MY BACKGROUND AND THE HISTORY OF MY LIFE

Apostle Philip Olawale Folorunsho Ojo Ilesanmi; The man, The mandate, The ministry.

The mood was tensed, hearts were heavy, and the tear glands seemed to have dried up when after nine months the expected shout of joy turned to a wait without an end in sight. My mother had carried me in her womb beyond the stipulated nine months and this left the whole village worried as to what might happen. Rumors were spreading faster than wild fire, hypothesis were soon becoming theories and all sorts of metaphysical interpretation and applications took center stage. At the twelfth month the wait was finally over. I was given birth to on the 24th July 1970.

One would expect that the worst was over, owing to the fact that I had stayed in the womb for an extra three months. It would have been expected that I had developed certain advancement from the womb. Unfortunately, it took six years before I could walk. The untimely death of my mother and the rather unfortunate situation of my father made things even more unfortunate for me. I was dragged about in a basket, left behind at all times and the only fun I had as a child was by watching other children play. Constant visits to shrines led to uncountable incisions, concoctions and so many deeds than I can recount.

“Wale! Wale!! Wale!!! Arise and walk” seems to be the only spoken words to me. Desperation and ignorance pushed my folks to get me invested in so much diabolic practices. It was an established theory in my town that a child who refuses to walk was a serpent and as such should be given to the river for a sacrifice. My folks had come to accept this theory and were on the verge of carrying out this act. All necessary propitiation had been carried out and they were on the way to carry out the final deed of casting me into a river when they came in contact with an old man who advised that I be taken back home because I was sure to walk sooner or later.

But the ways of God is not and cannot be likened to the way of man. It was a fateful Sunday which also happen to be an Easter Sunday and as usual I had been left behind while others had gone out to celebrate the day. On their arrival, I walked to the door to welcome them. So many things were attributed to the miraculous that had happened but the scripture in Zach 4:6 which says……..not by might, nor power but by my spirit saith the Lord of hosts.

The circumstances of my birth seems not to dissuade the enemy, my growing up again was wrath with diverse incidence and one of which I remember vividly was my experience with a snake. It was a clear skied day and a snake out of the blue bit me and spat into my eyes disappearing at the same instance. This marked a return to the shrine. This did not end here as an uncle of mine who was well vested in the occult world become very interested in me. This marked a full blown exposure to satanic rituals, dancing before idols, masquerading and all sorts. In as much he showered me with so much love, he was an instrument in the hands of the devil to further derail my God given destiny. But God always made a way for His own. At one of our numerous consultations with the oracle of the land, an instruction was given that I stay away from marrying to any lady from my village and I should find my way to Lagos because that’s where I would meet my wife. The priest also gave a prophecy that I would be great and well-travelled. Of this they were correct.

Taking heed to the advice from the priest, I relocated to Lagos. I took residence with a relative at Mushin area. While staying with him, I learned vulcanizing, and a trade in aluminum works. Hostilities from my relative was unbearable and eventually I got kicked out of the house like a thief in the middle of the night. In my time with him, I had associated myself with all manner of vices and ungodly companies which emboldened me to become notorious. I became a member of a band as an errands boy. I remember one instance when I made a trip back to the village and a friend saw the t-shirt I had on. He inquired how I got such a shirt, he furthered by saying that I must have stolen the shirt and he was certain that I was to going to become an armed robber. Like I prophecy, when I got back to Lagos I found myself in company of some guys who introduced me to robbery. We moved from town to town stealing artefacts, idols and everything that our paths crossed.

A lot of the people I moved around with kept dying but that didn’t deter me from continuing in my nefarious activities. Just like every other person I had an experience which gave birth to a period of reflection. On one of our many devilish sojourns to steal an idol, we were disappointed as the idol in question had been relocated because of a festival in the village. So on our way back, we came across a party which we decided to attend. While there, we found our way into a room which had all the food meant for guest. So we decided that we do away with the meat meant for serving guests. We did and got a place for the consumption. We ate our hearts out and by 1 am we decided to leave. On our way back, I vomited all that I had eaten while the other person died from it.

When I made a decision to pursue a degree, It was of all gloom and despair. My brilliance was constantly under attack from unseen forces. I had undertaking a university entrance examinations thrice in which my results were withheld. There were instances at which I would get into an examination hall and suddenly dose off or instances of just having unexplained situations with examiners. In my desperation, I got a machinery to sit in my stead for one of my exams and all of a sudden he ran out of the examination hall owing to a rumor that an external invigilator was on ground. True to His words in Jeremiah 29:11, God always has a way of sorting out His own. I eventually made my papers after so many tries and got an admission to study at the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos.

In all this unpleasant phase of my life, I met the lady who ended up being wife but it was rather unfortunate that the forces within wouldn’t allow me do right by her. I purposed in my heart to make her an instrument of sacrifice for money rituals. She got wind of this and she fled from me for a long while.

My encounter with the Lord and the call of God

‘… But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by his grace, To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me.(Gal.1:15-17).

My encounter and surrender to Christ can be likened to the Apostle Paul who was an expedition destroying Christian’s but I was on a path of self-destruction. God saved me, He brought me out of the myrrh clay and gave me a new life. At this time I was called by the name Julius and I received instruction to change my name to that of my late father.

My zeal, passion and commitment to the things of God was unprecedented. In no time, I became an active member of various department and notable the choir department. This new phase of my life came with untold challenges that can’t be recounted. It was rather intriguing that even within the choir department. I faced lot of challenges. I had a discolored teeth and this was the reason for me being secluded from the actual ministrations in songs. While I was in the choir department, I was also a member of the intercessors. In one of our prayer session, I was asked to lead in the prayers and this marked my announcement from the Holy Spirit. He took over from me and ministered in a way that had never be felt before. A lot of instant manifestations and confessions took place and from that day onward I was made the head of the prayer department.

My fiance and I were devout members of my church. We were faithful in our commitment in our duties in the Lords vineyard. God in return was faithful to us. On numerous occasions, I experienced firsthand intervention from Him. These interventions are the reasons for my being alive today. Thing were not rosy on any parameters in my early Christian days but I was encourage by words of Apostle Paul who said ‘…. But this one thing I do… I press toward the mark… (Phip.3:13, 14). I would walk over 5 kilometers to make it to church and at some point, my fiance and I decided that rather than walk back home we could have vigils at night. This we did and the Holy Spirit began to reveal deep secrets to me which eventually lead to my leaving the church. I began worshiping at the Deeper life ministry but this was not for long.

My fiance and I were devout members of my church. We were faithful in our commitment in our duties in the Lords vineyard. God in return was faithful to us. On numerous occasions, I experienced firsthand intervention from Him. These interventions are the reasons for my being alive today. Thing were not rosy on any parameters in my early Christian days but I was encourage by words of Apostle Paul who said ‘…. But this one thing I do… I press toward the mark… (Phip.3:13, 14). I would walk over 5 kilometers to make it to church and at some point, my fiance and I decided that rather than walk back home we could have vigils at night. This we did and the Holy Spirit began to reveal deep secrets to me which eventually lead to my leaving the church. I began worshiping at the Deeper life ministry but this was not for long.

The Mandate.

Having visions and hearing the inaudible had been a part of me from my adolescence but this I had no understanding of. As I began to grow in the spirit through constant fasting, prayer and the word I began to understand what I was experiencing. At this point, I must encourage anyone on the verge of taking a partner to seek the face of God in doing so. My wife was instrumental in the restoration of all that sin and wickedness had stolen away. She tarried with me in prayers and fasting, she was a big encouragement to my growth as minister that I am today. In no time God restored me, I began having vision, hearing instructions and had a clear line of communication with the Holy Spirit. The visions kept pouring in, the voices became clearer and in the midst of all of the hardship I knew the Lord had accepted me to be His ambassador here on earth.

In one of my many visions, I was given a cassette to be swallowed and I was told that it signified the abundance of the word of God that I would disseminate to unravel the kingdom of darkness. At another time, it was revealed to me that there would be no one poor under my anointing. I kept receiving instructions, revelations and encouragement. Then came the one which gave birth to ministry today. In this vision, I received a threefold mandate which are:

• Generational prophetic revival for all nations
• Grass-root evangelism
• Heaven at last.

These mandate has been the guiding light to the activities of the ministry given to me.

The beginning of my ministry

I wouldn’t want to glorify the sufferings and ugly ordeals that we bared during the early days of ministry. Rather I would encourage everyone reading this according scripture Zechariah 4:10 that admonishes us not to despise the days of little beginnings. Reader, what we experienced then was a zero beginning but the Lord was faithful. Things were really bad that the enemy prospered in getting me to poison myself on two occasion.

The ministry started at Ketu one of the suburbs of Lagos, in about a year or two the church moved to another location still within the Ketu area of Lagos. The challenges were much and unbearable. We later moved to a border town of Lagos. Here we were able to rent a room and managed our affairs. The manifestations of Gods power became fully activated in me at this point and the miraculous began to happen. The dead were raised, words of knowledge were released, lives were greatly impacted but in all of these we remained poor. My wife at this point would prefer to address as a brother. Of note is an encounter that I had between September 29th and 1st October 2000. In this encounter, the Lord visited me in my room with a host of angels ministering to me. This encounter went for three days, in which the Lord confirmed to me my calling and I was instructed that I put this day in record as it would of great significance. Today, 29th September – 1st October is set aside for our annual Bethel programme. There was a prophecy that was given in 1930 through Apostle Joseph Ayo Babalola that at exactly seventy years from that day, the lord would raise another apostle in His capacity who will complete the works committed to Him. This prophecy actually coincided with my encounter with the Lord and in a vision, I had an encounter of confirmation with Apostle Babalola.

In our little apartment, great miracles were being perfected through the Holy Spirit and in no time, I received a land cruiser from a person who was led by the spirit to do so. We began experiencing changes in our finances, tongues were wailing and all sorts of rumors kept trending. The church was growing in numbers and ministers from other ministry kept pouring in. At this point, the challenges took a new dimension. We began battling with unfaithful members who would abscond with the church’s money. In one instance, we had budgeted money for the purchase of a land but the member directed to oversee the transactions colluded with others and absconded with the money. At another time, the women wanted to acquire a bus for their activities but it suffered the same fate as with land purchase. Many more happened but we kept moving forward, pressing on towards the direction of the cross.

Something remarkable happened in the year 2005, it was a manifestation of a vision which the Lord showed to me a while back. It was revealed to me that, I would be ordained by a total stranger. True to this vision, Bishop Johnson from Minnesota came down to Nigeria on instruction, he told me that the Lord had instructed Him to come anoint me. A lot of people claimed it was an arranged event, all I could do was to smile and give glory to God for coming through on His promises.

According to divine instruction, we began a crusade in with the theme “hewn down the tree”. The crusade became a platform for open air ministration and lives were greatly impacted. Miracles and salvation were evidence of the move of God in our activities. After many revivals that were carried within Lagos and campuses across Nigeria, I had the leading of the Holy Spirit to move the revival to my home town. For this commission, I gathered a team of intercessors about 63 in number which I engaged in a 21 day dry fast and intensive warfare prayers. I charged them in the spirit as we were going to embark on a journey in which we would be dealing with all manner of principalities and powers. On the said day of our revival, the Holy Spirit revealed to me that was a manipulation in motion designed to frustrate the programme with rain. We prayed against this and we were barely on our way to Lagos when a torrential rainfall began.

The revival was more than a success, the testimonies were overwhelming, and people in their numbers were renouncing idol worship and giving their lives to Christ. The aftermath today is a parish of the church fully rooted and flourishing to the Glory of God.

In one of our crusades held at a mountain in Ekiti state, I came in contact with a man from Kogi state who was moved by my ministration. After the programme, he engaged me in a conversation and asked if I could carry out a revival in his home state. In August 2011, we held the first crusade and the Lord moved mightily. On this occasion, there was a report of a strong man who oppressed the town and after we had conducted our service the said man appeared in my dream to challenge my visit to the land and for setting his captives free. I rebuked him and before we got back to Lagos, I received a call that the said man had died. In kogi state, we held more open air crusade in the township stadium and today, to the glory of God we have a branch of the church fully rooted there.

The battles were intense mostly from within. What I mean by within is mostly from my family and close associated whom I had zero reservations towards. These set of people devised all they could do to bring me and the church to its knees but God prevailed over their devise. Sometimes in 2014, owing to a disagreement with some family members, my child was attacked and for two years, he could barely feed. Other near death experiences happened around me and those confidants that I thought would have words of encouragement for me became mischief makers, they went about spreading destructive stories that had no basis and supporting their claims with the ordeals that I was passing through. All glory to God, the ministry, my family and I are all moving forward in fulfillment.

God had not for once forsaken His church,he always comes through. Sometimes in 2013, the church had planned a prayer retreat on a mountain in Ekiti state. While on the journey, I made a stop to attend to some other matters while others proceeded with the journey. The devil struck. The bus conveying the church members had an accident in which the driver died on the spot. Shortly after I drove by but I had a repeated calling of my name. I made a stop and realised that such an unfortunate incident had happened. In a bid to get the brother who had given upthe ghost to the hospital, I was driving at top speed and one of the car tire bursted. Angry in spirit, I cried unto the Lord reminding of His promises towards me and miraculous the brother came back to life. Everyone that set out on that trip got back home without scratch after the retreat.

The hand of the Lord was and remains mighty within our midst, uncountable are the miraculous things that were performed through me. In his name demons were cast out, the oppressed were set free, the poor and hopeless became wealthy, the sick got healed and souls were won.every single promise of God in word has been made manifest in my ministry. The ministry kept expanding and has been growing inline with his covenant with me. Today, the ministry is present in two states of America in New Jersey and Maryland and He hasn’t stop.

I pray that the Lord shall fortify you with the grace needed to go through the wilderness of life unscathed in Jesus Matchless name.

THE MIRACULOUS

• Many sinners that do come to the presence of the Lord during our various programs do have encounter with the Lord and they do go home saved; there were uncountable numbers of people that had their sanctification experience under the anointing of God that is upon me, while many that have been thirsty for the outpouring of the Holy Ghost do go home fully baptized. There were divers Spiritual gifts that my God do release upon people in the course of our services especially in the course of our Holy Ghost service, worker fire encounter programme and so on. I remember some of the brother that were following me then, I use to teach them how to tarry much in prayer, how to receive something tangible from God, there were some of them that received precious gifts from God, there was one of those brother that use to hear the voice of bird, the voice of fly and that of crying baby, and he will be telling you the message God is passing across.
• One day while we were praying there was a woman that has been carry a pregnancy up and down for good three and half years and in the course of the laying of hand a bird flew out of her hand pits we kill it and immediately the woman fell in labour and she delivered the baby.
• One day while we were praying there was a woman that has been carry a pregnancy up and down for good three and half years and in the course of the laying of hand a bird flew out of her hand pits we kill it and immediately the woman fell in labour and she delivered the baby.
• One day ants were trooping out from the body of one woman in the course of our deliverance service physically, the Lord delivered her from the battle she has been carrying up and down for years and she became free.
• There was a woman that came for deliverance from a well known ministry, she had been battling with the issues of spirit husband, the human later told me that she had undergone so many deliverance on the same problem, she said further, ‘my spirit husband use to appear to me physically at time, most especially when I and my spouse want to have sexual relation together, these evil spiritual husband will beat my wedded husband at times,’ the woman said the issue had led to a serious problem in her matrimonial set up but thank God she was delivered.
• The Lord raised many dead back to live through me, I could remember the case of the wife of one of my ordained Pastor, the baby in her womb had died for good three days, and this woman kept it to herself not until she begin to have pains, she went to the hospital and they confirmed the baby died in her womb, they brought her unto me, and my God revived the baby today the child is about six years old.
• There was a woman that came all the way from the East part of the country with a child of seven years that has no back bone, and the Lord said I should tell her to mould a status with clay like human being that she should be praying on it like this, ‘receive life! receive life!! receive life!!! for seven days and on the seventh day, the Lord proofs Himself and the child walked.
• There was a man that paralyzed for many years it was my God that raised him up in the course of one of our Wednesday deliverance service this man happen to be a well-read person and today he is still in service as a bank manager.
• A man came from Delta state, he was HIV positive, after the counseling and prayer and the laying of hand even before he started his fasting where he was sleeping right there inside the church the Lord visited him and the Lord divinely cured him; he later came back with his wife who happens to be HIV positive also and God cured her too.
• There was a woman in Lekki, she had ‘leukemia’ – cancer of the blood, many ministers of God had laid hands on her but she did not receive her healing, but after prayer my God wrought miracle and she was healed.
• There was an old man, who happen to be a trader in Lagos, and because of many houses that he had in Lagos the wives collides together to kill him (because he married many wives) the man became paralyzed when they brought him to the church it was the God of the apostle that set him free, till today the man is still alive. He later gave a plot of land to the church in his home town for what God has done in his life.
• They brought a man from U.S some years back, he too was paralyzed, I learned that they had spent over a million U.S dollar over his case. His coming coincided with one of our Wednesday deliverance service. On that day the LORD of lords, the King of kings lifted him up and he took his bed and went home. Today, he is happily married.
• One that same programme, someone that fibroid when she saw this man that has been on the will chair standing, her faith was stirred up and she begin to beat the spot of the fibroid saying, ‘fibroid what else are you doing in my body, someone that had paralysis had stood up, and there was commotion she too received her miracle there that same night. Where is your faith, if you have faith, you will surely see the glory of the Lord.
• There was a woman that came from Atan Ogun State, she had ‘hemorrhoids’ she couldn’t sit she couldn’t stand for many years. She was in a total sorry state but my God took over and the devil was put to same.
• Countless numbers of barren women have received their own joy through the anointing of God that is upon me. Many of them have been in their matrimonial home for ten years and above and God did it, are you there and you are still trusting God for the fruit of the womb? Praise the Lord where you are (Isa.54:1), receive yours in Jesus name. A sister came from Caribbean- Island, she had been in her marriage for good ten years, she stayed in the church for three days prayer and fasting, I don’t even believe she could fast, but she did it and she testified to the glory of the Lord, today, she had children.
• The Lord spoke to me one day on the people that came from Ijebu land, He told me to announce the programme ahead of time that the Ijebu people really need deliverance which I did, we fixed the program to one Saturday so that larger percentage of the people will have the opportunity to attend the program, God did great wonder on that day, the miracles that happened that day was the one that catapult so many members of the church that came from Ijebu land to the next level, I remember one brother, he has been in his problem for years, it was after that program that they called him to come and be the chairman of his local government. Many of them testified, till date some of them were still coming to the church.
• There was a chronic Muslim that received an arrow, and one side of stomach had rotted emitting a strong offensive odour his body, after preaching and counseling he agreed to accept Christ, his own miracle was instant and physical, it was seen by all the manner at which the wound covered up; the Lord heal him and he testified.
• There was a chronic Muslim that received an arrow, and one side of stomach had rotted emitting a strong offensive odour his body, after preaching and counseling he agreed to accept Christ, his own miracle was instant and physical, it was seen by all the manner at which the wound covered up; the Lord heal him and he testified.
• At a particular time the Lord directed me to tell the church that they should bring seed to the church for prayer, seed like maize, corn, beans etc, and the Lord said they should look for a very good house that they wish to build and go and throw the seed there, one particular brother did it as directed by the Spirit of the Lord after prayer, not up to six months that the Lord answered him exactly the same building was the type of house the Lord built for him. It was only God that knew the way He did it.
• The Spirit of the Lord stirred me up one day (if I am very sad, or if I am very happy, those two period use to be a time of sign) I prayed for one brother is an Ibo man, the Lord said he should wear my shoe which he did, in less than five months he bought an apartment worth N50, 000,000 (fifty million naira) in one of the highbrow area of Lagos.
• After one of our weekly programme, someone that had fibroid dissipate it out with excreta and brought those small small stones she dissipated to the church the next day (about five of them). she was overwhelmed in gratitude.
• There was a sister that came from one firing church and in the course of the counseling, the Spirit of the Lord instructed her to go and price coffin, and she thought I was joking, she did it jokingly, she brought the money of that coffin and I sheared it among my ministers on the third day, the mother died, the worst part of it, while the dead body was dropped in the mortuary, someone mistakenly took it away thinking it was the remaining of his own late wife and buried her not until the third day that they want to take her away to go and burry her that they discovered that someone has mistakenly took her away, they need to trace those people bring out her dead body again from that grave and re-dress her again before they now buried her, the end of the wicked is not good. Till today, the sister is still a member of the church.

Word of advice and counseling to the people: (Prov.4:10-13)

Briefly, let me tell you some thing you ought to know, the world is a place of challenges, there is no amount of your prayer and fasting that would stop it. The difference between those that overcame and those who didn’t overcome their own challenge is just two things, which I call the two “Fs” – your faithfulness to God and your focus on God, if you are faithful to God, you will keep all His commandment, you will have faith in His word and in His Prophets, and if you focused on God, there is nothing a mortal man can do to you that will shift your attention from where you are going. Prepare your mind, there would be bretrayals even from your most trusted associates. So brace up and focus on God. You will be mocked but if you are faithful to God, He will not let you down, if you have focus in Him; He will never disappoint you. Jesus Christ our Mentor should be your role model not man, He had passed through it, even before the world began, He knew the end from the beginning, people who betray you that you are crying to the point of loosing your salvation, He knew they will surely enter into the vehicle of your destiny one day, but the bible says, you should keep trusting Him, He would not let you down (Heb.12:2). Remember what happen to Peter, one of the twelve, he have faith in Jesus that was the reason why he ask the Saviour to bid him to come Him, and as long as your Peter is still focusing on Christ, he will never sink, but immediately you begin to shift your attention, you will definitely sink. The water of this world will not take you away in Jesus name.

In conclusion, a life of holiness is profitable to anyone who wants be friends with God. Constanly tarry in fasting and prayers, share your worries to God and not man, have faith, give your money, time, intellect and other resource to work of propagating, be of good cheer because Jesus Christ has conquered the world.

Appreciation:

I am forever grateful to God Almighty, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit, for making me what I am today, my sincere thanks goes to my Excellenct wife, (Prophet, Rev. Ilesanmi F. Deborah), my beloved children. I must make a particular mention of Daddy, Evg. Ojo Ade who tarried in intercesssions on my behalf, to those who are constant in prayer for me day and night, my reputable ministers in the Headquarter and all over the branches, my beloved brother Isaac Faith, my sons/daughters in the Lord in U.S and all other places all over the world, I pray we shall all make it to heaven at last in Jesus name thank you and God bless.

Rise up and let us pray!