Men of God must condemn gay marriage -Bishop Isaac Idahosa

The presiding bishop of God First Ministries, Isaac Idahosa is a man of God with a mission to rescue mankind for God.

He recently celebrated the 21st wedding anniversary of his marriage to Christie, his lovely wife, at their church also known as Illumination Assembly.

The well attended event, which held inside the auditorium of the Lekki Light Centre (LLC) of the Ajah branch of the church, also had in attendance the richest black woman on earth, Folorunsho Alakija.

 Idahosa in this passionate chat with Sunday Express, revealed the secrets of their 21 year-old marriage, why he is condemning same sex marriage, book haram and several other ills plaguing the nation.

In the last 21 years you’ve been married to your darling wife, Christie, how does that make you feel?

It makes me humble. I’m absolutely flabbergasted. What started as a little mustard seed has now become 21 years. It takes God for one to move from a little level to a mega level and we owe God all the glory.

  What has been the secret of this union?

God has been the secret and light. In other words, we embraced education. We knew we had some inadequacies that we needed to work upon and we did not shy away from them. We looked at them and dealt with them squarely and we adjusted and saw God work it out for us.

In the last 21 years, what would you say were the major challenges you encountered in your marriage?

It’s not been without challenges but every challenge got us better. We have passed the initial stage where we needed to understand ourselves because we came from different backgrounds, different cultures and we decided to make it work. We decided to always communicate and appreciate each other. We learnt to forgive each other as well as pray for and with each other.

We also learnt to share our prospects and challenges with each other and as we became sincere with each other, God worked things out. Any two persons who would live together for years without challenges means one of them is dead, and none of us is dead. We’re alive so misunderstandings come but we created room for them and we managed them by grace and wisdom.

 How do you manage misunderstandings?

By talking about them. You don’t close up a chapter you’ve not talked about. Find out the right time and talk about these things. What you don’t confront, you don’t conquer. Don’t assume I know, I don’t assume she knows. We speak our minds at the right time in love and we both accept our faults and move on.

These days marriages crash a lot, as a man of God, what do you think is responsible?

Don’t rush into marriage over infatuation. Let God be involved. Don’t just be moved by physical appearance. Be moved by God’s will, and you must be compatible. Also, the foundation must be set aright, socially, spiritually and otherwise. Imagine a school dropout looking for a graduate; they might have some social problems.

 What advice do you have for young couples who are hoping to last in marriage?

They should learn to keep what attracted them from the beginning. They should allow God take His place and follow His directions. Wives should submit themselves unto their husbands and unto the Lord while husbands should love their wives as unto God. They must also learn to always forgive and forget.

What should men look out for in women when contemplating marriage?

They should look out for a God fearing woman. They should look out for a woman who is able to reduce and run with their vision. A woman that would adjust to their way of life. A woman who is teachable.

What’s your view on same sex marriage?

It is not of God. God hates it and we hate it. God detests it, we detest it. That is not holiness. Holiness means agreeing with what God agrees with. God said, ‘For this cause shall a man leave his father’s house and cling to his wife”. God did not bring another Adam to marry Adam, He brought an Eve, a woman. Adam called her woman because she was brought out of his body.

Same sex marriage is not of God and we appreciate the National Assembly that had thrown out the bill.

 The richest woman in Africa, Folorunsho Alakija was in your church to deliver a lecture on marriage as part of the activities marking your 21 wedding anniversary. How did you make that happen?

Great people would always meet. We passed our invitation to her naturally, and she accepted to come and be a blessing to us. We cannot thank her enough for coming to spend quality time with us.

What are the things you’re still expecting to see in your union?

I expect to have more time to communicate, more time to pray together, more time to share our prospects and challenges. I expect to see our children grow in the fear of God. I expect to see our children and grandchildren. I expect to see us as an institution that people will enviably learn from. We want to lead by example and we want to see people see the light through our lives.

Any plans for more children?

My daughter is 20 and my son is 17. We have drawn the curtain for now. We don’t expect to have more children except God decides otherwise.

How would you describe your wife?

My wife is amiable, teachable and lovable. She’s an epitome of wisdom. My wife is so caring, loving and she’s accommodating.

If there was anything like incarnation, would you marry your wife again?

Definitely. I want to marry and remarry her. I have paid the bride price in advance.

What’s your stand on government’s decision to grant amnesty to Boko Haram members after killing thousands of Nigerians?

They are people we have elected to think for us. So whatever they have thought, we accept.

One think I want to prophesy is that Nigeria will bounce back. Let’s believe in this country. Let’s have love for God, for this country and for one another. We can’t afford to watch this country disintegrate because it’s all we have. Let’s fight our common enemies together and improve on those things that bind us together.