My Holy Ghost Night Experience (1)
I have heard a lot about the revered man of God, Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, but I witnessed an edition of the Holy Ghost Night for the first time in Ado-Ekiti on Friday 19, till the early hours of Saturday 20 February 2010. It was tagged, Holy Ghost Night- Emmanuel, meaning God with us. I must confess that I have not seen such a crowd in Ekiti before. It was estimated to be about two hundred thousand.
I was convinced that all I have heard about the man of God is no fluke; he is truly and indeed a man of God. I only read about actual miracles in the Bible but I was spellbound to see that a man can still perform miracles in this era and clime. I was convinced that those who came forward to give testimonies were not arranged as it is done in other crusades which I have had cause to criticize. I don't have any bias against Christianity even though I am a Muslim. If I see true men of God from another religion, I always recognize them as such. My observation and experience at the Holy Ghost Night and the account I am writing about in this piece, is based on pure conviction beyond any religious bigotry.
The politics that preceded the crusade is noteworthy given the political atmosphere in Ekiti State, where the gubernatorial candidate of the Action Congress, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, is presently challenging the victory of the incumbent governor, Mr. Segun Oni at the tribunal. The PDP government set up a Committee to receive Pastor Adeboye and his team. It was even alleged that the government was planning to house the man of God in the government house. The AC raised alarm that the PDP government wanted to use the visit to siphon State funds and in the process drag the revered name of the man of God in the mud.
The PDP, through its spokesperson, made insinuations to the effect that the AC did not like RCCG and Pastor Adeboye. But the AC replied that the relationship between the Fayemi Campaign Organisation and the RCCG is so cordial to the extent that the Fayemi Campaign Organisation headquarters housed a parish of the Redeemed church. The campaign organisation went further to say that members of the Action Congress and the gubernatorial candidate would participate fully at the crusade. The AC alleged that the PDP government and its officials were planning to turn the crusade into a government affair and exclude its members from it. I didn't understand why the Holy Ghost Night programme was so important to the two gladiators until I attended it.
Dr. Fayemi got there in company of ex Ondo State governor, Evangelist Bamidele Olumilua, around 8pm and stayed till after 2am when Pastor Adeboye finished preaching. The duo was ushered to the high table by the officiating pastors. When Mr. Segun Oni was introduced at the occasion, only a handful of his cabinet members sitting very close to me applauded him. Dr. Sikiru Lawal, his deputy got a better applause. The Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Mr. Tunji Odeyemi, got a loud ovation. But when Dr. Fayemi was introduced, there was a thunderous ovation that shook the crusade ground.
Mr. Segun Oni was to suffer more embarrassment when he was asked to make a speech; the crowd shouted no. Then, as if it was planned, the lights went off as he was about to make his speech. There was a huge murmur of disapproval and booing thereafter which forced him to stop his speech abruptly. The saxophonist, Pastor Kunle Ajayi, ushered in Pastor Adeboye who mounted the pulpit around 12 midnight with a melodious tune that electrified the whole gathering. His revelations were no holds barred and he drew analogy and references from the scriptures. Only the spiritually gifted and the deep could understand the messages. Pastor Kalejaye preached first with the theme, 'Table turning for good in Ekiti'. He was so good and eloquent with words that he held his congregation spellbound for hours.
The man Adeboye is so simple and unassuming. He is so humble and epitomizes piety and all that is pure. His candour, demeanor, presentation and carriage could melt any heart. I was spell bound for more than two hours that he was on the pulpit. There was pin-drop silence in spite of the huge crowd as he preached and reeled out revelation upon revelation. The way he delivered his messages and revelations to the crowd is novel and convincing. He demonstrated that he was a good teacher. He explained the concept of revelations before he went into the spirit for the benefit of first timers to the Holy Ghost Night like this writer. He said, 'when I say there is somebody here tonight, it may be a person or a group of persons that God is talking to'. Shortly after, he started preaching on the theme Emmanuel which is all about the awesome power of God.
(To be continued next Wednesday…)
Hakeem Jamiu, [email protected], 0808 311 2749, SMS only.