Asabeafrika spoke with some of his aides who have worked with him for long years, one of them is Superior Wolider Ranti Ojewole who described the late Ogunorunlayede as a great teacher of the word who never did anything without spiritual ordinance. “He is my ultimate spiritual father” claims the Awe, Oyo state born Man of God who has worked with Ogunorunlayede for 18 years. Prophet Ranti recalled one of the interesting moments which defined his relationship with his late boss and remained indelible on his mind “That was the experience that led me into my first trance in this church; I had always wondered what the source of the man’s power is. So, one day, he sent me to his bed room to get something for him and to my surprise I saw many portraits of Jesus Christ (Pictures) surrounding his bed. But I was not still sure, the portraits were many and as I was still trying to look around the room and see if I can get any incriminating thing to assuage my suspicion about his source of spiritual power, those pictures came out and became flesh and I was encased with great fear. Suddenly I staggered and lost control, I was terribly wounded and I never knew what happened again. I went on trance. Until the 8th day, when the spirit of God interpreted what transpired to me; I was told that the power I am trying to search for is what actually came out and that power is Jesus Christ; that Ogunorunlayede uses no other power than that ofChrist and since I was trying to find out his source of power, it was revealed to me with a gift of prophecy. That experience was quite revealing for me and till date, I revere the experience because it changed my belief about him totally. I have never met a man like him since my sojourn in the Celestial fold and we might need to pray to get such a man again”.
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| Baba during one of his sermon in 2013 with his aides. |
On his own part, Owoh, Ondo state born Senior Evangelist Emmanuel Akin Ogundipe aka Germany who has worked with Ogunorunlayede since he returned from Germany in 1990 described the late Ogunorunlayede thus “He is someone I call ‘My lord’ and a leader you can ask God to fashion your life after; a great leader and tolerant teacher. I will also describe him as a spiritual legal practitioner, someone with a high authority on his tongue. Some years ago, he just returned from the yearly Holy City of Imeko Christmas prayer event and they brought a man with stroke here, he didn’t say a word, he moved near the man and started pulling his hands and legs and the man became healed. That is the kind of man he is; here I treat mad people and the sick ones; but before I do anything, I go to him for what I call “tongue authority”. He is a unique leader”. Evangelist Ogundipe shared his last experience with Baba with us, “It was during our Thursday-Thursday Prophet and Prophetess Service that I got a very fearful vision. The vision directed me to the book of 2nd Timothy 4: 6-8 which says “For I am already being poured out as drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is a laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but to all who have loved His Appearing” those lines of course baffled me, this was sometime in December 2013 and not until when Baba passed away that the real meaning of those Biblical lines hit me like a thunderbolt”
Assistant Evangelist David Orisunmibola in his own word described his boss of over ten years as a man who cannot die even if his body dies “when Papa Oschoffa died in 1985, many of us thought Celestial Church would come to an end but instead the church even became stronger and spread to places we never thought it could get to; even places Oschoffa himself never visited, CCC got there. If you look at Ogunorunlayede, he is equally like that, manyCalvaryians might think this is the end of this unique ministry but I can assure you miracles just started afresh here. Right now, Ogunorunlayede has joint the saint triumphant for a life of bliss but his work of faith will become stronger because when Jesus departed, his gospel grew. When Papa Oschoffa departed, his calling expended. Calvary Parish will experience the same”.Orisunmibola who also witnessed some of the last minutes of his boss gave us another shocking drama that characterized those last moments “In the morning, he will wake up to the music of Jim Reeves and when the track “I will fly away to glory” come blaring, his mood will change and he will stand and start dancing with great enthusiasm and at that moment, nothing you say to him matters”.
Evangelist Dave Memeh from Delta state remembers his boss of 18 years as a man rooted in truth and the spirit of God “He is full of spirit and will never do anything except God tells him to do so. He is humorous, a great evangelist and philanthropist. He is a man who can lay down his life for you to achieve anything” Dave Memeh gave us his own unique experience with the late clergy “You can’t lie to Baba. If you lie to him today, tomorrow, you will go and tell him the whole truth because you won’t be able to sleep. He will tell you he has accepted but your inability to sleep will make you to go and tell him everything. He is a thorough leader who despises lies and insincerity. He will never lie to you and he dislikes lies as well” Evangelist Dave Memeh who was on the last trip with his Baba to Imeko last December confirmed all his aforementioned action at Imeko.
Superior Wolider Dimeji Jaiyeola aka Ustadhs who changed from his Islamic faith to Christianity said it was Baba Ogunorunlayede who gave him the peculiar assurance that Christ is the light. The Abeokuta, Ogun state born cleric who has spent 8 years with the late founder of Calvary Parish said “Ogunorunlayede is a shepherd of shepherds” “when I came onboard I would have gone back into Islam but his humble attitude to leadership is what kept me here till now. He was a man who lived by his words. If a quarter of Celestial shepherds could be like him, Celestial Church would have been the greatest church in the world. I have worked with many spiritual leaders but only few can display the kind of faith Ogunorunlayede displays; he sits at his duty post and never travels like some other church leaders; he will tell us, anything God cannot give me on this seat, let Him keep it to Himself. That is one of the qualities of a genuine man of God; they leave everything to God. He is a symbol of faith”.
Evangelist Olujimi Adisa who is the Chairman of the side men/side women in the church describe Akande Ogunorunlayede as an “extra –ordinary leader” “He is someone who believes that what he says would come to pass. He will never do anything God didn’t ask him to do. He is a peculiar leader; one in a million. He hates lies and liars; he loves truth and he lived for the truth. You can’t see a parish like this elsewhere. He was a democrat; you don’t even need to see him before you get solution to your spiritual problems here; he already created a system that works. The Calvary Parish modem with our White AngelConsultation Arcade and the seven wise men (spiritual tables) or Shepherd Assistants’ tenth is a master wonder of the Holy Spirit in this church. Many Nigerians even from the Pentecostal churches and Muslim faith come here on a daily basis for spiritual consultation and they get results because our prophets who are constantly on trance will tell you the real truth about your condition and you will be set free. That is one great legacy Ogunorunlayedeleft behind”.
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| Baba during one of the New Moon Services in 2013…blesing his flocks. |
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| Baba during one of his sermon in 2013 with his aides. |
In a sermon titled Destiny few Sundays after Baba’s demise, Senior Evangelist James Femi Adegbe, a top leader of the CCC, Calvary Parish 1 Choir attested to the fact that the late Shepherd knew he was going but chose not to relate it to his flocks as that might sadden their heart and cause a break. In the sermon titled “Destiny” Evangelist Adegbe who is one of the few reformists in the Celestial Church fold gave a background of how he knew Baba Ogunorunlayede couple of years ago while he (Adegbe) was leaving with the late CCC Supreme Evangelsit Ajanlekoko. He said Ogunorunlayede who used to visit Ajanlekoko at Ketu International Head Quarters would dress in a neatly ironed Sultana and will drive into Ketu International HQ with his driver in a white Church boss, seating at the passenger seat and looking neat and trim. That immediately Baba sights Ajanlekoko, Baba will go flat and prostrate to the old man, who will in turn bless him with prayers. Adegbe went ahead to give personal things that transpired between him and the late shepherd in the last phase of 2013 which suggest the man knew he was going “Before he died, he called us in the choir and asked us to change the furniture in front of his office; he said we must change them quickly as there was no time to be wasted. Unknown to us, the new furniture were not for him to seat physically but for his guiding angels to sit on after his demise. Because when he said we must do it urgently, we kept wondering why. Secondly, when Baba is taking his breakfast in front of that office, if you pass and greet him, he will only wave to you and continues to eat. But sometime in December, he was eatingIkokore (Yam Porridge) and I passed by, greeting him as usual and walked away but I never knew that the man was calling me back to come and eat with him; it was his son, Sunday Ogunorunlayede who shouted my name and said “Ah, Baba is calling you to come and eat now”. I was shocked because it never happened before; so I said ‘okay, maybe this is a way to get a special blessing. I got closer and ate from his dish. He eventually pushed the plate to me to eat everything and that was too peculiar to me because it never happened before”. “So, let’s not delude ourselves, the old man knew his time was up. Only that it will be a bad task for him to say to us “Gentle men, I am going on so, so day. Hold the house and keep the faith”
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| Baba during the last harvest ‘Jesus @ Golgotha with Pastor EMF Oschoffa. |
