ADELAJA
ONCE UPON a time Europe sent missionaries to Africa in order to share the Christian Gospel. Today much of Europe has set aside its Christian heritage. Many churches have closed and attendance at worship services are at an all time low. Ironically, most of the mega-churches in Europe have as its senior pastor an African - who in many instances is from Nigeria.
With a membership of 25,000 Sunday Adelaja is the pastor of the largest church in Europe - The Embassy of the Blessed Kingdom of God For All Nations, located in Kiev, Ukraine. Pastor Adelaja was in the island last month and was the main speaker and presenter at 'Advancing the Kingdom With Power' - a conference held in Kingdson organised by a group of local churches.
According to the church's web site (www.godembassy.org) after graduation from high school, Adelaja took up a scholarship to study journalism at Byelarussian State University, in the Soviet Union. He had at the time been a Christian for six months. While pursuing his studies, he sensed the call of God on his life to enter full-time Christian ministry.
BIBLE SCHOOL
He sought out some Bible schools but he said, God interrupted his search and told him, "I have different ways of preparing my Generals, one way is by associating them with existing leaders in the body of Christ. Another way is through Bible School. The third means of preparation is by raising up the leaders in a strong local church. However, when I want to do something new and unique, I take my Generals to the wilderness. This is your wilderness in Russia and it is your preparation, your Bible School."
The web site reported that when communism fell in the early 1990s, Adelaja, who had been a part of the underground church, travelled all over the former USSR preaching and planting churches. He was detained by KGB officials in Belarus and threatened with deportation.
RECEIVED CALL
As Adelaja and his friends were praying against the deportation declaration, he received a call inviting him to interpret for Jeff Davis, a US pastor travelling and speaking in Ukraine. Sunday paid for the ticket himself and went to Ukraine to 'do the Lord a favour.' A few weeks after this trip, Sunday received a phone call from Pastor Davis. He had signed a contract with a television station in Kiev and needed someone there to represent his interest. Several months later Sunday Adelaja arrived in Kiev ready to begin his job at the station. He worked diligently at the station, and so impressed was the station's director that he asked Adelaja to create a programme with Christian values. Thus a door was opened for Adelaja to proclaim the gospel through television each week, and get paid to do it.
CHURCH GREW
When he arrived in Kiev he told God that he did not want to start a church there because he did not want to leave another church in its infant stage. He had started churches in Belarus and had to leave them just as they were getting established. But by 1993, Sunday could no longer deny the urge of the Holy Spirit to begin a church. In November of 1993, Sunday began a Bible study in his apartment with about seven people. The church grew quickly and in 1994 was initially registered under the name Word of Faith Bible Church.
