Newsletter 2005: Healing Love of Christ, Volume 5 Issue 1

The Eventful Trip and My 70th

My trip began with a visit to central London for an early presentation of a 70 th birthday present. On the 8 th of August, I travelled to the home of my son, Tunde, in Dagenham, Essex. He drove me to a hotel near Russell Square tube station, where I met with friends (Pastor Charles and Pastor Nkechi – with the family of the latter- all from Port Harcourt in Nigeria), who had attended a ministers’ conference there from Nigeria. We had a wonderful time of fellowship and they gave me a handsome cheque towards my birthday celebrations. Early the next morning, I had a pleasant flight to Nigeria, getting to Lagos in the evening. I was well received by an entourage from Ibadan, as well as Mr Kola Adeleye, who had been baptised on my visit to Nigeria last year. There was also Mr Gbenga Oladimeji, managing director of a new company since he left DHL, Nigeria, where he had been so kind to me at the time I was a Presidential aspirant in 1992. There was Mr Gboyega Osobu, an IT specialist, based in the UK, but visiting Nigeria Finally, there were the two pastors from Abuja (Pastors Dan and Pius), who had planned my trips to Nigeria since 2000. It was then that my problems began in earnest.

From Left to Right: Pastors Dan, Pius, Myself, Abiodun, Onaolapo and Funso

My baggage did not arrive. In consternation, I pondered what to do next. Pastor Sam Ayodele, who had suffered a painful bereavement a few days earlier, put me up with the other ministers, who were to be my hosts. He very kindly supplied all my needs for clothing and toiletries and we slept at his home. Since there was still no solution to the missing luggage problem the next morning, there was a fellowship in Pastor Sam’s house, where we met an area supervisor of the Redeemed Church, Pastor Clem. He had known me since he was doing his national service over twenty years previously during my ministry in Kano, Northern Nigeria.

We spent the morning visiting members of my father’s family. I prayed with my brother and his family and then visited and prayed with my sister and her grandchildren. Since we were still hoping to recover my luggage, we spent time ministering in the home and church premises of Pastor George and Mrs Nike Oyegunle, who had been the first fruits of my ministry in Kano when I first arrived from southern Nigeria in 1979. Pastors Kemi and Taiye Raji joined us there as did also Evangelist Linda Edukugho We had an informal worship service there and I prayed with the Prayer group gathered in their church building. And I stayed in a hotel near the Raji household overnight. After a good night’s rest, I also called at the home of Pastor Sam’s parents to offer our condolences to them for the death of Manager Sam Ayodele’s brother. It was not till lunchtime on the 11 th of August that I finally arrived in Ibadan for my first fixed preaching engagement. It was a blessed evening meeting.

On the 12 th, we kept telephone contact with the Lagos Airport, and my luggage had still not arrived. However, I was greatly comforted. Not only did all the brethren rally round to provide the simple creature comforts that everyone needs to survive, but I had an early 70th birthday celebration. My former student, Dr Sam Omokhodion, and his wife, Sade, hosted a wonderful little party for me, with a prayerful fellowship, which involved cutting a birthday cake, at their beautiful home. We saw videos of their wonderful work in correcting inherited birth defects in Nigerian children, in collaboration with an Israeli hospital, using highly sophisticated surgical procedures. Both of them are senior consultants at the oldest Teaching Hospital in Nigeria and Pastor Sam Omokhodion is also the minister in charge of the UCH Chapel at the teaching hospital- this was where my ministry had started in 1974.

Ministering at the end of the all-night prayer meeting

There was still no sign of my missing luggage, but I filled in the passing of time with personal ministrations to ministers and lay people with needs. On the morning of Friday the 13 th of August, I had meetings with the ministers of both the Assemblies of Christ, Ibadan, and the Witness Ministries, together known as ‘the five’ namely, Pastors Funso, Abiodun and Onaolapo and pastors Dan and Pius respectively, throughout the morning. Following a long and difficult counselling of a psychotic gentleman, I had a wonderful treat. There was an all-night prayer meeting from 10. 30pm till 5. 00am There were four sessions of teaching/preaching lasting 50 minutes each, interspersed with about 30minutes of worship (singing and dancing to the Lord). This was all rounded up with a time of ministry.

Another Altar Call at the All-night prayer meeting

The morning of the 14 th of August dawned and there was still no sign of my missing luggage. After less than 4hours of sleep, I had to wake up, but there was a wonderful consolation. Months earlier, I had persuaded a young friend to trust the word of the Lord and go back to a fiance who had jilted him. He complied and was rewarded and he (Gboyega Osobu) brought his wife–to-be to receive marital counselling before they enter into holy matrimony in November. On Sunday the 15 th of August, I preached at the Sunday worship service. I ministered for about two hours. Most importantly, I held a washing- of the feet ceremony, where I washed the feet of the Ibadan ministers and spoke prophetically over their lives and ministries. Sister Phebe, head of Women for Christ International and her sister-in law ( Lydia ) were also present. This is an annual event of my ministry on the 15 th of August, but they reciprocated by praying for me and washing my feet.

Finally, on the morning of the 16 th of August, we received information that my luggage had been found. It had first gone to Ghana before it found its way back to Lagos Only my camera was missing. It had been a difficult time, but it had taught a lot of valuable lessons. The most important of these is that there are very few things in life that are truly indispensable. Most certainly, God is indispensable to my life, and I shall not forget in a hurry the love and generosity provoked by His Holy Spirit in the hearts of so many by the sight of my deprivation. We travelled to the Federal Capital, Abuja to start the second half of my 2005 Nigerian tour on Tuesday the 17 th of August. Apart from personal ministrations, which involved counselling bereaved, hurting and psychologically ill individuals, there was one threeday revival church meeting titled Your turn to turn’. The lady minister (. Mrs Kate Igwe ) had been a classmate of my wife in secondary school and had been a member of my parish during my time of ministry in Kano as well as being our family friend. God did many great things at those meetings, which are recorded in the book of life. It was during this patch that I got the gratifying results of both my daughters and grandchildren - all of them got results glorifying to the name of the Lord in GCSE and AS/A2 examinations. The tail end of the trip to Nigeria was as loaded with God’s grace as the beginning. As on the way in, the Lagos ministers (Pastors Raji and Evangelist Linda) paid my hotel bills at New Covenant Hotel in Yakubu Gowon Estate, Lagos and the Oyegunles fed me. Not to be outdone in eventfulness by the outward bound journey, I again had my suitcase split open on arrival, but I recovered my missing log book (from which I am taking these records) days after I arrived.

The Greeting of Peace during the Holy Communion

Preparations for my 70 th birthday celebration were in full swing by the time I arrived from Nigeria on the morning of the 29 th of August. I had recovered sufficiently by Wednesday the 1 st of September to see the first big item of the get together meetings planned to mark this important event. To be frank, I had planned to do a prayerful, but quiet ceremony to note the passing of the day, but I was overruled by everybody. A select group descended on the evening of the Wednesday.

Rev Dawn Mason at the Chancel

There was Richard Shipp from Haddenham, and Kath Taylor came with them as well as Ros Simmonds Peter and Diana Stanyer from Impington came and Chris Peach played the guitar during worship, with my wife’s niece, Onome Odibo, leading the singing. My wife Bridget bustled back and forth. Each person present washed my feet and prophesied. My four dependent prophetess-daughters also washed my feet and prophesied. It was a blessed start to my birthday. Just after midnight on Thersday the 2 nd of September, I opened the cards that had arrived. The family broke bread in the bedroom, and there were many who phoned in to sing and say ‘happy birthday’.

Singing one of my favourite hymns

Later on that day (September 3), the children and grandchildren and many of the guests arrived. Before the incoming members of the family and the guests went to their hotels and guest houses, there was the cutting of the first birthday cake, with much rejoicing and celebration. The following day, Saturday, had been earmarked as the day of the great gathering. There was a Holy Communion worship service at St Edmund’s Church in the village ofEmneth, where we live. This started soon after 10am in the morning. The building was full to capacity and the period allotted to the sharing of the’Peace ’ had to be extended considerably. We all lingered outside the church precincts afterwards to greet long-lost friends who had travelled from all over the UK and indeed from Nigeria, the USA, and Canada, and to take photographs. Just over two hours after the service ended, there was a very jolly gathering at the Elme Hotel between Emneth and Wisbech The occasion was presided over by Dr Okey Onuzo, who had been a mentor to me in the early days of my ministry, and has been there for my family even in my absence from 1974 till now. He was supported on the high table by Rev John and Alex Wilson, who have been deeply committed and consistent friends to us since we came to this part of England almost 10years ago. We were there till nearly five o’clock in the evening. Lastly, there was a bring and share event (for those who could not be accommodated in the hotel reception) at the church hall of St Edmund’s, Emneth At this final event, there was dancing to Chrisco, which is a holy equivalent of disco, and people were able to ‘let their hair down’ at the end of a hectic, but highly enjoyable day. There were multiple testimonies at all the three venues, to the incredible mercies of Jesus Christ in the life of this the ‘very least of God’s servants on this side of eternity.

The Caption on the Cake - My Life Style

Having descended from cloud nine to firma terra again, I am again confronted by the many needs for prayer in the ministry God has entrusted to us. I have believed for some time now, that probably the greatest work in my life, for which all that has happened so far is merely a training and a preparation, is still ahead. Is this a pipe dream? If so, I ask that you will please pray for it to go away. If not, please pray that God will start to open my eyes so that the vision may have a better and clearer definition. For twelve years now, I have sought the face of the Lord for the cleansing of my beloved ‘native’ country from corruption and idolatry. I have also prayed that if that be the will of the Lord, I should be ‘called up’ and appointed to contribute in a significant way to that process. If that is not a far-fetched desire, please back it up with your prayer.

The Reception Chairman sharing a joke

There was a sending God did to my ministry in October, 2003 to a hamlet called Ring’s End in Cambridgeshire, situated between Wisbech and March. Soon afterwards, the village Guyhirn, which is next to Ring’s End, was also without significant christian oversight. Our remit was to go in and offer drop-in facilities to youth on drugs, attention-deficit hyperactive kids (ADHT syndrome) etc. We supported this with praise-worship on Sunday evenings, a prayer meeting on Mondays and monthly meetings for celebrating the kingship of Jesus Christ. A splinter group has attempted to turn the project into routine ‘church’ and this is at variance with the vision God gave us. Please pray that the Lord will raise up support for ministering to the ‘rejects’ of society in that area, unto whom the Lord has sent us.

Finally, I believe that the Lord has used the physical tsunami in the Indian Ocean to warn of an ongoing spiritual tsunami. ‘Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold’ –Mat 24: 12. A lady in our fellowship saw a large field covered with snow, with patches of green grass and vegetation here and there and some brown shrubs. The interpretation the Spirit gave was that many in the church are comatose, because ‘their love has grown cold’, but there is a remnant who are still enjoying vigorous (green) growth, with some weeds masquerading as genuine growth. Please pray that our neighbours and indeed, ourselves will not be caught in this ‘sleep of death’. Please ask the Lord to send more labourers into His harvest.

- Rev. Bill Isaacs-Sodeye