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PASTOR CHRIS SPEAKS ON FIRE AT CHRIST EMBASSY, SAYS ‘LET DEVIL LICK HIS WOUNDS, WE’LL BUILD A BEAUTIFUL ONE’
The General Overseer of Christ Embassy Church, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, has spoken out about the fire outbreak that gutted the church’s building in Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos.
The Loveworld Convocation Arena (LCA), formerly the headquarters of Christ Embassy Church, was gutted by fire on Sunday morning.
In a message to his congregation, Pastor Chris, President of the Loveworld Nation disclosed at the ongoing International Cell Leaders Conference (ICLC) Sunday Service at the Church Camp Grounds in Asese, along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, that the building is one of the best worship facilities.
“That’s the best worship facility, frankly, in this part of the world. It’s worth multiple millions of dollars,” he said.
Pastor Chris called on the Secretary General of Loveworld, Kay Adesina, to share his eyewitness account of the incident.
Adesina said: “It’s really, really messed up. We were not able to enter, but we could see from outside. I took some of the pictures. The whole of the interior was coated in fire. And everywhere inside actually collapsed, including the offices.”
He also noted that the fire services tried to put out the fire from outside, as they couldn’t enter the building.
“The fire services that were there, they saw that they couldn’t go in. So they tried to put out the fire from outside. But all, including the external wall, you see, all the walls are compromised.
“But the only reason why the whole structure is not compromised is because they are steel structures. Otherwise, you would think that the whole building would collapse. So it’s really in a bad state,” the Secretary said.
Pastor Chris however emphasized that the church is not defeated and will build an even more beautiful structure.
“We will build a beautiful one, let the devil licks his wounds. We must look at life from the spiritual.
“It is painful to watch such a thing happen. The place is filled with fire and smoke, they can’t even go inside.
“When a thing like that happens, you can say, oh Lord, why? You say, Lord, Thank you for your Grace from those very grounds,” he said.
The general overseer also referenced a past experience where the church faced a similar challenge, the Ikebukuro attack, and how they overcame it.
“I’ll never forget, when the supposed bombings took place at the Ikebukuro attack, they thought it was war.
“There were explosions at Ikebukuro, atomic. The sounds were so loud, the explosions were so loud. Many thought there was war. And they began to flee from all that area,” he recounted.
When asked if he was surprised by the fire outbreak, Pastor Chris said, “Not, not even the slightest surprise, not even the slightest surprise. But that’s another day’s talk.
“When something like this happens, we have to remember that we are not of this world.
“What do I mean by that? Every single day, God protects us. He protects us, He protects everything that He gives us, with His glory and His grace, every single day. He protects us.”The cause of the fire remains unknown, but officials from the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service are currently investigating the incident. Despite the physical damage, Pastor Chris and the Christ Embassy Church are determined to rebuild and continue their mission.
