Men of God should minimize preaching prosperity –Cleric

PRISCILLA OFUNRE

Pastor Olulodun Victor is the General Overseer of Deliverance and Salvation Ministries, Ado-Ekiti. He is also the State Coordinator for Christian United For Israel (CUFI) Ekiti State Chapter. The Ministry recently celebrated the 71st independence anniversary of the nation of Israel and described her as the source of all beings. He urges Men of God to minimize preaching of prosperity on their various platforms, saying, it could instigate suicide.

 Recently, your ministry celebrated the 71st independence anniversary of Israel in the state, what would you say is the significance of this on the body of Christ?

Well, number one, Israel is our source, our origin and spiritually, we are Israelite through father Abraham. In the bible, God told Abraham that he will establish him and that he will be great and thankfully, the covenant came to pass through Jacob. Jacob’s name was changed to Israel, which means biblically, we are Israelites. When we are celebrating Isreal, we are celebrating our source, our origin and ourselves. The bible says, pray for the peace of Jerusalem and they shall prosper the Lord. We have celebrated the 71st independence of Israel in fulfillment of biblical injunction and thank God for Donald Trump who moved the capital of Israel from Telavi to Jerusalem in fulfillment of biblical injunction after 70 years and we thank God for what He is doing through the state of Israel.

We thank God for what He is using Israel to do for us. They gave us the bible and also Jesus Christ. When one calls on Jesus, one refers to Him as “Jesus of Nazareth”, not Jesus of Washington DC or Jesus of Abuja. They are still making impact in so many areas in the world today, even though, the land that was given to them was a desert but turned a fruitful land. They are the best in economy and in the area of agriculture. Isreal can feed the whole nation and God is solidly behind them. Also, in the area of technology, the cell phone and computer we use today were invented by Isreal and so many other things. The area of medicine is another one, now they have discovered cure for cancer and God is using them for so many positive things, with just a population of about 8.5 million, and in spite of this figure, She is known for a positive change agent. Isreal is our origin. We must celebrate her.

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As the State Coordinator for CUFI in Ekiti, in what way would your relationship with Isreal benefit the state?

In so many ways, but majorly in the area of agriculture, the state can partner with Isreal in this regard. I was  with the Ambassador to Israel in Transcorp Hotel at Abuja to celebrate with Isreal, with so many dignitaries in attendance. Our state government can partner with Israel on agriculture and thank God today we are going back to farm and I believe a time is coming when we will majorly depend on agriculture for survival and we are looking forward to getting the Ambassador visit Ekiti State and we hope that this will bring in some positive impacts. I hope with our government and with the partnership of Israel through the Ambassador the state can benefit from Israel.

The rising cases of suicide in the country, what factors do you think are responsible and what possible solutions?

One of the major reasons I think is frustration. It can lead to taking of one’s life. Poverty is another major factor, the level of poverty is very high,  when one wakes up without the hope of what to eat, how to cater for children and pay their fees, rent payment and other bills.

Also, a sour relationship can also instigate it. The issue of jilts or brake-ups in relationships. When one cannot contend with severed relationships. For instance, somebody who has been in a relationship with another, in which one sponsors the other and suddenly the sponsor says he or she is no longer interested, this could start breeding thoughts like how will one cope? How does one meet one’s needs? and stuffs like that, therefore, not getting an alternative or a helper at that period could lead to taking of one’s life. Stigma is another factor. When somebody is known or is challenged with a particular issue that may be known or unknown to people and asks when will he be able to get out of it? Spiritually too, lack of faith is another one. When one does not have faith in God that He is still there to meet one’s needs, that God is still there for you and can take you out of that situation. I have had one on one talk with so many people and the conversations were overwhelming challenges and lamentations in which some contemplated suicide, others had unsuccessful suicide attempts. Some will say and ask, Man of God, the problem is still there. Will I ever get out of it? Will I be able to survive it? There are so many other factors too.

Some of the possible solutions include: Our government have huge roles to play. Like I said, poverty is one of the major reasons for suicide. Our government should go extra mile to ensure that our people have surplus. Let them empower people in various ways, through this a lot of problems would be solved. There are people who died just because they couldn’t afford #1,000 to buy drugs. Let our government provide jobs and  empower people so that money can be available.

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Also, Ministers and Men of God have roles to play too. Let them try and minimize the preaching of prosperity on their various platforms, instead they should re-energized hope in the lives of individuals by making them to know that God is still in the boat with them, and never will they fall. I am not against the preaching of prosperity but that it should be minimized. The message of salvation which is the core must be prioritized. The bible says; “seek ye first the kingdom of God and every other thing shall be added.”  In that salvation, there is prosperity, longevity, peace and so many other numerous benefits.

Another thing is this which concerns every individual, as the government cannot do it alone. We all must be our “brother’s keeper”. We know our neighbours. Whatever anyone is going through, instead of condemning or mocking the person, we should try and move closer to the person, ask one or two questions, with this one can be a solution to that challenge facing the person, meet their needs. There are so many ways in which we can make impacts in people’s lives, those in the hospital, visit them, give to them the little you have.

Governor Fayemi is now the number one governor in the country, what are your projections for him in this regard?

To start with, I congratulate him on his emergence as the new NGF chairman and I wish him the very best in his new capacity. He is a governor in which people have so much believe in. Even before his emergence as the chairman, many govenors had endorsed him. He is in a position well deserved.  I know he will do well, just as he is doing well as the number one citizen and governor of all the tribes in Ekiti, he will also do well as the number one governor in the country. I pray the oil of anointing on him will never go dry. The Lord will bless and sustain him.