LoveWorld Incorporated’s founder, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, has acknowledged the recent fire at a branch of Christ Embassy church in Lagos. On Sunday, June 23, 2024, the main auditorium of Christ Embassy Lagos Virtual Zone (CELVZ) on Billings Way in Oregun, Ikeja, caught fire, causing panic among members and residents.
Videos circulating on social media showed smoke coming from the top of the white-painted building as the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service (LSFRS) tackled the flames. Firefighters were able to contain the fire, but the auditorium suffered extensive damage, resulting in millions worth of property being destroyed.
During a live Sunday service at the church’s campground in Asese, Ogun State, Pastor Chris mentioned the incident, seeing it as an opportunity for bigger and better things.
He recalled considering the need to rebuild the building after the 2001 Ikeja Cantonment bomb explosion and suggested that the fire now offers a chance to build a more magnificent structure at the site.
Pastor Chris Oyakhilome on recent church fire incident
“Nothing happens in the life of a child of God by accident. During the 2001 Ikeja cantonment bombing incident, the building vibrated so much and we thought it was going to collapse. I thought to myself that if it collapsed I was going to build a bigger, better one. At the end of the day it didn’t collapse and we called the engineers to see if there was any need to bring it down and rebuild but it was still okay.
“Now that this has happened, we will build a bigger, better, and more glorious one and the devil will lick his wound,” he said.