Why This Yrs Edition Of It Is WAR Will Be Different
Nigeria is blessed with some of the most remarkable pastors on the face of the earth. There’s a whole lot of them.
Everywhere you turn to, you will find churches and fire branding, eloquent men of God running those churches. Many of them stand out for various reasons, each with his own uniqueness.
But one of the men of God whose incredible exploits stood him out from the very start of his ministerial career is the irrepressible man of God, Bishop (Dr.) Tom Samson. He is the presiding Bishop and General Overseer of CHRIST ROYAL FAMILY INTERNATIONAL Church. Many will remember him as that spirit filled and energetic man of God that shook Lagos and its environs with his annual explosive programme, “IT IS WAR!”
For about twenty years running, the hugely respected and popular man of God has been declaring war against all manner of satanic assaults, foundation problems, captivity, poverty, oppression, etc. with “IT IS WAR!” And he has recorded outstanding testimonies, for himself, the church and participants of the programme. The success of “IT IS WAR!” has been phenomenal. It shot not just the name of Bishop (Dr) Tom Samson into the consciousness of Nigerians, it also projected his church, CHRIST ROYAL FAMILY INTERNATIONAL CHURCH, to Nigerians, Africans and the world at large.
Few days ago, City People Senior Editor, WALE LAWAL (08037209290) visited him at his Ikeja branch of the church. He was in the middle of a ministration. The church was filled to capacity and the congregation was clearly enthralled in the Bishop’s sermon. Dressed in a simple polo shirt on a black pair of trousers, and looking as handsome as he’s always been all these years, Bishop Tom Samson’s commanding presence on the pulpit is, incontestable. Even if you were seeing him for the first time, you will definitely want to listen to him. And to put the icing on the cake, he’s an extremely good preacher. He knows how to get the attention of his congregation and hold them spellbound. His honesty, truthfulness and openness to his church are perhaps some of his greatest strengths. He is always truthful with them. He tells them everything about his past without holding anything back. This is why they enjoy every minute of his preaching.
In this interview, he spoke about why this year’s edition of It Is War will be different from others. He also spoke extensively about the university he founded, the Monarch University, situated at Iyesi-Ota, Ogun State. As for thr forthcoming It Is War programme, it is scheduled to begin on August 3rd at Lagos Airport Hotel, Awolowo Way, Ikeja, and will begin on Monday by 3pm and run through to Friday. Here are excerpts of interview.
Congratulations, sir, on this current edition. This is the 19th edition, tell us, sir, what is the theme of this year’s edition?
For this edition, it is war itself is the concept and this time around, like we’ve done in the past, victory is assured. Meaning, the challenges we are going through, we just have to overcome. And the emphasis is going to be on the mind. Because in second Corinthians Chapter 10, it said, though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh, the weapons of our warfare are not canal, but they are mighty though God to the pulling down of strongholds. Now, that stronghold is bringing every imagination to the obedience. You see, the warfare, it is words and ideology. Our mindset, the way we think, it affects the result we get. Now, ‘it is war’ means, I’m down, things are not working, I can overcome. David was in a setting where Goliath overrode all. But he came up with the idea, I can overcome. There were daughters of Selophat, women were not allowed to own property of their parents. Never happened, but they said, we can take it up. If our life must change, our mindset must change. Many of us have become victims or captives of our minds.
So, when we talk about overcoming demonic stronghold, our mindset must change. And we change our mindset through the word of God, I would say by the renewal of your mind. Everybody feels Nigeria is bad. Nigeria’s poverty is extremely severe, but I think otherwise. That’s how we could do what we’re doing around here. I believed that I could make a way out, I believed that God can send me help. Thirty something years ago, I came to this Lagos. No money, no food to eat. Nowhere to stay. But I had a mind that told me I can overcome. I can conquer. That’s what brought me here. So, in this particular edition, we’re dealing with demonic stronghold taking over people’s mind. Everybody feels there’s no job in Nigeria, nothing good can come out of Nigeria. It’s a mindset. That’s bondage. That is captivity. But I overcame all that. I’m bringing up messages. Open the scriptures, who were those in the Bible that were under and they overcame their tribulations? The Bible said, whatsoever is born of God must overcome. You and I must overcome. As a journalist, it doesn’t matter the challenges in journalism, you must find a way to overcome. You must find a way to say I can change the narrative.
Look at religious circle, times are hard. Economies are bad. That means I can’t go ahead or have a different mindset. But I have a mindset that tells me that if God has given me something to do, he will send me help and that’s the help I’m getting that enabled me open a university even in the midst of a terrible economy. So, our problem is our mindset. Everybody believes it’s not working. Everybody believes it cannot work. That is what held us captives, our mind. So, even when we talk about spiritual stronghold, the Bible said, bringing every thought into captivity, overcoming every imagination. Even God said concerning tower of Babel, He said, these people are one. This they have imagined to do, nobody can stop them. So, if we can change our mindset about our country, things will change for the better. As a matter of fact, forget about country, start with yourself, because without yourself, there is no country. People say, God should deliver Nigeria, that’s a wrong notion. God should deliver me, God should deliver us, first. Now, because I made a little success with the opening of the university, see all these great people you see here. About a thousand will be employed. I am bringing education to more students because I changed my thinking. If you were to change your thinking, another person too changes his or her thinking, and it goes on like that, you can imagine how many people we can bring out of hardship.
So, it starts with us. If my mindset can change, the people around my sphere, I can influence them. No matter how little, Monarch University will give jobs to some people. Some students will be able to afford to go to school, some will be employed, that little war, I’ve impacted it. Because I felt it inside me and I was sure it can be done. Somebody once told me, several years ago, forget your dream of investing in a university…how can you do it? What do you have? And I said I will prove him wrong. Today, I’m there. You can go beyond the level you are today. If you can make up your mind, God can send you destiny helpers. Somebody can tell you, go ahead, we’ll see what we can do. But nobody will say we’ll see what we can do if you have not started or decided to go ahead. The same thing with the nation. So, the problem is not the nation as a whole, it’s the individual, it’s the family. That’s why, we say at Monarch University, give us a child, with our expertise, we’ll give you back a leader.
So, this edition, we’re centering on mindset. Some people’s minds are already possessed. Some people are already afraid before they start. When I was leaving Benin 34 years ago, my mother was crying. My mother said, how can you survive without food? How can you survive without money? And she closed the gate so that I would not go out.She was genuinely scared. But I have a different mindset. I didn’t have money to rent a church. I didn’t have money to rent a building or get where to sleep. But, you see, when I came to Lagos, I started meeting my colleagues in university who their parents settled here. They took me home and they gave me assistance. So, until you make a move, you don’t make a mark. So, in this setting, we’re addressing the mindset. We’re living in a time where graduates are doing menial jobs, where Master degree holders are doing security jobs, it’s the mindset. That’s why we’re talking about entrepreneurship spirit at Monarch University. So, this edition is dealing with demonic strongholds in our minds. These are powers that make you fail before you start. Powers that say you cannot amount to anything. You know what happened in the bible, King Saul told David, you cannot face Goliath. Goliath is a killer. You cannot do it. And he told him, watch me, God will give this Goliath to me and I’ll pull down his head. That’s what Nigeria needs.
Everybody feels there’s a demonic giant over Nigeria and so, nobody can rise. But God is raising David’s generation who say I’m not scared with the size of Goliath, with God on my side, I will overcome. That’s how I got here. With ten secondary schools, College of Education, University, hospitals, Entrepreneurship center and many more, all from nothing. Never borrowed, never owed. My mindset. And the confidence that help is coming. So, that’s what we’re making people to know. You can rise. You can make it. He was in a sheep’s coat, yet he ruled the world, that was David.
