John Oakes Reports on Missionary Teaching Trip to Africa

March 11, 2019 No Comments By admin

By Dr. John Oakes – San Diego, CA, USA
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08 Mar, 2019

Abuja, Nigeria, January 3-10

I arrived in Abuja at 5:00 A.M. This was a tougher than the average set of flights. Abuja is a city of five million. It is the second city of Nigeria and is the political capital. It is a sort of an artificial city, as it was carved out of countryside beginning in the early 80s as a brand-new city. This was done so as to create an alternative to Lagos, the financial capital of Nigeria. This was probably a good idea because Lagos is a massive city and is very chaotic. Second, Lagos is in the southwest corner of this large country and a more central capital like Abuja is a wise idea. A key thing about Nigeria has to be kept in mind; This is not a united country, religiously. The north of the country is predominantly Hausa in culture and language and Muslim in religion. The south of the country is predominantly Yoruba or Igbo in culture and language and Christian in religion. Abuja lies near the divide between the two and therefore it is a religiously divided city. The two do not mix well here in Nigeria.

I am met by Shadrach Obasa. Shadrach, with his wife, leads a family of five churches here in the central and northern parts of Nigeria. They call it the Northern Block. We have been friends for 15 years, since my first visit to Lagos. The church here in Lagos is about 230. It has grown much since my first visit 12 years ago with my daughter, Kate. Most of the churches here in this part of Nigeria have been growing. Because Abuja is a more prosperous city, the church is financially stable and able to support a few plantings. They recently hired a campus minister. Other churches include Kaduna and Jos. This is a country of 180 million plus inhabitants. It is the most populous country in Africa and is quite crowded. Imagine a country about 25% larger than Texas with 180 million people. Now you get Nigeria…Read more on disciplestoday