Reverend John Oni is the founder of the Ever-Increasing Joy Ministries (also known as Glad Tidings Ministries). In this interview with SEYI SOKOYA, he speaks on the growth of church in Africa and how to revive the Church in Nigeria.
How will you describe your missionary journey?
I see it as a divine mandate from God and He has been guiding my steps since I embarked on the mission. I reside in Florida; the United States of America and I have been living there for 21 years. Before that, I lived for 10 years in the United Kingdom. I left Nigeria in May 1992. By God’s grace, I am a trained pharmacist, but God needed me most as an itinerary missionary, so, I could not reject His ordinance. We have planted about 42 churches in Malawi and Mozambique. We also have some installation centres here in Ibadan, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, South Africa. I travel around visiting Europe, especially the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland where we preach. I visit our churches in Malawi and Mozambique twice in a year to do training for pastors as well as organise programmes for the churches. It is the turn of Nigeria. We are visiting our missionary installation centres in Oyo, Kwara and Ekiti, Ogun and Plateau states.
How has the experience been in the vineyard?
I have been a pastor since 1993. I started pastoring in the United States in 2021. The experience has been good. It gives me the opportunity to actually live a Christ-like life and we try not to emulate the patterns of the world in what we do, rather we support and develop ministers to become self-sufficient and rely on the word of God. We don’t allow our pastors to mismanage the congregation as well as solicit for money, but we support them out of what God has blessed us with. We establish and support them.
How were you able to combine pharmacy with pastoring and how were you convinced that it is your calling?
God has been helping us in creating a balance. I have been able to work on my schedule. The work of God hardly clashes with my business, and I have also made sure that both must not affect each other. Also, I was convinced that it was a calling because it gives me pleasure and doing it without soliciting for help, though people give when they see the need to support. Presently, a woman is building a school for us on our church property in Malawi. This is because she saw a lot of the young generation suffering and lacking access to quality education, especially the women. They are made to embrace early marriage because the secondary school is far and when they complete their primary school, they give them out in marriage. Also, a man who owns an event centre in Ibadan and his wife have been with us in Malawi and they have supported the missionary work in many ways. We are very happy with the result so far and we bless God for all the support coupled with the great work He has placed in our hands.
I want to use this medium to tell pastors in Nigeria that being a cleric does not mean you should be collecting money from people through manipulation or lies. They will genuinely support if they see what God is doing in the ministry.
How will you describe the gospel in the African countries you have been to compared to Nigeria?
It is the same. We have disciples that we train. They go to school and they come back to be evangelists and some are studying nursing. We encourage them to have their businesses, unlike what is rampant in Nigeria today where many pastors only depend on money from the church.
Do you agree with the view that Nigeria is the leading country in the propagation of the gospel?
Where is the fruit for it? The way I will feel safe somewhere like Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, South Africa is not the same way in Nigeria. People are so greedy and self- centred. No fear of God. This is why the lives of people are not transformed. There is no decorum in Nigeria. People are ready to kill for money, even as low as it may be. Many Nigerians are not law-abiding, no regard for human life and this is actually happening in the church of God. Yes, Nigerians are religious, but not living the full life of Christ. The name Christians were given by unbelievers when they saw their way of life. We are to be the light, but we don’t have the same opportunity in Nigeria. We Christians are not good examples to our environments. When I was a student at the University of Ife in the early 80s, there was a love of humanity.
I will have to blame some of the ways we Christians have commercialised gospel and how we have turned it to business. It is supposed to be a business for God in order to draw them closer to Him as well as to populate the kingdom. This is why you see all manners of ungodly things pastors do to draw crowd to their ministries. We are supposed to be the shining light.
What do you think can be done to address this?
We need to go back to the grassroots. We must shun competition in the vineyard. Let people see us as genuine Christians and put their trust in God.
What are the major challenges in the missionary work?
It took us time to change the orientation of people, especially in the poorest countries. We always train then to depend on the work of the heart and to stop begging. We also, gave the hope that God can turn their lives around if the depend on Him. To the glory of God many of them are now successful businessmen and women. We have successful change the orientation of people to depend totally on God and not man. Though it is very difficult to change the orientation of people, through the help of God we have been able to achieve that.
How have you been able to handle your career, the missionary work and your home?
It has been God all the way. I thank God for giving me my own wife. She has been very supportive and always holding forth the home when I am not around. I also appreciate the children for their cooperation. I am indebted to my wife for a strong support in all ramifications.
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