By Vera Wisdom-Bassey
One year after the death of Prophet Temitope Babatunde Joshua, popularly known as TB Joshua, followers of the late charismatic preacher, on June 5, thronged the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Ikotun, Lagos State, to celebrate his legacies.
The event was attended by followers from different countries to honour the departed preacher and cheerful giver. It was feast of praise songs and dancing that took a better part of the special service.
There were other soul-lifting activities to mark the anniversary, including drama and a rendition by a choir from Ondo State House.
TB Joshua Foundation was unveiled at the event to the admiration of all that were physically present and others that joined online across the world.
Joshua, Nigerian pastor, televangelist, philanthropist, leader and founder of The Synagogue Church of All Nations, passed on June 5, 2021 at the age of 57. He would have been 58 on June 12, 2021.
The memorial anniversary service had the theme “Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Prophet TB Joshua.”
It featured some Nigerian celebrities, including popular comedian Ali Baba, KC Brown and Tee Mac, who entertained the audience.
Foreign gospel ministers who attended the service included Pastor Freyle from Colombia, Pastor William Ghaltas from Bethlehem, Pastor Obispo Elvis from the Dominican Republic and Bishop Trevor Williamson and wife from the Bahamas. Others were Pastor Bernard Mulder of South Africa and Bishop Steven Ogedengbe from Nigeria.
Some of the dignities that graced the occasion included Bishop Bukola Adeleke, Special Assistant on Religious Matters to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu; Deputy Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa; representative of former President of Ghana, John Mahama; Minister Ayoob Kara, president, Economic Centre for Peace; Pastor Cartos Alvaou Paraguoy; and Bishop Asil Jamali.
The wife of the late cleric, Evelyn Joshua, narrated her journey with her late husband and shared the wonderful moments they had together.
Her words: “I leant from my husband that life is not a bed of roses and I also learnt absolute trust in God, tolerance, perseverance, understanding and forgiveness, which helped to shape my life.
“The TB Joshua that I married and the father of my three daughters was a man of prayer and that was what led me to him. I didn’t choose my husband, he chose me, but I loved him until death did us apart.
“He was a vegetarian and when he told me, I told him that I eat all those foods, but for him, I became a vegetarian too just to live up to his expectations.
“There was no SCOAN then and we were satisfied. When we started the church, we sat on mat, we sat on wooden chair and I became the first Sunday School teacher in the church and here we are today.
“I fought for love and attention, and today I want to appericiate two wonderful women who became our counsellors and I had them as friends. Mama Victoria Akinola and Mrs. Felicia Olowofekun, the second woman has passed on.
“I remember one Sunday, I went to his office and I said, You are not to attend to anybody today but me, he brought Mrs. Akinola, who guided me with wisdom that kept me from the path of error. I want to say thank you for wisdom and motherly advice that both women gave me.”
On the cleric’s passage, she said: “A year ago TB Joshua finished his race and left us. We wept and were worried. Today we have gathered here not to mourn but to return all glory to God. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. Here is the morning.
“We celebrate a friend to widows, a hardworking man, and father to the fatherless. he had always told us to be prepared and focused so as not to be excluded from heavenly blessings.
“We are all witnesses to all that has been happening since the church reopened on December 5, 2021, after TB Joshua passed on to glory. The vision has been carried on, the mission has remained the same and the Lord has been faithful in all ways.
“We thank God for security and peace with which He blessed us, sealing us with his precious blood. Our services have been growing in spiritual depth, divine impartation, healing, deliverance and other areas.
“The SCOAN mountain is an assured place of meeting God through prayers and our partners have not stopped visiting the serene site in order to encounter God.”