About the Founder
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
Apostle J. A. Agbona
John Ajayi Agbona, a Yoruba, was born in Oke-Emo, Ilawe in Ekiti (the present Ekiti State) on April 21, 1920. His father’s name was Agbona, and his mother’s name was Maria AlegeAgbona. His mother gave birth to sixteen children, but only Ajayi and his sister Arebisola survived. Ajayi was popularly known as Adu in Ilawe, but John was his baptismal name, and Ajayi Agbona were his kinship names. His father died when he was three and a half years old, and he received no western education.
He took up farming and worked as farm laborer with people like Adako, who was the the Baba Egbe of the Catholic Church at Okebedo, in Ilawe-Ekiti. At age twelve, while doing farm work, Ajayi suffered a deep gash on the left leg. Rodents were attracted to the wound at night, and it turned into a sore that would not heal.
This wound set him apart, and he was despised and hated by almost everyone who knew him. Some people hated seeing him early in the morning because of the traditional African belief that if you come across an unfortunate person as you come out of your abode early in the morning, misfortune will be your lot for that day. It was said that whenever people came across him early in the morning, they would usually quickly go back to bed so that their day would not be darkened by misfortune. Sources have indicated that nothing Ajayi laid his hand upon ended in success.
Indeed, he was counted as one of the most unfortunate people in the world until he was redeemed from misfortune by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. His first contact with a Christian was with Captain Akinwunmi of the Salvation Army, who housed him and wanted to give him an education. However, Akinwunmi’s wife mistreated Ajayi, and Captain Akinwunmi had to help him escape in the night, giving him a gift of about seventy Kobo (less than a naira in Nigerian currency). Ajayi’s sore was still a festering wound that smelled terrible and attracted flies.
His Conversation
Ajayi’s medical condition eventually led to his conversion and subsequent calling into the ministry. He sought help for it in hospitals and consulted herbalists, but his wound would still not heal. Finally, he had an encounter with Christ, and this encounter was the decisive moment of his conversion to Christianity. Someone told him about the miracle-working power of Jesus. There was an ongoing Pentecostal revival at EfonAlaaye, and he decided to go. Someone took him there to meet the revivalist, who was Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola. Babalola prayed for him and assured him that his leg would not be amputated, telling him: “Should anyone come to challenge your coming here, say that it was Jesus Christ who brought you. Should that person still insist on evidence to support your oneness with Christ, show him the Bible.”
Those words came to pass that same night. As Ajayi lay sleeping, he saw a number of mice rushing towards him. The mouse leading the others suddenly turned into a woman, (who, incidentally, was later identified by Ajayi as one of his relatives). She asked him: “Ajayi, why are you here?”
“It was Jesus Christ who brought me here,” Ajayi groaned.
“What evidence can you show to support your statement?” She asked.
In response to this question, Ajayi held out the Bible as his authority. The Bible immediately changed into a sword that pursued the vicious mice. That night marked the end of the nocturnal visits of the mischievous mice, and in a matter of days, the wound healed.
This miraculous encounter led to Ajayi’s conversion, and he became a member of the Apostolic Church, the denomination to which Apostle Babalola belonged at that time. In 1939, he left with the Babalola faction that seceded from the Apostolic Church, which became what is known today as the Christ Apostolic Church.
His Call Into Ministry
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
The Founding Of His Church and His Contributions
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
Apostle J. A. Agbona
John Ajayi Agbona, a Yoruba, was born in Oke-Emo, Ilawe in Ekiti (the present Ekiti State) on April 21, 1920. His father’s name was Agbona, and his mother’s name was Maria AlegeAgbona. His mother gave birth to sixteen children, but only Ajayi and his sister Arebisola survived. Ajayi was popularly known as Adu in Ilawe, but John was his baptismal name, and Ajayi Agbona were his kinship names. His father died when he was three and a half years old, and he received no western education.
He took up farming and worked as farm laborer with people like Adako, who was the the Baba Egbe of the Catholic Church at Okebedo, in Ilawe-Ekiti. At age twelve, while doing farm work, Ajayi suffered a deep gash on the left leg. Rodents were attracted to the wound at night, and it turned into a sore that would not heal.
This wound set him apart, and he was despised and hated by almost everyone who knew him. Some people hated seeing him early in the morning because of the traditional African belief that if you come across an unfortunate person as you come out of your abode early in the morning, misfortune will be your lot for that day. It was said that whenever people came across him early in the morning, they would usually quickly go back to bed so that their day would not be darkened by misfortune. Sources have indicated that nothing Ajayi laid his hand upon ended in success.
Indeed, he was counted as one of the most unfortunate people in the world until he was redeemed from misfortune by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. His first contact with a Christian was with Captain Akinwunmi of the Salvation Army, who housed him and wanted to give him an education. However, Akinwunmi’s wife mistreated Ajayi, and Captain Akinwunmi had to help him escape in the night, giving him a gift of about seventy Kobo (less than a naira in Nigerian currency). Ajayi’s sore was still a festering wound that smelled terrible and attracted flies.
His Conversation
Ajayi’s medical condition eventually led to his conversion and subsequent calling into the ministry. He sought help for it in hospitals and consulted herbalists, but his wound would still not heal. Finally, he had an encounter with Christ, and this encounter was the decisive moment of his conversion to Christianity. Someone told him about the miracle-working power of Jesus. There was an ongoing Pentecostal revival at EfonAlaaye, and he decided to go. Someone took him there to meet the revivalist, who was Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola. Babalola prayed for him and assured him that his leg would not be amputated, telling him: “Should anyone come to challenge your coming here, say that it was Jesus Christ who brought you. Should that person still insist on evidence to support your oneness with Christ, show him the Bible.”
Those words came to pass that same night. As Ajayi lay sleeping, he saw a number of mice rushing towards him. The mouse leading the others suddenly turned into a woman, (who, incidentally, was later identified by Ajayi as one of his relatives). She asked him: “Ajayi, why are you here?”
“It was Jesus Christ who brought me here,” Ajayi groaned.
“What evidence can you show to support your statement?” She asked.
In response to this question, Ajayi held out the Bible as his authority. The Bible immediately changed into a sword that pursued the vicious mice. That night marked the end of the nocturnal visits of the mischievous mice, and in a matter of days, the wound healed.
This miraculous encounter led to Ajayi’s conversion, and he became a member of the Apostolic Church, the denomination to which Apostle Babalola belonged at that time. In 1939, he left with the Babalola faction that seceded from the Apostolic Church, which became what is known today as the Christ Apostolic Church.
His Call Into Ministry
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
The Founding Of His Church and His Contributions
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
ABOUT THE FOUNDER
Apostle J. A. Agbona
John Ajayi Agbona, a Yoruba, was born in Oke-Emo, Ilawe in Ekiti (the present Ekiti State) on April 21, 1920. His father’s name was Agbona, and his mother’s name was Maria AlegeAgbona. His mother gave birth to sixteen children, but only Ajayi and his sister Arebisola survived. Ajayi was popularly known as Adu in Ilawe, but John was his baptismal name, and Ajayi Agbona were his kinship names. His father died when he was three and a half years old, and he received no western education.
He took up farming and worked as farm laborer with people like Adako, who was the the Baba Egbe of the Catholic Church at Okebedo, in Ilawe-Ekiti. At age twelve, while doing farm work, Ajayi suffered a deep gash on the left leg. Rodents were attracted to the wound at night, and it turned into a sore that would not heal.
This wound set him apart, and he was despised and hated by almost everyone who knew him. Some people hated seeing him early in the morning because of the traditional African belief that if you come across an unfortunate person as you come out of your abode early in the morning, misfortune will be your lot for that day. It was said that whenever people came across him early in the morning, they would usually quickly go back to bed so that their day would not be darkened by misfortune. Sources have indicated that nothing Ajayi laid his hand upon ended in success.
Indeed, he was counted as one of the most unfortunate people in the world until he was redeemed from misfortune by the saving grace of Jesus Christ. His first contact with a Christian was with Captain Akinwunmi of the Salvation Army, who housed him and wanted to give him an education. However, Akinwunmi’s wife mistreated Ajayi, and Captain Akinwunmi had to help him escape in the night, giving him a gift of about seventy Kobo (less than a naira in Nigerian currency). Ajayi’s sore was still a festering wound that smelled terrible and attracted flies.
His Conversation
Ajayi’s medical condition eventually led to his conversion and subsequent calling into the ministry. He sought help for it in hospitals and consulted herbalists, but his wound would still not heal. Finally, he had an encounter with Christ, and this encounter was the decisive moment of his conversion to Christianity. Someone told him about the miracle-working power of Jesus. There was an ongoing Pentecostal revival at EfonAlaaye, and he decided to go. Someone took him there to meet the revivalist, who was Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola. Babalola prayed for him and assured him that his leg would not be amputated, telling him: “Should anyone come to challenge your coming here, say that it was Jesus Christ who brought you. Should that person still insist on evidence to support your oneness with Christ, show him the Bible.”
Those words came to pass that same night. As Ajayi lay sleeping, he saw a number of mice rushing towards him. The mouse leading the others suddenly turned into a woman, (who, incidentally, was later identified by Ajayi as one of his relatives). She asked him: “Ajayi, why are you here?”
“It was Jesus Christ who brought me here,” Ajayi groaned.
“What evidence can you show to support your statement?” She asked.
In response to this question, Ajayi held out the Bible as his authority. The Bible immediately changed into a sword that pursued the vicious mice. That night marked the end of the nocturnal visits of the mischievous mice, and in a matter of days, the wound healed.
This miraculous encounter led to Ajayi’s conversion, and he became a member of the Apostolic Church, the denomination to which Apostle Babalola belonged at that time. In 1939, he left with the Babalola faction that seceded from the Apostolic Church, which became what is known today as the Christ Apostolic Church.
His Call Into Ministry
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
The Founding Of His Church and His Contributions
Shortly after his conversion experience, Ajayi had strange spiritual encounters which often led to his rising up in the night to preach in the neighborhood. This experience was very strange, even to him, and he was only acting on impulse. However, the decisive call came one day in a very clear way. On April 21, 1947, Ajayi was working as a bricklayer in a place called Ogunpa, in Ibadan (the capital of the present Oyo State of Nigeria). Right where he was working, on the third floor of the building, God called him by name and told him to stop laying bricks and to go instead and mold the human mind. As he tried to look back at the source of the voice, he lost his balance and fell. To the amazement of many who thought he would be dead, he was found unhurt. It was on this very spot where he fell that God further spoke to him, instructing him to go and do God’s work. Ajayi abandoned his bricklaying profession then and there to heed the divine calling–the mandate of molding human minds for God. His ministry started almost immediately after the incident.
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