By Ladi Ayodeji
A large crowd was gathered last February on the long track of land that used to house the old NITEL Exchange at Agege, Lagos for a crusade tagged: ‘Enough is Enough’.
The crusade was organised by the Abundant Life Gospel Church, Peace Arena, Agege, Lagos. And it continued the new policy of the church to move this annual outreach outside Peace Arena to the inner city, in order to reach lost souls, as a prelude to Superfest coming up in August 4, 2017.
According to the General Overseer of the church, Rev. (Dr.) Jane Onaolapo, the crusade is the soul of the church. “Soul winning is the soul of the church because it fulfills the Great Commission of our Lord and saviour, Jesus Christ,” she says.
For this reason, soul winning has been her passion since she gave her life to Christ as a teenage girl many years ago. Now 55, the woman of God who took over the mantle of leadership of the Abundant Life Church shortly after the passing of her husband, Bishop Kola Onaolapo, has prioritised the saving of souls above everything else, including the completion of their pet project, the 25,000-seater ultra-modern, multi-million naira cathedral of the church.
“I believe that the Great Commission is the original mandate of the church of Jesus Christ, and we all have to go back to it. So, I have made it our main focus at Abundant Life,” she explained.
Obviously, since this vision was rekindled and embraced, the church has recorded steady growth. And the testimonies of saved souls are so amazing.
“Many who gave their lives to Christ from the Agege crusade were ‘Area boys and girls’, urchins and former call girls. The church went on to empower them financially, to start petty trading and keep them from the streets,” Onaolapo states.
At the ordination of new ministers and graduation of the Abundant Life Bible College students, which took place Sunday after the crusade, the newly won souls sat in a corner of the huge cathedral. Refering to this, Onaolapo said that the church had to raise new labourers for the prevailing harvest.
“As we labour to bring new souls, we must equip new ministers to tend these souls and also go after the lost still in the world. This process informed the annual Superfest programme of the church, which holds in August every year,” she explains.
Onaolapo admitted, after a deep reflection on the legacy of her late husband: “Bishop (Onaolapo) really worked. He was so committed to the vision and thank God that he left a solid platform for the project to succeed.”
She, herself, has picked up the gauntlet and taken up the challenge like the Amazon that she is. But a long and careful preparation is the secret behind her success as the overseer of such a big ministry like the Abundant Life Gospel Church.
Onaolapo is a 1982 Geography graduate of University of Ibadan, Oyo State where she was very active at various levels in the campus fellowship, which she championed. She also ministered to the needs of the fellowship members, gave counseling and career talks which helped to give them a new sense of direction. These helped in shaping her leadership skills that have come to play in her ministry work today. She also holds an MSC in Climatology from University of Ilorin as well as a PhD in Christian from (MI) Pensacola Florida.
Little wonder she has evolved to a great preacher and teacher of God’s word who ministers with notable signs and miracles accompanying her works. She is an international conference speaker, a tele-evangelist and an inspirational author of 14 life-transforming books. In appreciation of her work, Onaolapo has been honoured with several meritorious awards including the award of Mother-In-Israel given to her by “Israel Today Nigeria”.
Onaolapo said her major challenge is the next Superfest event coming up from August 4-9, where her soul-winning drive is expected to produce more fruits – to the glory of God.