Vivian Onyebukwa
God shows mercy to whom He wants to show mercy. This captures the life story of Apostle Anselm Madubuko, the Founder and General Overseer of Revival Assembly Ministries. Back then in the University of Nigeria, Enugu campus where he studied Architecture, never did he know that he would become a vessel of God. To him, he was a write off because of some of the things he indulged in, but God rescued him. Today, Madubuko has become one of notable men of God in Nigeria. His religious activities have even taken him to most parts of the world, preaching the gospel. In this interview, he spoke about his life, religion and politics generally.
While growing up, did you envisage that you would one day become a pastor?
Never. I grew up in a Catholic home. I studied Architecture, so my plan was to be a known architect. I wasn’t even thinking like that at all; that was the last thing on my mind while growing up. I just wanted to be a businessman, build houses, and live my life.
So what later inspired you to be a man of God?
During my youth service year, one young man who came to do his industrial attachment in my office came to talk to me about Jesus. That was my first time of hearing it; that was in 1983. That was the first time of somebody talking to me about Jesus. Even on campus, there used to be Scripture Union members, (SUs) and all that, but they never talked to us, because they assumed we were too gone. I was in Pirate, Freemasons (that is, the Lodge), and all kinds of things. We were the ones that they looked at as hell-bound, which was true. So, nobody talked to us about Jesus until this young man came and began to tell me about Christ, personally. I didn’t know what happened actually and I saw myself giving my life to Jesus without even understanding what I was doing. That was on August 4, 1983. From that moment my life changed. From that moment I began to think less of Architecture, money, and my profession, which was my first love; I just lost it to Jesus Christ. I knew it was just a matter of time. But even at that I didn’t see myself as a pastor, because I wasn’t a religious person. I didn’t know the Bible, I didn’t know anything about God. All I wanted to do was, because I love Christ, I said ok, let me just be an evangelist, so that I would be doing my crusade and, also doing my business. That was all I wanted to do. I wanted to live that kind of life for Christ and make money for the kingdom. But eventually the Lord said no, and we are here today, and the rest is history.
What were your early challenges in the ministry?
Of course, like I said to you, I didn’t want to even start, but eventually on December 16, 1990, I had an inaugural service about the nation, and everything. Even at that I still wanted to be part time, and keep my business because I wasn’t sure I could feed my family from ministry. In 1990, there wasn’t any glamour in ministry. There were not many ministers of God. It was just Bishop Idahosa, Foursquare, Redeemed, Assemblies of God. There were not many exciting Pastors, so for me I thought my life was going to go down. I didn’t see how I was going to feed my family from church. I didn’t see how I was going to work. I didn’t see how people would come for it. It was just crazy thing for me, but like I said, I had to beg God when He said to me, trust me to take care of you. So after about three months of starting the ministry I gave up my practice. I went full time because it was clashing. The church was growing fast and I couldn’t have time to attend to my clients, and people wanted me at the site. I couldn’t be at the site and church and praying for people at the same time. It was very difficult to do the two, so I had to choose the church. In fact, one of my clients told me at that time I was stupid, that I was leaving the obvious for the unknown. It was clear that as an Architect and a builder, I had a future, but as a Pastor, I had no future because I didn’t go to bible school. I didn’t know anything about ministry. I told him, ‘yes, you are right, but I am just obeying God’, and thank God eventually I did obey God. Now by faith, I have been able to do what I didn’t know how to do. By God’s grace, he has taken me all around the world at his own expense and I am grateful to Him that He didn’t let me down.
What are some of your memorable moments as a pastor?
There are so many memorable moments. I have seen people fainted. I have seen many people healed. I have seen many people delivered. I have seen testimonies that rocked my life. I have many precious moments when I saw God doing wonderful things all over the world in the lives of people. Priceless. There are many memorable occasions here. Thank God that I am doing this for Him and the kingdom is great. God’s kingdom is not like what we can even imagine; it is way beyond what we all think when I get letters from places I don’t even know. People would tell you I heard your message in this and that country, and all those places you don’t even know. Some would tell you, I was going through this, and I was healed just listening to your message. You hear all kinds of things. You are full of all in all of God’s grace and mercy. So it’s been priceless what I have gained the moments I have had with what God has done.
Can you recall your growing up days, does it have anything to do with your life today?
No, my growing up was on the fast lane. I was in the university, my second year at the Department of Architecture at the University of Nigeria, Enugu camps. I was the Director of Social, Enugu campus. My opponent was fourth year Architecture student, and I defeated him. So I was on that lane. I was a DJ on campus. I was working with Radio Nigeria Enugu. I was presenting programmes while on campus. I joined the Pirates Confraternity and became the capo. And my father initiated me into the Lodge at 21. So I had all going on–life, women, money, fame. I had all that on campus, so I had nothing to do with God. I didn’t even want God. I knew I was a bad person and I knew I was going to hell. I thought I was born for that. I couldn’t help myself, but I saw God’s grace. I didn’t know that God could reach out to a man like me and everything changed. I was the first in my family and I had to get all my family into the kingdom of God. It has been quite an exciting moment in my life.
What about your dad, how did he feel when you gave your life to Christ?
When I gave my life to Christ, he disowned me. He said that I had brought shame to him because, they brought the Catholic church to my village. He felt that it was an embarrassment that I left him in the Lodge. He initiated me into the Lodge and I left him, so he was annoyed. But I told him that I prefer God, that God is better than anything. But eventually he got saved. He left the Lodge before he passed on. I thank God for that.
Any regret in life?
Regret, no. Everyday is a miracle for me. No regret at all.
In all these years, what has life taught you?
Life has taught me that life is nothing without Jesus. Life has taught me that the most important thing on earth is not money, but eternal life, and that the surest thing is death, and everybody must be ready for death. Everybody should know where he is going before death. I didn’t know you could know where you are going. I thought you don’t know until you die. No. If you know Christ you know where you are going. When I met Christ in 1983, I knew where I am going, and I have been on that lane, and I will be on this lane until he comes. No one knows when He would die. You would think that you would live long but you turn your face and you are dead unannounced; uncertainty of death. To save your soul, make sure He saw your face before you die because nothing happens after you die. All these stories about having high mass or low mass after one dies, is all lies. There is nothing like purgatory. It is either heaven or hell. And there are no two ways––only Jesus. Not Mary, Martha, not anybody but Jesus Christ alone. Give your life to Christ and your place in heaven is guaranteed. Call on him. Say no to Christ and you are going to hell. There is nothing in-between. It is life and darkness.
How do you give back to the society?
I don’t have to announce it. I have a lot of people on scholarship. I have done boreholes for some communities, and all that. It is not a press matter.
What’s your reaction to the killings in the country?
It’s crazy. It’s not been like this; something is seriously wrong. I don’t think people are telling the truth to our president. I don’t think he knows what is going on. I think he is being lied to, that people are fine. I heard a statement by Lai Mohammed that Nigeria is the safest place to live. I don’t know where he is talking about. For a man of that caliber to say that Nigeria is the safest place to live, something is wrong. That means that the people are disconnected from the truth, and the truth is that people are going through hell on earth in Nigeria now. It has never been like this. Even the way they are killing Christians shows that there is a cleansing going on, you don’t have to be told about that. People are being killed. You don’t even need to know what is going on because, up North, it’s happening almost everyday. Families are wiped out and nobody is doing anything. There is no help coming to those being destroyed and turned down. They go to the Police, there is no response. They go to the Army, there is no response, so it’s only God that can solve this problem in Nigeria. As for the government, we have lost hope.
Are you saying that there is nothing the government can do at all?
Government cannot do anything. Either they are part of it, or they don’t care. It is either they are part of this nonsense or they don’t give a damn about it. So we cannot call on them. Forget about government; we are just waiting for what God can do now. It is not about the PDP or APC, they are all the same. The quality of the people is not sound, they are found wanting, we don’t have born leaders. We don’t have smart leaders. We don’t have futuristic leaders, we just have momentary leaders who just sit down and eat what they have and move on. No country prospers with such people at the helm of affairs.
From where do you think we got it wrong?
I don’t know. Nigeria was better than it is today. Even in the 60s, growing up I used to see the peace and love in Nigeria. Christians and Muslims were all living together. There was no problem at all, but after the military came in, after the civil war, everything began to change. From 1970 till now, Nigeria has never been the same. As blessed as we are, but we have not been able to get it right in leadership. Somehow, God has been punishing us with bad leaders. The Bible says when your king is a child the country is doomed. We have rulers that don’t care about nobody, so we have to keep praying and asking God for mercy and intervention in his own way because we don’t even know how.
As a very busy person, how do you relax?
I don’t think I unwind because I‘m on; I love the Lord, so wherever I go is fun; I don’t see it is as job since this is what I was born to do. I thought I was born to design and build houses, but now I know that I was born to preach his gospel all over the world. So I travel, I don’t feel it. I just enjoy myself at the moment at the hotel. I relax and pray. It’s not a job. I don’t fast and die. I don’t do things and die, I enjoy what I do. I have a good home. When I ‘m home, I ‘m home. I watch television and stay with my wife and kids. It’s all fun and excitement for me even though it is hectic. So with the pressure I unwind in the process. I go to preach in the morning. Or, I rest in the morning and preach in the evening, that kind of thing. I am not the going out type. I don’t go to visit whatever, I just relax, pray and just take life easy, and demystify life. I don’t complicate my life, I make my life as easy and possible. I remove everything that would make my life complicated. I don’t like many things people want. I don’t like protocols. I don’t like things to be difficult. That is how I live my life, and I pray that I don’t change.
Any embarrassing moment?
I don’t see anything as embarrassment because nothing works against us. What I might think was embarrassing will end up being a blessing. God is faithful. All things work together for those that love the Lord who are called according to His purpose. It may look bad when it is happening, but at the end of the day you thank God for even the embarrassing moment. Devil never wins a battle. Whether it is a scandal, lie peddled by anybody, at the end of the day it works for my good.
Do you have any role model apart from God?
There are so many great men of God, I don’t want to mention names. There are many people who are doing great things all over the world –– in Nigeria, Africa and in the world, and I thank God for their lives. I thank God for Bishop Idahosa who was my father before he passed. I thank God for Dr Ibeneme too, who was a father to me. He ordained me. He has passed too. Those ones have gone to heaven. The rest are all over the world doing the work of the gospel.
A word for Nigeria?
God says He loves Nigeria and Nigeria is still very much in His plan, so we are watching. Let’s be hopeful and keep hope alive. Let’s take our eyes off all the mess going on and let’s just look at the momentary pain and embarrassment we are facing. They will work for our good later.