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Tag: pastors

  • Osinbajo attends pastors’ conference in Ibadan, says Nigeria has bright future

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Friday attended 2018 Greater Pastors’ Conference in Ibadan and emphasised that Nigeria has bright future.

    Osinbajo, who is a member of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), said the country would be great again in spite of challenges facing it.

    He urged Nigerians to assist leaders and the administration with prayers, saying the country would soon be one of the greatest countries in the world.

    On the outcome of the conference, the vice president said it was a family meeting where pastoral and national issues were discussed.

    According to him, issues on restructuring and security are among what the pastors deliberated upon at the conference.

    He said pastors felt that state police was one of those ideas that could further enhance security of lives and property in the country.

    He added that the idea for state police and for states to control their resources was good but opined that states should be able to generate more income.

    “State governments should make sure that taxes are paid, look at other ways Internally Generated Revenue can be improved and sustained, as well as exercise greater freedom with respect to various aspects of economy,” he advised.

    The Chairman of PFN in Oyo State, Bishop Taiwo Adelakun assured the present administration of support through fervent prayers.

    He urged President Muhammadu Buhari to aggressively look into the issues of security and other challenges facing the nation.

    Adelakun, who is the presiding bishop of Victory International Church, cautioned government against the idea of borrowing to finance the nation’s economy.

    Dignitaries at the conference were Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State and his Deputy, Mr Michael Adeyemo.

    Others were Kayode Abiara, Rev. Abayomi Kasali, Pastor Femi Emmanuel, Bishop Stephen Kehinde, among others.

  • Politicians, pastors paid me to destroy Apostle Suleman, Otobo confesses

    Politicians, pastors paid me to destroy Apostle Suleman, Otobo confesses

    •Begs cleric for forgiveness

    In a massive, dramatic U-turn, Miss Stephanie Otobo, has apologised to founder of Omega Fire Ministries Worldwide (OFM), Apostle Johnson Suleman, who she accused of impregnating and breaching a promise to marry her.

    Otobo, in a confession video on the church Facebook page yesterday, declared she was sponsored by “very strong and powerful politicians and pastors” to defame the popular preacher.

    In the video, which has gone viral on social media, she said: “They paid me a lot of money,” wiping tears from her eyes.

    Suleman’s wife, Lizzy, in turn addressed the congregation, asking them to forgive Otobo, after confession of her sins.

    A commentary by the church in the video on the dramatic confession, said: “The only offense he committed was to have intervened in the numerous heinous crimes against the Church of Christ around the Nation and became a Voice for the Gospel.

    “What followed was a well – doctored drama to attack the reputation of this Golden Voice and seemingly reduce the volume of his voice even as more evils were planned against the Church.

    “After all the evil efforts, the secret agendas, the heavily funded set-up and the unrelenting pursuits to snare an innocent man, they were futile.

    “The master planner has finally vindicated his church and his servant.

    “This is not only a victory for God’s Servant; it is a victory for the Body of Christ and The Church in Nigeria,” the post read.

    Otobo’s counsel, Festus Keyamo, told an online newspaper Premium Times he could not confirm or deny the video.

    “We saw the video online on Saturday morning but we are yet to get any formal statement from Stephanie confirming or debunking the video.

    “We are lawyers and we only act on our client’s instructions. So, we don’t have any comment on the matter,” he said.

    On what will become of the pending court case, he said: “No comment, we are waiting to hear from our client first before we know the next line of action.”

    The actress who came from Canada said she accepted the proposal of the unnamed powerful politicians and pastors because she was assured it would help her career.

    Last year, She accused Suleman of failing to keep a marriage promise made to her.

    She filed a petition asking the police to investigate multiple allegations against the preacher.

    Last November, the preacher also filed a defamation suit against her at the Lagos State High Court in Ikeja.

    The hearing was stalled following the latter’s absence in court.

    The presiding judge, Adedayo Oyebanji, adjourned the matter until February 7.

     

  • Pastors, imams begin campaign to reduce food prices

    As the month of Ramadan approaches, 20 Muslim and Christian clerics have begun a campaign in markets across the northern states to appeal to traders to reduce food prices.

    The clergymen, working under the aegis of Peace Revival and Reconciliation Foundation, said they would visit markets, interact with traders and their leaders to halt the sharp rise in the prices, especially during Ramadan.

    “We have organised 10 pastors and 10 imams for the campaign and we will visit markets, interact with trader associations and individual traders in parts of the North.

    “It is to open talks with the traders, appeal to them and discuss the roles they will play toward reducing prices of goods and services during Ramadan,” Yohanna Buru, coordinator of the foundation, said in Kaduna.

    He said: “It was observed that every year, marketers take advantage of the holy month to extort the public.

    “This is not really good. God is angry with such traders, and as such there won’t be any God blessing from the money they make from such dirty gains.”

    NAN reports the foundation conducted a similar campaign in Kaduna State last year.

    Buru said the 20 clerics would pursue the assignment with zeal, to reach every part of the region.

    “The sharp increase in prices affects every citizen, whether Muslim, Christian or believers in traditional religion.

    “So, we must team up as Christians and Muslims to kick against extortion by traders.”

    He advised the government to come up with measures to halt increase in food prices.

    Buru urged philantropists to set up parallel markets to help the poor and force price reduction in local markets.

    Another clergyman, Malam Gambo Abdullahi, reminded traders the need to seek God’s blessings by being considerate in fixing prices, avoiding hoarding and racketeering.

  • ‘How to train growing, healthy pastors’

    ‘How to train growing, healthy pastors’

    Church Growth expert, Dr Francis Bola Akin-John, speaks with Sunday Oguntola on the imperatives of training for pastors ahead of a conference. Excerpts: 

    How did you conceive the idea of WATPRICO?

    I was in a conference in Thailand for pastoral trainers when the idea came that we need to do West Africa Pastoral Trainers Congress (WAPTRICO) where we can bring people training pastors or have the vision of training pastors.

    I discovered, with due respect to our bible colleges, seminaries, and schools of ministries, that we are not producing healthy pastors.

    How?

    The bible colleges and seminaries seem to give them too many theological issues that render them almost useless by the time they graduate and come to pastoral ministries.

    On their part, the informal sector has too many shallow, imbalanced and ephemeral teachings with nothing to do with preparing somebody to pastor a healthy church by the time they graduate.

    Sometimes those trainings are one-month or three-month such that by the time they graduate, they come hurting eternal souls. Leading the church becomes a big problem. So, the idea came that we should bring people from formal and informal set ups for standard procedures and arrive at some resources and materials that will equip anybody God calls to pastoral ministry.

     

    When he/she passes through those trainings, at least we can say that we have given them the basic and get them ready for a lifelong effective ministry.

    What is the kind of training that any pastor planning to be healthy should undergo?

    Healthy pastors should be trained on biblical interpretations, pulpit mannerism and pulpit delivery and communication. They should go through training on social media and internet. They should go through training on church planting, leadership, relationship, dispute resolution, crises management and the likes.

    Those are things that we have discovered if you want to make pastoral training relevant, they must undergo. Pastors planning to be healthy should go through trainings that will develop his character, knowledge, personality, communication, relationship and congregation.

    The health of the pastor is the health of the church and the health of the church is the health of the society. If the pastor is not healthy, the church will never be healthy. And if the church is not healthy, the society will never be healthy. Those are issues we want to deal with at WAPTRICO.

    Can we have perfect pastors?

    No, but we can have growing pastors. There are no perfect pastors because all of us are in the making but you can be properly trained, equipped, grounded, moulded in a way that you can help others without losing your life. Pastors are dealing with souls and destinies. They have many pressures and challenges. Being perfect is not possible but we can have holy, effective pastors.

    You can be a model and good example to others. You can make mistakes sometimes because you are human but you must be growing in character, measure and capacity.

    You can minister in such a way you get people ready for heaven. You be a good example for them. Unfortunately, almost 90% of pastors of today don’t fall into the picture.

    They are not healthy?

    They are not healthy because many of them didn’t go through trainings. They just wake up, say God has called them and open a church. You can only see that in the church. In major professions, can someone just wake up and say I am a pilot without being trained and certified?

    I have been reading a lot about aviation lately. Pilots go through training every three months. Like doctors, they go for training while practicing. Doctors read medical journals and attend medical conferences. They keep upgrading even years after graduation. It is the same with engineers.

    But when some pastors manage to graduate, they don’t go for training again. Yet, they are dealing with eternal souls. Those who embrace training don’t also get the best from the trainers. So, we want to build the bridge for this.

    Are healthy pastors made or born?

    They are made. Even if they were born, they must still go through training because pastoral work is a continuous learning process. You go for training for updating to interpret the scriptures, do the right things, handle issues, crises and souls.  Jesus says ‘I will make you fishers of men.’ He makes them by training them for three and half years.

    But the biggest pastors in the country didn’t go through pastoral training. How do you relate this to what you are saying?

    That is why we have lots of issues in our churches. That is why we have lot of issues with bible misinterpretations and misapplication. That is why we have a lot of errors being peddled about.

    The truth is we don’t need to copy bad examples and in the last 30 years there have been a lot of errors in the Nigerian church, especially by our so-called big pastors.  It is because we don’t go through trainings. If we don’t want these things to continue, we need to be properly trained on how the church should be run.

    We need to go through trainings. We need to check our trainings, and go for retraining in scriptures, in handling churches, in administering churches, in leading churches and sundry issues.

    We need to retrain on how to avoid issues, scandals, rumours and certain unpalatable issues in the ministry. So, for me, the key is we need to go back to basic fundamental trainings. Enough of people running ministries and jumping into church planting without passing through solid, sound trainings.

    For too long a time, the church in Nigeria has taken trainings for granted. You can’t be functional in the military if you don’t go for trainings and each promotion comes because you pass through a course. Pastors are also into spiritual military work. If you are not trained for it, you will be gunned down quickly.

    You’d become a casualty and that is why a lot of pastors are becoming casualties. They are falling by the way side because it is a spiritual battle.

    Does personal development make up for training?

    Of course personal development is good but it is not the final. Whoever wants to do this work must go for trainings. Pastoral and ministerial works require lot of trainings because we have issues with people and money. Most members you are handling are hurtful and injured. They have lost hope in life and it requires proper trainings for you to know how to handle them.

    What would be your advice to trained pastors who appear not to be doing so well compared to their untrained counterparts?

    Those ones should update their training. You might be properly trained, doing a good job but lack strategies to win your society. You may be concentrating inside your church to win the community. There are things you should do but which you are not doing.

    Those who seem to be doing well with crowd and money, they too should go and update their training because having a crowd does not say you are pleasing God. Crowd is not church. You can draw a crowd and yet you don’t draw people for heaven. You can have people that are in church yet they are not in Christ. So, everyone should ask himself: this crowd and money, are we taking them to heaven?

    You are targeting one million healthy local churches in ten years. Is that realisable?

    It is realisable if you have 500 pastoral trainers and each trains at least four, it is achievable. I am not saying I am going to do this alone. That is why we are calling this.

    We want to partner with formal and informal trainers to draw up standard trainings for pastors and each should run with the vision. If I can have 500 pastoral trainers who can take the resources and run with it, it is achievable.

  • Cleric canvasses faithfulness among pastors

    President of Fellowship of Christian Ministers Nigeria, Rev Isaac Ogundiran, has appealed to church leaders to remain faithful to God and the Great Commission.

    He spoke with our correspondent at the induction of the newly elected and returned National Executive Officers of the fellowship in Lagos.

    Ogundiran said faithfulness is one of the essential qualities of leadership especially for church leaders expected to live above board in all things.

    Anyone without it, he said, is unworthy of being addressed as a minister regardless of the titles, skills or talents.

    He lamented unfaithfulness among some ministers of the gospel, stating they will receive divine retribution if they don’t repent.

    He restated commitment of the fellowship to equip and prepare church leaders for greater service for the Lord.

    Grand Patron of the fellowship, Archbishop Magnus Atilade, challenged the newly inducted leaders to live and stand by the word of God.

    The word, he said, remains a sure refuge against any storm that may come their ways.

    He said: “As a servant to God, you are required to lead in your various communities and fight the common enemy Satan and all his forces in a spiritual warfare with armour of prayer, the word of God, the power of the Holy Spirit and holy living.

    “l have learned to stand by the Bible and the word of God as it has never failed me. I am bold and fearless because I stand by God’s word.”

    He said their election to the leadership positions in the fellowship was a higher calling that requires greater sense of responsibility and good moral.

  • Stop promoting religious violence, priest warns pastors

    A Catholic priest has condemned the call for violence by some religious leaders in the country. Very Reverend Father Philip Hoteyin said Christian leaders whose utterances promote violence have derailed from the teachings of Christ and would be “eternally condemned” for the bloodshed which their inciting preaching may generate.

    The Catholic priest spoke to The Nation after a special mass to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Association of Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart of Mary, which was held at St. Augustine’s Catholic Church in the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Base in Ikeja, Lagos.

    The priest urged Christians not to heed the call by the religious leaders to retaliate killings in the Southern part of Kaduna State, where suspected armed herdsmen recently slayed hundreds of Christian residents.

    Hoteyin described retaliation as “a way of the devil”, urging Christian leaders to desist from preaching violence. He called on Nigerians to work for peace.

    He said: “Christian leaders calling for violent retaliation for the killings in the Southern Kaduna have had their minds moved away from the teachings of God. By doing so, they are preparing their minds and souls to be eternally condemned by God. They are two kinds of condemnations. There is human condemnation, which is temporary. There is also God’s condemnation, which is eternal.

    “It was observed that these proponents of violence are being deceived by the praises which people shower on them. The one who deceives himself is the worst of deceivers. Everybody may deceive you by showering praises on you, but you are deceiving yourself. Nobody can predict the consequence of these violent utterances. Anything can happen. We must emulate Christ as advocate of peace. It is left for those preachers to speak to their hearts on whether they are toing the path created by Jesus by calling for retaliation.”

    Hoteyin, who is the immediate past National Spiritual Director of the association, urged people across religious divides to purify their hearts and work for peace. Describing Nigeria as the most religious country, the priest said people needed to be tolerant and sincere to achieve peace.

    “If we have larger hearts to accommodate and tolerate one another, we will achieve peace in this country. God, who created all of us, is a loving father. He wants us to flourish and live happily among ourselves. Whether we obey him or not, God wants every human he created to have peace. This is for our wellbeing. The peace must come with fear of God,” he said.

    In his homily taken from John 14:27-28, Hoteyin admonished members of the association to purify their hearts and souls, saying the event was a reminder of the core values of association, which include achieving peace through spirituality.

    He cautioned members of the congregation against using negative words on one another, saying God does not like people who use abusive words on their companions.

    He said: “In Catholic church, we believe everyone has the spirit of Jesus inside his body and that is the way to achieve purity of heart and soul. We lose this spirit the moment we start voicing out abusive words against our fellow brethren. Such a soul is left to be occupied by the devil. Christians must learn to speak good at all times.”

    During the solemn admission of candidates into the association, its national president, Group Captain E.J. Ebiye (rtd), said the objective of the association was to enthrone sacred heart of Jesus in every Catholic Church member’s home to sanctify and protect their families.

    He told the devotees to promote faith, humility, obedience, perseverance and holiness through their actions. He said trials would always come during a service for God, but urged the devotees to always remember God’s protective arms over their affairs.

    Ebiye said: “Sometimes, anxieties, distress, suffering, grave trials, hardship, period of forced isolation and disappointment may come during the service to God; we must always remember that God’s protective arms are underneath to support us. All these things sometimes happen to us to prepare us for greater joy. God can change the thorns of life into a crown of glory.

    “The sacred heart of Jesus through the intercession of the immaculate heart of Mary is ever ready to come to our aid in any situation. The devotees should be reminded that Jesus is the only faithful solution to all our problems when the world is against us. There is no disappointment in Jesus Christ. I urge the devotees to live a life of holiness, because there is possibility to become saints by our devotion and prayers to the sacred heart of Jesus.”

    In his keynote address, National Chaplain of the association, Reverend Father Anthony Umoh, said the golden jubilee celebration was remarkable, because it propagated the core values which Jesus championed.

    He said: “We have gathered to celebrate Jesus whose heart is a delight to all who seek him with sincere heart. The anniversary affords us opportunity to re-focus our devotion by offering prayers for the economic, social and political emancipation of our country reeling under deadly insurgency, poverty, religious intolerance and socio-economic tension.

    “The efficacy of our devotion to the sacred heart of Jesus and immaculate heart of Mary can bring good to the church and the country. I enjoin the devotees to remain committed to the objectives of the association. They must be in constant communion with the saints.”

    The event featured special mass for the immediate past National Spiritual Director, Huteyin, and his successor, awards presentations and giving of Holy Communion to all members. More than 3,000 devotees from across the country and abroad attended the event.

     

  • Pastors float online site for singles

    To curb the rising number of Christian singles who are due for marriage but can’t find a worthy life partner, highly sought after speaker, trainer-consultant and Pastor, Godman Akinlabi and renowned life coach and host, Deep Soul, a relationship talk show, Stephen Omojuyigbe, also known as Stephen with a PH have launched Believers Connect, a social networking site for single Christians.

    At a press conference in Lagos, Godman Akinlabi, the Lead Pastor of The Elevation Church noted that it had become necessary for an immediate intervention in helping christian singles find a Godly spouse with true and genuine intentions towards marriage and keeping the values of marriage as ordained by God.

    “Believers Connect was created to ease the stress and sometimes pain some single Christians go through while trying to find a worthy life partner. There are so many hard working, matured Christian men and women out there that have become limited in their choices as a result of their daily routine, mostly influenced by their job, business or church engagements now desperate for a life partner.”

    Also commenting, Stephen Omojuyigbe said: “The essence of Believers Connect is to bring Christian faithfuls who are single and committed to finding a spouse together from all parts of the country. You don’t have to wait until you are in a position of desperation before joining the platform. For those who may feel downtrodden as a result of their long search for a spouse and desire for marriage, there is hope now for a true relationship and marriage with this platform”.

    Believers connect can be downloaded as a mobile applicationon all android smart phones from the android play store.With over over 20,000 active followers already engaging online on its Facebook page, it can also be accessed on the web with an unlimited access to a digital library and resource for marriage counselling and life coaching.

  • Untold story of three Kaduna pastors’ kidnap

    Untold story of three Kaduna pastors’ kidnap

    March 21, 2016 has come and gone, but it is a day the President of the United Church of Christ in Nigeria, Rev. Emmanuel Dziggau, will not forget in a hurry. He was kidnapped alongside two other clergy men along Kaduna-Abuja Express Way.

    And unfortunately, one of them, Rev.Iliya Anto, did not live to tell the story of their abduction and ordeal in the kidnappers’ den.

    Members of the Taraya Ekklesiyoyin Kristi A Nigeria (Fellowship of Churches of Christ in Nigeria, TEKAN), were thrown into confusion following the abduction of their President and other clergymen. Dziggau is also the president of Haddiyar Ekklesiya Kristi A Nigeria (United Church of Christ in Nigeria) and the TEKAN/ECWA bloc leader in the Christian Association of Nigeria.

    The Reverend was kidnapped along with his deputy, Rev. Illiya Anto, and a retired reverend in the church, Yakubu Dzarma. They were at the church crusade ground along the Kaduna-Abuja highway on that fateful day to clear the proposed permanent site for the HEKAN Theological Seminary.

    Suddenly, masked gunmen, numbering about 10, stormed the crusade ground and picked the three men, while other church members fled.

    The General Secretary of the church and one of the eyewitnesses, Rev Jibrailu Wobiya, who escaped the abduction said, the abductors came in a car and parked by the roadside, with their driver inside the car, while others dropped, brandishing guns and other dangerous weapons.

    “They came down; having suspected them, we ran, but they caught up with The President, Reverend Anto and Reverend Yakubu Dzarma. I was scared by the way and manner they dragged them, especially Rev Anto, who was ill”.

    Meanwhile, the President, Reverend Emmanuel Dziggau and Rev. Yakubu Dzarma regained freedom on Wednesday night, but for Rev Anto, his already decomposing body was found in the bush.

    A top official of the United Church of Christ, who pleaded anonymity, said on Thursday that Dziggau and  Dzarma were freed on Wednesday in the night, while the corpse of Rev. Anto was found, almost decomposing in the bush.

    But, unlike the Army Colonel Samaila Inusa, who was abducted and subsequently killed, Reverend Anto died in the bush where he was abandoned by the kidnappers following his health  condition.

    A reliable source from the Kaduna HEKAN Church told The Nation that, a day after the their abduction, their abductors had called to inform that Anto was not well and they had dropped him at a location in the bush. He equally disclosed that Reverend Anto was discharged from the hospital penultimate Thursday, and only managed to follow them to the church site where they were abducted on Monday.

    According to him, “On Tuesday, the abductors contacted the church leadership that they had dropped Rev. Anto in the bush, because they discovered he was not feeling fine. So, they said we should come and pick him, with a strong warning that only three persons should come for him.

    “But when we dispatched people to the location to carry him, they couldn’t get him after combing the area. The kidnappers, who might have been watching from their hideout, said we sent too many people to pick. So, they refused to give further description of the location and we thought they must have gone with him.

    “When they couldn’t find him, they called them again and the kidnappers gave the description of the car they came with, the number of policemen in the team and the number of SSS. So, they (kidnapers) said the people sent to pick up the pastor were too many and they stopped giving description,” he said.

    The Nation gathered that the late Reverend was abandoned in the bush because he couldn’t withstand the rigour of the excessive trekking they were subjected to.

    The source said: “The freed church

  • Nigerian pastors to assist displaced Ghanaians

    A group of concerned church leaders under the aegis of Non Violence for African Development (NOVAD) has launched an intervention fund for victims of the petrol station explosion in Accra, capital of Ghana that left 150 dead and several displaced on June 4.

    The intervention fund, which is in partnership with the Lagos Chapter of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN), is to assist the victim cope with the aftermath of the explosion.

    The church leaders said food stuff, clothing, soaps, drugs and other medical supplies will be shipped to hundreds of displaced victim in Accra.

    The items, according to the senior pastor of the Guiding Light Assembly, Lekki, Pastor Wale Adefarasin, will ameliorate the travails of the displaced.

    He explained Nigerians have a moral obligation to assist their hurting neighbours in the spirit of African unity.

    He assured that all the items and donations received from charitable Nigerians and organisation will be delivered to the appropriate quarters.

    Senior Pastor of Living Waters Unlimited Church Mende, Pastor Ladi Thompson, recalled that Ghana offered Aburi for the botched peace deal during the Nigerian civil war.

    Asking Nigerians to reciprocate the gesture and others, he said: “These are the days when we need to reach out across boundaries to strengthen one another and speak words of encouragement that will motivate us to face the challenges of the hour knowing that we will surely overcome the darkness of the hour.”

    Chairman of Lagos PFN, Bishop Sola Ore, said though charity must begin at home, it should be extended to across the borders.

    ”This is rare opportunity for us to demonstrate our position as big brothers in Africa. We should show Ghanaians that we are good neighbours and our brothers’ keepers,” he stressed.

    Ore said the PFN extensive structure will be made available to receive donations and distribute the items to the displaced victims.

    A senior pastor with the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Femi Atoyebi (SAN), who has been running a private office in Ghana for over 14 years, pledged to use his extensive networks in the West African country to distribute the items.

    The general overseer of The Pentecostal Congregation, Ilupeju, Bishop Abraham Olaleye, challenged Nigerians to donate to the Ghana-Nigeria Initiative.

    He said: “Ghana has been there for us in the past; we have to be there for them now.”

     

  • ‘Pastors divided by religious politics should reconcile’

    ‘Pastors divided by religious politics should reconcile’

    The general overseer of Jesus Liberation Squad, New Oko Oba, Lagos, Apostle Dele Johnson, spoke with Sunday Oguntola on dream interpretation and why embittered church leaders should close ranks. Excerpts:

    It’s been years since you one heard from you. Have you been hiding or something?

    My brother, I have been busy with the church’s building. I am someone who believes in concentration and attention. I am also a meticulous worker. So, I had to shut down many things to get the building up to 99 percent stage of completion.

    So, what has happened to the dream ministry?

    I can assure you that it’s ongoing. The dream ministry is still on. God has given us more platforms and connections to make more impacts. It’s still about dreams, deliverance, empowerment and total liberation of human beings for us. You realise that a lot of people are under bondage through their dreams and we try to help unravel the mysteries behind their dreams.

    You bear the title apostle. But many say you hardly go out. So, what qualifies you for the title?

    Let me say that it is not true that I don’t go out. I always have at least five crusades scheduled every year all over Nigeria. I was in Ekpoma, Ikare, Nnewi, Owerri, Ibadan and Ife.

    So, if you do only five crusades in a year, does that qualify you to be an apostle?

    You see an apostle is custodian of God’s laws. He or she is someone with a pioneering spirit. It is not really a title but an assignment. We pioneered the dream ministry despite oppositions but we persevered. God has helped us to bring it to the limelight and we are at a stage where we want to pass on the gift to others for general goodness. Every gift of God is communicable.

    Your critics say you make too much fuss about dreams. What’s the big deal about dreams anyway?

    You see dream is a major vehicle through which God communicates to us. Will it not be unwise not to take that medium serious? God speaks in audible voice, still voice, through his words and revelations. If God speaks to us through dreams, we have to take them seriously.

    But knowing who Africans are, won’t the emphasis on dreams lead to demonic awareness? 

    I agree that many tend to pay attention more to demonic dreams but that is a phase. You start from neglecting your dreams and the enemies capitalise on that. But when the awareness comes, you take charge of the demonic dreams and you overgrow them. All that God wants is to be in charge and make sure the enemies do not cheat you again through dreams.

    Once that happens, you move to prophetic dreams where God can show you revelations and instructions that will lead to great profit on earth.

    People also say that in the New Testament, there are only two or three instances of dreams. Are dreams still part of the New Testament era?

    Really? But the whole book of Revelations is about revelations and dreams. When Jesus was going to be born, it was announced through dreams. When his paternity was in doubt, a dream settled it. When they wanted to kill Jesus, it took a dream to show the conspiracy and escape plan. After his intending killers died, a dream instructed them to go back.

    There are so many dreams in the bible. As a matter of fact, there are over 500 dreams in the bible. You see they are there; it is only what you look for that you will find in the bible. The bible is like a supermarket. You have to go to the sections where the items you want are to locate them.

    How did you come about this dream ministry anyway?

    It was in 2005. The Lord told me to separate myself in fasting and prayers for seven days. So, I went to Camp David in Ijoko, Ota for the exercise. Then, while praying, I saw an old man laying hands on him. He said, “receive the grace to unravel dreams, mysteries, enigmas and revelations.” And that was it. From that moment, if you tell me a dream, I will be able to interpret it.

    Are you then thinking of a school of dream interpretation or something?

    By the grace of God, if we feel His leading, we should start a conference on dream interpretation before the end of this year. From there, we’d be able to see where we can take it to. We’d do the teaching, deliverance and impartation sessions.

    If you have the gift of revelation, did God allow you to see the change that the country is about to witness?

    Let me confess to you that I had a struggle when it came. I was rooting for the outgoing president but I had to surrender to God. We prayed for the will of God and since Buhari won, we have to submit to it. I believe the situation is a win-win for us. I tell pastors who have been fighting over the division to close ranks. Politicians have settled but we keep fighting ourselves. The politicians have divided us but they are making up.

    Maybe some of them are still angry that the alleged Islamisation agenda would come to pass

    If you are bothered, you pray. Prayer is our greatest weapon. When we pray, the devil is defeated. So, this is not the time to fight one another over politics. Many pastors are still embittered. They don’t call themselves, all because of politics. Many who had been friends for years have been set apart. It is sad but we have to close ranks and forget all these walls of division. The politicians broke our ranks and we have to settle our differences and move on.

    Do you see the incoming administration performing?

    I believe Buhari is a man that can deliver and salvage the nation. He is not a man that can easily bend. He is incorruptible. He wants posterity to also judge him well at over 70. From the feelers one get, he wants to work.

    But we have to pray. The best of intentions are never enough. The church has to support him. That is why I want to beg my pastors-friends to make up. I was also on the other side. Jonathan meant well but I believe he came at a time our patience was exhausted. I want the pastors to close ranks so that we can pray to save this nation.

    We need unity as a church. The politicians are using us. But we need to be the ones setting the agendas for them. We have to come together to become relevant and take our place in the scheme of things.