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At ERIO Prayer Mountain 6 Days Before His Death
Last week, Wednesday 5th July, 2023, the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) Worldwide and the Christendom generally were thrown into a deep mourning, when a leading prophet of the body of Christ, Prophet Micheal Ojo Olowere died. Olowere, the founder of Automatic Prayer Ground, Ashi, Bódìjà, Ibadan, Oyo State, died at the age of 99.
Interestingly, Prophet Hezekiah Oladeji, the General Evangelist of CAC Worldwide, had earlier predicted Baba Olowere’s death. The shocking revelation was pronounced at Erio Ekiti Prayer Mountain, during Oladeji’s annual revival tagged ‘Erio Power Explosion 2023’. The vision was very accurate. It was revealed on Friday and Baba Olowere died the following Wednesday. Prophet Oladeji told the congregation that he saw a very large green leaf dropped. That a very top prophet of God had completed his mission on earth and has also prepared his mansion in heaven. That it is time for him to go.
Prophet Micheal Ojo Olowere was a highly respected man of God in his lifetime. Anybody who is familiar with his ministration would tell you that Baba was a powerful man of God. He was a prayer firebrand. Even at a very old age, Baba remained active in prayer. His Automatic Prayer program every other Monday has always been a time for signs and wonders. The program is popularly known as Automatic Prayer, Automatic Answer. It is a church program many never joked with, as people always come from far and near to partake in it. Baba’s commonly used phrase during prayer session was, ‘Jesus, Power’. Born on 9th September 1923, Prophet Michael Ojo Olowere was a deep preacher, teacher and gospel evangelist. Who was anointed for signs and wonders. Popularly known as Baba Olowere, Baba was one of the few respected CAC prophets who received a great measure of anointing of God from the revered Apostle Joseph Ayodele Babalola. He was said to have spearheaded the planting of several churches within the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) mission, beginning with the CAC Oke-Imole, Agbowo, in 1978. Stories abound of his life and miracles which God had performed through him.
Very significant of such stories was an incident that occured when Baba Olowere was heading to Osogbo, Osun state, for a crusade. Some policemen stopped his car. After giving them every document that they requested, they still didn’t allow him to go. He then stepped out of the car, removed one of his shoes and threw it into the bush. He told the policemen to go and look for it until he returns from the program as time was already running against him. Immediately, the policemen went into the bush and were looking for the shoes, Baba didn’t return until the next day and when he got to that portion, he shouted eyin ore mi moti de o(my friends I have come ooo). The policemen emerged from the bush, fighting on who will give the shoes to baba. He took it from them, prayed for them and told them never to harass a man of God again.
Despite his special anointing and power of miracle as given to him by God, Baba’s watchword was humility. He worked in many parts of Oyo State, engaging in repairing cocoa scaling machines, and generally worked with any thing related to iron, metal, bolts, and nuts. He was very dedicated to work and mastered the art, such that his boss at the time praised his skill. He was also part of the professionals that worked on the iron rods erected at the Oyo Water Corporation.
To garner more knowledge in construction, Prophet Olowere learnt bricklaying for two years. When he was about to finish his bricklaying training, the call into the ministry came again. At this point, he couldn’t evade the call anymore. So, he went to the CAC Church in Kano State, as God directed him. When he got to Kano, the chairman there said he couldn’t be there because, according to him, the work of the gospel was not what he imagined.
He also went to Zaria and got the same response. However, he worked for three and a half years in other CAC churches, before he was brought to a church around the University of Ibadan. With time, he worked in some other places before he became an evangelist, and continued in the ministry till he breath his last. He attended theological school for two years. Although, he had been in the ministry long before then, he was ordained a cleric on December 14, 1975. The CAC, Oke Imole, Agbowo was the first church which he planted, through God’s grace in 1978. There are many branches that the CAC Oke-Imole has birthed.
Baba Olowere worked under a lot of renowned CAC prophets. Although he didn’t work with Prophet Ayo Babalola, but he knew him. He worked under the tutelage of Prophet Babajide between 1974 and 1975 in Ilesa. He also witnessed Baba Obadare’s resurrection. Prophet Michael Olowere got the “Baba Automatic” appellation many years ago when God spoke to him in his dream. In that dream, he was shown the way through which God wanted people to call on Him, and through which their prayers would be answered. He said if they called the name, ‘Jesus’ and responded with ‘Power,’ He would work wonders in the lives of people. God also instructed him in that revelation to start a programme tagged Automatic Prayer. That was how he started and today, the attendance for that programme features more than 35,000 people, who come from within and outside Nigeria.
Baba Olowere’s contributions to the expansion of CAC were establishment of church assemblies and activities, a theological institute, health centres, and socio-economic empowerment. Between 1978 and 2015, Baba Olowere established 48 Church Assemblies in Ibadanland and a bi-weekly interdenominational programme tagged “Automatic Prayer” in November 1995.
He advanced ecumenism by his financial contributions towards the mission works in other denominations and counseling of ministers from other churches through counseling. He promoted theological education through the establishment of Thy Will Theological Institute (1997). He also engaged in ministerial tutelage: a unique concept derived from what existed in other seminaries, and through it, over 2000 ministers were trained between 1997 and 2015 in the art of effective ministering.
He emphazised gender equality in church ministry by engaging 18 prophetesses and 32 lady evangelists in active church ministry. In the field of health, he founded 13 mid-wifery centres in Ibadan between 1978 and 2015; and established three cura divina based healing centres in Kajola (1989), Ashi (2000) and Olodo (2005).
Prophet Olowere’s ministry contributed to infrastructural development: building of two guest houses at Ashi (2005) and Olodo (2010) which gave job opportunities to people; donation of a police post at Olodo (2013); construction of roads in Agbowo (1989); digging of a borehole at Agbowo (2004); organisation of Workers’ Cooperative Society at Ashi (2002); supply of electricity at Ashi (2006); and economic empowerment of 50 youths and 60 widows. These were achieved despite his educational constraints, insufficient funds, and heavy local levies. Prophet Michael Ojo Olowere was the third son in the family of Chief Dada Olowere and Mrs Alice Olowere of Ifaki-Ekiti, in the present Ido-Osi local government area of Ekiti State, Nigeria.
-Dare Adeniran
08057639079
With additional information from CAC Worldwide website
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