A Life of Purpose: Rev. Mike Iwunze Marks 65th Birthday, Church Anniversary

Founder of Love Base Assembly in Festac Town, Lagos, Rev. Mike Iwunze, is marking his 65th birthday on July 11th, which coincides with the church’s anniversary celebrations scheduled to be held from Thursday, July 4th to Friday, July 5th with its annual Judah programme. The anniversary celebrations will culminate in a Thanksgiving and celebration service on Sunday, July 7th at the church headquarters in Festac Town, Lagos. In this interview with MARY NNAH, Rev. Iwunze speaks about the upcoming anniversaries, the state of the nation, and how the church can provide solace and support to Nigerians struggling to make ends meet amidst economic hardship.

Congratulations on your church anniversary and birthday! How does it feel to have these two significant events coincide amidst the current economic challenges facing the nation?

We appreciate God for letting us witness this day. I was born on July 11, 1959. Everything that happens to reposition me always takes place in revelation full-time. The month of July has not been easy for me anytime I enter into it. But according to the book of 2nd Corinthians 12:9-10, the sufficient grace of God has been abiding, and that is why any important thing that glorifies God Almighty is always celebrated by me in July. The Love Base Assembly started in July 1999 with an interdenominational house fellowship called ‘Hour of Praise,’ and that is how the church started. Within one year of holding the house fellowship, God gave a revelation to my wife, where she was shown a very mighty occasion with four crystal pillars standing, and God spoke to her, asking, “What are we still doing that we have not started a church yet?” That we should go and start a church immediately. And because people were coming from different churches, we had to seek God’s face to confirm the revelation, and we went into a 21-day fasting and prayer season. With the first four days of the 21-day prayers, the Lord revealed to us in Deuteronomy 1:8-10, saying, “What are we still waiting for?” He is the Father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and He will give us an increase, and we should go ahead and start. When we announced it to members, telling them that God had confirmed the revelation full-time, and we wanted to go into full-time ministry, on that fateful day, we had our very first Sunday service of the Love Base Assembly in July. We recorded 78 people in attendance, and two people surrendered their lives to Christ. By the special grace of God, that was how the church started in July. So, the month of July has been a peculiar month for me. It is a month when God has been turning things around for me; it is a month when all my expectations have been manifesting.

When we started the main service, hallowing God Almighty, the same particular month, as we were about to clock one year, the Lord said we should go into the fullness of praise. So, the celebration of our first anniversary as a full-fledged church had to go with the fullness of praise, which we call Judah. Judah means praise. So now, we are putting together a three-in-one event – the church’s anniversary, my birthday anniversary, and Judea – to appreciate God for my birth, salvation, and a divine spirit to take off. It is God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Everything started in my sitting room in Festac in 1999, and we stayed there till 2004, that is five years, and everyone in that area cooperated with us, which was a sign that God had asked us to start. After five years in my house, God gave us a place where we relocated to another place, but there was a huge challenge because, within six months of buying the place, the owner refunded our money and resold the place to another person. We had to return to the house, which we called our Bethel. Within another six months, we returned to our Bethel, and God provided us with our permanent site, the Love Base Assembly’s Everlasting God City, which we have remained in from 2003 till date. We have had great men of God and great personalities worship with us on the challenges of various occasions.

Reflecting on the past year, what accomplishments and challenges stand out in your ministry?

One of the challenges we faced was the issue of buying a property for the church. Within six months of purchasing the property, the owner unexpectedly refunded our money and sold the property to another person. We considered reporting the incident to the police and taking legal action, but God advised us against it. Eventually, God provided us with our permanent site, the Love Base Assembly’s Everlasting God City, which we have occupied since 2003.

Another challenge I faced was related to my past as an importer. During the Tunde Idiagbon and Muhammadu Buhari regime, I encountered difficulties that led to my conversion. I was a successful importer, but I was arrested and imprisoned due to issues with my goods. I hired a lawyer, Rotimi Williams, to fight my case, but I was ultimately sent to prison. It was there that my journey to salvation began.

Tell us about the lessons that life has taught you as you celebrate your 65th birthday.

Everything I celebrate is a testament to God’s grace, which has given me salvation. The challenges I faced led me to salvation. I went through afflictions, and there was a time I read Psalm 119:71, which says, “It is good that I am afflicted, that I might walk in the Lord’s statutes and commandments.” I realized that my salvation was the reason for my challenges. I was imprisoned in the Maximum Security Prisons in 1987, where I got converted. It was also there that I led former President Olusegun Obasanjo to Christ. I met my wife in prison when she came with the Redeemed Christian Church of God during a prison ministry. She saw me preaching and was impressed by the anointing. She visited me again and asked about my situation, and I shared my story with her. She was a young lawyer at the time and took an interest in my case. She helped secure my release under a presidential pardon in 1999, and we started the ministry.

The manifestation of salvation is the benefit I received from being in confinement.

Nigerians are going through a lot of hardship at the moment. As a spiritual leader, how do you think the church can provide solace and support to Nigerians struggling to make ends meet?

Everything that starts has a process. I remember God told me in Job 5:22, “In a time of famine and destruction, my people will laugh.” So, every hard time and difficulty in life brings good things. The hardship we are facing now is preparing Nigerians for better days. The hardship will also encourage people to engage in productive ventures like agriculture. People need to get involved in something. We need to return to our former values. I remember our parents trained us through agriculture, and most of us didn’t need to go through any other thing than farming. So, I believe that whatever we are passing through today is a preparatory ground for a lot of people to return to farming and other ventures that can help, not just waiting for the government alone to help. We need to contribute our quota, especially in agriculture. We realize that a lot of people today are lazy because they are all waiting to get jobs at the federal ministry or one private organization or the other. But if people could make up their minds, there are certain things people could do that would boost the economy of this nation and not only themselves. Agriculture will help a lot, and anybody can be a farmer. So, it is a privilege for all of us to return to our former estates, get something to do, and not wait till we are employed in a government organization. There are so many things we can do to produce food to help individuals and also help the nation in the long run. Everyone cannot be a politician. Our parents would start with farming, and by the time they sell the produce from the farm, they would use the money to buy other essentials they need. So, if most people today return to hard work through farming, it will turn out well for the nation. Thank God that President Ahmed Tinubu has been trying to introduce the issue of farming to the nation since his inception as president, and thank God for his wife, Oluremi, who has been encouraging women to return to their former estates. So, the issue of economic challenge now is just to get people on their feet to get to do something personally and not depend totally on the government or other human beings. Governments in various states are already making available lands for people who are interested in going into farming to produce things that will help this nation.

What message do you have for the government regarding its handling of the economy?

My advice for the government of the day is that whatever good they have introduced that will help mankind, they should not relent in fulfilling those promises. For example, the president recently introduced scholarships in schools, which is commendable, and I pray that he continues with it. Steadfastness is very important in everything we do. Whatever promises the government has made to uplift the nation so that there will be no poverty and people will not suffer one problem, they should not relent in fulfilling these promises due to pressure. People are complaining that the prices of foodstuffs are high and that things are not easy, but they should not give up. No matter what the government does, people will still complain, even when the economy is not as bad as it is now. We are still complaining, but that should not make the government give up on the people; rather, they should find a way of bringing lasting solutions to the problems the citizens are facing now. So, I encourage the president, Ahmed Tinubu, not to give up, and people in government should not give up. Men of God should also be talking to their members, creating opportunities for them to venture into profitable ventures. People need to be hard-working. I have been working hard since my childhood till now. I do not depend on just fasting and prayer; I do many other things to earn money even up till now as a pastor.

What should people expect from this forthcoming programme?

You are to expect the manifestation of rest. The theme for the program is “God of Rest.” We are praying that God should give Nigeria and the world rest. Where there is war, let God manifest rest. When people have rest, they will be able to find what to do for a living. When God’s rest manifests, people will begin to see hidden treasures, which they never thought of. God says in Exodus 33:14 that He will give us rest. The presence of God guarantees rest. We are celebrating God of rest, so whether the devil likes it or not, Nigeria, Africa, and the world at large will be at rest. And as we celebrate Judah 2024, we are expecting an increase and surplus of blessings. Judah means praise. God says in Psalm 67:5-6, “When you praise me, I will bless, and the land will yield her increase, and my people shall be blessed.