“As you know, I am a man of the people. So, the wound of one is the wound of all,” Joshua stated in a televised message posted to his multiple social media accounts.
“As things stand, you may have realised it will not be easy for me to celebrate my birthday under the present circumstances,” he continued, adding that many who wanted to visit Nigeria for the occasion “are troubled by the situation all over the world”.
“We see their fear and their worry. I feel their pain; I feel their worry,” the cleric, who is the founder of The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations (SCOAN) in Lagos, compassionately stressed.
Rather than holding a public celebration, he called for the day of his birthday to be marked by prayer, fasting and giving to the less-privileged.
“Let us dedicate this day to prayer and fasting. Don’t forget the needy,” Joshua, who is particularly known for his global humanitarian outreach, explained.
The cleric concluded by confidently stating more birthdays lay ahead for him. “By the grace of God, more birthdays are ahead. God bless you! Emmanuel. Jesus is Lord! Happy Birthday!”
Temitope Balogun Joshua was born on June 12th 1963 to a poverty-stricken home in Arigidi-Akoko, Ondo State but has risen to become one of the world’s most well-known spiritual leaders.
The SCOAN, which was founded with just eight members in 1989, is the foremost religious tourism destination in West Africa and Emmanuel TV, the television station Joshua established in 2006, is reportedly the most viewed Christian channel globally.
