Encomium
+preparations for their forth coming conference
Bishop Humphrey Erumaka is the General Overseer of Word Base Assembly in Ago, Okota, Lagos. The ministry clocked 20 a couple of months back. ENCOMIUM Weekly had an interview with him about the ministry at 20, their forth coming convention and the state of the nation…
How has it been running your church for over 20 years?
The church clocked 20 early this year and it has been a wonderful experience. When we started, we were in a smaller church but we are now in this magnificent building. We have two other branches in Ejigbo and Magodo in Lagos. In addition, work is in progress in Lekki and we have more expanse of land. We also have branches in Owerri and Umuahia.
We have also supported missionary work all over the world. For us, the word of God has kept our church. We have stood on the clear veracity of the word. I believe that the ministry is not founded on gifts but the word of God.
When did the call come for you?
I trained as a journalist and also practiced. In 1988, God called me to full time Ministry. For the first six years, I travelled for the ministry and erected a building where we started. The word of God is progressing and I never felt like quitting at any point but felt things could get better. Ministry is a journey of faith; you can’t do much without Him showing up.
As a journalist how many Christian books have you written?
I have written 10 research books. One of them titled, Restoring Man’s Dignity. It won the triumphant award in North Carolina, USA. The latest called Book of Errors won another ward. One of my classics is entitled Divine Power Deposits and the best is called Sustainable Friendship. Interestingly, one individual has printed over 12,000 copies and shared free.
What are some of the challenges of the ministry?
Most of the common challenges are meeting up budget to scheduled project dates starring at you. If you start trusting Him, He would not abandon you midway.
How would you describe the state of the nation at the moment?
The situation appears unstable, especially the presidential election where Boko Haram has wreaked havoc. It is more of a national disaster. I have been to top clergy meetings where we donated money in good measure to send to our brothers in the North. We are doing our best but how much can you help a man who has lost house, family and more. When there is peace, things would be restored. There is war, whatever you give is a relief. We need the crisis in the North to stop and we must stop politicizing it.
In spite of the fact that there are many churches, unrighteousness is still the order of the day. Why is this so?
That is not in the absolute sense. Put it the other way, you can imagine what would have happened if there are no churches. People do not need the church to be righteous. You have the positional righteousness which you receive from Christ as a free gift. The Bible says he that is righteous doeth good and has right consciousness. A muslim can be right conscious but that does not give him the positional consciousness. When a people in a nation are righteous then righteousness exalts a nation. A lot of people have the positional righteousness but you have to teach them to be right conscious.
What projects are you working on at the moment?
At the moment, we are working on our annual Festival of Power and Prayer Crusade which would take place from January 4 to January 11, 2015. It is not all about the church but the community. It is a period we open our doors to the public. Over the years, a number of testimonies abound to the extent that it is now the community that demands for it. The theme for the next edition of the programme is tagged, My Unbeatable God. Our God never fails. We have done it for six years and it is usually a time to wait on God to start the year on a positive note. It is better to wait on the Lord because if you do not do it His way, you may go round looking for what God has placed just next door to you. Prayer is a two way thing and it is better to pray and ask for direction. The programme is interdenominational and we have a number of speakers that includes Sam Ihenacho from Enugu, Pastor Diallo from Canada and friends from the country. For music, we have people like Frank Edwards, Sharon and David Moore for our praise night on Friday. In terms of security, everything is intact; we have surveillance gadgets, police and vigilante groups are also involved.
What are some of the testimonies from previous programmes?
Over the years, we have had cases of healing; declarations are made in terms of God’s blessings and breakthroughs. A number of people who have been married without children come the following year with their own children. We also have cases of those who did not come to the programme but were touched in their homes as well as those who built their houses within the year. Of course, there are also testimonies about the baptism of the Holy Spirit and people who also got clear cut instructions that led to relocation.
If you are the president of Nigeria, what would you do differently?
The greatest challenge of Nigeria is poverty and it is orchestrated by corruption. Nigerians are not lazy but the opportunities and facilities are not favourable. In China, people are running factories from their garage but here we have issues with electricity. This leads to restiveness and make our youth available tools.
