As the founder of Celebration Church International (CCI), Emmanuel Iren has built a huge following among young Nigerians. His videos routinely go viral among the TikTok set and the Twitter crowd. What is it about this church and this pastor that young Christians have come to love so much?
We asked Toyosi, who has been attending CCI for three years.
As Told To Dennis
The story of my life is a long one. I grew up Muslim with my siblings in northern Nigeria. Now, my siblings and I are all born-again Christians. Our parents never forced us to practise any religion, be it Christianity or Islam. We got to choose .
I attended a primary school where both Jumat prayers and Christian fellowships were observed weekly. Later, I went to a secondary school run by Baptist missionaries, and it was there I started practising Christianity. By the time I got to university, also in the north, I found a fellowship that deepened my faith, and I became born again.
In 2021, I moved to Lagos for my master’s, searching for a church where I could serve and learn. This was after the pandemic, and I was almost falling into a depression. I was downcast.
I decided to deepen my spiritual life, so I started a fast that was accompanied by daily prayers. During one of those days, I stumbled upon Pastor Emmanuel Iren’s sermons on YouTube. In April, someone shared a flyer with me announcing that CCI was moving to Yaba, where I lived. My goodness, when I saw that, I knew it was a sign.
I attended the inaugural service in May and was just blown away. Pastor Iren was there in person, and preached that day. It felt as though I was hearing the word of God for the first time. I can’t even remember the topic, but I remember that particular day I said to myself, “This is the church for me.”
I felt a sense of community, especially from members from other branches who came for the launch. They had built relationships, and I wanted to be a part of that.
My idea of a church has always been a community that emphasises the right teaching and doctrine, where believers have the opportunity to grow, not one that people just attend and go back home. I joined the church and currently serve as a member of a unit. It’s been from glory to glory. My faith work has grown, and I believe it can only get better from here.
Many people go to church to fulfil righteousness, but I wanted a church where my faith in Christ would be strengthened.
Teachings and discipleship are a major part of CCI. CCI’s goal is to ensure that all men celebrate an endless life in Christ. The church’s mission is to equip the saints for the work of ministry and build up the body of Christ. This is something I believe in.
We have meet-and-pray groups. My group meets on Saturday every week to pray and fellowship with each other. We also have short daily prayer meetings that last 15 minutes throughout the day that members can join. They are held at 1 a.m., 6 a.m. or 7 a.m., 12 p.m., and 8 p.m. All of this happens online. The world has changed. With digital platforms, there is a structure to help believers meet and pray online. The sessions are well structured. It allows people to attend even if they’re not in the country.
These sessions have been very effective for me. I have been attending CCI for three years now, and they have been the most productive in my faith work. I like the fellowship at CCI the most. You build relationships with members, and we check in with each other. I have made good friends whom I can call my brothers, whom I met in church.
We have accountability partners. With my accountability partner, I can discuss almost anything. He is like my best friend. We tell each other everything, and we pray over it together. I met him at CCI.
CCI is very intentional about the relationship of the members. It’s a genuine community. They encourage members to open up to each other which is something I believe the church is meant to do. People should not just go to church and go back home. Pastor Iren has positively impacted my life and the lives of many young people through this church.
The church has come through for me in so many ways. I have not received any financial or material assistance from the church, but that was not my focus when I started attending. My focus has always been my spiritual growth, and it has grown.
However, I have witnessed people assist members in need financially. In my unit, people have received assistance. The heads of the unit most of the time don’t tell us who has requested assistance, but we routinely make donations for people. We contribute money for people preparing for their weddings. For me, this is the church helping members even if the money is not coming from the church coffers. The people in the church make up the church.
Some time ago, Pastor Iren donated cars to members of the church. Typically, when this happens, we don’t investigate what the cars are used for. However, it was obvious that the people who received the cars benefitted from this gesture because they had children and special needs.
I regularly pay offering and tithe to CCI. I believe every believer should not have a problem with paying tithe or offering. Give in general. I don’t concern myself with how the money is being used or how expensive Pastor Iren’s agbada or suits are. Pastor Iren always teaches modesty. I believe if you can afford it, then you should wear it, and this also applies to Pastor Iren.
At CCI, I learned that tithing is not an ordinance but an act of gratitude. We give because God has blessed us, and I want to help spread the gospel. If you believe everything you have comes from God, then giving your one-tenth should come from your heart. I understood this after it was explained to me at CCI.
Pastor Iren has been using various media, including films and music, to share the gospel. His latest album, “Spirituals,” shows how committed he is to using creative outlets for ministry. People have raised concerns about his collaboration with mainstream actors, even though the films are faith-based. We are open-minded at CCI. You will likely not ask medical doctors what their faith is before receiving treatment from them. I believe in engaging professionals for their expertise.
I have found my community at CCI, as have many young Nigerians. There is nothing about Church I don’t like.
