The NATIONAL PRAYER ALTAR

*MARATHON PRAYERS*
Monday 7th March - Sunday 13th April 2025

*GOVERNMENT UPON HIS SHOULDERS*

_For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace_ (Isaiah 9:6).

The Bible passage above is a messianic prophecy about the character and attributes of Jesus Christ. As the Head of the Church, which is His Body, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven while His Body is on the earth. The Son of God reigns over all creation, both visible and invisible, and has committed the government on earth to the Church, His body, for _"the government shall be upon his shoulder…"_ The shoulder is a part of the body; it is not part of the head. It is the divine responsibility of the Church, the Body of Christ, to provide the president, governors, senators, and all the various appointees or electoral officials that exercise governance in the land. This is the calling of the Church. Governance is the responsibility of the Body of Christ, however, the exact opposite is witnessed in Nigeria. Rather than provide governance, the instrument of the State is used to oppress, afflict, and persecute the Church. Could we then say that the word of God is not true? Far from it. The problem is not the word of God, it is the Church, and the problem of the Church is its leadership.

Christian leadership is required to mobilize and harmonize all the potentials of the Church to provide temporal and spiritual leadership for Nigeria. Everything the Church needs to provide government in Nigeria has been given to the Church. Christians constitute the largest demographic group in Nigeria. They are the most educated, the most civilized, and the most enlightened. They constitute the largest group of professionals, academics, intellectuals, scientists, technocrats, skilled workers, and marketplace entrepreneurs. Even the wealth of Nigeria, be it oil, gas, ports, waterways, and the bulk of the arable land, is in Christian owned areas of the country. Unfortunately, Christians are currently an endangered species in Nigeria. Those who kill them are not prosecuted.

Many prayers have been said, and are still being said, for the protection of Christians as well as for divine intervention for peace to reign in the land. So far, heaven has remained silent. God might be waiting for His people to do the very things they are calling on Him to do. It is a spiritual fact that if solution to a problem is available on the earth, God will not provide it from heaven. For the same reason, if an information is available on the earth, God will not give it from heaven. Revelation is God telling a man what no one can tell him on the earth. God only provides from heaven what man cannot provide on the earth. That is why God gave humans brains, to think and apply the solutions of God on earth. The major problem with Christianity in Nigeria is that many Christians have been put into neutral gear by some church leaders whose only message is "miracles" and "divine breakthroughs." Some churches do not teach members to think; they only teach them to expect miracles.

The Church in Nigeria is not operating in dominion because it does not raise disciples. The Church has a generation of leaders whose specialty is raising spiritual babes whom they refer to as their “children”, and who also refer to those brothers as “daddy in the Lord”. This practice amounts to a violation of the Lord’s command in Matthew 23:9 _"And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven."_ It takes “sons” to exercise dominion. Nigeria is groaning in expectation of the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom. 8:19). Unfortunately, most churches keep producing babes in Christ who find it difficult to dominate their environment and establish the Kingdom of God in the land.

One major shortcoming of most Christian assemblies is the failure to teach about the Kingdom of God. Christianity is basically about the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. Both Jesus and John the Baptist started ministry in Matt. 3:2 and Matt. 4:17 proclaiming, _"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."_ In Matt. 6:33, Christians are commanded: _"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."_ Many church leaders inundate believers with messages of earthly wealth and prosperity. In the process of scrambling with the children of the world for the mundane things of the earth, Christians lose the righteousness of the Kingdom of God.

If Christianity in Nigeria would be victorious, the obsession of many churches with mammon must cease, or in the alternative, a new generation of leaders must rise to lead the Church. So long as a generation of greed and vanity-infested leaders are in control of the Church, Christians will continue to suffer defeat and oppression in the country.

There must be a return to Christlikeness in the Church. Jesus reigns over the universe, and at His name every knee shall bow. The method Christ used to conquer Satan is the same method that will work for the Church. Christ proclaimed, _"My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work"_ (John 4:34). In John 14:30, Jesus said, says, _"for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me,"_ confirming His holiness and separation from the world. How many Christians can make the same affirmation?

On the physical level, there must be conscious plans to take the kingdom of Nigeria and hand it over to Jesus Christ. The Kingdom of God will not be established in Nigeria merely because people prayed, but because, as Christians, they also worked, for _"Faith without works is dead."_ (Jam. 2:26). As pointed out in a previous prayer call, no one wins an election because a prophecy was proclaimed over him or because anointing oil was poured upon his head. You win elections because you have political structures. Naturally speaking, the politician who does not pray but builds political structures will win an election over a Christian who prays but has no structures. Christians should not be deceived that a miracle would take place and a Christian without a political structure would win an election. Angels neither vote nor count votes. Therefore, the candidate must be in control of those human beings who vote and those that count the votes, while he still prays. God intervenes in human affairs when they have tried their best, but it is not enough.

Rather than build Christian political structures, Christians in politics unfortunately hire the political structures of the Muslims. It is Muslims who control the existing political structures in Nigeria. This is the reason Christian politicians become helpless after getting into political office and they are unable to stand or speak for Christian interests. Many Christians blame Christian politicians for the failure to defend Christian interests, but they seldom ask which structure put them into the office.

If the government would be on the shoulders of Jesus Christ in Nigeria, the following points should be noted.

1. Christians must realize they have a divine mandate to provide a righteous government for Nigeria. until they do so, the land would continue to mourn and suffer. God will not do what man is supposed to do.

2. leadership is crucial. Christians must agree to follow a leadership structure that will be the point of convergence. The various Christian groups must unite under one political leadership in the Church. In a previous prayer call, it was stated that the body established by the five Church groups in 2001 for this purpose is the Christian Social Movement of Nigeria (CSMN).

3. Christians must be prepared to fund their political structure. This can easily be done if each Christian agrees to contribute a token amount every month. The political process in Nigeria was intentionally designed to be very expensive, so that only the rich can participate.

4. training of interested candidates must commence. It is still not too late to prepare candidates for the 2027 elections. It is indispensable for Christian candidates to have basic understanding of the principles of the Kingdom of God, before they enter a political office. The National Prayer Altar is making that arrangement

5. Christians should obtain their Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC), and Party Registration Card (PRC). While the PVC will enable them to vote on election day, the PRC will enable them to influence decisions of political parties. It is those with PRC that will decide which candidate would run and who should be a delegate at the party primaries.

_Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves._ (Matt. 10: 16).

God bless Nigeria.

*PRAYER POINTS*

1. Isaiah 9:6 Thank God for the divine mandate upon the Church to provide government for Nigeria. Pray that this revelation shall become real to every Nigeria Christian.

2. Ps. 133 Pray for a fresh anointing of unity upon the Church, so that the Christians would work as one to fulfil the mandate of providing leadership for Nigeria.

3. Rom. 16:17-18 Pray that Christians shall be diligent and determined to resist those who will seek to divide the Church from fulfilling the divine mandate of providing righteous government for Nigeria.

4. Matt. 6:10 Pray that the government of the Kingdom of God shall be established upon Nigeria.

5. Titus 1:10-13 Pray that God will silence all ministers of the gospel who preach prosperity at the expense of Christlike discipleship.

6. Lam. 3:37 Cancel every utterance or confession to the effect that ungodly and wicked politicians shall continue to rule Nigeria in 2027.

7. Rev. 12:10-11 Plead the blood of Jesus to counter and nullify every sorcery, satanic ritual, and enchantment to retain the throne of Nigeria in the hands of Satan.

*JOIN US AT THE DAILY PRAYERS FOR NIGERIA*
Which started since 18th April 2022
TIME: 9.00 – 10.00pm daily WAT (Nigeria time)
VENUE: ZOOM
https://zoom.us/j/96806190505?pwd=K2RqcUN3YjRwQzEzRDZaMUt2N1ZsUT09
Meeting ID: 968 0619 0505
Passcode: 024184

*LINK TO MARATHON PRAYERS ZOOM ROOM*
https://zoom.us/j/94064259957?pwd=bm13eDlSNTMrZWhVdTl5bmNRRlBHQT09
Meeting ID: 940 6425 9957
Passcode: Altar

repent@csmnigeria.org

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This article is a Must Read article. Trust me, it's worth your time if you love to see a better Nigeria.

*THE WAY OF OUR ELITES*

*by Moses Oludele Idowu*
*Saturday, 13 July 2024*

_*Copied from his Facebook page*_

A major challenge facing this nation today is that people who are trying to fix Nigeria don't seem to understand the problem of Nigeria. What they are focusing as the problems are not the real problems but the offsprings which the problem brought.
I have heard repeatedly trumpeted by many including scholars that corruption is our major problem. Well, It is not. It is merely the effect or symptom of the problem.

The problem of Nigeria is neither stealing nor corruption. It is the absence of a *culture of honour* among both leadership, elites and the commonality. The trouble with Nigeria, the real trouble with this nation dying on its legs under a succession of weak, corrupt and incompetent rulers deficient of honour and credibility is the absence of what some sociologists call "culture of honour."

You see it everyday and everywhere. In the churches, mosques, universities, government, boardrooms, palaces, streets etc. The trouble with Nigerians is that they lack honour. They don't even know what honour is. And as is the people so is the leadership. This is the cancer that has eaten this nation to carcass and corruption is merely the effect, the symptom.

It amazes me that even Nigerian scholars have never seen this and have stumbled on it. It is a mystery to me.

Today you can do anything in Nigeria and get away with anything. Yes, virtually anything. Once you have money and the right links and connections. The only crime is to be poor and powerless.

Because Nigerians can do anything for money - anything. With money anything -and everything- is possible in Nigeria. You can turn a prison room to a 5- star hotel, you can turn policemen to your errand boys or girls, you can rig election and overthrow popular will, you can kill a story and plant another in newspapers, you can alter grades of your ward in universities, exchange scores, change postings, acquire any title, influence judgement of the courts, torpedo results.... Tell me what is not possible in a land without Honour and without shame.

A politician was freed by all the courts in Nigeria for corruption only for the same politician to plead guilty in Britain for the same offense that he was freed by Nigerian courts. What is the difference? One land knows something about culture of honour and it has not completely died among them while another land inspite of her loud religiosity has none.

That is not the tragedy in itself. The real tragedy?

When that politician finally came home after serving his jail term, he was received with such a rousing and roaring welcome by his people that even the world wondered what kind of people are Nigerians; what specie or breed of humanity are these people called Nigerians?

The Wadume whose kidnapping led to the loss of policemen on duty was only given 7 years in jail - a slap on the wrist. Because Nigeria runs a two - tier system one for the poor and for the rich. And this system is.most visible in its justice system. When that fellow returned home he was received with joy by his people the same way a hero is received after returning from a dangerous expedition.

That is the land called Nigeria.

The trouble with Nigeria is not the Constitution, Igbo Triumphalism, Yoruba Traditionalism or Fulani Hegemony or Islamic Fatalism or even effete Christianity or bribery and corruption. It is that we are not a people of Honour. We lack honour. We can do anything for material gain.

I want this essay to be brief so I will only cite one example that you can also independently verify.

Karl Marx rightly believes that attitudes, opinion and moral quality of the elites of any given society shapes the generality of that society. Assuming that is so let us look at our elites today to establish the thesis that I put forward here.

It is easy to prove that our political elites lack honour. They demonstrate it daily by their ways, their actions and their modus operandi.

A common practice now among our political elites is to rush to court to stop the process whenever their tenure is about to be investigated. You were in power for 4 or 8 years spending public money and now a legally approved body wants to make an inquest to establish how you serve the people and what you did with your oaths of office and how you dispense public funds yet you are angry. Isn't that strange?

A man of honour should be happy that a real opportunity has landed for him to clear his name and establish his honesty.

A true scholar will be happy when other scholars want to assess his works and interrogate his ideas and submissions for proper scrutiny. Here is an opportunity to test his theories and the authenticity of his ideas before an enlightened audience.

Not so for our politicians because they lack that culture we are talking about.

A former governor of Lagos served for only 4 years. But after his tenure, the State House of Assembly decided to investigate some of the transactions he made as governor. I thought someone with a culture of honour should be happy that finally, the opportunity has come to establish his honesty. Not so. He went to court to stop what an assembly was empowered under the Constitution to do.

That is the way of the Nigerian elite.

Another former governor in Rivers State went to court to procure "a perpetual injunction" restraining anyone from investigating, inquiring, examining - and what have you? - into his tenure. What Nigerian courts cannot do, only God knows.

I used to think very highly of Mallam Nasir El- Rufai just as I used to do of another Fulani, that non-starter from Daura. Abraham Lincoln has warned that you don't know a man until you have tested him with power. He was right.

The Kaduna State House of Assembly is investigating his 8-year murderous and disastrous leadership when Kaduna became a killing field for the Fulani insurgents. Pronto, he quickly rushed to court to stop a body of legislators from doing what is their Constitutional right to do.

You can see that the elites are the problem of Nigeria. It is not just that they are ignorant, sometimes they could be downright mischievous and nationally subversive. They lack culture of honour. Why put obstructions on the path of examining your tenure if you have done well? Why use the court to obstruct the normal functioning of democratic organs?

Because there is an absence of culture of honour.

Our elites would do anything if they know they will get away with it.

Have you noticed another trend in Nigeria?

Whenever any of these people is brought to trial, he feigns sickness and pain and even collapses before live camera. Suddenly, they lack strength, stamina, health to withstand trial. After trying to use the court to stop their trial without success they move to the next stage: drama. Pretending to be sick and in pain so as to escape trial.

How many will I cite? They are always sick when it is time to try them.

A former power minister is the new sensation. He is been tried for misappropriation of N30b and suddenly he is in pain and can't continue with trial. Next he wants to travel for overseas medical check-up to delay the trial....

That is our elites and that is their way. Deficient of honour and truth, bereft of credibility and even honesty they are leading the way to beat the system and game the system. What nation rises to the top with an elite such as this?

That is the trouble with Nigeria.

One thing is certain: the politicians of the Fourth Republic are not as manly and honourable as their predecessors in the Second Republic. Those ones, some of them had honour and they were real men not cowards. At least they faced military tribunals as men and without buckling or betraying emotions and without pretense. Some of them gave fire to the military by firing back at them like Abubakar Rimi, Jim Nwobodo and even Bola Ige. These were real men who were not afraid of even soldiers and spoke boldly at their own trials. These were men with strong backbones not like those of today who are feigning sickness and pain because they have backbone of jellyfish. Even an old man like Pa Adekunle Ajasin went through the ordeal of trial and detention without weakening or fatigue. These were real men of honour, men who fought colonialism who could not be intimidated by the small boys in khaki.

I can't remember a single politician of the Second Republic who feigned sickness during trial or collapsed even when the judgment was given as harsh as it was then. These were real politicians, strong men, not boys in adult frame or women in men's attire.

We do not have such men again in leadership. In their place we now have cowards, crooks, thieves, scallywags, morally - deficient and intellectually- denuded company leading an unfortunate nation on the path of perdition. They are always looking for means to circumvent the system and game the system.

This is where the problem is. I don't know where an elite such as we now have will lead a nation to except to perdition.

There is plenty truth though uncomfortable in what investigative journalist, David Hundeyin said about Nigerian elites that in their mental capacity (and depravity too) and orientation and even worldview and moral quality they are not better than okada riders.

A WikiLeaks has one of Nigerian First Ladies named in illegal oil bunkering. Another First Lady is documented for money laundering. Another recent one is involved in kickbacks from helicopter sales for Army. Even when they ate free food, travel at government expenses and receive all the perks they still must steal. It is in the blood. Because there is no honour.

I can take every segment of Nigerian Society - clergy, media, police, Army, private sector, scholars etc for the Honour Test and they will all fail. And fail woefully too.

The Watergate scandal is the proof that when a culture of honour exists in a nation even a President can do nothing but bow out in shame. If Nigerians decide to act with honour and imbibe the culture of honour it will be difficult for a wicked ruler to arise and to have his way. It is not easy to steal public money. It is not easy to take money from government ministries. But when there is no honour and all the board members and governing council members and MDAs are manned by thieves then it becomes easy.
That is what we are facing. That is the real trouble.

Fix honour first. Teach the children to act with honour. Let all the universities begin to teach Civics to all students about Culture of Honour.

* Fear God.

* Pursue Right relationship with your fellow man.

* Dont take what does not belong to you.

* Don't pay more than a fair price for any item.

* Don't pay anyone for doing what the government already pays him.

* Don't receive the pay you didn't earn.

* Submission to rule of law.

* Don't pervert or subvert legitimate authority..

This is where we missed it. This is what we lost and why we are lost. And this is the way to return and retrace the steps.

Without honour, Constitutions won't help us; Parliamentary or Presidential system will be a waste of time. Nigeria is like a car stuck in the mud: the answer is not more fuel but traction. Nigeria does not need more money, more fuel, it needs traction, it needs to get out of the mud. And that traction that will remove its tyres from the mud is called *Culture of Honour*

Study history. Every true revolution begins here. No nation has witnessed a revolution without a segment or sections of that nation first discovering this Culture and imbibing it. The English revolution had the Puritans, the French Revolution had the Jacobins; the Russian Revolution had the Bolsheviks, the American Revolution had the Sons of Liberty... Okay, tell me who will spearhead the Nigerian Revolution? Which segment of Nigerian nation today do you have any group with a culture of honour who has not been compromised?

That is where the trouble lies. That is where we missed the road and lost our bearings. The last time I heard there is Yahoo Boys Mother's Association. Soon there will be Armed Robbers' Wives Association and Successful Looters Association. Once honour is lost in a society, everything begins to fall apart. Everything is possible because there is no more shame. It is like that.

Let us return to this Culture, old and young, rich and poor. And we will be blessed.

©️ Moses Oludele Idowu
July 13, 2024

_Moses Oludele Idowu is the President of People of Honour Initiative, an NGO dedicated to inculcating the culture among Nigerians._