Even though the title of this article reads “My journey to Believers LoveWorld aka Christ Embassy”, this article would almost be about my Church's live history, the parts I can make mention in public of course.
If you find the article lengthy, you can navigate to any of the sections with the help of the contents below.
- My Background
- The First Time I Attended a Pentecostal Church
- My Introduction to The Internet
- Admission into the University
- My First Time in a Christ Embassy Church
- Questions I Use to Have Patterning to Church Activities
- First Things I learned In Christ Embassy
- Conclusion
My Background
I was born into the Anglican church like most of us were. Anglican Church is also called, “The Anglican Communion” most of the time. Both parents, especially my father were active members of the Anglican Communion so it is almost customary that I would be taken to church as a child by my parents. You follow your parents or go wherever they lead as a child. You don’t have much of a choice as you don’t even have enough sense to know what you want or what is good for you at the time. Who does know what is good for them any ways? For the most part, we can only desire and speculate.
Growing up in an Anglican Church was spectacular and almost everything seems beautiful. I learned I got baptized there and was given a baptismal name. Baptism in Anglican Church is usually done early in a child’s life so I couldn’t recount the experience. Although I grew up and set my eyes on my supposed baptismal certificate and my baptismal name on it so there was proof, that I got baptized. Fast forward to the future, I started having more questions than answers as the days go by. I will explain.
As a young child growing up, my father made sure I knew how to read at an early age. According to him, if I know how to read and have the passion to always read, I can know whatever I want to know. I can remember vividly that he made sure I know how to read by teaching me himself. It wasn't the best experience anyways but I’m grateful that I survived the experience and I scaled through those years under his tutorship. Parts of my body suffered greatly, but I guess it was worth it.
After he taught me how to read and I could read, at least I could try to call or pronounce any word I saw, we entered the next phase which was “How to understand what I read”. It wasn’t easy still, but I survived it. As a young child, I learnt from him that “What you learn is most of the time different from what you were taught” so whenever we come back from church, he would ask, what did the pastor teach today? I will try to explain what the pastor taught, and when I’m done explaining what the pastor taught, he would ask, what did you learn today? And I will try to say what I learned from what the pastor preached.
As the years pass by, my understanding of such things broadened and to an extent, my mind began getting occupied more with more questions than answers. At a very early age, I started finding some things unclear and wasn’t getting the right answers to most questions I had in my head. Before this time, my father has limited the range of answers he gives to me about things. When I approach him with some kind of question, he would say, that question is trivial and you have to seek the answer for yourself. “trivia” was one of the first words I learnt from him. He always says, “I may not always be here to dish out answers to you, you have to look for a means to get the answers to your questions without me. You know how to read now and most answers are in the pages of books, get on those pages and flip them through”. Your guess or feeling right now was as good as mine, it was frustrating. The whole experience then was frustrating. That experience made me not always go to him for a lot of answers to questions I had in my head. I would try as much as possible to get answers from some other means, especially from books.
The First Time I Attended a Pentecostal Church
Years pass by and I left my father and went somewhere else for studies. I was about twelve years of age then if I remember correctly. I still attended Anglican church when I left him until I got introduced to another church when I was 14 years of age or so. This time, it was a Pentecostal Church. Their teaching was sounder and clearer, but sadly, I got more confused. I attended church there for about a year, then I got born again in the church on the 4th of April of that year when I was about 15 years of age.
After I got born again, I started and finished the foundation school of the ministry, and got filled with the Holy Spirit. Those of us who got born again then were gifted with free computer operation training, funded by the church. After three weeks of computer operation training, I joined the choir to be among the tenor singers. In the choir, I met a couple of young guys like Adeyemi O. Emmanuel, John Watson Ebi and others. As time went by, I became closer to John Watson Ebi and when I started bombarding him with some of the kind of questions I had in my head, he introduced me to the internet. At this time, the internet service just entered the Nigerian market.
This was three years after mobile communication was brought to Nigeria by the then democratic President and the commander in chief of the armed forces of the federal republic of Nigeria. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. There were mobile phones then but there were few people who could afford a phone and a SIM then. Internet services too have been present in a way but only at stationary internet cafés and were very few. At the time, John Watson Ebi was working in a computer training institute and Adeyemi O. Emmanuel was working with an internet service providing firm (internet café).
My Introduction to The Internet
When I got introduced to the internet by John Watson Ebi, I learnt the rudiments quickly with the help of the computer knowledge I had before the time. It is worth mentioning at this time that, I’ve always had a book titled “My Thoughts”. The book like the title says is an exercise book I used to pen down my thoughts but basically, I used it to note down the flood of questions in my head so I would always have somewhere to look back if I was forgetting any of the questions. So, when I was introduced to the internet by John Watson Ebi. I went and picked my Thoughts Book and went browsing that day with him. I was so fascinated to see a lot of articles about questions I had that I had no answers to and then I fell in love with the internet, but then, my time finished and I had no more money for more time so I was logged out. I needed more time for browsing so I inquired how I can browse for a long time without much money, and I was told that the only time I can browse for a long time without much money would be on Friday night against Saturday. That is all-night browsing. I asked how much, and was told it was ₦250 (Two Hundred and Fifty Naira). It sounded so appealing, ₦250 from 9 pm till 6 am?
To cut that story short, I opted for the night browsing but there was an issue. The issue is how I can get my mother to agree for me to stay out all through the night on Fridays. I knew she could always scramble ₦250 for me every Friday but letting me stay out all night was something I wasn’t so sure about. I thought of how I could lay this yearning out to her that she wouldn’t say no to me but no other idea was coming except, to tell the truth of me wanting to go study on the internet every Friday night and the fee would be ₦250. Friday was fast approaching and I’ve not yet told her, the thought want to finish me. The Thursday morning of that week, I summoned courage and told her saying
“I have so many questions that I’ve not had answers to and I don’t think I would be having answers to them anytime soon from my books and I need these answers so my mind can be more at rest. There’s this technology called the internet that has come to us with the present services of the mobile communication systems and internet cafes have been established by individuals who can afford it to render internet services to the public where people can go search up questions on almost everything and have answers to. They do their operation during the day but browsing during the day is expensive as they charge ₦150 per hour with a bad network sometimes, and they do their operations too on weekends at night, they call it all-night browsing and it goes for ₦250 from 9 pm on Friday to 6 am on Saturday. I’ve tried browsing during the day and the time doesn’t use to be enough for me. I’ll like to be browsing every weekend if you would allow me and also give me the money for the fee also”.
My mother looked at me and said, I’ve heard you, when I come back in the evening, we’ll talk about it. And I said alright. She got back in the evening and asked me where the café was, I told her and she said, when do I need the money? I told her I would like to have the money tomorrow (which was on Friday) morning so I can go and book a computer early for me to have a chance and she said alright, tomorrow morning then.
Truth be told, I was so happy but I wondered why she did not refuse me to go for the all-night browsing. It was after some time, that I got to know that, when she left home on that Thursday morning, she went and did her inquiries about the matter and found out that I wasn’t so out of line, coupled with the fact that she always sees me studying every night, whether or not I was writing exams made her positive about my intentions of going to study all night with the help of the internet. According to her, there are very few things that can separate me from reading at night so she allowed me.
Now, those days when you want to go for all-night browsing, you need to go book for your computer early. Let’s say, the internet café has a maximum number of 20 computers, if you go to book when all the computers have been booked, you will have to either go to another centre and be hopeful that they have space still if not, you would have to wait till next weekend. So, it was important to book early enough to secure a computer for yourself that night.
I started my night browsing and everything was going on fine, I will walk around the day with a book in my hands so I wouldn't miss to pen down any thought that comes to my mind in preparation to go for that week’s all-night browsing to search out the answers to the thoughts and question I would have all through the week. That continued and I was enjoying it. On one of the nights in my online browsing centre, I was done with the questions I prepared for that week so I decided to surf for random things online. I do visit Joyce Meyer’s page and Joel Osteen’s page most nights when I was done with that week’s questions or listen to gospel music online or listen to blues and soul music. On this very night, I was done with the week’s questions I gathered and decided to surf the net. I went to news sites and saw a piece of news that reads, Pastor Chris and TB Joshua, Agents of the devil in pastors clothing.
I read the article and it was some sort of writing that discredits Pastor Chris and TB Joshua as men of God. The article was lengthy and the writer was audacious. I could not but conclude in my mind that nothing will ever take me to those two churches or believe and follow those two so called pastors. The Believers LoveWorld of Pastor Chris Oyakhilome aka Christ Embassy and The Synagogue Church of all Nations of Senior Prophet TB Joshua. After finishing the article, I called on John Watson Ebi to take a look. John Watson Ebi was there in the café too that night. When John Watson Ebi came and saw the article, he browses through the article a little and said to me, you are not supposed to believe everything you read, especially things from critiques like this. This writer is a critique. And he asked me what I’ve made of what I read. I told him; that nothing will make me follow these two men of God. And he said it’s your choice though, who are we to judge? Most write ups like this are fabricated lies. That conversation was the last we had about that issue.
Admission into the University
Things continued like that for a while. By attending church activities and going for night browsing like that until John Watson Ebi got admission into the university. After about a year, I got admission into the same university John Watson Ebi was schooling. At this time, we had phones. Before this time, we use to communicate via emails and then, talk and chat sometime on skype (the first messenger, voice and video chat platform there was and still exists today). I loved skype then and still love it now, that’s by the way though.
When I got notified that I’d gotten admission to John Watson Ebi’s school, I reached out to him and informed him to help me verify if the admission is true and that he should get back to me on it. That same day, John Watson Ebi called me back and said, I went to your department and saw your name on the direct entry list so the admission is authentic. I told him I’ll try to put myself in order so I can come to join him and stay with him in the meantime before I can get myself an accommodation. He said no problems but exams are in about four weeks, are you sure you will not differ this admission, I told him I’ll try not to differ the admission. And he said alright, that I should just let him know when I intend to come so he would be ready to receive me and said I would let him know.
After about a week or so, I put myself in order and headed to answer my admission and to meet John Watson Ebi to put up with him in the meantime. At about 3 pm, my bus arrived at their park in the city, everyone highlighted from the bus including myself and I placed a call through to John Watson Ebi, he promptly took the call and said I’d been waiting for this call. I’ve been praying for you to get here in time before church time. That day was on Wednesday. He came to the park to get me and we headed to his house. It was almost 4 pm when we got to his apartment. When I dropped my back and I freshened up, I reminded him of what he said on phone about going to church and he said, church time is 5 pm, let us hasten up and be on our way so we would not be late he said. At this point I had to ask him if it was the same church we use to attend together, he said no, not the same church but I should trust him that he cannot take me to a bad place, and I said I trust you.
We got ready and left the house for church. After some minutes’ walk, we arrived at a place on the school campus that looks like an auditorium, and shortly after when we got to the front of the auditorium, I saw a banner that reads “Believers LoveWorld aka Christ Embassy Campus Ministry”. I immediately stopped and demanded to know if it was Christ Embassy he was bringing me to and he said yes. I was heartbroken and felt betrayed. And then I reminded him if he had forgotten that I said I will never step foot in any Christ Embassy church and Also The Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN)? He said he did not forget. Then I asked him, why then did he decide to bring me here when he knows I wouldn’t want to step foot in this church, and he said to me.
“I’ve known you for some time now, it’s true you said you would never want to step your feet into any Christ Embassy Church and I did not forget. Unless I’m wrong, with the way I know you, with all those questions you always have about things, especially in Church and others, I do not doubt that this is the place for you. It wouldn’t hurt, just worship here for today and if this place turns out to be where you wouldn’t want to be, you know no one can stop you from leaving”
After he said that with so much confidence and proof that he knows me, I calmly without saying a word, entered the church. I sat down waiting for the church service to start. It was customary for us to always get to church before church time and this day wasn’t an exception.
My First Time in a Christ Embassy Church
I sat down looking out to see or notice any unusual thing so I could use that one to take my stand with John Watson Ebi but nothing seems to surface, instead, I keep seeing very young adults everywhere, trying to put things in place for the service to commence. The decorators were doing their thing on the altar as other young adults are busy cleaning one thing to the other. The choir members too were there putting their sound together by testing and retesting. I kept looking around for some fault but I didn’t see any. I only kept seeing neatly dressed young adults looking very smart and well comported until the church service started.
The Opening Prayer
The church service started with an opening prayer that went unbelievably fine compared to other church services I’ve attended in other churches. There was no prayer point that contradicted the other, which was not the case with other churches I’ve attended. I will explain all these in the next heading “Questions I Use to Have Patterning to Church Activities”, coupled with the fact that these officiators were young adults, very young adults. No one in the congregation was in their late twenties I believe. I believe that the oldest in the congregation are in their early twenties.
The Praise and Worship
The prayer went on for some time. After a while, another young adult stepped up on the altar, not so close to the person taking or leading the prayer but you could tell that the person stepped on waiting to take over from the person praying. Then suddenly, the person leading the prayers looked towards the direction where the other person was standing and saw that someone was waiting. The person praying then started the last prayer point, and started walking out from the altar. This person waiting, walked towards the centre of the altar continuing the prayer point that was initiated by the previous person. That went on for about a minute or so and then I heard, “Oh Lord my God When I in awesome wonder”. Praise and worship had started just like that. I felt like screaming but I held my peace. After a few songs of worship, praise started. The praise went on for a while and then someone else stepped on the altar like when the praise and worship person came and took over from the opening prayer person. The praise and worship person, on seeing the person waiting, stepped out from the altar and the other person waiting, stepped on properly, continued the last song the praise and worship person was singing then we heard “Rhapsody Time”, and everyone screamed “Reality Time”. We took our seats and Rhapsody reading and teaching began.
Rhapsody Of Realities Time
The Rhapsody time continued with thorough teaching with examples. The Rhapsody time was over and then as the Rhapsody Teacher was stepping out from the alter, someone else was coming up almost at the same time. This person came up and started rephrasing and paraphrasing some of the lines of the Rhapsody we just finished with words of declarations from the Rhapsody. That went on for a while and then I heard “Testimony Time”. This person that came, is here for testimonies.
I was almost dumbfounded. I’m impressed much more than I’ve imagined any church service would be. Truthfully, the sequence of things and the way they are happening were just too good to be true for me. Severally, I only managed to contain myself. A kind of joy overwhelmed me and I couldn’t wait to take more of what I was experiencing.
Testimony Time
The testimony officiator called some people out one after the other and they gave their testimonies. Every person’s testimony was brief and precise. Straight to the point with everything you needed to hear being said. Almost like a movie. This person officiating the testimonies then called for everyone to pray and thank God for the testimonies and more to come. As the prayer was going on, this person walked out from the alter and someone else walked up with the thanksgiving prayer still going on. This person that came up, continued the thanksgiving prayers for just a while and started another set of worship songs. At first, I didn’t know that this worship session was to prepare the congregation for the message of the day.
The Message
The spirit filled worship continued for a while and then a young adult was ushered up to the altar. As the young adult was coming up to the altar, the person singing retreated closer to the choir stand but continued singing. That particular song lasted for another minute or so then, the young man who was ushered up introduced another worship song. This worship song introduced by the young man who is now obviously the pastor of that branch campus ministry lasted for as long as it could last and then the message began.
Now, everything from the beginning of the service to this point was flawless and I must confess, it was too good to be true. I’ve never been in a church service where I didn’t have questions from the point of the opening prayers, this was the first.
The message started, and it was powerful and inspiring. To cut the long story short, at the close of service, I practically dragged John Watson Ebi away from where people could hear us and I said to him “I said so this is what you’ve been enjoying for over a year now and you didn’t bother to let me know about it” and then he said I told you. After that, I told him that “If the media likes, they should show me a video of Pastor Chris sleeping with a minor or any other thing worse, I will follow him to the end”. The minor part was just to emphasize my point.
I learned a lot that day but I will keep it at the end of this article with the heading “First Things I learned In Christ Embassy”.
Questions I Use to Have Patterning to Church Activities
I will try to keep this brief. Before this time whenever I went to churches, I used to have questions, almost from the start. I will list them in numbers.
1. I’ve always said that most churches are unconsciously acknowledging the devil more than they acknowledge God. Imagine a church during opening prayers for let’s say a total of ten prayer points, nine of those prayer points would be directed to the devil if not all the ten prayer points. Prayer points 1: destroy the devil. Prayer points 2: kill the devil. Prayer points 3. Cripple your enemy. And so on. Hardly a prayer points to acknowledge God and the good things he has done and still doing in their lives. This is enough for this one.
2. The opening prayer person may at one point in the opening prayer time say something like “The Holy Spirit is here right now to fight our battles for us, to fight your battles for you” and so on. And then, only for the praise and worship person to come and start the praise and worship with a song that is inviting the Holy Spirit. A song like “Come, Father, come, Son, Come Holy Spirit. Come and take your place in my life”. I would be like, I thought the person who took the opening prayer said the Holy Spirit is here right now, why are we now inviting the Holy Spirit to come. These kinds of things don’t always add up for me.
3. Let’s say, a Pastor would preach on a Wednesday service and say something like “If you are born again, Christ lives and dwells in you” and would show us Bible references and I'll be like, wow, beautiful, I’m born again so Christ lives and dwells in me and I'll continue in that confession all week long. And then, the same Pastor would come on Sunday and be preaching and tell the story of blind Bartimaeus found in Matthew 10:46-52 using the story as an example. We know the story very well so I will just paraphrase in summary. “The Pastor would say as Jesus did not pass blind Bartimaeus by, if you are hearing the sound of my voice right now, Christ will not walk and pass you by” what used to baffle me was that the whole church would shout Amen to what the Pastor said. And I will be like, so in the whole of this church, no one is born again, including the other Pastors and the Deaconry and the elders, that everyone said Amen to a statement of Christ not passing them by? I remember that day vividly that I pinched John Watson Ebi because we were sitting close to each other at the choir stand. After I pinched him, I said, so no one is born again in this Church? And John Watson Ebi was like, please wait, let’s talk about it at the close of service. I did not see or hear him say Amen to the statement though. In my thoughts I was like, I’m born again, Christ lives and dwells in me, how can He now walk and pass me by, it’s not possible. These are the likely questions I use to have in other churches. I promised to keep this section brief so I’m stopping this section here. This was why John Watson Ebi took me to Christ Embassy I guess, where I would not have such questions troubling me.
First Things I learned In Christ Embassy
I’ve learnt a lot in Christ Embassy but I’ll like to list here the first things I learned in Christ Embassy Church. I guess it was from my father's teachings that my learning radar was able to gather learnings like this.
1. Don’t ever use the words of others to judge any man.
2. Before you conclude on anyone, make sure you know this person by yourself and for yourself first.
3. There is a difference between a disciple and a student.
4. No matter how good a teacher is, his teachings will not reflect on all of his students.
Conclusion
Christ Embassy Church has been the only Church I’ve found a consistence one directional kind of gospel of upward and forward without contradictions.
My resolve still stands till tomorrow, if not Christ Embassy, no other Church. Christ Embassy is my last and final bus stop for Churches.
I cannot talk about my journey to Christ Embassy Church without mentioning the name of John Watson Ebi, that was why his name appeared in a lot of places in the story of my journey to Christ Embassy Church. Thank you John Watson Ebi for bringing me to Christ Embassy.
This is so deep thank you for sharing
ReplyDeleteThe pleasure is all mine dear.
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