By Sam Eyoboka

MGBIDI—MAJOR and small time oil marketers in the Mgbidi and the Owerri axis of Imo State made frantic efforts to replenish their stock in readiness for this year’s Lord Chosen Charismatic Ministry annual crusade just as commercial tricycle and motor cycle operators took advantage of the influx of persons into the sleepy town of Mgbidi for the 6th yearly spiritual fiesta.

Commercial activities took a giant lip in the fast developing community in Oru West Local Government area of Imo as an estimated crowd running into thousands from far and near, make brisk business selling all manner of wares including food items, wearing apparels, evangelistic materials, drinks for hundreds of thousands who daily defied the hot weather conditions to participate in the programme.

Quite expectedly, some traders used the opportunity of the crowd to recoup their expenses during the Yuletide season, inflating prices of popular items, such as MTN recharge cards that should normally sell for N1,500 was sold for N1,700 while pure water that sells for N5 sold for N10 or more in some cases just as residents freely sublet parts of their apartments to visitors for as much as N2,000 per day.

An estimated crowd of over one million converged in the small community from different parts of the country, South Africa, Cameroun, Ghana and other parts of globe to join several natives who were still enjoying the Yuletide holidays in their country homes.

The traffic on the Onitsha-Owerri Expressway and the Mgbidi-Oguta Road, as a result of the influx was described by the natives as unprecedented as vehicles daily snaked their way to the grassy arena where men, women with some strapping children on their defied the scorching January sun, seating on the bare grassy ground throughouþ the duration of the three-day event. They defied the scorching sun to seat on every available space in the Chosen Secondary School premises in Mgbidi for the 3-day crusade titled, “What God has determined, shall be done,” with the General Overseer, Pastor Lazarus Muoka the sole preacher.

The typical Chosen service focuses on testimonies which is a service can begin at 8.00 a.m. and ends at 8.00 p.m. without anybody bathing an eye. Testimonies and the veneration of the God of Chosen in songs, prayers and whatever can really be a put-off for the uninitiated who is attending such a crusade for the first time.
When Muoka eventually mounts the pulpit, he proceeds straight for a healing/deliverance session with many people testifying of having received instant healing they have been waiting for in the Sun.

Asked to assess the impact of the crusade on the community in the last five years and how he feels seeing fellow Nigerians on the bare floor under a scorching Sun, this is how the General Overseer, Pastor Muoka responded. “I want to let you know that in these five years we have held this programme in this part of Nigeria, Mgbidi, you can assess the impact by what you see yourself.

”If you have seen this multitude under the Sun, that means there is something that has happened to them that made them to be under the scorching sun without minding it. And I want to let you know that the heat from the scorching sun they are experiencing today is not the first time. Even in the time of Christ, they worshipped in the scorching sun. Christ did not build houses for them and they went on with Christ day and night, some times without food.
”So the fact is that the Sun is not peculiar to the Mgbidi Lord’s Chosen crusade but a sign that a great revival is taking place in Nigeria. You heard an Australian man who wished that such a revival should take place in his country even in the hot sun.

”So the point is that from the days of Christ, this kind of revival is what was experienced; people following Christ every where
He went whatever condition they found themselves. And so what you are seeing today at Mgbidi is the impact of revival. Revival is not for a structure, and I must let you know that no matter the amount of structure we erect here, as long as there is great revival like the one in Mgbidi, the crowd would continue to overflow the boundaries.
”For example, when we were at Ilasa in Lagos we started with a building but before we knew it, the street was overtaken.

And then we moved to Odofin Park and before you knew it the place was overwhelmed even with the numerous structures on ground, and now we are here at Mgbidi, and even with the structure here in Mgbidi crusade ground, it is like nothing is here.
”So, I want to tell you that this is a sign of great revival taking place in Nigeria,” Muoka emphasised.
Asked what his new year message was to the nation, he urged Nigerians to depend on God, noting that such was the only panacea to overcome the multi-dimensional challenges currently plaguing the nation.

”My message to Nigerians is that they should seek God and return to Him. As they do this God can never disappoint them. As a matter of fact God has said it shall be well with the righteous and whatever God has determined shall surely come to pass. If they live a life that pleases God He will surely bless them. Whatever is happening in the country today is not peculiar to Nigerians alone. It is a sign of the coming of Jesus Christ,” he maintained.

As the nation moves towards another election year, Muoka cautioned politicians to genuinely embrace God and ensure they are born again. “Our political office holders should seek God genuinely and make sure they are born again then what God has determined for our nation shall be done,” he stated.

Asked what he thinks of corruption in the Church, he said; “the only person qualified to judge the Church is a spiritual person because the Bible says that, ‘A spiritual man judgeth all things and yet he is not judged’. So those people who are assessing the Church today are not in the right position to do so and again, that depends on the kind of church they are talking about.

”There are many churches established for selfish interests but if it is a church established by God to save souls, maintains righteousness and with such church, what the nation needs to do is to join such a church and let their lives be revived and then begin to live right,” he urged.
Continuing, he said: “So I want to urge all Nigerians to seek the face of God and make sure that they live the lives that please God and as many of them that have not yet given their lives to Christ, they should endeavour to do so because there is no more time. Christ is coming soon.”

According to Muoka who refused to dabble into politics, “all that you see happening in Nigeria today and the world over, signify the imminent coming of the Lord Jesus. As a result of that, while we are seeking for the good of our present lives, we should also think of our eternal lives and what happens after death.

”So let’s make that while we are waiting for the coming of Jesus, if any one leaves this world before the coming of the Lord the person should ensure that he/she makes Heaven.
”So my message for Nigerians is that they should seek God and return to Him, and they should depend on Him and as they do so, I am assuring that God can never disappoint them. In fact, God has put it to us this year, to tell the righteous that it is well with them and whatever God determines will surely come to pass, if only they go on and live the lives that please God, God will surely bless Nigeria.

He emphasised that whatever that is going on today, is not peculiar to Nigeria but they are signs of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, stressing that the Bible says in the last days and in the time when Christ shall come, there shall be perilous and dangerous times; a lot of things would be happening, which when you see them coming, you would know that these are the signs of His coming and those things are happening to and they are not just happening in Nigeria or Africa but elsewhere in Europe and the world over.

”But sometimes, Nigerians see it as peculiar to them alone but it is not so; because evils are taking place in every other part of the world. You would even realize that what is happening in Nigeria is even less than what is happening in other parts of the world. But as we seek the face of the Lord, I am assuring you that this year, it shall be well with the people of God,” he added.

The cleric also used the occasion to speak on the church’s truck that had an accident in Oshodi, Lagos, December 2012, saying: “It may be wrong for the press and Nigerians to judge us on the basis of that singular accident. A tipper that was carrying sand skipped off the road and accident occurred, it was unfortunate that was the only good thing the press saw and published. We felt disappointed.

We are not going to say much on the issue because God had taken control. We sympathise with the families and of course, we are here to preach righteousness and to preserve lives and millions of lives are being saved. So what happened was accident, it was never an intentional act. We felt so bad that something like that happened, but I want to let you know that accident happens everyday,” he said.

”And if they have known God, they would know that what God has determined would be done. Whoever God has determined to be there would be and it cannot be otherwise. So let us seek God who determines who is who, even in the political terrain, so that whatever God has determined in the political terrain, in our families and the nation at large shall be done,” he maintained.

Two persons who claimed to have tested positive to the dreaded Acquired Deficiency Syndrome, HIV/AIDs, Mr. Sunday Igwebuike and Mrs. Ikwunze Nma were among those who gave testimony before thousands of worshipers that they have been healed of the deadly diseases after prayer sessions at the crusade.

With tears rolling down his cheeks, Igwebuike said he had lived with the deadly virus for almost a decade but he was shocked when his doctor gave him a clean bill of sound health that he is now negative: “it was a huge shock for me when the doctor gave me a report indicating that I’m now negative. I remembered that it was during the prayers session supervised by Pastor Muoka that I felt that something evil left me. The pastor specifically rebuked the HIV/AIDs disease and asked any of us who was positive to go for check up again. This is the Lord’s doing and I give glory to him.” He said.

Flaunting her doctor’s latest report that confirmed that she is no longer HiV/AIDs positive, Ikwunze said: “This is beyond human understanding. And it is only God that can do this. I’m no longer positive of the killer disease after prayers by pastor Muoka. Glory to the name of God.” The crusade tagged : “What God has determined, shall be done” was also characterized by testimonies of miracles of healing of deafness, loss of memory, blindness, bed wetting, barrenness and deliverance from demonic possession among others.