Politics tamfitronics
Founder and Senior Pastor of Daystar Christian Centre, SamAdeyemi, has revealed the reasons behind his relocation to the United States.
He said this during a virtual interview with Seun Okinbaloyeon his programme ‘Mic On’ podcast, where the duo discussed Leadership BeyondGovernance Politics and the Role of the Younger Generation in Nigeria.
The video, lasting one hour, thirty minutes, and forty-sevenseconds, was streamed on the Mic On YouTube channel on Sunday.
Earlier this year, Adeyemi explained why the oldergenerations of Nigerians must put their act together and make Nigeria work.
He said it was important for the older generations,including the political and religious leaders, to retrace their steps and getthe country working because the younger generation would soon begin askingquestions.
Adeyemi revealed that COVID-19, EndSARS protests, and,notably, troubling dreams about Nigeria, prompted the relocation.
He said, “When COVID-19 started, all our children were inthe US, so everyone stayed with their families. We stayed with our children.The week services resumed was when EndSARS started, so we were preparing to returnto Nigeria.
“When the EndSARS protests ended in violence, we stayed backa bit. When we were ready to return to Nigeria, a different experiencealtogether happened.
“My wife had a dream in which she travelled to Nigeria andreturned to the US, which was a bad dream. I told her I wouldn’t say I likedthis dream.
“Three days later, I had a dream. We both travelled toNigeria in my dream, and I was in a big fight. I was being attacked violently,and I had to ask the Holy Spirit in my heart what to do.
“He said I should call the name of Jesus Christ. I shouted‘in the name of Jesus Christ’ in the dream and didn’t realise I shouted outloud in real life.”
The gospel preacher and motivational speaker, who hails fromKogi State but was born in Niger State added that whenever they plan to returnto the country, a bad dream brings a setback.
“My wife woke me up at 2:00 a.m. by hitting me and askingwhat was going on. We decided to take it seriously, especially considering adream we had three days earlier.
“We prayed fervently, sensing danger. Three hours later, Ifell back asleep and had another dream. We were in Nigeria this time, and I wasin a fight,” he added.
The president of Success Power International, an NGO thatspecialises in organising leadership, financial, and motivational seminars,revealed that whenever they (he and his wife) set dates and booked flights toreturn to Nigeria, he would have a bad dream about something terrible happeningto him there (Nigeria).
He further stated that he had never experienced two dreamsabout the same event in one night.
“A few days later, we called family members in Nigeria, andone person said, ‘I’m feeling very uncomfortable about you travelling toNigeria.’ We called another family member who said, ‘I feel uncomfortable aboutyou coming. What is going on?’ We just turned and looked at each other,pondering the situation. Then I said, ‘You know what? I’ve been a Christian for40 years.’
“At this point, if God is speaking to me, I should have anidea that it is God speaking. Something is going on. I don’t know what it is,but I want to pray more.
“And at that point, we called a meeting of all the leadersin Daystar Christian Centre—the top 120 leaders on Zoom.”
The President of Success Power International noted that heinformed the elders of Daystar about the situation, and they agreed to keep thechurch running.
“They said you’ve never deceived us before. If God asks youto stay, stay as long as He directs. We’ll continue this journey,” he asserted.
The host of the radio and television ‘Success Power’programme heard and seen in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East said he and hiswife stayed in the US after the church leaders’ Zoom meeting.
“Six months later, we were still in the US for one year,tearing me apart. I discovered that, until COVID-19, I’d been out of Nigeriafor eight weeks. To now be away when you had the church with 40,000 members,”he noted.
He added that the experience in the US highlighted Daystar’sstrengths, including investments in training and established systems.
“I’m passionate about building systems so the church doesnot collapse. It is fantastic, and we call it an organisational miracle. It wasalmost three years before we had the Holy Spirit’s clearance to return toNigeria.
“But what eventually the Holy Spirit would tell me was thathe wanted me to shift my focus from just being the pastor of a local church tothat global walk that I had known that I would do.
“So right now, the focus shift is to do that global walkwhile we keep Daystar running, leveraging technology.”
Daystar Christian Centre is based in Lagos State, wasinaugurated on November 18, 1995, and now has branches across various states inthe country.
