Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, has revealed that his ambition to command a paramilitary group resulted in a severe personal loss.
Adeboye described an incident from years ago in which he was duped by someone claiming to offer him a prestigious position.
He claimed that the individual, who identified himself as a recruiter for a new paramilitary agency, persuaded him to invest in the initiative.
On Monday, the clergyman stated this in a post on his X account.
Adeboye described his decision to trust the man as a mistake in judgement driven by his previous obsession with the military, admitting that his desire to fulfil this role caused him to act hastily.
He explained, “Years ago, I was misled by a man who promised to make me the commander of a paramilitary outfit. This man had been sending notes to me through my secretary for some time, so one day I gave him an audience. He told me how a Boy Scouts-like group had morphed into this new agency, and he was looking for someone to lead the group spiritually.
“Normally, I consult with God before getting involved in anything, but this time, my childhood love of the military overshadowed my better instincts, and I decided to be their leader. He informed me that they needed some funds, which I provided as the prospective head. However, I later found out that the man was a fake.”
He did, however, mention that the incident spawned the Redemption City corps and a local police station.
“My ambition to join a paramilitary group drove me ahead of God, but God had already planned for Redemption City to have its own corps of chaplains and a local police station. He knew my heart’s desire and had intended for it to be fulfilled in His time. I assumed I could bring my ambition to fruition in my own time, but I was mistaken. What I lost in that event was money, but for others, it could have been their life or a loved one.
“However, I eventually discovered that the individual was a fraud. My ambition to join a paramilitary group drove me ahead of God, but God had already planned for Redemption City to have its own corps of chaplains and a local police station. He knew my heart’s desire and had intended for it to be fulfilled in His time. I assumed I could bring my ambition to fruition in my own time, but I was mistaken. What I lost in that event was money, but it might have been someone’s life or a loved one,” he said.