WHEN MEN SEEK GOD
CGEN’s TESTIMONY OF IKOYI PRISONS OUTREACH PROGRAMME.
It was a warm and charged atmosphere one you hardly experience during some of our regular instrumented meetings, and God was visibly present. The songs were simple popular chorus of worship and praise, and the instruments!, a drum set, an old keyboard, sticks and claps all swallowed by the resounding voice of men who are expecting something supernatural.
We were amazed by the experience and I simply forgot every grumbling prayers of my present condition. If men in this condition can praise God, who am I not to praise him.
The Ikoyi Prisons built to accommodate only 800 inmates now contain a total of 1,855 people, originally 1,856 but one escaped while on medical transit. One could only imagine the level of sufferings, lack, fear, doubt and total ungodly nature exiting in that part of the world in addition to the loss of their freedom.
Everything seems to be normal apart from the two ancient gates and surrounding high walls as prisoners with money can get anything they wanted, being hawked on a daily basis. No wonder we could hardly differentiate between prisoners as some of them looked well feed, good looking and even better dressed than some of us who were visitors.
One of the prison officials jokingly said “Please don’t forget yourself o, take a partner who can identify you because if you loose your tags, you automatically become a prisoner. Do make sure you walk together shielding the sisters in your midst because anything can happen o”. These words sent cold shivers down my spine and I remembered that these men are condemned either mistakenly or genuinely for one or more evil and demonic crimes so I started praying even though we had prayed all manners of prayers before now and most importantly seeking the release of these men and women.
After observing all protocols, showing them our letter of invitation, disclosing the content of the gift items, dropping all our phones, registering our names and given the identification tags, we were ushered into the second ancient gate while part of our gift items was detained with the promise to give the inmates later and we humbly followed our corporately well dressed guide like a sheep for the slaughter into the prison yard.
I thought I was the only one afraid even though it wasn’t my first time but I noticed that my fellow brethren mostly first timers were terrified so they cramped themselves into a bench when there are still spaces behind though few inmates were already sitting obviously trying to avoid contact, while one of our humble ministers Bro. Eniola Oke was called to the pulpit for the message.
He did not hide his feelings at all, already drunk with the holy wine flowing out from the presence of God Confessed. In his words, “I am happy to be here, I want to tell you a story, I came to pity you but now I pity myself. I have prepared my mind to say some things to console you but God has changed them to words of encouragement” and he went on to tell them about the children of Israel and Moses who was misguided by passion to commit a crime that banished him to a strange land for many years until God called him back. To roundup his message he raised a prayer point I can’t recollect but I know it has something to do with calling on Jesus to intervene in their situation and the shout from these men brought me back from my slumber, it was like a thunder and I felt the ground vibrate under my feet.
That day I caught a different fire I pray will never be put off to praise and worship God in every situation and also pray as if it’s the last thing I will ever do.
God rewarded our effort and 11 souls stepped forward to join our family, it is a confirmation of victory and we bless God for his favor and mercy as we hurriedly left the prison yard.
This is our testimony that God crowned our effort and set the captive free, He never permit any of us to be destroyed even though we were attacked, Brother Korede was hurt but God revived him and He was healed. Few days after our visit 14 inmates were miraculously released to start a new life, the inmate minister confirmed that most of them were in that service where men desperately seek God.
CGEN’s TESTIMONY OF IKOYI PRISONS OUTREACH PROGRAMME.
It was a warm and charged atmosphere one you hardly experience during some of our regular instrumented meetings, and God was visibly present. The songs were simple popular chorus of worship and praise, and the instruments!, a drum set, an old keyboard, sticks and claps all swallowed by the resounding voice of men who are expecting something supernatural.
We were amazed by the experience and I simply forgot every grumbling prayers of my present condition. If men in this condition can praise God, who am I not to praise him.
The Ikoyi Prisons built to accommodate only 800 inmates now contain a total of 1,855 people, originally 1,856 but one escaped while on medical transit. One could only imagine the level of sufferings, lack, fear, doubt and total ungodly nature exiting in that part of the world in addition to the loss of their freedom.
Everything seems to be normal apart from the two ancient gates and surrounding high walls as prisoners with money can get anything they wanted, being hawked on a daily basis. No wonder we could hardly differentiate between prisoners as some of them looked well feed, good looking and even better dressed than some of us who were visitors.
One of the prison officials jokingly said “Please don’t forget yourself o, take a partner who can identify you because if you loose your tags, you automatically become a prisoner. Do make sure you walk together shielding the sisters in your midst because anything can happen o”. These words sent cold shivers down my spine and I remembered that these men are condemned either mistakenly or genuinely for one or more evil and demonic crimes so I started praying even though we had prayed all manners of prayers before now and most importantly seeking the release of these men and women.
After observing all protocols, showing them our letter of invitation, disclosing the content of the gift items, dropping all our phones, registering our names and given the identification tags, we were ushered into the second ancient gate while part of our gift items was detained with the promise to give the inmates later and we humbly followed our corporately well dressed guide like a sheep for the slaughter into the prison yard.
I thought I was the only one afraid even though it wasn’t my first time but I noticed that my fellow brethren mostly first timers were terrified so they cramped themselves into a bench when there are still spaces behind though few inmates were already sitting obviously trying to avoid contact, while one of our humble ministers Bro. Eniola Oke was called to the pulpit for the message.
He did not hide his feelings at all, already drunk with the holy wine flowing out from the presence of God Confessed. In his words, “I am happy to be here, I want to tell you a story, I came to pity you but now I pity myself. I have prepared my mind to say some things to console you but God has changed them to words of encouragement” and he went on to tell them about the children of Israel and Moses who was misguided by passion to commit a crime that banished him to a strange land for many years until God called him back. To roundup his message he raised a prayer point I can’t recollect but I know it has something to do with calling on Jesus to intervene in their situation and the shout from these men brought me back from my slumber, it was like a thunder and I felt the ground vibrate under my feet.
That day I caught a different fire I pray will never be put off to praise and worship God in every situation and also pray as if it’s the last thing I will ever do.
God rewarded our effort and 11 souls stepped forward to join our family, it is a confirmation of victory and we bless God for his favor and mercy as we hurriedly left the prison yard.
This is our testimony that God crowned our effort and set the captive free, He never permit any of us to be destroyed even though we were attacked, Brother Korede was hurt but God revived him and He was healed. Few days after our visit 14 inmates were miraculously released to start a new life, the inmate minister confirmed that most of them were in that service where men desperately seek God.
