How Two RCCG Leaders Changed My Life

There are two kind RCCG leaders I met who changed my life completely. You might not get everything I am about to share, but just stay with me. Grab your popcorn and a cold drink as I tell you this story. In the summer of 2006, I got into the well-known Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen for my MBA. I didn’t know anyone in Aberdeen, Scotland. I had an uncle in England, and I had reached out to him for help with temporary accommodation.

I don’t blame him now; I understand better today. Back then, he gently avoided my request. I was very upset. We share the same last name. It took living in Europe for a few years before I understood how hard it can be to host others. But that’s another story for another time.

I finally called a friend in the United States to share my troubles. I needed someone to help me settle down in Scotland. I had no money. I only gathered £200, so finding a place to stay was not realistic. My friend said he knew an older RCCG pastor in Aberdeen and offered to talk to him for me. Pastor Wilfred is from Zimbabwe and was a certified chartered accountant with a top UK firm then. He agreed to host me until I got on my feet. That was like a miracle to me.

I got to the Aberdeen bus station after a long, tiring journey, feeling cold and tired in the harsh Scottish weather. A few minutes later, Pastor Wilfred arrived in his seven-seater car. We hugged and exchanged greetings, even though we had never met before. That moment was not just my arrival in Scotland but also a turning point in my life, marking my call to ministry. I had met kind people before, but this man showed me kindness in a way I had never known.

His life showed something important: love is not just talk; it is shown through actions, given freely, and often involves sacrifice. True care for others goes beyond being comfortable; it reaches into hard places and gives anyway, showing the heart of Christ.

He drove me to school and picked me up all the time. He gave me his personal phone to use for days. He bought my bus tickets. He and his wife insisted I should never buy food or groceries for their home. I felt so bad receiving so much. One day, I brought groceries in disobedience to their instruction. They were genuinely upset, so I stopped. Now, here is the deeper part of this story.

Pastor Wilfred was sent out by Pastor Chris Gbenle, our father in the Lord. I will come back to his story later. At that time, the main RCCG parish in Aberdeen was the largest in Scotland. They decided to start new parishes to reach other areas, and Fraserburgh was chosen. Pastor Wilfred was sent there to start the work. Think about it: he and his wife began with only one or two people in one of the hardest places to start a church. They had no keyboard player.

So Pastor Wilfred bought a keyboard and prayed for God to send him a keyboard player. Interestingly, I never told my friend in America who connected us that I could play the keyboard. Everything Pastor Wilfred did came from a sincere heart, with no hidden motives. A few days into my stay, I saw the keyboard and began to play. He was shocked. “Brother Ayo, you play the keyboard?” he asked. “Yes, sir,” I replied. He then told me they had been praying for a keyboard player. That was how I became a keyboard player under his leadership, while also serving in different roles in the new church.

Pastor Wilfred hosted me for six months. He and his wife planned and paid for my MBA graduation. Even after I moved out after my marriage, they kept visiting, bringing gifts, and praying with us. There were two times when I couldn’t pay my rent, and Pastor Wilfred got in touch with Pastor Chris Gbenle, who sent a cheque in my name, and the need was met immediately. Pastor Chris, a trained doctor who left his career to serve God, built a strong community of leaders. He mentored Pastor Wilfred and showed us Christ in ways that changed us, being humble, caring, and committed to the truth.

Through Pastor Wilfred, something lasting was built in me. We formed a strong praying team with two other pastors and prayed hard for our lives, churches, and city. We fasted, ate, traveled, and cried together. When I met my wife, he was the first person I told. We prayed about it, and he kept praying for my future. He is one of the most gentle and caring men I have ever met. His life reminds me that loving people isn’t weakness; it is strength that comes from sacrifice. To truly care for people means to invest in them, support them, and be with them in both their hard times and successes.

Every Sunday morning, for three years without fail, he would come to our house to pick us up. He never missed a day. His love touched me in the most beautiful way. When it was time to leave Scotland, I cried. It felt like a part of my life was being taken away. Yet, it was this same man of God who pushed me to aim higher. One day, sitting at his dining table, he told me, “My brother, this city is smaller than you, and I will not hold you back from what God has for you.” I tried to hold back tears.

For over 20 years now, Pastor Wilfred and I have kept a close bond. He still checks on my family and ministry. On a recent trip to Zimbabwe, he told me he spent the whole flight reading one of my books. He said, “Pastor Ayo, I always knew God had great things for you. My joy is beyond words seeing you achieve it.”

I did not betray him. I have never spoken ill of him. The love he showed me planted a seed that has not died. That is the lasting power of true love. God connected me to him for mentorship, and he fulfilled that role faithfully. Even now, we stay in touch. His wife and mine are also friends. Pastor Wilfred still leads the same RCCG parish he started in 2006, serving faithfully in one of the toughest areas in Europe, Fraserburgh. It is not easy. I was there. Sometimes it felt impossible to gather ten people, yet he would keep praying and preparing, even if just one person showed up.

What a man. What an example of loyalty, dedication, and strong commitment to the gospel and to people. Pastor Chris Gbenle continues to lead and has raised many leaders over the years. I honor and love them deeply, with all my heart.