Right now in the Niger Delta, one preacher’s name rings a very loud bell – Prophet Jeremiah Omoto Fufeyin of Mercy City. The humble but fire-brand minister of the gospel recently fielded questions from selected media houses – among them, YES INTERNATIONAL! Magazine. From how it all began to where he’s headed, his relationship with Dr. Daniel Kayode Olukoya of Mountain of Fire And Miracles and Prophet Temitope Balogun Joshua of Synagogue Church of All Nations, he bared it all out. Enjoy…
Let’s meet you sir?
I am Prophet Jeremiah Omoto Fufeyin, by the special grace of God. Of course, God called me. I didn’t know I was called for the job, but something happened. I was a businessman managing my business at Burutu, a local government in Delta State, Nigeria.
The business was going down for no reason. And I wanted the business to meet up. I was finding one way or the other to meet up. Then, one of my brothers was contesting for Burutu local government chairmanship election. He invited me and when I got to Warri, we had 12 wards in the local government at that time. Right now, it has been increased. He asked me to paste his posters in about three wards: Burutu, Ogla, Obotebe. He paid N70,000 for poster pasting for each ward at that time. The three wards got me about N210,000. But immediately he gave me that money, I heard a voice that told me not to take the money, that I’m going to benefit from this man. I obeyed the voice. That was how the whole thing started. After pasting his posters, people called to tell him that they had seen his posters. He now said, of all the people I have given money, none of them refused except his brother. He now gathered his family and politicians and told them that I was the only person that didn’t collect money from him. He called me and said, ‘Jeremiah (I wasn’t Jeremiah then, but Omoto Fufeyin). It was my brother that named me Jeremiah. Why did you not collect money and is there anything special about you?’
I told him what my mother told me when I was young. When I was younger, I was prophesying to my mother about everything happening in the village. Two, three days, the prophesy must come to pass and I will call the names of the person (s) or situation involved. It could be an accident, death or anything.
My mother would blindfold, tie and beat me up, calling me a wizard. I was 10 at that time. But because of the beating, I was afraid to tell her anything. At times, when she wants to go to the market, she was selling provision then, I will tell her: ‘As you are going, you will not sell anything!’ When mama gets to the market, she will not sell anything. Some other times, I will tell her that she will sell very well and she would. Market was an interval of seven days. These things were happening, whenever she wanted to go to the market, she will come and bribe me to ask what would happen, I will still tell her. One day, I now told her that she will not sell and she needed money then. My mother now concluded that I was a real wizard and she gave me the beating of my life. My parents had misunderstanding because of this because my father said that all I had been saying were right; why would I be branded a wizard? Because of the beating, cane marks on my body, I stopped prophesying for a long time. Not knowing that the grace is on me, but where to now tap and expand it was not there. I come from a Catholic background. My grandfather brought Catholic church to my village, Ojobo.
So, my brother said that if this boy did not collect money and worked free for me, I want him to stay with me because there will be benefits. He invited me from Burutu and my store was virtually empty. I owed debt everywhere. Where I am today, Mercy City is a story that still shocks people.
I can remember that it was raining on that fateful day, June 1990. Then, I was in the business of cinema, movies; Indian, Chinese films, etc. Anywhere I go, you will see crowd. The money was coming, but I couldn’t use it for anything tangible. That was how I owed a debt of N7,500 at that time. People I owed kept on pestering me to pay. I was the youngest and first person in my village that bought a generator, video set. I didn’t know God at that time. From nowhere, an evil thought entered my mind, telling me to take drugs and die. I sold everything I had. I wasn’t married then. I came to Warri. I bought Valium 10 tablet, 40 pieces. Valium 10 was Valium 10 then, not the ones they produce nowadays. Then, it was one way from Sapele to Benin. Nobody knew my whereabouts. I entered this road and boarded a commercial bike; I asked the man to take me to a thick forest that I wanted to die. He took me to this place (Mercy City). There was no single house here. It was a thick forest. I gave my last money to the bike man. When I entered, I propelled a big rope. The rope was in the event that the drugs did not kill me, I would then hang myself with it. I was on my knees and prayed to God to receive my soul as I didn’t know what was happening to me. Although I know that it is a sin to commit suicide. I then climbed a tree and set my wristwatch, after which I swallowed all 40 pieces of the Valium. I was here for three good days. Rain was beating me, I didn’t know where I was. On the third day, I woke up, it was evening and as I opened my mouth, saliva came out. I thought: so I’m not dead yet. I then looked for the rope, climbed the tree again, hooked my neck, then I jumped. Unknown to me, the angel of this place cut the rope. Before I knew it, I was on the ground. When I fell, I said this is the last, there is no hope again. Immediately, I began to get seriously hungry. I was resting on one of the rubber trees, and suddenly felt a touch behind me. I looked back, it was a huge antelope licking my head. The antelope went back and shook its body. I said, ‘ok, antelope show me road.’ I went to one of the small gutters and drank water. My belly was aching me because I had never fasted for one day. I followed the antelope and suddenly the antelope jumped and when I looked to know why, it was a big snake, shinning. Till today, I didn’t see the head. I reversed myself and followed another path, where the antelope was waiting for me. I followed it till I heard a voice; somebody was cutting firewood or something and the antelope now took another way. I saw a farm. From there, I came out and saw a woman with a child. When they saw me, I was dirty and they said, ‘look at this handsome boy; this world is full of wickedness.’ Her son started stoning me, calling me a mad man. l told her that I was hungry. She prepared garri and soup. After that, she said: ‘This mad man, this world is wicked.’ I told her that I’m not mad. I told her my story. She then asked if I knew anybody there, I said no, but I had an aunty at Makaiva market. She stopped a bike, paid him and he took me to my aunty. When she saw me, she started wailing. She took me to the hospital and the doctor confirmed that I wasn’t supposed to be alive because everything in me had been damaged by drugs. After my treatment, I went to join my brother in Burutu, as I earlier told you. Our relationship was very cordial as he loved me. I did not attend church (service) at that time, but something happened. He was in Port Harcourt and I was alone here because he lives here and also in Port Harcourt. He attends Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries (MFM). He was bringing pastors from MFM to pray with him as election time had come. I was inside the house one midnight and a voice said, ‘Omoto, why don’t you follow your master to church?’ I looked everywhere, I didn’t see anybody. The voice disturbed me throughout that night. Early in the morning, I told my brother that I wanted to attend their weekly service. When I went, I heard how they prayed: ‘Die! Die!’ I wondered if they wanted to kill everybody. I returned back praying for the elction to come and go so that I will not hear die! die!, again. Every one on earth has grace, but the grace has to connect to somebody that will connect it to your original grace. Some people die with their grace; they don’t excel in life. Let me cut the story short, I was taken to deliverance class, they took me through three days dry fasting etc. When I started, I didn’t know I was beginning to build up the grace that was in me. The vision came back, I began to see again.
I prophesied to him what will happen in the election and everything I told him came to pass. He won the election. His name is Frank Zokomu. Because of the prayers, the EFCC did not disturb his tenure because at that time, the EFCC was disturbing everywhere. He now took me to their prayer warrior session, at Enioro junction, Warri. I became an intercessor and I was going to Prayer City (Ogun State) every two weeks. I was fasting and praying until the Lord told me that he was going to use me: ‘Get ready for that,’ He said. Things started happening. The prayer warriors will pray for people, the blind will see and things started happening. Because of those things, MFM here now said I was using diabolical powers. They queried why the blind were seeing, cripples walking, etc.
Let me add this; my father trained his children to graduate level, but during my time, he couldn’t pay my school fess. I dropped out in JSS 3. I don’t know how to speak (well). I didn’t further my education. Whenever it was time to pay my school fees, it’s my name that would be mentioned first and I got driven from class everyday. I decided to drop.
MFM people gathered and drove me out. My boss and all other people said if this young man leaves, we will join him. They were the people buying my clothes at that time. From there, they followed me. Now, politics in the church today is higher than politics in Nigeria and other places. The politics of the PDP and APC is just a joke compared to what is happening in the church today. We started from St. Marys, off Airport Road. From there, we got another place. And miracles started happening. Barren women conceived and gave birth, people whose businesses had died long ago prospered, among other miracles and all these within a short time. People were telling others that if they go there, it is a solution ground.
For no reason the MFM people here convinced my boss that was supporting me to persuade me to come back to church. But the Lord said, ‘You are not going anywhere. If you are alone, be alone, I the Lord will take you forward and you will see my handwork.’ My master now said that if I don’t want to follow them, I will be on my own and that was how they left me peacefully. I now cried to God and said nobody to buy clothes for me again because I didn’t have any money and that was the time I got married. I married from my village. My wife’s name is Anthonia Fufeyin. I have four children and they are girls. I have stopped giving birth because if I give birth continuously, it is not going to help me. As a man of God, I don’t meet my wife at times for six months. I have prayed for her, sexual urge is not there again. Some are saying give birth to boy; which boy? Enoch was a great man of God, he gave birth to Methuselah, his father did not die and his son Methuselah did not take over from him. It was Methuselah’s grand children that took the anointing. It is only God that gives grace transfer. I didn’t say the people that drove me did something wrong. It is the will of God and that supersedes the will of man. I thank God for our movement. Today, by the special grace of God, we are five years and three months. And it is one of the fastest growing ministries so far. We entered here two years and some months ago and we have achieved all the things that God has done. If you don’t see what God is doing here yourself, you will not believe. We have spent billions here. There is no president or governor that has contributed to the success of this place. It was the ordinary people that I prayed for that God embarrassed with blessings and they came, paid their tithes, sowed seeds on their own. I don’t take money from people. I bless people. I have changed and touched lives through the God that I serve because that is what God sent me to do. If it would have been some people, I would have opened branches, but no. The Bible says give and it shall be given unto you. That is what I have been doing. I open people’s eyes and help them start their lives. These are people I don’t know. It has not happened before. My sons and daughters prophesy. When they see you, they tell you your case, they touch you and things will start happening. Anything I do, they can also do it because the grace has been transferred to them. God has given prophets that grace. Today, babies have died and came back to life. We have clips. There are many.
How big is this place and what is your vision for this permanent site?
I don’t know. What I know is that I am a man of taste and a man who helps people. What I am teaching people now is how to succeed in life, how to progress in their ministries. I reveal what God has shown me to them. The plan of this place is that we have some guest houses and we are continuously building. People are asking if we will build schools and hospitals, I said no. Schools are not in my heart because if I now start with school, because of the goodness of my heart, I cannot allow the child of an indigent parent to be sent out of school because of school fees. And I will pay the fees again. Those are things I have to put into consideration. For hospital, it will be an emergency hospital that I will put here. We have mountains here and I will make sure this place will become a tourist centre. We also have a pool of Bethseda here. I was in Israel when God spoke to me to construct it. And it has done many wonders. Many cases that doctors cannot heal have been referred to me, and when they come my God always heals them. Whoever is reading my story and watching me, their lives will never remain the same. They will be blessed in Jesus’ name.
Someone called you T.B Joshua’s first son and a portrait of yourself and Joshua was even presented to you in church. But in a recent interview, you said Dr. Kayode Olukoya is your mentor? Is Joshua your spiritual father?
Spiritual fathers are those you choose to be your spiritual fathers. A spiritual father is not who you force to be a spiritual father. How do you choose your spiritual father? Maybe you encounter the man always in your dream, and what he is doing for you is okay. Number two, you have a problem that cannot be solved by any other person on earth. You take it to a spiritual father, he solves it. You can choose him as your spiritual father. Many people do not know the meaning of spiritual father. A spiritual father is a person you love and you begin to follow.
When I started, some people called me Warri T.B Joshua, Niger Delta T.B Joshua, Delta T.B Joshua, Ijaw T.B Joshua. The anointing started from MFM, but the man Olukoya, I never met him one on one. But when the story started, the people from MFM fasted and prayed. From there, they got to know the truth. Olukoya never touched my head or oiled my hands and said, ‘Go, do like this.’ He doesn’t know me one on one. Only that with what is happening here, he might know me. He must have heard the story. Now, the man called T.B Joshua. I love the man and what he is doing. At a point, the Lord said I should go on dry fasting for 21 days. On the 19th day, I died and woke up the following day. A man who joined me in the dry fasting from Isoko broke his fast and died. He was the General Overseer of his church. The picture is in the office. In that process, I turned to skeleton. I looked like a HIV patient. The man that died ate solid food immediately after the fast. It is not allowed when you go on a long fasting. All the great men of God, I love them. I love anyone who calls on God. During my fast, all the great men of God appeared to me. Dr. Olukoya appeared and taught me things of God. Papa Adeboye, Bishop Oyedepo, Pastor Chris, Kumuyi, all of them and they taught me things, but by the time of T.B Joshua, he appeared like physically and he taught me things. 10 times he appeared to me. When I returned from the mountain, I began to love the man. T.B Joshua himself called me and we spoke. He said people had mailed him from the world over, asking him to bring that his son in Warri to Lagos, that they want to see him. He then asked me why I love him and I told him what I’m telling you. When the building collapsed in Lagos, I paid a visit.
We have people who have direct calling; some others through somebody. Moses was called directly, Elijah directly. Samuel was with Eli, but he was called directly. God mentioned his name. David was called indirectly. He was called through Samuel. After God struck Paul with blindness, he was instructed to go to Ananias to lay hands on him. No man has touched my head and said go and establish. I love T.B Joshua and take him as my spiritual father; so also Oluykoya. You can choose two spiritual fathers. It is your heart. People have seen the way I conduct deliverance and other things and concluded. That is why.
Ever since you started, why have you not had a programme in Lagos?
I have never had a programme in Lagos yet, but people have been calling me to come. I will storm Lagos next year because my children are there, eager and waiting to see me. One thing with God is that one person cannot do the work of God alone, convert or deliver everybody. If a man says I am the only person to conduct deliverance on everybody to receive their blessings, that is a lie. Any man of God can come to Warri and do his own; what God has given to them. I will storm Lagos next year as God permits, but I have not yet heard from Him concerning that, but it is in my mind.
You are so humble inspite of all your achievements, why?
What makes me to be more humble today is that the Bible says that Jesus Christ was among all his disciples, they didnt know who He was and they were all together eating, dressed alike, doing everything in common. They didn’t know until He was betrayed. He said when I kiss him, that is when you will know him. The Bible says God will exalt those who humble themselves. That is a covenant. That is why I practice the word of God as our master Jesus urged us to follow his footsteps. At times when I travel, people will rush and most times mistakenly go to my boys who are always decked in suits expecting miracles from them. Sometimes, I drive and they will sit as car owners. As a result, I move freely. Sometimes I carry their bags. And when my boys touch them, they fall because they also have anointing. I always behave like what my Father asks us to do.
What makes a good pastor?
The Bible says by their fruits we shall know them. It is by their behaviour, character.
What has been the challenges you have encountered in the ministry so far?
I don’t understand the God that called me. Anything I say comes to pass within a short time. When I entered here, it was swampy. God said I will surprise you. I went to my banks, Eco Bank, Zenith and UBA, but all of them asked for collateral, C of O. I said which collateral? And they told me to meet governor to give me C of O, sign, all those things. I don’t know where the governor is. But God really embarrassed me with money. I am not really facing challenges per say, because anything I need, once I say it, I get it. If I pray for anybody, within a short time, it will come to pass. In our media section, like these speakers you are seeing, I bought them N40m. The fly away pack; TV and other cameras altogether was N30m and the lights they are currently fixing is above N40m. We have Apple editing systems here. I play with millions. The only challenge I am facing are people; how to manage my workers.
In a space of two months, a Christian woman was killed in Kano for alleged blasphemy, another in Kubwa for preaching, what are your thoughts as there are rumours that the president wants to Islamize Nigeria?
When you experience those things, the devil is at work. It is only prayer that can solve the situation. Anytime there is trouble, we have to pray. I don’t have time for the rumour about Islamizing the country, but what I need and know is that God can change any situation we want Him to change. The problem we are facing right now is that in the whole world today, God blessed Nigeria with men of God who can speak once and God will answer, but these people hate themselves, especially our senior ones. I don’t know why they hate one another. We are supposed to learn from them. Our Master said we should practice love and they are preaching , but they are not practicing it. That is the problem we are facing, if not will Boko Haram and the rest be making noise? Let all the great men of God gather in Abuja and cry to God and I assure you only one day the entire noise will be silenced. But they are only interested in themselves. They are interested in benefits. We lack love. I am talking of great ministers. You don’t need anybody to tell you that. You understand what I’m talking about. We suspect each other. We accuse ourselves of using evil powers. If you know a person is using another power other than God’s own, why don’t you deliver that person? It is only prayer that will solve the crisis. The Bible says in Psalm 50.15, ‘Call upon me in the days of trouble and I will answer you.’
What is the solution to the myriad of crisis bedeviling the nation, economic-wise?
Brethren, I am a prophet. Whatever thing I say, which God has shown me, it will come to pass. When Ebola started, before it came to Nigeria, I said it will go and it’s gone. Before Boko Haram started, I said that something was coming, but after sometime when they manifested, the Lord told me that it will come down, and when they will be coming down, another one from Niger Delta will come. And it is going to give Nigeria headache. All those prophecies are there. If you go to the media department, you will be given. In December, at crossover, I announced that hunger is in Nigeria, let us pray. If we come together, the hunger will go, but if we don’t pray, it will continue. What will make all these things to stop is through prayers.
Do you have any word of encouragement for Nigerians?
What is happening right now will go down because we are praying. We should not give up. All the men of God should pray because it is affecting every person. Mr. President is confused today. He needs prayers from us, we have to back him up with prayers.
Any plans to go into politics in the nearest future?
Who would like to go back to Egypt? When the Israelites left Egypt, they didn’t want to go back to Egypt because they knew what they passed through. I will never go into politics because I don’t have a choice. We have what we call full time and part time pastors. Part time pastors are those people who are businessmen, contractors, politicians, etc. But full time pastors have no right to do all that; their only focus is God. What I carry is full, not half.
How do you relax?
I eat once a day for a long time now. I don’t really relax too much. In the midnight, I can sit and meditate. I only sleep for an hour everyday. I am a sports man. I was a one-time amateur wrestler. I was never beaten, my records are there. They wanted to put me in Sports Council, I said I cannot not, knowing my life is made for this. I also like to discuss with my old friends, but there is no time again. I love helping people. If I don’t do that, I will fall sick. If I don’t help a person in a week, I will look for them to give them something to start life with. At times when I pray for people and God begins to heal them, I give them money to start life. I also buy cars for people, among other things. In this ministry, any woman that gives birth will be given a cash of N50,000 with baby items. If they are twins,N100,000 and so on.