Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), recently shared a story from the church’s early days.
He recounted how the late Nigerian Industrialist, Chief Michael Ibru, played a role in preventing a food crisis during RCCG’s very first convention, despite the church’s financial struggles at the time.
Speaking at the July Holy Ghost Service at Redemption City Arena in Shimawa, Ogun State, Adeboye reflected on how, during the church’s early years, he invited thousands of people to attend their first convention at a newly acquired campground. Although the church didn’t have the funds to feed the attendees, Adeboye, acting on faith, promised them two meals a day.
“We were rich in faith. I told them we would provide meals, but we had no money to back it up. Soon, the little we had was gone.”
It was at this point that Chief Michael Ibru visited the campground and was taken aback by the large number of people, around 3,000 to 4,000 attendees. He asked Adeboye, “Are you really going to feed all these people?” To which Adeboye responded, “Yes, we will provide two meals per day.”
The following day, Chief Ibru sent a container of fish to the campground. At that time, the church could not afford to buy cows, so the fish was used to prepare jollof rice, which was served to the attendees. This act of generosity was a turning point for the church, and Adeboye described it as a “divine intervention.”
The pastor credited the gesture to God’s guidance, saying that it was an example of how God works through helpers of destiny to provide at just the right time. “That single act saved us,” Adeboye noted.
In his message during the July thanksgiving and prayer service at the RCCG headquarters, Throne of Grace in Ebute-Metta, Adeboye also spoke on the importance of seizing “divine opportunities” when they arise.
He encouraged Christians and Nigerians to recognize and act on the opportunities God provides, emphasizing that they should not overlook the blessings that come their way.
