Popular evangelist and teacher of God’s word, Rev Isaac Omolehin has recounted his life’s story and how he was despised and rejected by some people who today are now celebrating him.
He gave the account during a recent programme designed to celebrate his 74th birthday anniversary monitored online by Church Times.
Omolehin who said he was never used to celebrating birthday noted that ‘this year’s birthday has been so special because people all over the world are celebrating him. People sent money to me. Someone said to me he was sending me money to buy chicken but he sent money for cow.’
Evangelist Isaac Omolehin was born in Iluke Bunu, Kabba Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State, Nigeria. He is the President and Founder of Word Assembly Ministries in Ilorin, Kwara State.
In his message he recounted his sordid past and how he wandered for years and experienced hunger and pain before the Lord delivered him.
He said his early childhood was challenging. ‘My father was a well known man and somehow reputable. But somehow he did not invest in any of his children. It was not that he hated us. It was just that he did not invest in any of us.’
Apart from not being supported by his father, his life was constantly under threat. It was this threat to his life that made his mother carry him from town to town to escape from those who wanted him dead. Some of his siblings had been victims of the evil people. He recalled how his younger brother died.
For him to escape being victim of the evil people who wanted him dead, his mother had to take him from town to town.
He said he lived in five different towns during his primary school years and had to move from one school to another during this period.
Despite the nomadic experience, he was always taking the first position in all the schools he attended.
While in school, Omolehin said he was struck by a strange sickness. His mother had contacted a prophet who recommended that he be bathed with local sponge and black soap in a river and that after being bathed, the sponge should be thrown into the river to secure his healing.
Though he had not known God at that time, he said the thought that he would have to go through such ritual made him began to think and made up his mind to come out of the sickness.
Before his mother came back from where she went to procure the items for the ritual bath, he stood up from the sickness to the amazement of all.
Still recounting his story, Omolehin said he found himself in Ilorin town about 50 years ago and got engaged with a family to serve as farm boy. He said he was helping the family out in frying puff, puff for commercial purpose.
It was in the course of this that he met his wife who was already an undergraduate at the University of Ibadan.
‘Some people who knew my wife was going out with me then tried to discourage her from the relationship. They said to her that she was yet to get a human being to marry. But my wife was adamant. She kept to her decision to marry me.
‘Ironically, those who discouraged her then are still here in Ilorin seeing what God is doing in our lives.’
Omolehin whose online presence has soared in recent time said he suffered so much lack in those early years of his ministry but that he did not lack anointing.
Though he did not tell the story of his conversion, he recalled how he had encounter with a disciple of Apostle Ayodele Babalola who warned him never to have any brawl with anybody.
‘The man said to me never to fight with anybody because God will always fight for me. Now, I found out that all those who have had issues with me didn’t end well. The man warned me not to fight for myself or claim any right. Today all those who have had cause to cheat me or dealt with me inappropriately did not have a good story to tell.’
Reflecting on his marriage, he said his wife has been incredibly loving. ‘If I am celebrating today, it’s because of my wife. My wife is the one to be celebrated. Before our wedding we went to one of her uncle who was to stand in for us as the father of the day on our wedding day to tell him about the wedding. The uncle did not come out to see us. We waited for hours. He did not come out. I told my wife to let us leave. We left the place.
“But 40 years after the same man had need for me. He is the monarch of their town. In that town people were dying anyhow. Even indigenes of the town were brought in dead from outside the town.
‘A CAC prophet went to the town and told residents that until they invite Baba Omolehin to come and pray for them, people will keep dying. The monarch who was uncle to wife who refused to see me when we went to tell him about our wedding and who in fact did not show up at our wedding had to find a way of reaching me 40 years after our wedding.
A man from the town came to me and said he was asked to bring me to the town by the dwellers to come and pray for them. I went to the town and prayed as requested and God intervened in the land.’
Omolehin said he eventually bought two cows and gave to the town to celebrate.
He said his wedding at the St.Luke’s Anglican Church in Ilorin about 43 years ago was attended by a handful of people. ’many of the relatives of my wife did not come because they could not imagine that she would marry me. When I took my wife to my father and told him we were planning wedding, he gave her N2. But he did not give me anything.
“The wedding itself was a miracle. We came to Lagos to buy ring for the wedding. We could only buy that of my wife because there was no money to buy mine. My wife had her ring.’
On the day of the wedding he got money and asked someone to go and buy his own ring. By the time they came back, it was a hunter’s ring, something like a ring for doing charm; that was procured for him. He could not wear the ring.
Omolehin said it was a woman in the church who saw his predicament that offered to lend him her ring for the purpose of the wedding. After the wedding, the ring was returned to the owner.
The Ilorin preacher said because of that experience he does not wear a ring till date. ‘after the wedding I returned it to the owner and that was the last time I had anything to do with ring. Since we have been married I did not bother myself again even though I can afford 10 rings at a time now if I want to.’
He recounted incidents where he had to go and beg for money and foodstuff. ‘There was a brother I once went to give me some money so we could feed. The brother said he had no money, but that he had raw beans he could give me. I was excited. I said I don’t mind.
‘He went inside and took so long to come out. By the time he came out, he said he was sorry that the beans was not as much as what he thought and that he could no longer give me. I later got to know it was his wife who told him never to touch the beans. Ironically, I still see the man today.’
The man Isaac Omolehin
It should be noted that Omolehin later studied Animal Science at the Rivers State University of Science and Technology. As a Youth corp member he was Traveling Secretary with Nigeria Fellowship of Evangelical Students, NIFES
He married Dr. Mrs. Christie Omolehin in October 1982 and was ordained to ministry in 1985 by Rev. Mike Oye.
Evangelist Omolehin and his wife are blessed with four children who are Pastors, and Missionaries in different nations.
Evangelist Isaac Omolehin has preached the gospel across the globe. He also runs an orphanage in Ilorin along with his wife
