Rev. Prof. (Mrs.) Christie Modupe Fagbamiye, 74, is the General Overseer, Redemption Faith Mission International, Satellite Town, Lagos. The Electrical Engineer turned Theologian, mentor, educationist, and trainer, is also a prolific writer, conference speaker, marriage counselor and a bible teacher and pastor. Rev. Prof. Fagbamiye, who recently celebrated 30th anniversary of her ministry, with the theme, ‘God, Our Ebenezer’, in this interview, shares some of her experiences with EJIKEME OMENAZU. Excerpt:
What would you say about the 30 years of your ministry?
It has been God through these 30 years of the Redemption Faith Mission International. God has been the one leading, teaching and directing the affairs of the church. He did not let me fall from His grip. The church is marching on and the gate of hell cannot prevail against it.
Could you reflect on the 30th anniversary celebration of your ministry?
God being Our Ebenezer, people’s needs were met. There was healing, salvation of souls and spiritual revival with the manifestation of God’s presence. The kingdom and the power of God came to His people massively through the word of God delivered by the two guest speakers, Archbishop Charles Olu-Odus and Archbishop Mike Akinyoade. There was no way people could hold on to the kingdom of God without prayer, reaching out to people, and letting them have the assurance with the confidence in Christ that God does not kill. Through the power of His word, the Lord rescued John from the Island of Patmos, where reptiles did not kill him. Whatever the challenges in our lives and our country today, God will deliver us when we acknowledge His authority.
What other activities took place during the anniversary?
Apart from the two prolific men of God as guest speakers, there was a medical outreach with qualified medical personnel on ground for the general public to share in the grace of God, through Christ. People had free medical examinations, lectures and counsel, in addition to such tests as blood pressure, sugar level, temperature. They were also given free medication. In addition to the medical outreach, we were helpful to point them to God as the great healer, who will heal them.
How would you describe your journey in the ministry?
As a woman in the ministry for 30 years, it has been God and I don’t know how I can measure His goodness. He has been a good God to me. Despite challenges, He has not abandoned me, but saw me through all and I overcame. One of the things I am grateful to God for is the grace to minister to the barren, people that had no child, but are trusting God. Some are nearly 60. God turned them to mothers. Some, out of frustration and shame, decided to return to their villages since they could not have children. I encouraged them not to do that, but to continue waiting on God. We will fast and pray, assuring them that there is nothing God cannot do or a situation He cannot turn around. To the glory of God, we have children born in this ministry that are graduates and are doing well in their chosen careers. It is not by might, nor by power, but by total submission and humility to God. When you come here for the first time, you may not know who the Senior Pastor is because I am free with people and do not lord over them as a shepherd.
How do you handle challenges of life in the ministry?
If you hear my testimony or know some things that happened to me, they will marvel you. There are things I encountered in life that I cannot run away from, but they kept me going. It was like you are in a class, and do not go through a test. If you do not pass the test, you cannot be promoted. All the challenges were stepping stones to my kingdom elevation and spiritual exaltation that leads to spiritual maturity. I am standing because the devil has failed. By the time I was answering God’s call, the devil did not know that it was late and in trouble. The devil cannot hinder, stop or kill me. My life is not in the hand of the devil, it is in the hand of God, who commissioned me. When I was supervising a building project in the civil service, one day, the Minister for Works and Housing, Mallam Mamman Kontagora came to the site and said, ‘I have not seen a woman working like this. Let’s look for a bigger job for her’. I turned the offer down, saying. ‘I’m sorry sir, I don’t want any job. I already have a burden. I need to sort it out with God’. He was surprised to hear that. Meanwhile, the burden I was talking about was because I did not answer God’s call on time. I had accidents and other problems. So, I rejected the offer. Or, why should I allow God to kill me because I want to make money?
As a Christian, could you compare the acquisition of material things in your days to what obtains now?
There is a lot of difference. Till now, some people still see me as a local and uncivilised woman, but the Christ in me is greater than what they see. The word of God has been watered down, twisted, and turned to shreds to suit their desires and choice. That is why today there are more fashionable Christians without spirit of fellowship, motivated Christians without knowledge of the Bible and material Christians without mentoring. Go to many places of worship, you will find more ‘goat’ Christians who wear and do whatever they like without caution. We need ‘sheep’ Christians who want to and can be disciplined, mentored and tutored. Some behaviours need to be tamed and corrected.
What are the things that make you happy?
Things that mostly make me happy are lives that are transformed from darkness into the light of Christ, spiritual revival of people, and testimonies of God’s faithfulness and redemption in the lives of people. The glory of my happiness belongs to God. Even if you say, ‘Mummy, thank you’, I will say, ‘Let us thank God”. This is because whatever happens is by His grace. There are people who started the ministry like me, but for one reason or another, they are no longer in the ministry. Some are dead and some have deviated. Many things have happened to me, but God, by His mercy, has kept me going. My ability is by His grace and sufficiency.
What advice do you have for the younger generation of ministers?
My candid advice to the younger generations of ministers is that they should go through the process of development and growth. They should be humble, ready to listen, learn and relearn. Have a teachable spirit, a mentoring heart and a development drive. They should identify with those who have been there before. There is no short road to success in the ministry, every other road is death. The end of every other way that seems right to a man is death. The younger generation of ministers should not be in a hurry to succeed and not be carried away by title, fame, glamour and material things, but their fellowship with the Holy Spirit and relationship with God should be more important. It is better to stay with God and make it, then to go outside of God and become a failure. Though the vision may tarry, it shall surely speak. It is unfortunate, the younger generation wants to succeed like the older generation, but they are not ready to sacrifice and pay the price like the older generation who are still standing and functioning in the ministry after many years. The younger generation should not be inundated with the ambition of using the name of God to deceive, mislead and manipulate people for their selfish gain or glory. They should get it right and rightly hold on to God without allowing distractions to take away their vision.
