Charity, in Christian thought, is the highest form of love. it signifies the reciprocal love between God and man that is made manifest in unselfish love of one’s fellow men. For popular Nigerian prophet, Emmanuel Folorunsho Bamiduro, charity is a virtue which, when our affections are perfectly ordered, unites us to God.
For over three decades, the servant of God who oversees the popular Thy Word is Life (Iye Ni Oro Naa) ) Christian ministry based in Alagbado, Lagos State, has employed both his time on and off the pulpit to canvass for human empowerment. “Charity doesn’t have to be about money alone. You can give with whatever you have. God has given us two hands, one to receive with and the other to give with,” Bamiduro noted during one of his lectures prime time. Christians are to be charitable, he declared.
Outside preaching salvation and healing, Prophet Bamiduro says his passion to further help the downtrodden encouraged him to set up a private charity project tagged Bamiduro Life Care Foundation. In its few years of formation, the Foundation has been widely acclaimed for changing lives and touching hearts with generous donations in both moral and financial terms. A lot of outreach programmes have been carried out by the Foundation volunteers within and outside its Lagos headquarters and proofs of people in various categories who have received donations of food items, clothing, cash, among other stuffs, are documented.
As the needs of its beneficiaries grow, however, the Foundation itself expands to providing medical aid and hunger relief to the old, the sick, orphan and vulnerable children in rural communities.
While inviting the rich in the society to encourage the Foundation’s initiative through generous donation, Prophet Bamiduro stated that although, everyone is called to be generous, one should be especially generous if he or she is blessed by God. “If you are blessed with wealth, donate to charity ministries through which the less-privileged can be reached and lifted. Do not be embarrassed by your wealth. Remember it is not your money, it is God’s money. So, it is wise and beneficial to use it to bless others,” declared the prophet.
According Bamiduro, the goal of religious giving is not just about what it brings to him or those who donate to his Foundation, it is more a focus on human interaction and a vision of community. Bamiduro disclosed that his ministry makes charity its focus, whether on the pulpit or outside the church, basically in recognition for those in need and how to morally and effectively address the issues of poverty, isolation, loneliness, and oppression.
“When we give, we store up treasures in heaven. We are refreshed physically, spiritually, or both while here on earth. But much more importantly, we store up treasures in heaven,” he concludes.
-Folorunsho Hamsat
