Pastor (Mrs.) Bunmi Salami is the Lead Pastor at The Transformers Place, a word-Believing Bible-based church of God, with Christ as the firm foundation. She is a dynamic minister of the gospel whose teaching and prophetic insights have liberated many lives from the shackles of the enemy across the globe and settled them in their rightful inheritance.
Pastor Bunmi carries special anointing. She is a special woman of God, whose life remains a worthy example for others. She runs Transformers International Christian Centre, a church at Gbagada in Lagos, but she moves from one location to another, across the country, preaching, touching lives, healing and winning more souls for Christ. She runs worship centres in Lekki, Opebi, Gbagada, VI, UNILAG, Ikorodu.
The ministry holds a fast-growing non-denominational prayer fellowship (Father Lift Up My Head) at different locations in Lagos, and beyond. She has the mandate to set holy fire of passion all over the world.
Hundreds of thousands around the world have been blessed through her live broadcast of One Touch With Jesus and her weekly interdenominational prayer fellowship tagged: Father Lift Up My Head, held at different centres in Lagos State. She also runs A Day With Jesus, an an All-Day Open Air Crusade where, the spirit of God Ministers Deliverance Healings and Restoration to every attendee. “As our Pastors have been led, we share points of contacts with people of diverse needs, Baby Baskets, for expectant parents and, Mantles for impartations among others”, she told City People Truly so. People have shared testimonies from previous editions. Her church is one of the churches that survived the recent COVID-19 Pandemic and the lockdown. Throughout the period The Transformers Christian Centre waxed from strength to strength. And it was still able to host one of its major programmes, A Day With Jesus Crusade. Last year’s crusade was held on Saturday 24th August 2019 at Araromi Stadium, Ifako- Gbagada Roundabout. This years event was also held, through on a lowkey. It was on a Sunday in September, with 2 sessions. The church is planning to hold a Fire Conference before Xmas. And she is already planning next years, A Day With Jesus. Usually, the plan for each Crusade starts in February, and the event comes up in August each year. “In 2021, we plan to empower many Youths. Youth Empowerment is very key to us. Last year, we empowered some Girls. And we hosted Tournaments for them. Despite the setbacks of Covid-19 pandemic, our church was able to run smoothly and we were able to get volunteers who supported church work. The Lord has been with us. The Lord has shown his hands in all that we do here”.
Many don’t know her story. Many don’t know she went through a lot at the start of her Ministry. She recently told City People’s Publisher SEYE KEHINDE her story. Below are excerpts.
How did God call you into the Ministry?
I got called at an early age when I was very young. I was in Primary School. I always dreamt a lot. And when I dreamed, my mum would always tell people. Haa! Bunmi has had a dream about you. She wants to tell you and I would tell the person. And as I was telling the person, I would be interpreting the Dream. My father is a Pastor. He would say take her to the person she had dreamt about. She was still a Muslim, before she got converted. A whole lot of my father’s family members were Ministers. Though they were in K and S in those days. But they were all Ministers when I was in Primary School, the sign was there that I was going to be used by God and I remember I was the only one who went to Church in my house. I go to the Catholic Church. I used to spend all my day in church. Whenever they are going to church, all the Catholic sisters would be calling me to follow them to church.
I grew up in Lagos. I attended St. Leos, the one in Ikeja. I attended St. Judes at Ladipo, Lagos. The first thing I did when I was in Form 4 in Secondary School was joining the prayer team in church called Legion of Mary. What we did is to pray around. I have a passion to pray for people. In my group, though its a Catholic church. I was part of the Charismatic Union. They had annointing. They spoke in tongues. I joined them. I was the only girl who was single, everybody else was married. One day we went to General Hospital in Ikeja, and there used to be one man there, who was very sick. I would give the man food and took care of him. One day, when we went there, we didn’t see the man again. They said he had been transferred. I was crying and crying. I could not do anything in the house on that Saturday except to pray & fast. They all knew I used to pray when I was a young girl.
The one that shocked them was when they took me to see one man. He was a soothsayer, we got there and my mum said I brought my daughter here for prayers. The man said that girl should not come in. That was me. My mum said why? He said as you were here, I could see some angels surrounding her. She was amidst the angels. The man said I could see things. I could hear things. He said if I came near him, he would become blind. The man said sorry I couldn’t help her. She was a Minister. She has anointing. That was how I started. I was going to a church called Faith In Christ Mission Church in Lagos. I started ministering the Gospel. My General Overseer said to me that I should continue to Minister the Gospel, that the Lord would use me. Before then, I did know I heard things from God, about people and I used to tell them. That was how I began to grow in the Lord. Then, suddenly He told me that I should join the Prayer Warriors Team to pray with him. I remember the year they were going to anoint me as an Evangelist he said No, that it was not time yet. Eventually, I heard the word from God that I am going to use you, Olubunmi.
What year was this?
My first assignment actually began in the Ministry the year I had my girl. My girl is now 19 years old. That was when I actually had my 1st assignment. That was the 1st church we floated and I had to go on assignment. that was in Bariga area, before we came to Gbagada. And that was when I had my 1st assignment. Though I have had other assignments before, like you have people given to you to grow them in 6 months. So, I was growing people. My G.O. would give you like 60 people and you were to grow them to 100. So, we would train them and work on them. After growing them, they would give me another group, until one day when he said he wanted me to go and work outside. And funny enough, I was sent on assignment for the 1st time in my life as a Pastor with a complicated issue of a pregnancy. Maybe that was why I came up with the Basket. I carried my baby for 18 months and then when my G.O said I should go for assignment, I just said you know about my case sir. He said the Lord knew about it. So, I entered the Ministry with a very big problem, but I told the Lord. I would not stay in my house for one day. I would be preaching the Gospel until I have this child. I remember I preached every day for 18 months and then I had the child. They called that kind of pregnancy I had an ectopic pregnancy. When the time came, we didn’t go to the clinic. We didn’t go and see anybody about it. We just prayed and the doctor said you didn’t survive ectopic, you would bleed to death. I said I would survive it. And I survived.
How did that experience of carrying 18 months pregnancy make you feel?
It shaped me a lot. In the 1st place, it made me stronger in the Lord, because of that experience I fasted . No 2, I came away with the feeling that God is mighty. When I went to do the scan, the lady doing the scan was crying. She said, you couldn’t survive. You had a big mass outside your uterus, you are going to bleed to death. She said, two, even if there was a Surgery or Caesarian Section you are not going to survive I said, me, I would survive it. And I did survive. Then, I became a Pastor. I was pastoring in church. I was active. I never missed any programme. I had no car. I would move from Abule Egba to Gbagada everyday, 4 times, a week and I would get home around 11 pm-midnight and I became stronger in the Lord. I was preaching all along and I told the Lord!, I have a Covenant with you. As far as you can let me have my baby alive, I will tell the whole world how powerful you are. And I remember that when I was praying for the child, there was a day I was praying and I had a revelation I saw that the baby girl I was going to have would be a tall, dark skinned girl. And that was what happened. The girl today is tall. Wow! That is my 4th born. Then we had a boy as the 5th. The birth of that one was a Miracle. We didn’t see the pregnancy at all. And we had him. That encounter made me know that God is mighty, powerful.
During that time when I went to Reinhard Bonkee Crusade I remember, on the last day of Reinhard Bonkee Crusade, I was lying on the couch in the church. I lived in the church then. My G.O was like Olubunmi how were you I said sir, I couldn’t even stand up. He said ‘go and finish your job, Jare. Go and do your work’. I said I was bleeding. He said did God know you were bleeding? Go and lead 5,000 people to that crusade. I went. Nobody in my team knew I was bleeding. I went and came back and I continued my job. Suddenly I felt movement inside me and I went back to the clinic and they told me that there was a baby there. The doctor said the baby that was outside the Uterus was no longer outside, it is now inside the womb I said wow! And I had the baby.
One afternoon, when the doctor was not even around, it was a nurse who was on duty. And the baby came out with a chord all round her neck. And myself and husband said, give us a scissor, we would help you to cut it. And we did. When the doctor came, he said it in Yoruba, omo ti on dodge. The baby that was dodging. We didn’t see you for months, but we knew the baby was there. I had her in a miraculously simple way. I had her, stood up & left. There was no surgery done. No CS done. No bleeding. And there is baby I have had that I did not go to church the next day. So, that baby came. She came on a Friday, and I went back to church on Sunday. The other one, Miracle, came on Sunday and I preached on Sunday. I felt that encounter of 18 months pregnancy gave me the Grace to serve God the more. I was praying more, I was learning more. I went to Faith Bible College in Otta. They had an affliation with Faith International Ministry in Tennesse in America. I had my BSc there. I had my Diploma there. I had my BSc in Theology. I have a Diploma in Christian Counselling/Bc in Theology.
So, when we were having one of our retreats, everybody was fasting, the girls, the women all were praying and fasting. I was seeing them one after the other. I was praying for them. They said I should break, I said I couldn’t break I was fasting. I now told them I had a pregnancy, that is complicated and it was ectopic. They aid ha! They all stopped. They all began to cry. I said they should not cry. What happened again? I think in the school. That year I became an award winner. I won an award. I was given a scholarship to become a Regional District Leader, I told them I have to go and become a Pastor in my church.
I remember when I finished my course and my G.O came for the graduation ceremony, two things happened, we were going to graduate and I was going to be ordained as a Pastor/Reverend. When my G.O came he saw me and he saw the owner of the school. Are you Reverend Bunmi’s G.O haaa, you are so lucky she was gifted. She was good. She was this. She is that. She is a blessing. Could we have her. No, you couldn’t have her she has to come back to the church. That was the year I became a Pastor full time.
For how long have you been running the church?
To God be the glory, the Vision started about twenty-something years ago, 27 to be precise. My former General Overseer sent me out and we had been on our own alone point for about 16 years. We were sent out to go and do the job. But later, we had to be on our own. I was working at Reham Bonkee Crusade. I was one of the chairpersons for Lagos for Rehaim Bonkee Crusade years back and the Lord said to me:” Start a meeting for me, a camp meeting work for me, get people together, call the meeting; A Day with the Lord Jesus Christ and from there have a church. So, that was how I started in 2001. The Lord also said to me go out and rescue my people, have a meeting called A Day With Jesus Christ and then also have a meeting to be called: The Father Lift Up My Head, a weekly meeting, from there it became a church.
How has it been since then?
Wow! God has been great. God has been awesome. He has been backing up His words with Signs & Wonders, growing the people, defining the Ministry, because when you are working and expanding, people would continue to come to you. We have a lot of people come to me in large numbers. How they get to come to me I don’t understand it. They come to meet me and say Pastor we want to have you in our church somewhere in Abuja, Lekki and all the centres. All they do is to come to the main church and ask us to come over. We have 7 or 8 centres in Lagos alone. We also have in Abuja. We have outside Lagos; we are planning one, Jesus The Potter in America, in Houston Texas. So, also in Canada and also in South Africa. We go there quarterly.
How did you come up with the name of your church, Transformers International Christian Centre?
Ok. The Lord gave the word. When the Lord said we should go on a mission and assignment, he told us what to do. The one about the service the church’s name was given to transform lives. For the Fellowship, he gave us Father Lift Up My Head Fellowship. I was in London. I was praying and the Holy Spirit said I should be indoors for a whole day. So, I was indoors for the whole day till about 10 pm. So, the Holy Spirit said to me: When you get back to Nigeria, start a meeting, call the meeting Father Lift Up My Head, Sam 27:Vs 6. Call people together and start meeting for 1 year. I was saying to myself, I have not got the money. Where would I got the money from? That was 1991/92. Later on, we were having A Day With Jesus, which is an all-day open-air crusade, where the Spirit of God ministers Deliverance healings and Restoration to every attendee.
As our Pastors have been led, we shared points of contacts to people with diverse needs, Baby Baskets for expectant parents and Mantles for impartations among others. When we were having the crusade, the Holy Spirit, now said to me: Olubunmi you won’t do the programme this year. I will block everything. Go and start the other service I told you entitled: Father, Lift Up My Head. And that was the one that really built me up. I ran to Gbagada, prayed for 1 hour and we had the meeting. We were not more that 3 or 4 person that day. From there, we moved to Lekki, to VI, Ikorodu, Sango, Surulere, Abuja, and other places, from that same meeting. From that place, people began to move to London, America, everybody came here. You couldn’t walk around Gbagada at that time and not knowing something was happening there. That was how we began to expand and we now have had. The Healing Streams That was the one the Lord gave to me. Then came the Baby Basket. It also came as a word from God. We give Baby Basket during A Day With The Lord Jesus Christ. That is for those looking for babies. We get things for babies and share it to mothers to be, as you give them, they get pregnant The Lord asked us to give out these basket. When I checked, I realised that what used to happen is that women bring baby things to meeting and they are blessed, but the Lord said you give gifts. We started by giving out combs, socks to women. Again, the Lord said to me, that was not what I sent you. I said to you, get a ball etc, put a socks, put an overall, put a cap and give the women. I said to God: Where do I get the money from? He said you do my will and you would see the result. And that was what we did. And we have seen the result.
You have done that for how long and what has been the result?
We have done that for a long time ooo. We have seen the results. There was the tale of a woman who picked a basket for her friend. She had a baby and her friend had a baby. Another one, a woman picked a basket for her girl in London and she called her and told her I had picked a basket for you ooo. Hope you are going to pray. And the girl prayed in London and got pregnant over there without seeing the basket. There was another one, a guy called Tunde. I said Tunde pick one for you and your wife, he said No ma. I don’t want any baby now. I am ok. He picked one and took it home. He took one for his friend. Tunde had twins and his friend had twins.
So, all I can say is that the name came through the word of God. Everything, we have, the names are from the Scriptures.
READ ALSO: WHY I HAVE REMAINED SINGLE @ 56 – INTERNATIONAL JOURNALIST, KEMI OLUNLOYO
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