DAY 1
Mentorship: in the beginning, I was with God
The Late Rev Sen. Mac Nwulu example
Happy Easter Friends, welcome to my series…
I remmber those days of early *Bornagnisim* rivival flame when with the eye of a growing teenager I first met the Late Rev Mac Nwulu in 1976 alter call crusade.
A classic evangelist of the word of God, an inspiring singer, major proponent of leadership by example. At the time, Rev Nwulu used any available public space to win souls for Christ. In one of the crusades that 1976, he had enveloped the entire atmosphere at Cameroun End Primary School, Aba with cherubic and ecclesiastical candour.
Teaching with projector then, looking at his entire success filled life with the charming persuasion; it was easy to wish to be like him.
In his sermons, he made the persecution of Christ and the hope for all Christians his central message. Answering his alter call to be BORN AGAIN as a teenager was to me the highest turning point. The Nwulu wind of radical evangelization was already making impact in the Christian world. Thousands of people who listened to his popular song : “LOOK AT JESUS… The Son of God… oh my Son Come unto Him”, I took a step of faith and joined the army that would help to redeem mankind as little as I was holding the hand of Mama Jessy my Amazon Mother General .
MAC Nwulu was a regular guest to crusades organized by the Scripture Union (SU) at the time. For those who would remember, SU was and by the grace of God still the most useful discipleship forage of courageous Christians. I grew with his message till 1985…
Perhaps for his sake and those of other Pentecostal life changers, the Federal Government in 1985 banned the use of public schools for religious crusades. What would have been bad news was converted to an amazing paradox. Nwulu, undeterred, very introspective in thinking, sagacious, dogged and not given to cosmetic intimidation, offered his facility Trinity College of Ministerial Arts (TRICOMA) for continuation of SU meetings crusades and evangelization.
The only snag was many people complained about the distance.
PH Road was no where close to the many adherents of the Christian faith who wished to nourish their faith.
Help came for the people of God. Pa UZOMA ( the father of Pharm. Iheanyi Uzoma) donated a land for the building of the SU Centre at Umuehilegbu. The site then was only neighbor to thick bushes, fallow lands and a hardly passable road.
The same Nwulu came for the ground breaking ceremony. A persuasive fund raiser for Christ, an ardent fisher of men came with twelve (12) stones representing the twelve tribes of Israel. He prophesied that the site would blossom to a magnificent one, producing men of honour and thick personality, Christians who would speak for the have nots. He encouraged us to buy into the prophesy in any way we can. I remember donating N500 at the time. Meanwhile, my CD ROAD MASTER cost me a N750 then. The truth is, Nwulu would teach on how to give in pains and reap in gains.
I am aware that my elder brother DR. Emma Ndukwe, Rev Chidi OKOROAFOR (General Superintendent of ASSEMBLIES OF GOD CHURCH), Bro EMMA OKorie (the founding President of LIVING WORD MINISTRIES), Rev Jude Ehienere (Vice President of LIVING WORD MINISTRIES), Arch Nath Aliche and Pharm. Iheanyi Uzoma (Fmr. President SU)
just to mention but a few witnessed as Nwulu admonished Christians. More than 40 years after, SU headquarters at Umuehilegbu (100 Umule Road now) is still standing on that site, doing exploits for God and man. The rest is history.
Rev Nwulu continued to preach on the need why Christians should venture into politics. He insisted that the ban on the use of public schools for crusade would not have been possible if a Christian who understood signs of the time was in charge of power. To him, when Chrstians waive their rights to seek for election, the heathens desecrate the political space. He asked us to come with our hyssop (faith) to wash the political space clean. When it was time to walk the talk, I was one of those selected to work for the realization of Rev. Nwulu’s ambition to become a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1992. Nwulu was to the glory of God elected SENATOR .
I had told myself “I want to be like him”. So much for his spiritedness, courage and determination to follow peace with all men. So much for his willingness to preach the gospel with his political office. For those who still remember, Nwulu did not lose track, he refused to trade his faith for anything no matter how attractive, he refused invitation of the devil no matter how long the spoon was. He gave hope to Christains in politics that
I called … *Mentorship by Role-model*
To be continued tomorrow…
ManofGod@55
