Rev. MacAnthony: Bishop Okonkwo is fearless and stands on the word of God

Chinyere MacAnthony is one of the early workers and minister in TREM; she is also the wife of Zonal Pastor in charge of Zone 3, Gbagada, Rev. MacAnthony. She started with the church in Enugu in 1981, then moved to Ibadan before coming to Lagos.

“I was attending another mission together with then evangelist Mike. When he left, I left with him, because I know he is a man of integrity; he stands on the word of God, fearless and admirable.

“When we started TREM in 1981, there was nothing to write home about; there were no ACs, no windows, nothing to enjoy. It was even built on a swamp, so when it rained, water would definitely enter the church. I was in the ushering department and to keep up with everything, you had to work in more than one department. I worked with the choir – Evangel Voices with two other women. When that area was established, I moved to ushering and then I also started the bookshop alongside Bishop Chinedu Okonkwo,” she recalled.

In those days, she would travel to Ibadan and Benin to purchase books with their money for members to buy.

“After purchase, we’d display the books for Bishop Mike Okonkwo to approve before selling them. I was also translating in the Igbo class; I was in the counseling department. I was also a prayer warrior and I was also the Sunday school secretary. So, as we grew, there was a lot to do. It is safe to say I was everywhere.”

MacAnthony noted that at a point, people began to come and population grew rapidly.

“The music and the word preached by Bishop Mike Okonkwo attracted them from other denominations. I remember our first record, Let Jesus Fix It; it blew in a big way and blessed people. I remember also starting the Greeters Ministry with other ladies. At the time, we welcomed people to church with our smiles; we talked to them in such a way that they felt among. All these happened while we were still at Akoka, Number 14, Afolabi Brown Street.”

She recalled that in the early 80s, TREM had crusades within Lagos, and also went to Owerri where they had a very powerful crusade that birthed ‘Power in the word’ and TREM Owerri.

“I remember also that I was the one cooking and attending to people; we also went to hold similar crusades in Jos and Asa in Aba. There, I attended to people who were ill being a nurse by profession.”

She continued: “There was a time when I left to further my studies in England; I was a pioneer member of TREM in London. There, I was an usher, a counsellor and I was in charge of social welfare. There also, we grew tremendously. When I came back from England, I continued from where I stopped. From the Greeters’ Ministry, I started protocol and now, I have given the younger ones avenue to lead, while I sit back and watch and sometimes give directives. I got married in this commission and became an ordained minister in November 2012.”

Handling all the departments together at the beginning was overwhelming, but being a young woman at the time, the strength was there.

“What kept me going was the word of God. Our mantra in this church is that what you cannot get from the word of God does not exist. Asides that, I believe so much in the man of God and his wife; they are trailblasers; they keep me going as role models. I lived with the Bishop and his wife at Akoka. When she was pregnant, I moved to stay with them too in my early days as a nursing student.”

Looking back from that humble beginning, she said, “I can say that God is faithful; He picked us up from the miry clay and brought us to a banqueting hall. When Bishop was led to build on swamp in Akoka, he did not see swamp; all he saw was a building already standing. We can attest to it that he heard from God. When we started, there were no neighbours, no buildings around; all we had was the word of God. But now, people can be proud to be affiliated with TREM.”

Bishop Mbamara: 40 Years Feels Like We Have Gone Through The Wilderness And Now In The Promised Land

Bishop Walter Chikadiba Mbamara is the Zonal Coordinator of Lagos Zone from 1984-1996, the Zonal Coordinator of South East Zone 1997­2004 and member of the church’s Governing Council.

“I have been a pastor for a few years before I joined then Evangelist Okonkwo. When we started, I was pastoring one of the branches – Amukoko Branch, now known as TREM Ojo Road. At that time, we were skeptical if the church would stand, but when God is in it, there is no cause for worry.”

He continued: “Although in the circular of Pentecostals, it was like it won’t stand, they looked at us like, what would these people do? There was no proper regulation, but we knew what we believed in and eventually in a short while, our founder began to emerge as a leader wherever he found himself. When you tell someone you attend TREM, they are quick to say, ‘Mike Okonkwo.”

On what endeared him to Bishop Okonkwo, he said, “his sincerity; he is not a man that says one thing and changes the next minute. When you are working with a man, you spend days together, praying and nobody is hiding himself from the other. We used to travel to a place in Ogun State; it had small huts and in a bush. Pastors will gather together and from other denominations, we pray. We were always together and so, you will know when a man lies. There was nothing to hide from each other, no pretense.

He continued: “When we started, we were about five men under him; one died and some left the ministry. In 1982, I was transferred to Aba to head a district; it was under my jurisdiction that some other branches started opening and I was overseeing them. Eventually, when I went to Philippines in 1983, a new head took over.”

On his return to Nigeria, Mbamara was supervising churches in Lagos.

“When I came back, I was in Lagos at a three-room apartment space for our church in Ijesha, Lagos, I was supervising the churches in Lagos, including Apapa, Maroko and the eastern region – Anambra, Enugu, Owerri and then we were called Coordinators.

“In 1997, we handed over to what we call Zonal Pastors; Lagos was broken into zones and today, I am a member of the Governing Council. We were known for our ‘Power In The Word’ programme. Our focal point was the ‘Word’ and prayers and that is what has kept us going. Also, when we started, we didn’t have landed properties, but today, nearly all the branches are resident in their properties.”

Forty years after, Mbamara said, “It feels like we have gone through the wilderness and now in the Promised Land; it is going to be better. Today, we have people in the ministry who are doing very well, and a lot of changes have occurred because there is a lot of input people have brought in.”