Comedian AY And Wife Celebrate 6 Years Of Marriage [See Photos]

Comedian AY Makun and his wife Mabel are celebrating their 6th
wedding anniversary and 10 years of companionship today Nov.
30th.
The couple are blessed with a daughter. Read AY’s warm message
to his wife posted on his instagram page..
“Within the twinkle of an eye, it is already 6 years of marital bliss
and 10 years of companionship.
I met u when i had nothing but as a woman of substance and
integrity, u believed in d man u decided to spend d rest of ur life
with.
Through thick and thin we have grown into being there for each
other, and understanding what it means to love and be loved.
You are still the wind beneath my wings…that’s why i fly so high
in d place of grace and devine favour.
I love and will always love u Mrs Makun. Happy anniversary”

Doctor who died of Ebola hailed as hero 2

Landover Hills - Dr Martin Salia didn't get into the medical profession to get
rich, and even though he was a permanent US resident, he chose to work in
his native Sierra Leone because the need for surgeons there was so great.
Although his medical colleagues were worried when he returned there to
treat Ebola patients, they said the decision was consistent with his character.
The 44-year-old surgeon was remembered on Saturday at his funeral Mass
as a tireless, selfless and heroic advocate for medical care for the less
fortunate. Salia died of Ebola on November 17 after being flown to a hospital
in Omaha, Nebraska, in the advanced stages of the deadly virus. He became
the second person to die in the US after contracting Ebola in West Africa,
where it has killed nearly 7 000 people.
Ron Klain, the White House Ebola response coordinator, read a personal note
of condolence from President Barack Obama to Salia's family.
"The greatest heroes are people who choose to face danger, who voluntarily
put themselves at risk to help others," Klain said. "Martin Salia was such a
man."
Also Read: French president cheered in Ebola-stricken Guinea
The 90-minute Mass at the home parish of Salia's family in Maryland drew a
crowd that swelled to the hundreds. Relatives, friends, colleagues and
dignitaries from both the US and Sierra Leone were in attendance, along with
Sierra Leonean immigrants from around the US, some of whom said they
didn't know Salia personally.
Salia's wife, Isatu, wept as she carried a small black box containing her
husband's cremated remains into the church, flanked by the couple's sons,
20-year-old Maada and 14-year-old Hinwaii.
Bockari Stevens, the Sierra Leone's ambassador to the US, called Salia a
national hero who abandoned "the luxuries of the United States" to aid his
homeland.
"It is a loss not only to your family. It is a loss to our country," Stevens said.
Stevens called for the US to do more to "ensure that this scourge is blighted"
in Sierra Leone and the other West African nations stricken by Ebola. Klain
pledged that more aid was on the way.
"The world's response has been too late, but now, help is coming," he said
to applause.
Also Read: Ebola scare boosts business for US company
Sierra Leone is now bearing the brunt of the 8-month-old outbreak. In the
other hard-hit countries, Liberia and Guinea, the World Health Organization
says infection rates are stabilizing or declining, but in Sierra Leone, they're
soaring. The country has been reporting around 400 to 500 new Ebola cases
each week for several weeks. Those cases are concentrated in the capital,
Freetown, its surrounding areas and the northern Port Loko district.
Salia was born and raised in Kenema, Sierra Leone, and received his medical
training in Freetown. He later served as a surgical resident in Cameroon and
also worked in Kenya and the US. His dream had been to open his own
hospital in Sierra Leone, colleagues said.
Salia did not receive aggressive treatment for Ebola until nearly two weeks
after he first started showing symptoms. His formal diagnosis was delayed,
and it took several days for him to be flown back to the United States. Those
delays, doctors said, probably made it impossible for anyone to save his life.
In a brief interview after the Mass, Salia's older son said he was heartened
by the esteem in which others held his father.
"I'm really proud that he was able to do so many things for a lot of people,"
Maada Salia said.
Associated Press writer Sarah DiLorenzo in Dakar, Senegal, contributed to
this report.
- AP

National Suspected Boko Haram militants raid northern Christian town

Maiduguri - Suspected Boko Haram militants, who arrived on motorcycles
throwing bombs, raided a mostly Christian town in the northeast after
nightfall on Saturday, residents and a military source said.
Residents said scores of people had been killed in the town of Shani, but a
police source said they had been unable to verify the death toll as
communications to the town had been largely cut off.
"They rode on motorcycles and were more than 30 men. They started
throwing bombs into houses...then the Boko Haram fired shots at people
fleeing," resident Ishaya Brimah told Reuters by phone from a nearby village
on Sunday.
"They set ablaze the police station, houses and a telecom mast...I saw
people fleeing, some bodies on the ground."
Also Read: Emir of Kano visits mosque after deadly attack
Shani is located in Borno state, the heartland ofgroup Boko Haram's five-
year insurgency, which has displaced more than one million people.
The Sunni jihadist movement is fighting to revive a medieval Islamic
caliphate in Nigeria's north. The group is suspected to be behind Friday's
attack on the central mosque in the second city of Kano, where at least 100
people died.
A shopkeeper in Shani, Shuabu Lawal, said he started hearing explosions at
around 8 pm on Saturday evening.
"A boy ran into my shop and said his father and elder brother had been shot.
He was only wearing shorts, no top and sweating despite the wintry weather.
I shut down my shop immediately, leaving some items outside," Lawal said.
The police source said Shani's police station had been destroyed in the
attack. Militants have already attacked the town twice this year, most
recently in June when at least 11 people were killed and the office of the
electoral commission was burnt.
- Reuters

Kogi State fences schools from terror

Abuja - The Kogi State Government has completed plans fence all schools as
part of plans of shielding students and educators from terror.
Deputy State Governor, Yomi Awoniyi, disclosed the plans during a meeting
with the Chairman and Board Members of the Advancement and Support
Centre of the Kogi State University in Anyigba.
He said the decision to begin the fencing of schools, was occasioned by the
spate of insecurity and attacks on educational institutions in some part of
Nigeria.
Also Read: 32 die in Yobe suicide bombing, 145 escape Kogi prison
The Boko Haram sect is targeting schools during its terror siege.
Awoniyi He disclosed that aside the relative peace being witnessed in the
state, the decision to fence the schools was a proactive measure geared
towards safe guarding lives and properties in institutions of learning across
the state.
Chairman of the Kogi State University Advancement and Support Centre,
Mark Makoju, meanwhile the board would seek ways to engage various
stakeholders in complementing the funding of the State University.

Death penalty against child bride to be pursued

Gezawa - Nigerian prosecutors said on Thursday they may seek the death
penalty against a 14-year-old girl accused of murdering her 35-year-old
husband by putting rat poison in his food.
The trial of Wasila Tasi'u, from a poor northern Nigeria family, has sparked a
heated debate on the role of underage marriage in the conservative Muslim
region, especially whether an adolescent girl can consent to be a bride.
Prosecutors at the High Court in Gezawa, outside Nigeria's second city of
Kano, filed an amended complaint that charged Tasi'u with one count of
murder over the killing of Umar Sani two weeks after their April wedding in
the village of Unguwar Yansoro.
Lead prosecutor Lamido Abba Soron-Dinki said that if proved, the charge is
"punishable with death" and indicated the state would seek the maximum
penalty.
Also read: 14 year-old bride kills husband, 3 others in Kano
Tasi'u entered the court wearing a cream-coloured hijab and was escorted
by two policemen.
Her parents, who have condemned their daughter's alleged act, were in the
public gallery, the first time the three were in the same room since Tasi'u's
arrest in April, her legal representatives said.
The English-language charge sheet was translated into Hausa for the
accused by the court clerk.
Tasi'u refused to answer when asked if she understood the charges.
The case was adjourned for 30 minutes so the charges could be better
explained to the defendant, but when the alleged offences were read again
Tasi'u stayed silent, turned her head to the wall and broke down in tears.
"The court records (that) she pleads not guilty," Judge Mohammed Yahaya
said, apparently regarding her silence as equal to a denial of the charges and
adjourned the case until November 26.
Activists, including in Nigeria's mainly Christian south, have called for
Tasi'u's immediate release, saying she should be rehabilitated as a victim
and noting the prospect that she was raped by the man she married.
But in the north, Islamic law operates alongside the secular criminal code, a
hybrid system that has complicated the question of marital consent.
The affected families have denied that Tasi'u was forced into marriage,
arguing that girls across the impoverished region marry at 14 and that Tasi'u
and Sani followed the traditional system of courtship.
According to Nigeria's marriage act, anyone under 21 can marry provided
they have parental consent and so evidence of an agreement between Tasi'u
and her father Tasiu Mohammed could undermine claims of a forced union.
But defence lawyer Hussaina Aliyu has insisted the case is not a debate
about the role of youth marriage in a Muslim society.
Instead, she has argued that under criminal law a 14-year-old cannot be
charged with murder in a high court and has demanded that the case be
moved to the juvenile system.

The Holy Spirit: God's Power at Work

Most people don't understand the working of the Holy Spirit. As a
result, they don't recognize its power to transform our lives.
At this time of year almost 2,000 years ago, a miraculous, momentous event
occurred—the New Testament Church was founded on the Feast of Pentecost.
What made this occurrence so astounding—and Acts 2 records that the
circumstances of that day were truly dramatic—was the giving of God's Spirit
to the followers of Jesus Christ as He had promised ( John:14:16-17 , 26; 15:26;
16:7-14; Acts:1:4-5 , 8).
What is this Holy Spirit that came on Christ's followers that day? Why did
these things happen? What should we learn from those strange occurrences?
To understand the events, we must first understand what the Holy Spirit is
and what it is not. To grasp that, we must understand what the Holy Spirit
does.
What, then, does the Bible teach about the Holy Spirit?
Concepts of 'spirit'
We must first consider the word spirit as it is used in the Bible. Just what is
spirit, and what does that word mean?
Four words—two Hebrew and two Greek—are translated "spirit" in the Bible.
Of these four, two are used only twice: the Hebrew word neshamah, which
means "breath," and the Greek word phantasma, which means "phantom" or
"apparition." The other two words are the Hebrew ruach and the Greek
pneuma, each used several hundred times . Understanding these words is
crucial to understanding the Holy Spirit.
Ruach means "breath, air; strength; wind; breeze; spirit; courage; temper;
Spirit" ( Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament
Words, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, 1985, p. 240). Of the 378 times
it is used in the King James Version, it is translated "Spirit" or "spirit" 272
times, "wind" 92 times, "breath" 27 times and in other ways 27 times. Ruach
is used similarly in most other Bible versions.
The concepts of "wind," "breath" and "spirit" were all related in biblical
thought and language. We see these intertwined in the use of ruach in Ezekiel
37, which describes a great multitude of people being resurrected and
restored to physical life to understand God's truth. In this fascinating account,
what is even more extraordinary is the way ruach expresses the connection
of these ideas. To illustrate, ruach is inserted wherever it appears in this
passage.
"The hand of the Lord came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit [ ruach ]
of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of
bones . . . He said to me, 'Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, "O dry
bones, hear the word of the Lord! Thus says the Lord God to these bones:
'Surely I will cause breath [ ruach ] to enter into you, and you shall live' . . .
"So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a
noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to bone.
Indeed, as I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin
covered them over; but there was no breath [ ruach ] in them. Also He said to
me, 'Prophesy to the breath [ ruach ], prophesy, son of man, and say to the
breath [ ruach ], "Thus says the Lord God: 'Come from the four winds [ ruach ],
O breath [ ruach ], and breathe on these slain, that they may live.' " So I
prophesied as He commanded me, and breath [ ruach ] came into them, and
they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.
"Then He said to me, . . . "Prophesy and say to them, . . . 'I will put My Spirit
[ ruach ] in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then
you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken it and performed it,' says the
Lord" (Ezekiel:37:1 , 4-5, 7-11, 14).
Here we see ruach translated three ways in one chapter: Spirit (referring to
God's Spirit), breath and wind.
'Spirit' in Greek
What is the meaning of pneuma? This word "primarily denotes 'the wind' (akin
to pneo, 'to breathe, blow'); also 'breath'; then, especially 'the spirit,' which,
like the wind, is invisible, immaterial and powerful" (ibid., p. 593). It is used
385 times in the King James Version and is usually translated "Spirit" or
"spirit."
Look at pneuma. We can see that Greek root in several modern English words
such as pneumonia, which is an acute infection of the human respiratory
system; pneumatic, referring to something powered by air pressure; and the
science of pneumatics, which studies the properties of air and other gases. All
of these have to do with air, breathing, wind or being powered by air. When
you breathe, what is your body doing? It is creating wind going into and out of
the body; breathing is simply creating wind on a small scale.
Pneuma is the equivalent of the Hebrew ruach. In Luke:4:18 , where Christ read
from Isaiah:61:1 , the account substitutes pneuma for the Hebrew ruach in
referring to "the Spirit [ ruach/pneuma ] of the Lord." The Septuagint, a Greek
translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (known commonly as the Old Testament)
prepared in the third and second century B.C. and used in the time of the early
Church, translated ruach as pneuma (Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word
Study Dictionary: New Testament, AMG Publishers, Chattanooga, 1992, p.
1185).
Connected concepts
We see the same connection between spirit, breath and wind continued in the
New Testament. Although the Greek (unlike the Hebrew) has a different word
for wind ( anemos ), pneuma and its related verb pneo are translated
"breath" ( 2 Thessalonians:2:8 ; Revelation:11:11 ), "wind" (John:3:8 ; Acts:27:40 )
and "blow" (Luke:12:55 ).
Jesus Christ made this connection Himself. Without the understanding of this
background, details of the incident in which Jesus appeared to His followers
after His resurrection are puzzling. After Jesus showed them the wounds in
His hands and side, verifying that He had indeed been raised from the dead,
John records that Jesus said: " 'Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I
also send you.' And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to
them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit [ pneuma ] ' " (John:20:21-22 ).
Earlier He had told them He would send them a "helper" and a "comforter,"
the Holy Spirit. Here He repeats that promise. He also demonstrates the
nature of the Spirit that He would send: It would be like a breath, like a wind,
something they couldn't see, but they would be influenced by its power.
And this is indeed what happened.
Dramatic evidence of God's Spirit
In Acts 2 we read of the fulfillment of the promise that the Holy Spirit would
come to them. "When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with
one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as
of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon
each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak
with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts:2:1-4 ).
The sound that accompanied the giving of the Holy Spirit was that of a rushing,
mighty wind —not the sound of a trumpet or a shout, sounds used elsewhere
in the Bible in describing miraculous events ( 1 Corinthians:15:52 ; 1
Thessalonians:4:16 ). The sound was of wind, again demonstrating the
connection between wind and spirit.
Why does this account describe the sound of wind, but not the wind itself?
Apparently they heard a powerful sound akin to a tornado, typhoon or
hurricane but didn't experience the force of the wind; there was no debris
flying through the air, no roofs being blown off. Why wasn't there an actual
wind? Because the wind needed to make that sound would have been
incredibly destructive, demolishing buildings and injuring people. God's Spirit
isn't destructive. That would have distracted from or overshadowed the
positive miracles that took place there that day. Thus there was sound loud
enough to be heard throughout Jerusalem (verses 5-6), but not a wind of
corresponding force in the house in which they had gathered.
These are some of the concepts involved in the words translated "spirit" in
the Bible. They do revolve around wind, breath and spirit, but not around the
Holy Spirit as a specific person. This becomes more clear as we examine
what this Spirit would do in the lives of those who received it.
What did Jesus Christ say about this Spirit? What would it do or give to those
who received it?
In Acts 1 we read of another of Christ's appearances to His followers after His
resurrection. A vital question burned in their minds: "Lord, will You at this time
restore the kingdom to Israel?" (verse 6). Jesus then refocused their thinking
from when He would return to the mission He had in store for them: "It is not
for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own
authority. But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon
you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (verses 7-8).
Jesus Christ said His followers would "receive power" when the Holy Spirit
came upon them, and directly connected with that power would be their work
of being witnesses of Him, starting in Jerusalem, then spreading throughout
Judea and Samaria and ultimately to the end of the earth. The book of Acts
records the beginning of that mighty work with Christ's followers receiving the
Holy Spirit on the Feast of Pentecost. Then, empowered by that Spirit, they
went out proclaiming the gospel of the Kingdom .
Christ made it clear that the Holy Spirit is connected with power. The Greek
word translated "power" is dunamis. It is translated "power," "mighty work,"
"strength," "miracle," "might," "virtue" and "mighty." It is the same Greek root
from which we get modern English words like dynamic, which means active,
forceful and energetic; dynamo, which is a device for generating electric
power; and dynamite, which is an explosive of great power, energy and force.
These give us a sense of the power that would result from the Holy Spirit
being given to the early Church.
Writing to his fellow minister Timothy, Paul describes the Spirit given to the
Church: "Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God [His Spirit] which is
in you through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of
fear, but of power [ dunamis ] and of love and of a sound mind" ( 2
Timothy:1:6-7 ).
God's Spirit is not a spirit of fear or wanting to hide, to pull back, to cower in
fear and shame. It is the opposite: a spirit of power —of activity, energy,
dynamism—and a spirit of deep, godly love and a sound, rational, self-
controlled mind.
The Spirit of power at work
That Spirit enables us to be like Jesus Christ, to have the same power
available to us that Jesus Christ had in Him. Luke:4:14-15 describes that
power at work in His ministry: "Then Jesus returned in the power [ dunamis ]
of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding
region. And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all."
In Acts:10:38 Peter sums up Jesus Christ's ministry, showing that "God
anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went
about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God
was with Him."
We see here that the Holy Spirit and power are synonymous. That holy power
enabled Christ to perform His mighty miracles of doing good and healing
during His earthly, physical ministry. The Holy Spirit is the very presence of
God's power actively working in His servants.
The power of the Spirit wasn't exclusive to Jesus Christ or the apostles. This
power was available to all members of the Church, and they were to use it.
Paul wrote to the church in Rome: "Now may the God of hope fill you with all
joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the
Holy Spirit" (Romans:15:13 ). He goes on to describe what this power of the
Holy Spirit would enable them to do and become: "Now I myself am confident
concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all
knowledge, able also to admonish one another" (verse 14).
Paul said that this same power enabled him to preach the gospel. In verse 19
he writes of the things Christ had accomplished in him "in mighty signs and
wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and round
about to Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ."
In 1 Corinthians:2:4-5 Paul writes that his "speech and . . . preaching were not
with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit
and of power [ dunamis ], that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men
but in the power [ dunamis ] of God." Other verses, such as Luke:1:17 , 35,
Romans:1:4 and 1 Thessalonians:1:5 . discuss the connection between the
spirit and power.
The Spirit of revelation
God's Spirit provides another kind of power as well. "But as it is written: 'Eye
has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things
which God has prepared for those who love Him.' But God has revealed them
to us through His Spirit . . . No one knows the things of God except the Spirit of
God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit [which]
is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us
by God" ( 1 Corinthians:2:9-12 ).
Paul tells us here that God's Spirit is the source of divine revelation, the power
by which humans can understand and grasp spiritual concepts and principles
mentioned in God's Word.
Not everyone can understand these things. There must be a calling involved
(John:6:44 ; 1 Thessalonians:2:12 ). God must call us and reveal them to us
through the Holy Spirit working within our minds to help us understand.
Not only does God's Spirit help us to understand His Word, but it inspired the
original writers of the Bible. Referring to the many prophecies recorded in the
Hebrew Scriptures, the apostle Peter wrote that "prophecy never came by the
will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit"
(2 Peter:1:21 ) .
Continued understanding through the Spirit
Before His death Jesus told His disciples that this process would continue,
that God's Spirit would help them see and understand things they had never
seen or understood before. He told them that He would leave, "but the Helper,
the Holy Spirit, [which] the Father will send in My name, [it] will teach you all
things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to
you" (John:14:26 ).
God's Spirit did exactly what Christ said it would. The disciples grew in
spiritual understanding, and with that understanding the four Gospels were
written. The disciples did not take copious notes as they followed Jesus,
writing down everything He said. Nor did they begin writing immediately;
apparently the four Gospels were written during a span from about 20 to 60
years after Christ's death.
Two of the Gospel writers, Mark and Luke, weren't even among the original 12
disciples chosen by Christ. They apparently wrote their accounts based on the
eyewitness testimony of the disciples and others who saw the events
recorded in the Gospels occur. God's Spirit "brought to remembrance" the
things Jesus Christ had said and done, guiding the disciples to later
understand their significance and record these things for us.
It is evident to the reader of those accounts that the disciples lacked spiritual
understanding while these events were taking place. It wouldn't have done
them any good to write the Gospels then. It wasn't until many years later,
after they had received God's Spirit and been converted, that they came to
understand the significance of Christ's teachings and wrote down that
understanding. Just as God inspired the writers of the "Holy Scriptures" (2
Timothy:3:15-17 ), so He inspired the apostles, through His Spirit, in their
writings.
The example of Peter's powerful sermon in Acts 2 compared with his earlier
denial of Christ shows how effectively the Holy Spirit worked in the life of this
apostle—not to mention the other disciples who equally lacked conviction and
understanding before the coming of God's Spirit on the Day of Pentecost.
"Bring to remembrance" also has to do with the work of God's Spirit in the
individual; there is still need for its work in our minds. We are exhorted to read
and study the Scriptures for knowledge of God's truths and way of life. Then,
as we go about our lives, God's Spirit dwelling in us leads and guides us,
bringing to remembrance the principles and laws from God's Word we need so
we can make right choices.
Growth in understanding over time
Jesus Christ said that the Holy Spirit would "teach [His disciples] all things."
That process wasn't instantaneous; it took place over years. Just as we do,
they learned as they went, gradually beginning to see and understand things
they had never seen before.
But it took time. It was years before they realized that gentiles, too, could be
saved and take part in God's Kingdom. Then it took several more years before
they understood that gentiles didn't have to be circumcised to be saved. More
years passed before they realized that Jesus Christ wasn't going to return in
their lifetimes. They never did understand when Christ would return—just that
He would come back, and that they needed to be spiritually ready.
God's Spirit taught them all things. It gave them understanding that they had
never had—understanding that would be revealed to them supernaturally from
God through the power of the Spirit.
That process continues with us. At conversion, when we receive the Holy
Spirit, God doesn't teach us everything at once. We start out on the milk of the
word. When we can handle that, we move on to stronger and stronger meat,
with progressively more understanding possible through God's Spirit.
God's Spirit leads to change
God's Spirit leads to transformation. Added spiritual understanding, revelation
and power lead to something else in the lives of those given God's Spirit:
change.
Paul graphically describes the lives of those who live apart from God's Spirit:
"The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and
debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage,
selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the
like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the
kingdom of God" (Galatians:5:19-21 , New International Version).
Then Paul contrasts this with another way of life:"But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control. Against such there is no law" (verses 22-23).
What do these words mean? Love is concern for the well-being of others. Joy
is "a feeling or state of great delight or happiness, as caused by something
exceptionally good or satisfying . . ." Peace is a condition of harmony and
tranquillity with others, free from anxiety. Long-suffering is patience, which
means bearing provocation, pain or annoyance without complaint. Kindness is
showing considerate, benevolent or compassionate behavior toward others.
Goodness is exhibiting generosity, moral excellence and virtue. Faithfulness is
to be reliable, loyal, trusted and believed. Gentleness is to be kind, polite and
courteous. Self-control is to stay in charge of one's own thoughts, own
actions and feelings.
God's Spirit plays a vital role in our lives. It dwells within Christians, allowing a
miraculous transformation to take place.
A great transformation
Paul talks about this transformation in Romans 8, again emphasizing the two
ways to live: "For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the
things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, [set their minds
on] the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace . . . But you are not in the flesh but in the
Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have
the Spirit of Christ, he is not His . . . But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus
from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give
life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit [which] dwells in you" (verses
5-6, 9, 11).
God's Spirit enables the ultimate change to take place: for carnal, selfish
humans to become converted in this life and ultimately be transformed into
God's very children, changed into immortal, glorified sons of God!

Biography Of Dr. Abel Damina Dr. Abel Damina

Dr. Abel Hankuri Damina, pastor and founder, received the vision of Abel
Damina Ministries, a.k.a Power Chapel in 1992. God spoke to Dr. Abel Damina
to “feed my sheep, for they are hungry; I’m raising a quality people who will
stand their ground and not fail me”. It is in total obedience to that calling that
has birthed a ministry that continues to bless humanity globally.
Power City International Churches has its headquarters at 98 Nwaniba Road,
Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, Nigeria with an ultra modern state of the art facility that
seats 5,000 persons. Running 3 services every Sunday, Rev Dr. Abel Damina
brings the word of God with power, insight and impartation.
The church also owns its cable television, Kingdom Life Network, which is
rated the fastest-growing television network in the region via Free to Air
bouquet. Dr. Abel Damina is also the current National Chairman, Pentecostal
Fellow-ship Of Nigeria Youth Wing. Dr. Abel Damina is married to Dr. Rachel
Damina and together they have three great daughters, the up-coming Triple J
Plus singing sensation.

Hospital: Pele's condition improves

Brazilian football legend Pele's condition has improved, according to
a Thursday evening statement from a Sao Paulo hospital.
There had been earlier concerns about Pele's health after Albert Einstein
Hospital issued a release that said his condition was "unstable."
Thursday night's release said Pele was relocated to the intensive care unit
because a kidney dialysis machine he needed was in ICU.
"He is now temporarily on renal support without any additional support," the
statement said.
The 74-year-old's representative and Pele's Twitter account dispute that the
great is in ICU, saying he had been moved to a "special care" room with
greater privacy.
"I want to take this opportunity to let you know that I am doing fine," his
Twitter feed stated.
Pele was admitted to the medical facility earlier this week with a urinary tract
infection. He recently underwent surgery to remove kidney stones at the same
institution.
Pele is considered one of the greats of world soccer, winning three World
Cups for Brazil in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
The Brazilian is also one of the most globally recognized faces in sports.

3yr Old Boy Mistakenly Shoots Mother to Death

Acccording to AJC specialists who talked with the child confirmed
the 3-year-old pulled the trigger.
“I just can’t imagine in today’s society that there would be a
gun a loaded gun where a toddler could get it,” Bennett said.
Tulsa police said the woman’s husband is a truck driver and was
out of the state when the accident happened.
Officers have not released the identity of the woman killed.

Police Parade 25 Year Old Nigerian Musician Turned Armed Robber [See Photo]

Lagos state Police command yesterday paraded a 25 year old
musician named John Sunday pictured left, who says he took to
armed robbery in order to gather N100,000 to promote his reggae
album.
“I am a musician from Ikofepepe in Akwa Ibom State.
We were three in the gang, but one is on the run.
I needed money to launch my album, Tureke Reggae; that is why I
went into robbery.
I was targeting N100,000″ John said when he was interrogated.
John Onyekachi Oshomi (pictured right) who claimed to be a bus
conductor said he joined the gang because he needed to take care
of his family.
The two were was arrested on November 21st.
“I was a commercial bus conductor.
We were operating on the Agege Total-Oshodi route.
I just got married, but my wife is still in the village.
I was looking for money to feed her whenever she comes to Lagos;
that was why I went into armed robbery. ” Sunday confessed.
According to The Nation, the Lagos state police commissioner said
he got a tip off on November 21 at 10pm that some armed robbers
were planning to rob in Lagos.
He said he immediately directed the Officer-in-Charge, Special Anti-
Robbery Squad (SARS), Abba Kyari, a Superintendent of Police (SP),
to go after them.
“With two decoy teams, they stormed their hideout and arrested
Onyekachi Oshomi and John Sunday with a revolver pistol.
During interrogation, they confessed to the crime including
snatching of several cars within the metropolis.
Efforts have been stepped up to arrest those that are still at large, ”
Aderanti said.
Both men will soon be charged to court.

Pope condemns ISIS violence

Jerusalem - On the eve of a trip to the Middle East, Pope Francis is urging
religious and political leaders to speak out against attacks on Christians by
Islamic State extremists.
In an interview published on Thursday, the pope was quoted as saying that
the persecution of Christians today is "the worst" it has been since
Christianity's earliest days. "In Iraq, for example, barbaric, criminal
indescribable things are being committed," he was quoted as telling the
Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot.

Bus station blast kills 40 people

Yola -  A roadside bomb tore through a bus station near a busy junction in
northeast on Thursday, killing 40 people including five soldiers, witnesses
and a security source on the scene said.
The security source and witness Abubakar Adamu, a mechanic who narrowly
avoided being blown up himself, said the blast set several buses on fire at
the Marabi-Mubi junction, in a part of the country plagued by violence linked
to the Boko Haram Islamist insurgency.
"There were bodies everywhere on the ground," Adamu said.
The location is about 30km west of Mubi, a town near the Cameroon border
seized last month by Boko Haram militants fighting to carve an Islamic state
out of religiously-mixed Nigeria. It has since been recaptured.
Also Read: Nigerian 'terror mastermind' challenges S.Africa conviction
Authorities, who rarely remark on security developments in the troubled
northeast, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
There was no claim of responsibility, but suspicion is likely to fall on Boko
Haram, whose campaign to create an Islamic caliphate governed by sharia
law has killed thousands since 2009.
Continuing insecurity is a headache for President Goodluck Jonathan ahead
of February 2015 polls in which he is seeking a second elected term in
office. He has asked parliament for approval to extend an 18-month-old
state of emergency in the northeast.
Two female suicide bombers killed at least 44 people on Tuesday in the
northeastern city of Maiduguri, medical officials said.

Jonathan 'misread' Boko Haram threat

Abuja - Influential ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo has accused the current
leader Goodluck Jonathan of misreading the Boko Haram crisis and allowing
the threat to escalate to "gargantuan" heights.
Obasanjo, still a key power broker in the ruling Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP), has launched a series of scathing attacks against Jonathan in recent
months and has publicly urged him to not seek re-election calls the
president has ignored.
"Initially President Jonathan's understanding of the Boko Haram
phenomenon suffered from wrong reading and wrong imputation," Obasanjo
said at a book launch event late Wednesday.
"That is what led us to where we are today."
He described the five-year Islamist uprising as a "gargantuan danger to the
nation" and blamed Jonathan for taking "more than three years" to
understand the root causes of the conflict, including poverty and
unemployment.
Also read: Regional security meeting ends in Abuja
Jonathan has been roundly criticised for his handling of the Boko Haram
conflict but the comments from Obasanjo may take on added significance
with less than three months before Nigeria's vote.
Obasanjo plucked Jonathan from relative political obscurity to serve as
Umaru Musa Yar'Adua's running mate in 2007 polls.
Jonathan rose to the top after Yar'Adua's death in 2010 following an illness.
Obasanjo called on Jonathan, a southern Christian, to stand aside before the
2015 polls in favour of a Muslim from the north to preserve the PDPs
unwritten rule of rotating power in the divided nation.
But after Jonathan fought off his opponents and secured the PDP nomination,
some expected Obasanjo to fall in line and support the candidate of the party
he helped create in 1998 as the era of military rule was ending.
But in Wednesday's speech, Obasanjo appeared intent on continuing his
attacks.
He also slammed the president's economic management, saying that if
Nigeria stays on its current course and fails to contain graft, "we will all sink
deeper into poverty".
Some Nigerians will likely pay little attention to anti-corruption speeches
from Obasanjo, who was widely suspected of misusing public funds during
his 1999-2007 tenure.
His current political clout is hard to quantify but experts say that if Obasanjo
actively works against the PDP in the coming vote, it could hurt Jonathan's
re-election prospects.

Star Boy Thing: “I have had a Huge Crush on Chidinma”

Fans of Star Boy, Wizkid are in for a swell time this week as Africa’s biggest music channel MTV Base brings an exclusive scoop into the young superstar’s life. The documentary showcases the other side of Wizkid and reveals various interesting facts about him, one of which is his crush on fellow Nigerian singer, Chidinma. “I’ve had a huge crush on Chidinma for a long time…she doesn’t know it but it’s true!” – Wizkid gushes. Wizkid will also reveal his journey through music and how he has managed to maintain the hype.. Stay tuned! - See more at: http://www.naijaloaded.com.ng/2014/11/25/star-boy-thing-huge-crush-chidinma-wizkid/#sthash.2NNygKjm.dpuf

On To The Next: Star Boy Wizkid Heads Into Fashion Business.

After amassing enough fame and fortune from music within the last four years, Wizkid is finally diversifying his business portfolio. The pop superstar is about to enter the fashion business The diminutive singer has revealed that he will be releasing a line of snap backs soon. The line of caps will be made in conjunction with DJ Nu Kidd. He made this known on his Instagram page. “DJ Nu Kidd and I decided to make y’all fresh new snapbacks!! Dates soon!! Limited edition! #StarBoy!” he wrote as he announced the collaboration. Wizkid is highly regarded as one of the most fashionable artists of his generation. Snapback is an urban slang term for an adjustable flat brim baseball cap. what a nice move if you ask me, we sure cant wait, what do you guys think about this moves by wizzy? - See more at: http://www.naijaloaded.com.ng/2014/11/27/next-star-boy-wizkid-heads-fashion-business/#sthash.c1s7yvQP.dpuf

A Better Way To Pray - Hypocrites Love To Pray

Prayer is the most abused part of the Christian life today. Misguided understandings about prayer mess more people up spiritually than anything else out there! Jesus taught that there is right and wrong praying: And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray. Matthew 6:5 Most believers don’t associate hypocrites with prayer. They think, If you’re praying, what could be wrong? Plenty, because hypocrites love to pray! Just because you start with the words “Our Father…” and conclude with “…in the name of Jesus, amen” doesn’t mean it’s prayer. A tremendous amount of what’s being called “prayer” today offends God and opens the door for the devil. There are right and wrong ways to pray! God’s Messenger Boy? In 1969, I heard a wrong teaching that Satan was “God’s messenger boy.” It said that the devil can only do what the Lord allows, and therefore, God uses him to work good in our lives. That’s totally wrong, but I didn’t know it at the time. I brought this teaching back to my girlfriend and she bought into it completely. On the tapes I gave her, there was an example of a boy who was too shy to witness to his classmates. He prayed and asked God to give him an incurable disease so he could show his faith in Christ by the way he responded to death. The next day he came down with leukemia. Four people were born again at his funeral. Although this young man’s faith brought some glory to God, this isn’t correct praying. My girlfriend prayed the same prayer and was diagnosed with leukemia the next morning. Four people were born again at her funeral. However, God wasn’t the one answering these two prayers by “blessing” them with leukemia. Satan took advantage of wrong praying and killed two young people before their time. Wrong praying gets wrong results! Praying Wrong Jesus had to reveal what prayer was not, before He taught what it is. (Matt. 6:5-13.) The Lord Himself had to counter the religious concepts concerning prayer in His day first, or the people would never have been able to grasp what He was about to say. It’s just as bad today, if not worse! Like the Pharisees Jesus confronted, prayer has become a religious calisthenic. People use it to soothe their consciences, feeling like they’ve done something to manipulate and motivate God to move on their behalf—wrong motives! The heart attitude behind your prayer interests God much more than the actual words you say. Just because you spend an hour, or more, in what you call “prayer” doesn’t mean you’re accomplishing anything. If your attitude is wrong, you’re praying wrong! And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. Matthew 6:5 “What a holy person! Have you heard them storm the gates of heaven?” That little ego-stroking pat on the back is all they get because man’s admiration is the only reward for such “praying.” They won’t receive anything from God! Are you aware that you can exercise powerful spiritual gifts and make tremendous personal sacrifices but still not impress God? That’s right! If you don’t have the proper motive, it doesn’t matter what you do. Praying in tongues, prophesying, having all faith, giving your possessions to the poor, or even laying down your life will all profit you nothing if done without God’s kind of love. (1 Cor. 13:1-3.) In the kingdom, heart attitude makes all the difference! If you aren’t seeing the desired results from your prayer life, check your motives. Are your prayers truly motivated by love? I understand this is hard to admit because you always want to be positive and believe the best. However, if you allowed yourself to take a critical and objective look at your own prayer life, would the honest evaluation be that it profits you nothing? Have you prayed for years and not seen the manifestation? Perhaps your body isn’t healed, or your finances still aren’t really improving; either way, it’s just not working. Friend, it’s not God who hasn’t been answering; it’s your prayers that have been wrong! God Already Moved Most Christians see prayer as an opportunity to “move God.” They believe He can do anything, but that He hasn’t done it yet. In this mentality, prayer is how to make God do something. If this is what you believe, your prayer life rests on an extremely faulty foundation. God has already done everything He’s ever going to do! He moved once and for all in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Through the atonement, God has already forgiven and healed every person who will ever be forgiven or healed. He doesn’t even have to lift His little finger now to cause a healing or salvation! As far as God’s concerned, the sins of the entire world have already been forgiven. The Lamb’s perfect sacrifice dealt decisively with the past, present, and future sins of every believer and nonbeliever alike. This doesn’t mean that all are just “automatically” saved (or healed). All individuals must receive for themselves by faith what Jesus Christ has already provided in order to actually benefit from it. A gift given isn’t fully yours until it’s received! As Christians, we are to instruct people to believe and receive what God has already done for them through the atonement. That’s why the popular evangelistic method of “asking Jesus to come into your heart” is biblically inaccurate. Technically speaking, you don’t have to “ask” God to “save” you. This implies that the Lord hasn’t done anything yet until after you make your request. Then, depending on how He feels about you, He’ll either respond positively or negatively. This is completely incorrect because Jesus did everything for all of us two thousand years ago! The Philippian jailer approached Paul and Silas, asking, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They answered, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:30,31). Believe what? Believe that He fully dealt with sin at Calvary. Payment has already been made. Now it’s just a matter of believing and receiving! “I Don’t Know” After a meeting once, a lady informed me that she had asked the Lord into her heart a hundred times but still didn’t have any assurance of salvation. I told her, “Tonight we’ll pray and you’ll get assurance!” After praying with her to receive salvation, I asked, “Are you saved?” She responded, “Well, I don’t know.” “What do you mean you don’t know?” Pointing to my open Bible, I shared with her, “The Word says right here in Romans 10:9, ‘That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.’ Did you confess with your mouth?” “Yes.” “Do you believe God raised Jesus from the dead?” “Yes.” “Are you saved?” “I don’t know.” “Look with me at verse 13. ‘For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ Are you a whosoever?” “Well, I guess I am.” “Did you call on the name of the Lord?” “Yes.” “Are you saved?” “I don’t know.” She simply could not believe that she was saved! Receive What He’s Done In a situation like that, what would you think if I said to you, “I’m not sure why God hasn’t saved her. Would you please join with me in prayer, fasting, and agreement for her salvation? We shouldn’t let go of God until He saves her!” You’d probably disagree with me, answering, “No, Andrew, that’s not the way it works. God has already done it. If she hasn’t received, then her receiver is the problem, not God’s giver!” What if someone in a wheelchair came forward for healing during a service? If I prayed and didn’t see him rise out of the wheelchair immediately, I could ask the audience, “How many of you will stand in faith together with me? Let’s fast and pray in agreement, not letting go of God until He heals this person.” I bet I could persuade 90 percent of the people to go along with that! Yet God’s Word clearly proclaims, “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him” (Col. 2:6). In the same way you appropriate and walk in forgiveness of sin, you receive healing, deliverance, prosperity, and everything else! If begging God to save the lady in the first scenario is inappropriate, then doing so for healing or anything else in the Christian life is absolutely wrong too! Christ already made full provision for the abundant life through His atonement. It’s now not up to Him to do, but you to receive what He’s done! Heal the Sick! Sometimes Christians approach God, praying, “I know You can heal me, but You haven’t done it yet. Therefore, I want to learn how to make You heal me.” This is rank unbelief! They don’t believe that He’s already done it and they think they can make Him do it. Wrong! Such unbelief explains why more people aren’t experiencing healing. In our Bible schools and teaching seminars, we confidently instruct people not to “pray” for the sick, but to heal them. Jesus commanded us in Matthew 10:8 to “heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, [and] cast out devils.” There’s a huge difference between healing the sick and just praying for them! John G. Lake understood this difference. As a world-renowned missionary preacher, Lake had a powerful healing ministry based in Spokane, Washington. Instead of doing all the work himself, he trained associates called “healing practitioners.” Whenever people requested prayer, Lake sent his practitioners out with little bottles of oil and told them, “Don’t come back until they’re healed!” These believers didn’t just go pray for sick people; they healed them! The longest it took for a practitioner to come back was three-and-a-half weeks. It might have taken a while, but they saw that person healed! Lake stated that not a single associate ever returned without seeing an individual healed. They stayed and diligently worked with them until the healing manifested. Although this might sound foreign to you, these are just normal results when you understand and believe that God has already done His part. Jesus Christ completed everything necessary to save and heal every person. You believed and received salvation. Healing comes the exact same way! It shouldn’t be any harder to receive your healing since He provided it at the same time as forgiveness for your sin. Neither does it take any more faith to raise someone from the dead than to see them born again! It’s Jackhammer Time! The greatest manifestation of God’s power came when you were born again! By nature, you were a child of the devil. He had legal rights and claims to you. As a citizen of the kingdom of darkness, the enemy legitimately dominated your life. At the time of your salvation, you hadn’t been fasting, praying, studying the Word, attending church, paying tithes, or living a holy life. Yet without any such effort, you received the greatest miracle of all! It happened because you believed it was already done. How could you doubt that God would do what He had already done? The gospel is good news (what He’s done), not “good prophecy” (what He’s going to do)! “News” in a newspaper has taken place in the past. The good “news” of the gospel is that God has already forgiven you. Why would you choose to go to hell with your sins forgiven? Why not take advantage of the Lord’s generous provision? You just need to understand that He’s already done His part! The question isn’t, “Will God save you?” but “Will you accept His salvation?” The gift has been given, but will you receive it? It’s the same with everything else in the Christian life! God has already healed, prospered, and delivered you. Yet most people beg and plead, attempting to manipulate and control God through prayer. Their underlying attitude is “How do I make God do something He’s unwilling to do?” That’s totally wrong! Prayer is not trying to twist God’s arm to make Him do something. Prayer is receiving by faith what He has already done! Should the Lord tarry, believers one hundred years from now will look back on most of the concepts being peddled today as “intercession” and think, How ignorant and barbaric can you get? Nobody in their right mind should believe the majority of current teaching being passed off as “intercession” in the body of Christ. It’s one of the biggest areas of deception and bondage in the church today! Before Jesus taught what prayer is, He revealed what it’s not. Let’s take a jackhammer to our faulty foundations and throw them out; they’re only hindering us!

OPEC Said to Name Nigeria’s Alison-Madueke as President for 2015

Diezani Alison-Madueke will succeed Libya’s Abdourhman Ataher Al-Ahirish as OPEC’s President next year, according to a delegate at the group, who asked not to be identified in line with policy. Alison-Madueke is Petroleum Minister for Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer. She was proposed in June as a candidate for Secretary-General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said. That role is currently held by Libya’s Abdalla El-Badri. The position of president is normally held for one year at a time. The 12-member group, which pumps about 40 percent of the world’s oil, is meeting today in Vienna to decide whether to change its official output target from the current level of 30 million barrels a day. Oil fell into a bear market last month as global demand growth slowed and production in the U.S., the world’s largest consumer, rose to the highest in three decades. OPEC faces the challenge of how to preserve its share of the global oil market while maintaining a price that suits its members.

How I crashed out of Nigerian Idol–Olufunke Akinjo

For Olufunke Akinjo aka Funky Praise, her burning desire to propagate the word of God made her dump her six-figure paying job as an accountant to pursue a career in gospel music. Her dreams finally came to fruition recently when she dropped her de­but album entitled Obatoju Oba Lo. In this interview with The Entertainer, the Ondo State-born gospel singer shares her experi­ence at Nigerian Idol, growing up, her ideal man and her music among other issues. Excerpts: Why did you decide to go by the name Funky Praise? Well, there is one thing about my life which I discovered early and which I believe I am born to do because whenever I do it I feel fulfilled and that thing is praising God in whatever situation I find myself with my voice because of the abundant graces he has bestowed on me; Funky Praise is all about praising God. Why did you decide to go into music? Was music your first choice of career? I had always known that when I gradu­ate from school I would go into music full time. Like I said earlier, all my life I have been singing. Everybody must have a focus in life and I guess, mine is singing for God. I discovered my voice quite early so I decided that since God has blessed me with a good voice I should go into music. I grew up in The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) where I started my music singing in the children choir. From there I moved to the teenage depart­ment and started going for competitions. We were always winning trophies. I also ministered in churches, birthday parties and wedding ceremonies. Finally last year I did a single for our country entitled Naija, which also included in my debut album which I have just released. Music is a gift from God; it is my first choice of career. Before now I have received a lot of encour­agement from people. I knew that I cannot sit there and wait for things to just happen because time and tide waits for no man. Who are your influences? Growing up I never looked up to Nigerians gospel singers. In fact, the people I look up to were not gospel singers really. One of them was Celine Deon. And then there was Sister Whiner, a gospel singer. I just love her voice and everything about her so I tried to sing like her and Celine Deon. I also like Midnight Crew, You sound as if you like Celine Dion, why didn’t you go into secular music? The purpose of the gift I have is to sing for God. I only want to use my voice to sing for God and win souls to the Kingdom and by extension de-populate the Kingdom of Satan. Most of the big names we have today started with gospel music before veer­ing into secular music. Are you saying such will not happen to you? It won’t happen by the grace of God even if I have the oppor­tunity. He has been so faithful to me so nothing can make me go secular even if you offer me all the money in the world. I was in Nigerian Idol in 2011 and I made it to top 30 before I was evicted. The reason I went in for Idols was because I wanted to plough the winning money into my music career. Eventually I discovered that the way God works is dif­ferent from our ways. So eventually when I was evicted I said to myself I would never again go into anything secular and I pray my case will not be like those who dumped gospel music for secular music. What was the worst moment you had at Nigerian Idol? Nigerian Idol was fun. The only prob­lem was the dress code; I was not too comfortable with it. And most of the songs I performed I never knew beforehand un­like those used to secular music and I had to score these songs overnight. I stayed awake most nights because we had to be ready to sing them by the morning; it was challenging scoring songs I did not know. What was wrong with the dress code? I just didn’t feel cool with it. There was a time I wore a gown exposing my shoul­der and I didn’t like it because I am not the type that exposes her body; I felt I was naked before the audience. Is it the issue of good girl gone wild keeping you from going into secular music? That’s part of it; I defiantly don’t want to be a bad girl. I was raised in the way of the Lord and that is the way I have chosen to follow. What are the challeng­es you are facing right now? A lot my dear. At times I want to blame the people that left gospel music for the world but when I look at it the other way I realise that the pastors are to be blamed because in gospel music we don’t receive help from anybody; nobody is ready to help and it doesn’t feel good. That is why most people run to secular music after growing up and being groomed in churches. They leave because there is no­body to help. Christians should be ready to help their own because when you help them they would remain in the church preach­ing the gospel through their music. It could be a frustrating experience when there is nobody to help. How do you get inspiration? Most times my inspiration comes from God. At times when I sit down and look at things happening around I get inspired. An example is my Naija song. I was so worried about the goings-on in the country and I realized that only God can help us solve the problems plaguing us. That was how I was inspired to pen Naija. Aside music what do you do? I used to work as an accountant but I resigned this year. I resigned because I wanted to go into music fully and ever since I have not looked back. And the reason is that my job was taking me away from my creator; there was no time for my ministry. Last year I was in the studio and I did only one single and it was very hectic because I had to leave the office late to get to the studio all stressed up and it wasn’t easy. Meanwhile whenever I ministered at weddings or programmes, people would ask me, ‘sister, where is your album? Why are you keeping it away from us, you cannot hide it? Wher­ever it is either in the kitchen or wherever, you have to bring it out. It soon dawned on me that I needed to do something about it so I resigned January and there I am today. So what has been the response since you released your album? It has been overwhelming. When it was aired I couldn’t rest because people started calling from all over requesting for where and how they could get the songs. Talking about your personal life, are you married? I am not married. Do you have any one in your life? I don’t want to go into that (laughter) Just say something about your­self, your fans would like to know… Anyway I am single; I don’t want to talk about my love life because it is my privacy. In other words you’re not search­ing? In a way I am not. What do you want in a man? He should be God fearing, educated and have a livelihood; these three qualities are very important. Which gospel artistes would you like to work with? Midnight Crew and most especially, I would like to work with Patricia; I just love her. I love Lara George too and then there is Sammy Okposo. When you listen to their songs you’re touched because they pass messages. Is music in your linage, do you have any member of your family doing music? Yes, almost everyone in my family sings. My sister, the first girl of the family is an artiste by the stage name Afe Oni Koko. I am the second to the last in the family; we grew up in church, we all play drums and keyboard. Were your parents in support of dump­ing your job as an accountant for music? Not really. Like I said earlier, I started singing in the Children’s Choir and had their support but when I wanted to quit my job, my mum es­pecially did not agree. She was like, how would you be able to take care of yourself; she was worried. I had to explain to her to make her see reason.

Controversial Singer Maheeda Talks Being Jealous of Tiwa Savage.

Singer Maheeda is known for more than just her music as she is almost always posting one controversial picture or the other on her Instagram page, while also going nude in her music videos. Last year BN had a chat with Maheeda (click here if you missed it) and the singer is once again opening up, to Encomium magazine, about a lot of things – her feelings about soft porn star Afrocandy, being jealous of Tiwa Savage, her husband, her daughter, her religion and so much more.

Victor Moses returns to Chelsea on November 27, 2014 at 9:16 pm

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has confirmed that winger Victor Moses has
returned to parent club Chelsea after suffering a thigh injury.
Assistant manager Mark Bowen had earlier
revealed that he thought Moses would be out
for between six to eight weeks and now in his
press conference before the game against
Liverpool Hughes has said that Moses has
returned to Chelsea.
Moses joined the Blues from Wigan but he
failed to work his way into the first team and last season went out on loan to
Liverpool. .
However he struggled there as well and hardly featured yet his time with
Stoke has definitely been more successful.
He is considered a key player by the management and his absence will be a
huge blow for Hughes and his coaching staff.
It is currently unclear whether or not the loan has actually been terminated
but it seems as if Moses has just gone back for treatment.

BILL WINSTON BIOGRAPHY

Bill Winston is the visionary Founder and Pastor of Living
Word Christian Center, a 20,000 member church located in
Forest Park, Illinois, and Tuskegee Christian Center in
Tuskegee, Alabama. Other entities under his leadership
include: the Joseph Business School, with eleven schools at
partnership locations across the U.S. and internationally;
Living Word School of Ministry and Missions; the Forest Park
Plaza (a 32-acre shopping mall) and Washington Plaza (in
Tuskegee); Living Word Christian Academy, and Golden Eagle
Aviation among others.
He’s the Founder of Bill Winston Ministries (a ministry
outreach that shares the Gospel through television, radio, and
other media), and President and Founder of Faith Ministries
Alliance (FMA), an alliance of more than 500 churches and
ministries under the covering of Dr. Winston in the U.S. and
overseas.
Before starting a business career and later a full-time ministry,
Bill served six years as a fighter pilot in the United States Air
Force, receiving numerous awards, including The Distinguished
Flying Cross, The Air Medal for performance in combat and
Squadron Top Gun Award. He received an Honorary Doctorate
of Humane Letters from Friends International Christian
University.
Bill is married to Veronica and is the father of three children
Melody, Allegra, and David and grandfather to eight.

Sammie Okposo nominated for SABC Crown Gospel Awards.

NIGERIAN gospel artiste, Sammie Okposo, has been nominated in this year’s
Best of Africa category at the SABC Crown Music Awards. Okposo is the only
Nigerian artiste nominated for the awards and in same category with four
other African gospel artistes, including Frank Chimpazi, Shongwe & Khuphuka,
Saved Group and Seapour N.
The awards, now in its seventh year, will be held at ICC Arena, Durban on
November 23. Over the years, it has been described as the most prestigious
and credible gospel music awards out of Africa. Sammie said the nomination
came as shock because he was not expecting it.
“Firstly, all thanks to God for His grace and excellent spirit. He is the only one
who blesses a man and lifts him. I’m grateful for the nomination. But for me, it
means more hard work. Many years after I won the Kora Awards Best Gospel
Artiste in Africa, my works are still much in demand and here is another
nomination as the Best of Africa Gospel Artiste. It’s an honour,” the Globacom
ambassador stated.
The award’s founder and executive producer, Zanele Mbokazi, said: “Seven is
a number of perfection. We thank God, our partners and the Gospel industry at
large for helping us to reach this milestone.”
The organisers also announced that Sammie Okposo would be performing at
the event scheduled for November 23, at Durban ICC Arena in South Africa.

"DR. ABEL DAMINA IN MAXIMUM IMPACT MINISTERS RETREAT 2015"

Maximum impact ministers retreat is a divine idea conceived in the heart of God's son Rev. Moses Ezedebego to be a platform where Ministers of God gather for time of refreshing, encouragement, discussion and intense ministry of the word of faith. Ministers of the gospel deserve time out to relax, pray, recuperate and plan ahead for the work. Ministry is highly demanding and sometimes, full of challenges so there is strong need for time out like this "RETREAT". It is purely God's idea for us to stay in serene atmosphere, void of hustle and bustle that characterize every day activities both in family and ministry. A minister of the gospel is carrier of leadership responsibility from whom much is expected of. His family, church and society places daily demand on his anointing. Meanwhile, preaching is the hardest job anybody can do; lot of energy is exerted on that, hence the need for retreat to refill, service and re-fire. Rev. Moses and Pastor Ruth, his wife have obeyed God in this direction and it is yielding positive results. It is already n annual event that takes place every February. Mark this date in your yearly calender for "MAXIMUM IMPACT MINISTERS RETREAT". Venue: Dolly Hills Hotel, 3-3 Onitsha, Anambra State, Nigeria. Date: 16-18 February 2015. Registration #1000 for Retreat materials. Free feeding and accommodation implies. For more info call,; 08132326250; 08033774912.