Our Story
Light Assembly is a seed planted by faith in God's ability to build His church. The church began as a small family gathering in the dining room of Pastor Isaiah. After months of exploring a suitable facility, the church held her first public service at the Pyne Arts Magnet School on July 7, 2019. Since that first service, the Lord has been adding to the church.
Our Root
Pa Akindayomi
In July 1909, a son was born into the Akindayomi family of Ondo State of Nigeria. Although this child grew up amongst idol worshippers, he perceived the existence of a higher power and yearned to know the God who created the earth and everyone on it. He joined the Church Missionary Society (CMS) because he had an intense desire for God. He was baptized in 1927.
Still spiritually unfulfilled, he joined the Cherubim and Seraphim church in 1931. While there, he began to hear a voice within him, saying, “You will be my servant.” Since this was not his intention, he decided to ignore the voice. While he ignored the call for seven years, all the business ventures that he tried failed. In debt and without peace of mind, he found himself dependent on the grace of God. Here marked the beginning of a definite relationship with God. Completely broken, he yielded, saying, “Lord, I will go wherever you want me to go.”
He asked for signs to confirm that this was indeed God’s call. The confirmation came through the Bible passages of Jeremiah 1:4-10; Isaiah 41:10-13; and Romans 8:29-31. The Lord assured him that He would provide for all his needs, as he would not receive any salary from that point on. He was comforted by this assurance as he faced many trials in the ensuing months. He became married in 1941. He continued to worship with the Cherubim and Seraphim. In 1947, he began to become concerned that the church was deviating from the word of God.
The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG)
By 1952, he felt persuaded to leave the church. He started a house fellowship called the Glory of God Fellowship, at Willoughby Street, Ebute-Metta, Lagos, Nigeria. Initially, there were nine members, but before long, the fellowship rapidly grew as the news of the miracles that occurred in their midst spread.
Pa Akindayomi also had seen a vision of words written on a blackboard. The words were “The Redeemed Christian Church of God.” Amazingly, Pa Akindayomi, who could not read or write, was supernaturally able to write those words down. In this visitation, God also said to him that this church would go to the ends of the earth and that when the Lord Jesus Christ appeared in glory, He would meet the church. The Lord then established a covenant with Pa Akindayomi, synonymous with the one God initiated with Abraham in the Bible. He said that He, the Lord, would satisfy all the needs of the church in an awe-inspiring way if only members would serve Him faithfully and be obedient to His Word. The Redeemed Christian Church of God was built upon this covenant. Thus, the Redeemed Christian Church of God was born in 1952, destined by the Lord to take the world for Him. The church continued to meet at 9 Willoughby Street until they were able to acquire some land, thereby witnessing a relocation to the present site of the Headquarters of the church at 1-5 Redemption Way, (formerly 1a, Cemetery Street), Ebute-Metta, Lagos, Nigeria.
Pastor Adeboye
Sometime in the early 1970s, God had spoken to Pa Akindayomi about his successor. The Lord told him that this man, who was not a member of the church then, would be a young educated man. Thus, when a young university lecturer joined the church in 1973, Papa was able to recognize him in the Spirit. This man, Enoch Adejare Adeboye, who was then a lecturer of Mathematics at the University of Lagos, soon became involved in the church. He became one of the interpreters translating Pa Akindayomi’s sermons from Yoruba to English. Pastor Adeboye became ordained a pastor of the church in 1975.
Papa was preparing to meet his Creator. He sent for Pastor Adeboye and spent several hours sharing with him details of the covenant and the plans of the Lord for the church. Even though a year before this, the Lord had revealed to Pastor Adeboye that he would be Papa’s successor, it was still too difficult for him to fully contemplate such an awesome responsibility. Pa Josiah Akindayomi died at 71 years old. Amidst controversy, Pastor Adeboye’s appointment was formalized by the reading of Pa Akindayomi’s sealed pronouncement after his burial.
Since 1981, an open explosion began with the number of parishes growing in leaps and bounds. At the last count, there are at least about 4000 parishes of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Nigeria. On the International scene, the church is present in other African nations including Cote D’Ivoire, Ghana, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Gambia, Cameroon, and South Africa. In Europe, the church is fully established in the following countries: United Kingdom, Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Germany, Greece, France, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway.
North America Operations
Mentored by the General Overseer, Pastor E. A. Adeboye, Pastor James Fadel started the first parish of RCCG in North America – Winner’s Chapel, Detroit in 1991.
In North America, there are over 800 parishes spread in various cities and states in the USA and Canada. Also, there are parishes in the Caribbean countries of Haiti and Jamaica. There are parishes in South America, the Middle East, Australia, and New Zealand.
The Holy Ghost Services
Today, God is still doing marvelous deeds through The Redeemed Christian Church of God all over the world. One of the well-known programs of the church is the Holy Ghost Service, an all-night miracle service that holds on the first Friday of every month at the Redemption Camp at Km. 46, Lagos – Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State, Nigeria.
The average headcount of those who attend the Service is in millions. The Holy Ghost Service now holds all around the world monthly but is led by Pastor Adeboye, half-yearly in London. Similarly, Pastor Adeboye leads these services in Greenville, Texas, United States, and Toronto, Ontario, Canada once in a year and once in Europe every two years.
