Christ the Saviour Church, C&S Church Movement, Amuwo has observed a seven-day prayer vigil annually for the past 10 years. Most Senior Apostle/Prophet Emmanuel Sunday Adeoye, pastor of the church, speaks to SEYI JOHN SALAU on the 10th anniversary of the prayer vigil as the church rounds off the celebration with a thanksgiving service today. Excerpts:
The church is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its annual seven-day prayer vigil with the theme ‘King of kings’. How did you arrive at this?
If we talk about the ‘King of kings’ we are referring to God who is the King of all kings. As powerful as he is as our maker – if he chooses, he can command any man to leave the earth or dry up. He can command anybody to die or live, and there is no one as powerful as he is; that is why we refer to him as the King of kings; because he enthrones every other king and he is the one who also dethrones any king. He is so powerful that there is no living being as powerful as he is.
What are your expectations for this year’s anniversary?
For this anniversary my expectations in Christ is that I believe that the Lord would do more wonders than ever before; because many of the manifestations of last year are already showing signs to the people and lots of the people have been calling for the manifestations in preparedness for this year’s anniversary. My prayer therefore is that the Lord should please finish his work in our midst more than ever before, so that the celebration of this 10th anniversary will bring forth good fruits for all participants.
Looking at the programme since inception, how has the response been?
We thank God. Since the time we started this journey, God has manifested himself and he is working in the life of the people, especially myself that he has committed the work unto in the Christ the Saviour Church, Amuwo branch. I thank the Lord greatly because there has never been a time we held the vigil without experiencing the move of God in our midst; the Lord usually manifests himself in the life of the people and many of them come to testify of that goodness. My prayer to God this time as we mark the 10th anniversary is that God should please complete and fulfil his work according to the theme of this year’s seven-day prayer vigil, ‘King of kings’. He should please work in the life of the people to wrought his miracles and wonders as he pleases.
What would you say informed the seven-day annual vigil?
It is the Lord that ordered it. Right from my base in Kwara State when I was still in the village, God commanded me to set seven days aside to pay the covenant of the Lord annually; when I was with my parents in their church it was observed and it’s still being observed till date, which is why when I came to this church – I appealed to the elders of the church that the Lord has commanded me to do this certain thing, and they obliged me. And, since my arrival here we have been observing the seven-day vigil, which is now in its 10th year.
Few weeks ago, President Buhari was quoted to have classified the youths of Nigeria as lazy. What is your take as a young preacher?
If we look at it logically, the president was right with the statement credited to him. However, a lot of the blame is from the government, because if an individual graduates from school, he or she should be gainfully employed. But when there are no jobs in the country and many who would have loved to trade do not have the capital to do so, is it the person who is not sure of what to eat that will go into trade? Looking back at the last administration of Governor Fashola in Lagos, many who are hawking were arrested by the government whereas many of those hawkers were pushed into the act for want of what to eat. Those in authority are satisfied and are not bothered about the masses. My advice to the nation therefore is that the Lord should have mercy on us. But for the youth, my admonition is that we should be prepared. When my father was alive, he used to say that one cannot survive on a single source of income as a youth; that it is better for young people to learn a trade and be educated so that they can rely on multiple source of income. Whenever paid employment cannot meet your daily demands, entrepreneurial act will support.
As we approach the general elections for 2019, what is your advice for politicians and the electorates?
My advice to politicians is that we should move away from the politics of god-fatherism, politics of favouritism, and politics of ethnicity to the politics of service. Politicians should know that when they are elected, they are elected to serve and not to lord it over the people. When they are elected, it is to deliver the so-called dividends of democracy to the masses that are hungry, where majority cannot feed even two times a day. It is not for the politician to enrich himself and his immediate family, buy big cars and property all over the world when the people who suffered to vote and some even died in the process have nothing to show for it. They should not allow that to happen anymore. To the electorates, let’s not elect people out of sentiment, let’s not elect people because they gave us bags of rice or because they gave us N5,000 or based on what they call stomach infrastructure, because if you collect stomach infrastructure to vote in somebody, you have already collected your own dividend of democracy.
However, my expectations for the 2019 general elections are that God should take control of all that will happen in the country because if we take a critical look at the country, there has never been an election without bloodletting in Nigeria. Now that there are no elections, there has been bloodletting in the country. But for the forthcoming elections, my prayer is that the Lord will intervene in the country and stop every form of confrontations in the country, and that God should appoint for us a leader after his heart. Ever since we have been electing for ourselves in this country we have not progressed. Such happened in the bible; the children of Israel didn’t have their expectations met until Christ came and appointed for them before their journey was fruitful on earth. So, my expectation in 2019 is for God to please manifest himself in this country because the bloodletting is getting too much. As we approach the general elections, lots of the politicians will engage in ritual killings but God should please come to our aid and send succour to Nigeria in the name of Jesus.
Finally, briefly tell us about yourself.
I thank God for my life from birth till now because my biological parents are prophets, but I was very strong-headed at a tender age. I was educated a bit but then my aspiration as a growing up child then was to work and be wealthy; because I felt that was how I will be accomplished as an individual. I was trained on rod trading, then I went into cocoa farming in Ondo state – I worked successfully in the farm and there was nothing I was involved with that was not successful. However, God told me that was not where he was leading me; one of my spiritual fathers then called Aremu Elikuraja from Ogbomosho, a servant of God, once told me then because I was a chorister and drummer in the church that God said I would be a minister, but I told him to shut up, that my father is the one called to be a prophet but I am here to enjoy life. As an individual I enjoyed merry making. However, when the call of God came, it was in my cocoa farm that God told me to leave and since then I have not gone back to that cocoa farm. I have not been to that state ever since, and that is how God started his miraculous work in my life. I was ordained as a prophet in the year 2000, on Mount Horeb C&S Church Movement Worldwide in Kaduna State, and I thank God that things I did not take to heart at the start of my prophetic journey have been taken up by God. As a prophet I am married with children and the Lord has been good unto us and I am grateful to God for all he has done through me in this ministry.
