MY SALVATION EXPERIENCE

I grew up around Christian activities, yet for many years I moved through life without any real sense of direction or a true relationship with Jesus Christ. I did not know that a particular weekend in August 2013 would change the entire course of my life. The events appeared ordinary at first, but they were divine appointments leading me toward salvation.

During that period, I was a student and a committed member of Christ Life Fellowship (CLF) at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Each year, all Christ Life Fellowships across universities in Nigeria held a national gathering called “Exploit”. The program was always highly anticipated, and in 2013, the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB) hosted Exploit. However, the plans of students nationwide were interrupted because of a prolonged Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASSU) strike that lasted for about six months. Many students returned home, including me, and I was not particularly interested in the program.

While everyone spoke passionately about attending Exploit, I remained indifferent. I had no inner drive to go for the program. To me, it was just another Christian gathering. The turning point came because of a very special friend named Adeola. We shared a strong friendship, especially because of our love for music. She believed attending Exploit would be important for me, and she encouraged me consistently. I kept refusing, until one particular day when she insisted that if I would not attend the program, I should delete her number from my phone because she would no longer continue the friendship. Although she was not my girlfriend, her friendship was very dear to me, and I could not afford to lose that connection. That statement forced me to reconsider my decision.

Finally, I agreed to attend the three-day program holding from Friday to Sunday. While traveling to Abeokuta, a thought dropped in my heart. Since I had already made a commitment to attend, I decided to fast and expect God to do something meaningful in my life, even though I did not know what that would look like. My plan was to fast until Sunday, it was just a usual practice I’ve been expose to in my home church, but I eventually broke my fast around 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Despite being used to fasting, I could not complete a marathon fast that day. However, my mind remained open to God.

Saturday’s session, which was the second day of the program, was exceptional. There was a great atmosphere of worship and expectation for God’s manifestation. The minister invited for that service preached a message themed “Fresh Fire,” which was also the general theme of Exploit that year. He spoke passionately from the Book of Acts 2:4 about the power of the Holy Spirit and the renewal believers receive for effective exploits in life. His message did not focus on salvation, yet the power of God was present in an overwhelming way. I did not even know the name of the preacher till date because I never cared about who was coming to minister. It did not matter to me at that time. All I saw and experienced was the undeniable intensity of God’s presence that saturated the whole place.

As the message was ongoing, there were several manifestation of God’s power. Some individuals rose from their seats and kept pacing the floor just because the power of God was ministering powerfully to them, some muttered words and shifted restlessly under the influence of the divine presence, I saw different expressions, yet something different began happening within me. I felt a strong spiritual pull that I could not ignore. The program was holding in a secondary school compound, and the venue used for the gathering was close to several classrooms. After some time, still unable to overcome the indescribable feeling within me, I quietly excused myself and walked into one of the few unlocked classrooms just beside the event venue because I wanted to be alone.

Inside that empty classroom, thoughts flooded my heart intensely. I confronted the reality that I had never genuinely surrendered my life to Jesus Christ. The questioned that kept ringing inside of me was “why have I refused such love?” I was suddenly overwhelmed by the truth that He loved me, that He died for me, and that He sacrificed Himself for my salvation. Yet, I had refused Him all those years. These thoughts were not part of the sermon that day, but they were truths I had learnt from my campus fellowship, especially in believers’ class. In that solitary moment, they became personal. They became a deep conviction.

The weight of God’s presence broke me down. I began to weep uncontrollably because I didn’t know the exact words to tell him, or how to express myself in that state. Tears gushed out from my eyes, after long moment of soberness and weeping, with my nose congested and filled with snot I began inwardly reproaching myself for my stubbornness and unrepentant state up to that moment. Somehow, I was able to form some words, my voice started so low, and I wasn’t even fluent with my words. I spoke at intervals, it was like punctuating my words with the crying. For about a number of times I spoke, all I could manage to say was “I am sorry”. I told Jesus I was truly sorry for being stubborn all the years that’s past, I told Him I needed Him and that I was sorry for delaying such a decision. I asked him to be the Lord of my life. I remember telling Him specifically that I surrender to whatsoever He wants to do with my life. In the middle of saying those words; begging Him to take over my life, joy suddenly filled my heart. It was a joy I had never experienced before. My tears of repentance turned to tears of worship. I remained in that classroom worshipping and thanking God passionately for about thirty to forty minutes. I did not even realize how loud my voice had become until someone came to call me out. I believe he must have heard my voice from outside, which helped him locate me as I was needed to play the keyboard.

I returned to the auditorium with so much calmness and peace within me, I quickly went to the keyboard to set up the voice. Adeola had been assigned to lead a worship session, and definitely, I had to play for her. At that moment, I saw and remembered the faulty B-flat key on the third octave of the keyboard which had been disturbing my playing since we started the program. The key wasn’t just faulty, but it was also broken. Now I knew I have a relationship with God, I was confident to talk to Him and I believed He would hear me. So I closed my eyes and said a short prayer. I told God that from then henceforth, I am committed only to worshipping Him with the keyboard not just playing for show like it used to be. I told God the B-flat key needs to fixed because it had been affecting my playing since the first day of the program, I wanted my music to glorify Him from that day forward. I opened my eyes and the miracle happened instantly; the damaged key was restored perfectly after that one simple prayer. It was the first sign that God was now with me. My faith flew high.

I immediately called FUNAAB’s main keyboardist and asked him: “But you said this key is faulty”? What a question, I asked as if I didn’t know it was faulty. He came closer to me, touched the key and replied: “Yes! What did you do to it?” I did not have an explanation. God had stepped in to show me that He had accepted my life and my gift. That miracle sealed everything God did in my heart that day.

From that moment, I made a firm decision to dedicate my music and my entire life to God. I chose to stop doing gigs for money or personal recognition. My gift would now be for the service of Jesus Christ alone. My salvation marked the beginning of my ministry and the shift of my life into divine purpose.

The events of that Saturday in August 2013, remain a sacred landmark in my life. I walked into that program uninterested and spiritually distant, but I walked out a new creation, set apart for God.