A downpour drenched me as I navigated the muddy streets of Ogba, Lagos, to the imposing edifice of Daystar Christian Centre in Oregun.

Despite the downpour, the church was a beacon of light, drawing in worshippers eager to witness the Sunday Thanksgiving service, my first ever in the church in years.

As I entered the auditorium, the frustration from getting drenched was replaced by the warm hum of conversation and the harmonious notes of the choir, creating a sense of anticipation and reflection.

My first service at the church was prompted by the recent social media buzz surrounding the relocation of its founder and senior pastor, Sam Adeyemi.

The social media frenzy after the church’s founder and senior pastor, Sam Adeyemi, revealed he had relocated to the US piqued my curiosity, and I attended my first service there.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Adeyemi revealed the rationale behind his relocation during an interview with Channels TV’s Seun Okinbaloye’s ‘Mic on’ podcast.

Experience

Upon entering the church, I felt warmly welcomed by the ushers’ heart-melting smiles and kind gestures. Arriving just in time for the second service, a beautifully dressed female usher with a smile guided me to a seat on the right side of the auditorium.

The praise and worship from the choirs took my spiritual concentration from zero to ten as I worshipped God from the depths of my heart. A particularly moving moment was when a Thanksgiving song with the lyrics “ese ese, ese o, e ma se” (meaning “Thank you”) brought me to tears. The fantastic spiritual experience did not end there.

One of Daystar’s pastors, Pastor Ayo Bankole, approached the pulpit. He read a scripture, warmly welcomed first-time visitors, and encouraged us to take pictures and share them online with specific hashtags. As the social media-savvy person I am, I took out my phone and began taking photographs that would never make it to my social media accounts.

While I had my reasons to give thanks and danced near my seat, the exciting songs didn’t distract me from the reason for my attendance.

Looking for Pastor Sam Adeyemi

While the praise and worship were ongoing, I scanned the auditorium, hoping to spot Mr Adeyemi. After about five seconds of staring, I still couldn’t see him. My mind told me to wait; perhaps he was preparing for the sermon.

After the testimony, I thought Mr Adeyemi would mount the pulpit. My hope was slightly dashed when I saw another pastor mount the pulpit, but I asked myself, “Was he going to moderate Pastor Adeyemi’s live preaching?”

But little did I know as I heard, “Lord, we thank you, we are grateful for your…’’—out of curiosity, I raised my head and saw pastor Boye Oloyede. He preached on the topic ‘Flourishing Forever’. One thing he said that stuck in my head was

“Whatever you are going through has an expiring date, and a new season will come”, Mr Oloyede admonished the congregation.

From the sermon, I could tell that Mr Oloyede is a sound pastor with a deep understanding of the word of God.

Pastor Oloyede

According to some members, Mr Oloyede, who preached during the second service, is the presiding pastor of the Oregun Centre—all the pastors in the Oregun Centre report to him.

He serves as an associate pastor at Daystar, the lead partner at Hupo Consulting Lagos, and a coach. He got his MBA at York St. John University and is married with two children.

His LinkedIn profile indicates that the strategy consultant has been the team head at Daystar since 2004.

Sam Adeyemi

I approached one of the congregants to find out if Mr Adeyemi attended another church branch or was not in Nigeria. He said he wasn’t in the Oregun branch.

Out of curiosity, rising from the story of Pastor Adeyemi moving to the US, many people wondered if he still preaches. After church, I asked a lady if he still preaches, and she said, “Yes, he does at least once a month”.

The church member, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed the pastor visits the church occasionally.

“He came late last year and was around till early this year. Then I think in between he came again,” She said.

Another member told me, “There is no visible difference. The church is running fine.”

“Pastor Sam Adeyemi is likely to come next week,” another person said.

I observed that Daystar conducts three services every Sunday at the headquarters: the first at 7 a.m., the second at 9 a.m., and the third at 11 a.m. Nigeria has five branches: Oregun Centre, Alimosho Centre, Ikorodu Centre, Lekki Centre, Badagry, and an online church.

The structure and order of the services are straightforward.