Pastor Roselyn Oduyemi is the widow of late Apostle Gabriel Oduyemi, founder, Bethel Ministries, Wonder City Lagos. She is a woman of strength and determination who took the reins of the church when her husband died nine years ago. She spoke with journalists recently about the prayer movement she’s advocating for the nation and sundry issues. ORUKPE NELSON was there.

Tell us a bit about the prayer movement you are advocating for Nigeria in 2015?

The 111 prayer movement is moblising all Nigerians to pray for our nation. Every day in the month of January 2015, from 1^st to 31^st of January, everybody will be praying the same prayer point at the same day and at the same hour.  That is; one minute, one prayer point at 1pm everyday as one nation and one people. We believe that this will foster unity and we are going to God as one people and not as different denominations, religion or tribe. We are going to God as Nigerians. So if we have a million people praying this prayer for example for one minute and 60 minutes make one hour; If you multiply that you can imagine the prayer that is going up to God. So, people can go to our website and register there. They are just simple prayer points but the most important thing is having everybody praying together.

What informed your decision to call for this prayer movement?

It’s my passion for Nigeria and asking God to give us a strategy. This is because we see how the country is going and we need divine intervention. I kept asking God for strategy and how I can make a difference and He gave us this idea to mobilise the whole nation to pray as one people and to make it a general thing not as Christians or Muslims but just as Nigerians. God has given us this nation, we are all involved and if anything happens, it affects all of us. If we all come together as Nigerians, God will hear and intervene in the affairs of our land. I don’t want to politicise this prayer movement. Let’s focus on the fact that Nigerians have to come together and pray.

Do you think the 2015 elections will be problematic?

With the recent occurrences in our nation, every responsible Nigerian knows that we need some kind of intervention. Since I know God, I think we need divine intervention. Take the place of the Hebrews in Egypt; they cried out to God and God sent a deliverer. So it is the same principle we are using here, asking God to help us.

How has it been with you since your husband died nine years ago?

It’s been a journey. You know whenever there is change, you go through a process both tough and good times. I thank God for blessing us with very great pastors. Our senior pastor is amazing. Because he had set that example, all the other pastors are just wonderful. They all played a great role in putting the church together in terms of growth, looking after the sheep and just being there. It was difficult but God has helped us.

Being a woman especially in the African society, was there a power tussle when you took over the reins of the church?

No I didn’t experience any of that. When my husband was alive, we were partners. I was in ministry. So taking over from where he stopped wasn’t a question. I wasn’t there because I was married to him. Everybody knew that I had the call of God on my life. So being a woman didn’t matter much because they had a lot of confidence in me. In the spiritual realm, the Holy Spirit has no gender. I gave my life to Christ before I met my husband so I had a relationship with God so it was easier for me to take over the pastoral reins of the church.

How have you been able to cope emotionally as a woman?

The most important thing is the word of God. Being in God’s presence and the word of God is what has helped me a great deal in dealing with issues as a woman in my position as a widow. So I always take people back to the word of God. Without God’s word, life will be unbearable. You have to understand that you are complete in Christ. Your fulfillment as a human being comes from your relationship with Christ and not because of another human being. When you understand that, even when the person is not there, Christ fills up all the emptiness that you feel.

Your husband was known as a flamboyant person, but you seem to have turned it down now, what happened?

People are different. Remember my husband was a businessman before God called him into ministry but he ran away for three years. That was just my husband’s style. My mother in-law used to say that, that is how he has been from childhood. It wasn’t something he developed when he became a preacher. He has always been that way. It was just part of who he was. Even during that period he was alive I was on the gentler side.

His flamboyancy seemed to have robbed off on the ministry because we don’t get to hear so much about the ministry anymore to a large extent and the private jet?

I cannot handle the private jet for now.

But other ministries are buying it?

Good for them but for me right now, I don’t think that is what God has for me. There is a time and a season for everything. In this season, we are just working quietly and God is doing great things in our ministry. I think it is just important to follow the cloud not the crowd but the cloud of God. That way, my life is stress-less.

He was one of the first pastor in the country to own a private jet, was there any need for it?

At that time, we were doing a lot of crusades. We were travelling all over Africa. I don’t know about now, most times they will have only one flight a week. So if you are travelling with a team of twenty people and equipment, how do you now wait for one flight a week? It was just for convenience, crusades and furthering of the gospel.

Are you saying that the private jet is no longer necessary for you?

No… it’s not.

Why did you sell the jet when it was the property of the ministry?

I didn’t sell it, it was given away.

Why don’t you get another one?

Why would I? I don’t need it

You don’t travel like your husband used to?

No I don’t and I don’t need one.

The other clerics clamouring for one, are they doing the wrong thing?

Their ministries are very big, how would they travel around? They need it and the gospel must expand throughout the world. I don’t know why people make so much ado about this private jet thing. It is an instrument for soul winning. There are people who own private jets just to fly girls all over the world, why don’t we talk about them? It is because people have this notion that pastors and servants of God must be poor and that is just too bad.

Your husband and Bishop Idahosa were the shining light that turned people away from the poverty mentality of the church. Is prosperity preaching a good thing?

Do you like poverty? Poverty is a curse. Everything we see belongs to God and He is our father. As long as we don’t worship those things He has given us and those things don’t own us. He wants us to use what he has given us for the enlargement of his kingdom. For example, I am working with widows now and those widows have gone through hell. We are working with children and women who have nothing. That is why we need money for the gospel. So if we have Christians who God has blessed, they will help these people. The thing about wealth is to use it and help people.

How have you been able to handle all the bad reports on your family?

I had to do a lot of forgiving. I had to release a lot of thoughts. That is why I am so happy about the direction the Nigeria media is going at the moment. You don’t have to destroy people just to sell your paper.

Are you saying that those things said in the media are untrue?

Of course! My husband was not a drug pusher. The man will be preaching in church and they will say he was arrested in New York with cocaine in his walking stick; it just didn’t make any sense.

There is this general impression by the public that clerics are just out to enrich themselves and not members of their congregation. What do you say to that?

I never ever judge clerics, do you know why? This is because one day we will all stand before this great God and give an account. I don’t know what these clerics are doing, because I am not in their churches. But I know a lot of churches are helping out, doing different things to help out. We may not hear them on TV, you may not see them but they are doing things to help members of their congregation.

There is abject poverty in the lives of the members and you see ministers living large. How do you reconcile this disparity?

This is because there will always be poor people among us. The minsters are doing the best that they can.

But this poor people are giving to the church?

They are giving, not to the minister but to God and the reward comes from God. They are giving to God for the work of the kingdom.

Will your children be taking over the ministry from you?

Well I don’t know; I cannot speak for my children. I told them to follow with whatever God wants them to do. Their father was a businessman when God called him into the ministry. If my children are called into the ministry, that is between God and them really. I am not pushing anybody into doing anything.

How do you manage to still look this good and youthful?

Thank you for the compliment. My life is very simple and stress free. I spend time in God’s presence. I try to live by the word of God and speak the word. It is when you want to do so many things at the same time, you become stressed. My life is simply stress free.

What do you do to keep your looks?

I eat sensibly; I watch what I put in my mouth and drink a lot of fluids. I run away from carbohydrates. I don’t eat foods like pounded yam. I do a lot of fruits and vegetables and lots of herbal teas. I don’t take carbonated water. I drink fresh juices. When oranges are in season, I drink orange juice or I take pineapple juice and so on. When fruits are in season, they are very cheap. I have trained myself to be like this for many years so I have gotten used to it. I don’t put poison in my body.

You are very stylish. Describe your style?

I don’t like to look like everybody else. I am a creative person. I like to create my own style. So I don’t follow fashion trends because I think it is bondage; why should anybody tell me that today green is in vogue and tomorrow it is out of vogue?

What kind of clothes are we likely to see in your wardrobe?

I wear dresses, jeans, shirts, but you will not catch me wearing jeans with a short top. The top has to be appropriate.

Are you big on accessories? Who are your favourite designers?

When it comes to all these things, I have been on a journey. I had Rolex’s, Piaget watches and all kinds of expensive watches. I had diamonds and gold. I had so much jewelry but everything was stolen by my cook. In fact, when I went to the police station at Bar Beach to report, they were surprised I was so calm when I told them all that the man had stolen. The thief was caught in Cotonou. They couldn’t repatriate him back to Nigeria according to their law and has to be tried over there and imprisoned. As for me, I just removed those things from my heart. Right now I wear anything and I realise that it does not really define who I am. So when I see people flashing Rolex, I just laugh. It is not what defines a person. If God blesses you with it, fine; if tomorrow, God gives me all that stuff, great but they don’t define my life.

How have you managed to live without those jewelries?

The bible says I’ve learnt to abase and abound. It is a thing you learn and when you do, you really cannot be bothered. The most important thing is your walk with Christ. The most important thing in life is where you end up. The soul of a man is the most important thing and right now there is a battle over the soul of our nation and that is what I am concerned about.

What do you say to Nigerians?

Love one another. Love is the key; it covers a multitude of sin. Let’s love one another, don’t let tribal differences get in our way. All we need is love. If we are able to love one another, we can be able to live together as a people.

Would you want to re-marry in the future?

Life is not all about marriage. A lot of women are not achieving anything because they are waiting to be married. Marriage has to do with purpose. It has to do with assignment. For me, marriage has to do with God, so I am just serving God, following and obeying what He wants me to do and fulfill my purpose and destiny. I am not thinking about that right now but the future will tell, I cannot say what the future holds. If I say I won’t marry again, then the young women will think it’s wonderful to be alone because I said so but that is not true. Some will even say I am so righteous and loved my husband so much, that is why I have not remarried but that is not the point. If I say I want to remarry again, people will also talk. It has to do with your assignment and what God has planned for you. So, I am not going to say anything whether I will marry again or not.