ, I was a hater of Christianity and Christians. In Islam, we were indoctrinated to see all Christians as kefirs (unbelievers). By the grace of God, I will be 55- years- old this year, and till now, I have never tasted pork for you to know how deep I was in the Islamic faith before I met Christ. Muslims don’t eat pork. Muslims believe that it is only unbelievers like Christians that eat pork. How grace found me and converted me to a Christian is beyond my comprehension. My journey of conversion to a Christian began during my national youth service in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. I left home for youth service as a faithful Muslim. I went for the national service with my Quran, tasbih (Muslim prayer rosary), and other Islamic materials to help my growth in the Islamic faith. Unfortunately, I found myself residing with a Christian family in Port Harcourt.

Tell us about your experience as a staunch Muslim residing with a Christian family.

Whenever the family wanted to pray they would seek my indulgence to join them in the prayer, telling me that both Christians and Muslims pray to the same God. So, I started joining them in their prayer but would still observe my ablutions (Islamic prayers). One fateful night I joined the family in a night prayer in their living room. After the prayer, I returned to my room, slept off, and had an unforgettable mysterious encounter that led me to Jesus Christ. I saw myself in a dream surrounded by chariots of some masked people that looked like Nigeriens with bows and arrows in their hands. There were over one thousand masked people with bows and arrows in their hands. I asked myself, how would I escape this? Suddenly, I screamed, Jesus! And I saw my hand lifted and turned to fire. I moved the hand down, swung it right and left, and saw the chariots with their riders catch fire. When I woke up I was amazed.

After your rebirth, how did you eventually receive the call to ministry?

After my rebirth encounter, I started attending church activities. Along the line, I became a worker in my former church. But I never envisaged becoming a pastor despite that I was committed and dedicated to service in my former church. For several years, I was the coordinator of a particular programme in the church. I was three times chairman of the national convention of the church. I was zealous in the work of God probably because of my Islamic background. In Islam, you don’t joke with the work of God. Later, I began receiving the promptings of a call to ministry, but never took them seriously. Severally I argued with the Holy Spirit that I don’t have to start another church to work for God. I showed the Holy Spirit some examples of men of God doing great works for God without running a church. Yet, several men of God, including my senior prophet kept telling me the messages that God gave to them about me to start a ministry. This confirmed the promptings I have also been receiving in that direction. But for me, I was more content serving under a church than facing the troubles of leading another church. Eventually, I prayed about the promptings and messages and we started the ministry five years ago.

What is the mandate of your calling, and the gifts God endowed you for it?

The mandate of the General Assembly International Christian Church is to raise generals for God. When we say generals, we are talking about mature Christians who can stand out in all ramifications; standing in the gap in all situations for the body of Christ. So, our mandate is to raise mature Christians that will trouble the kingdom of darkness to expand the kingdom of God. The gifts God endowed us for these mandates are the gifts of the teaching of the word of God, prayer, and the fire of God through the Holy Ghost in Christ Jesus. These are the gifts helping us.

How will you describe the journey of the church so far in these five years?

The journey so far has been awesome though with some ups and downs at the start. It was very rough when we started. We started the ministry on leased property. By the time we got to the roofing of the church structure, we had no money to continue. So, I had to sell the only car I had then to enable us to roof the structure. I understand nobody crosses over to the city of greatness without crossing the border of sacrifice. My Siena car was about 11 months old then. So, I had to sell that car to enable us to continue the building. The beginning was indeed rough but today we are very grateful to God.

Later the Lord gave me a better car. Though we had a small beginning, we refused to remain small. We continue growing higher every day. It was indeed hard at the beginning but grace was sufficient for us. Grace makes it easy and simple for us in this journey so far. We bless God for that.

Who are those you look up to as your mentors or role models in ministry?

My mentor is Prophet Peter Olowoporoku. I was brought up in ministry under his tutelage. He is a man of God I love so much. I look up to Baba E.A Adeboye as my grandfather in ministry. I also look up to Bishop David Oyedepo and Apostle Joshua Selman as my mentors. I particularly love  Apostle Joshua Selman so much.

If Christ tarries, what are your plans or vision for the church in the next five years when it will mark your 10th anniversary?

If the Lord tarries, our vision in the next five years is to accomplish what the Lord told us to raise generals for Him. We want to raise as many generals as possible. We are presently in our temporary place of worship. Our vision in the next two years is to get a befitting and massive place of worship with a very encouraging capacity to expand the kingdom of God.

The General Overseer of the Christ Church of Grace, Prophet C. A. Adetunbi, has charged President Muhammadu Buhari to call for a three-day fasting and praying across the country for Nigerians to repent of their sins and experience a supernatural turnaround in 2023.

Adetunbi said this in an interview with The Nation recently in his New Year message to Nigerians at the church headquarters in Ajagbandi, Lagos.

He said that the three-day solemnity would also be declared a national holiday, saying the nation would reap joy after the event.

He said that Nigeria is plagued with myriads of problems because of the high prevalence of sin and wickedness and the only solution is for the country to return to God.

Citing Acts 3:19 says: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.”

He said this is a call for all Nigerians to come together in unity of purpose and submit to God in order for the vehicle of the nation to come out from the mud it is sunk in. “It is our sin that has led us to our current problems. The problems would only leave when Nigerians as a whole return to Him.

“God showed me a vision some years back about Nigeria. God likened the country to a moving vehicle. The vehicle was big and moving beside a river. Suddenly, it began to reverse and entered the river beside it. While the front was on the bank of the river, the back sank into the river, thereby making it difficult for it to move either forward or backward.

“Then, I saw myself standing beside the vehicle. And when I opened the door of the vehicle, I saw many mosques, churches, and people deep asleep inside. So, I began to wake them, calling them to stand. I started praying, asking God to show me the way out. God replied and said it is our sin that has led us to our current problems,” he said.

He noted that President Muhammadu Buhari had tried a lot and prayed to God to be with him and his family. “It’s our sin that is putting us into problems, not that we don’t have good leaders, God is not happy with us, let us follow God this New Year and let’s stop doing evil.”

God, he claimed, told him that on the first day, Nigerians should confess their sins and repent from them. “On the second day, we are to read and pray with Psalm 85:1-13, while on the third day, we are to read Psalm 136:1-26 for thanksgiving, and believing our prayers have been answered.

“It is only after this that Nigeria will have peace and be free from problems and illnesses, according to Isaiah 45:7. May God grant our leaders power of the Holy Spirit, knowledge, and wisdom to lead the nation.”

He also claimed that God told him that the Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) Bola Ahmed Tinubu will emerge victorious in the forthcoming election. “I have never seen any new party for the post of president, the only party I saw is APC. Bola Ahmed Tinubu, you have a message from God, so anything you want to, always put God first, citing Proverbs 13 vs 3, 5 vs 1-2.”

He advised the former President, Olusegun Obasanjo to use his position to advise the incoming administration, noting that God has placed him in a vantage position and he should use it for the progress and development of Nigeria.

He prayed against the untimely death of youth corps members, saying that whenever any corps member is going to their place of primary assignment every morning, they should stay away from evils.

By Adeola Ogunlade

• As Abiodun task churches on positive ideas

The General Overseer of Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria, Reverend Sam Aboyeji, has urged Nigerians to always speak positively and remain hopeful about Nigeria as better days lie ahead.

Aboyeji disclosed this recently at the 67th Annual Convention of the Foursquare Gospel Church, held at the church campground in Ajebo, Ogun State.

The convention tagged: ‘Encounter with the Supernatural, with the convention text taken from Gen. 32 verses 28-30, was attended by thousands of Christian faithful from across the country, including government officials, captains of industry, diplomats, royal fathers, National Overseer of Foursquare Gospel Church, Ghana, Rev Francis Sey, and many others.

Also at the event, new national officers were appointed to the organisation’s board, National Executive Council (NEC), and   86 pastors to the status of reverends, and senior pastors.

Aboyegi highlighted the five keys which include: hearing the right things at all times; hearing correctly and reacting accordingly; removing every obstacle; presenting oneself and asking from God; saying that many Christians go through turbulent times because they fail to speak positive things into their lives.

He also called on Nigerians to always speak positive things that would unite Nigeria and act accordingly.

Speaking on the key text taken from the Book of Gen. 32 verse 28, Aboyeji said an encounter could happen in every area of human lives.

Read Also: Who to vote for in 2023, by Kumuyi

According to him, every encounter with Jesus resulted in testimonies like the case of Bartimaeus, a blind beggar.

The governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun appealed to the church to rise up and confront the numerous challenges facing the nation by promoting positive ideas that will enhance the peace and prosperity of the country.

Abiodun said that as societies are afflicted with all manners of ills, ranging from insurgency, kidnapping, cultism, banditry, sexual assaults and a host of others, the church must be proactive and promote positive ideals, virtues and values that will help it to optimise the developmental opportunities being created by the existing democratic platform in the state.

He said: “The role of the church, as the conscience of the nation, is an age-long fact which has become the guiding light for any society that desires development. It is, therefore, imperative that the love of God be extended to all, while people are implored to eschew bitterness.

“Moreso, the church as an organ of socialisation, is ever relevant, especially in propagating moral ethics in the society. For this reason, the church is enjoined to work harder in its responsibility by condemning the use of violence by individuals or groups to seek redress,” he said.

Abiodun urged parents and guardians to properly monitor their wards against

The governor pointed out that Ogun State remains the religious capital of the country, saying his administration would continue to promote religious tolerance among various religions that exist in the state, as well as initiate programmes to enhance mutual understanding and respect for the rights of worship of all religious beliefs.

The governor enjoined churches to be steadfast in praying for the unity of the country ahead of the 2023 general elections.

While identifying the convention as a platform to appraise the growth of the church, Abiodun urged leadership to position the future developmental goals of the church within the broader spectrum of the general society.