By His Grace, I Am Saved

“Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat...” Matthew 7:13.

OGECHUKWU Onyemanze is my name and I worship at the Sari-Iganmu Parish of the Watchman Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement, Lagos.

 I am glad to share with you the testimony of my salvation. Sometime in 2005, while I was living with my aunty whose husband is one of our pastors, God used him to pray for me and a great change occurred in my life.

My eyes were opened and the scriptural text that came to my mind was Ephesians 6:6: “Not with eye-service, as men-pleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.”

    Later, I went back to my parents and in no time, I lost everything I had gained spiritually at my aunt's place and it was as if I had not received any spiritual instructions at all.

 But God being so faithful that He would not want any of His children to perish beamed His searchlight on me and directed me to the Watchman Fellowship Centre, Sari-Iganmu, where I fully surrendered my life to Christ.

    Before my conversion, I dressed purely to suit the dictates of my mind, even when I was going to fellowship. I would dress the way I used to when leaving home for church but before I arrived at the fellowship centre, I would remove my earrings, clean up the make-ups and adjust my head-tie  so as to appear moderate and decent.

That was purely hypocritical, but it was my way of life. This continued until I had a dream one night and a voice said to me clearly that I was a hypocrite and that I could only hide my ungodly way of life from man and not God.

until I had a dream one night and a voice said to me clearly that I was a hypocrite and that I could only hide my ungodly way of life from man and not God.

    There was a particular favour I was asking God to grant me, but it soon dawned on me when I read Matthew 6:33 that what I needed first and foremost was to seek the kingdom of God.

   By June 2008, I noticed that God had really dealt with me by saving and redeeming me totally from the hands of the enemy. I began to drop the bad habits one after the other. I threw all my weave-ons and wigs away and told my unbelieving friends that it was all over.

They thought it was a joke initially but when they saw the seriousness with which I spoke, they saw it was no use dissuading me, because they realized that indeed, there had been a rebirth and spiritual reawakening in me.

   With my new found zeal and love for Christ, the Lord showed me a ministry (Music) to which I belong and God has since been helping me. I am glad that today, I am saved by His grace.

    Praise the Lord”.

No More Caesarean Section!

“Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? saith the Lord: shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb? saith thy God” Isaiah 66:9.

I am here today to glorify the name of the Almighty God for His goodness and mercy towards me. The Lord made it possible for me to have a normal delivery instead of the caesarean section the doctor had prescribed for me.

   My name is Comfort Felix and I worship at the Bariga Parish of the Watchman Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement, Lagos.

   

 It happened that after I had had two babies by caesarean section, I was told by the doctor, after series of tests, that if I took in again, it would be impossible for me to have normal delivery.

This, of course, grieved my heart and caused me a lot of sorrow and sleepless nights, especially, when I considered the risks involved and the huge amount of money we would have to spend.

So, my husband and I went into prayers and rejected the caesarean option. Four years after the arrival of our second child, we resolved to have our third baby, which we hoped would be our last.

 As God would have it, I took in soon after and we continued praying to God ceaselessly for His intervention, to counter what medical results had said concerning my delivery.

    I registered at a hospital for my ante-natal care and when my Expected Delivery Date (EDD) was only a month away, the doctor told me I would have the baby through C/S. That statement did not go down well with me and I told him so.

At the end of the day, he concluded that if I was not ready for that option, then I would have to look for another hospital. I left, hoping to register at another hospital, but when I was interviewed at another hospital, they told me that it was rather too late to register me in other words, I should return to the first hospital that had been attending to me.  

   My pastor who was aware of my case called me out during one of the fellowship days to pray for me, but unfortunately, I wasn't in the fellowship that day. But, the information got to me and I decided to see him on the next fellowship day.

 While praying for me that afternoon, I heard him suddenly say:  'No cause for alarm!' He said it repeatedly. At last, he said to me: 'Sister, God says: No cause for alarm.' I went home happily that day and told my husband what the pastor had said and we believed God.

    On the day of delivery, we contacted the pastor on phone and he prayed for me again. He also told me that the Lord said I should not fear that He was in control. I held on to that in my heart and made it a point of prayer as I was being led into the labour ward.

Well, the testimony is that my baby came out safely that day, and I felt fulfilled that I had also experienced what it takes to be delivered of a baby the normal, natural way.

 Indeed, God set aside what medical science had pronounced and made what was thought impossible possible. Please, join me to glorify this God of Watchman.  Praise the Lord!”

Couple Blessed With Child After Seven Years

“Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing; Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to Thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto Thee forever” Psalm 30:10-11.

MY name is Martins Ross Imienwanrin and my wife's name is Bunmi Ross. We worship at Ilaro Parish of the Watchman Catholic Charismatic Renewal Movement, Ogun State. We wish to testify to God's goodness and favour unto our family.

    We got married in 2003 and were anxiously expecting that God would bless us with the fruit of the womb immediately. When our expectations were not met after the first year, we decided to see our family doctor. The doctor suggested some laboratory tests and the result showed that my wife's womb was blocked; that had been the reason she had not been able to take in.

The doctor said the way forward was for her to undergo surgery to correct the anomaly.  We rejected the idea of going through any surgical operation so we went to God in prayers for His divine intervention. We informed some of our pastors of the situation on ground and they prayed for us, assuring us of their continued prayers on our behalf.

A year later, we went to see another doctor and did another test, and it was still the same result that we got. I was advised to also go for a test myself and when I did, the result revealed that my seed was too weak to father a child.

But all these put together, did not move me neither did my faith in God diminish, because God had revealed to me that my wife would carry her own baby and that was what I held on to.

REPORTER'S DIARY: In Cotonou, Fellowship Is A Delicious Experience

MIDNIGHT was already getting set to assert its hardly felt presence on the well-lit streets of Cotonou, the commercial city of the Republic of Benin, when we checked into our place of lodging. 

The day was Saturday, June 26, 2010, and Pastor Mike Iheanacho (the WCCRM National Director of Theatre and Performing Arts) and I were billed to worship the following Sunday (June 27, 2010),  at the Watchman Fellowship Centre, Opposite Benin Gulder, By Cinema Concord, Irede Akpakpa, Cotonou.

Pastor Jude Obiajulu

   We met a very lively church, a pleasant mix of Beninoise and Nigerians, all happy Watchmen, worshipping God with infectious joy and excitement. The choruses were first sung in English. After sometime, two young girls took over from the chorus leader to continue the chorus session in the indigenous language.

 And just like virtually everyone happily participated when the English songs held sway, the entire church became even more alive when songs in the indigenous language took over. The whole thing was so enthralling and overly edifying. Indeed, fellowship here is a delicious experience.