Working with men has made me to learn meekness, says Aderibigbe

Recently, Ijero Baptist Church, Ebute Metta (West), Lagos, organised a send-forth service in honour of their pastor, Rev. (Mrs.) Olayemi Titilope Aderibigbe, who retired from the church. She told CHRIS IREKAMBA that God has another assignment for her outside the church.

• If The Home Front Is Not Good, It Could Affect The Ministry

Is it true that you are the first woman in the Baptist Church to hold this post?
In the entire Lagos Conference yes, I am the first, but in the Nigerian Convention, I am the second.

How did you become a pastor in Baptist Church?
First, I was born and bred in the Anglican Church. I did my baptism in the Anglican Church, but in 1977, by virtue of marriage, I became a Baptist. In those days, it was believed that your husband’s church automatically became your church after marriage. So, I started integrating myself into the Baptist teachings and doctrines. So, I had my baptism again, as well as every other thing. I just had to completely switch over to his denomination, and that was how I became a Baptist.

I went for pastoral training in the Baptist setting, after which I became associate pastor to the then Rev. T.A. Fashipe in the children church. When Rev. Fashipe retired, the call came that I should be the church pastor, but I rejected the offer, because I was looking at the challenges of being a church pastor and such things. I encouraged them to call another pastor, which the church did. The pastor only stayed with us for three and half years, after which I was made the pastor. I had a male associate pastor, Rev. Shobinmi and thinking it was going to be tough, I went to him and he counseled me.

Didn’t you seek God’s approval through prayers?
I did alongside the other pastor. We both prayed together to get confirmation and he told me that if we miss this time, they would go out to bring another person. And with that confirmation I became the pastor.

How did you feel ministering in a male dominated area?
It hasn’t been easy, but God’s grace saw me through and I will always say that when God is involved, He would surely see you through. God has been involved with me in this ministry. And it has made me to learn a lot of things about being meek and humble. It has really made me to be broken, but God has moulded me.

The Guardian learnt that the next pastor would also be a woman. Is it a tradition?
No. The woman coming is going to be on acting capacity, until the church decides what exactly they are going to do. For now, she is the acting church pastor.

Why then are you retiring?
As a Baptist pastor, the mandatory retirement age is 65. I have just clocked 60, but as I said in the church, the Lord is asking me to move out of the church, that He has got another assignment for me. That is why this is an early retirement. So, I am not yet due for a retirement, but if you have spent up to 10 years, you can ask for an early retirement.

So, where are you going?
Where I’m going is more of a private thing, but it’s still under a church. It is the Potter’s Baptist Church in Agege. I will be worshipping there, as the presiding pastor. We have a full time pastor. In that locality, we have no Baptist Church, but by God’s grace we are having one there. Then, I have a women’s ministry that is tailored towards women and widows, and I happen to be one. So, my area of ministry is on women and widows.

How do you fund it?
When God gives you a vision, He will always make the provision. I have spoken to people around. The ministry has been in existence and this is the ninth year. Every September, we have a special programme at the National Stadium; it’s just that I will be fully involved now. I’ve started informing people about it. We’re depending on the Lord.

As a widow, how has it been coping with the work and taking care of your children?
To God’s glory, I became a widow 20 years ago. My husband died in 1995. I think the youngest was about four years old then. I have four boys and to God’s glory, they are all now graduates in different fields. So, by the time I was going into the ministry, they were all growing up. The last two were in the boarding school and the others in the university. So, I had ample opportunity to give my time fully to the Lord. And To the glory of God, the children are doing fine. This actually has given me peace of mind and improved my ministry, because if the home front is not good, it could affect the ministry.

What is your advice to other women?
What I can say is for them to fulfill the purpose of God for their lives and be helpmates to the men. They should also take issues of prayer seriously. Being a helpmate is not just in the household, it also involves praying, and that is a big ministry that the Lord has given to us. We are not just to be at the back or be at home, God is expecting us to rise up to also be helpmate spiritually, physically and materially. It’s not only working, because those are material things. If only women would spend the same amount of time they spend on getting money on prayers, there would be a lot of improvement in the home and in the nation.

While ministering, you said you had a dream that a woman would be the president of Nigeria. When is that dream going to materialise?
As I said, it was a dream. Joseph had a dream, but wasn’t sure when it would be fulfilled. At the appointed time, however, the dream materialised. With God, all things are possible.

Remember what happened in America years ago. Martin Luther King said he had a dream that a black man would rule America. Everybody thought it was not possible, but today, hope and dream came into reality and it became possible. I have a dream for Nigeria that one day, and it won’t be far off, when a woman would become the president of Nigeria.

Women should rise up for the nation. When you have women in top positions, the fear of God is there and you hardly see them getting corrupt. When a woman is at the top, she will make sure she sacrifices everything to get things right. So, in Nigeria, we want more women to get involved in politics, in leadership role and let’s see what happens. May God help us in the name of Jesus.

But Nigerians have had women in top positions that were corrupt…
They weren’t children of God or were they? I’m not talking of churchgoers. I’m talking about believers, those who hold God’s word and believe in Him.

Do you have a word for President Buhari?
He should look inward, especially concerning those surrounding him, because I believe there is nobody God can’t use. He can even use an unbeliever to redeem a nation. He has done it before and I believe He can and will do it again, but he should pay attention to what the Lord is saying. God can use him to redeem the nation if we continue to pray for him.