Mount Zion Film productions recently turned 30 and its founder, Mike Bamiloye posted this message on his facebook page.
MOUNT ZION AT 30
HE FULFILLED HIS PROMISES
Isaiah 43:18-19 KJV
[18] Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old.
[19] Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
Sometimes last year, (2014), when it occurred to us in our ministry that The Mount Zion Faith Ministries shall clock 30 years in a year's time (2015), we began to be excited and began to think of various possible programs and activities to commemorate the anniversary, despite the fact that we were so much overwhelmed by a lot of pressures, both financially and physically. We were encumbered with a lot of personal and ministry needs and pressures that we were burdened on how to organized such anniversary program. The previous year (2013), two of our brethren had involved in a terrible accident that had reduced their mobility for almost a whole year. We were burdened with that also.
Then, I thought of a huge amount of money to spend for such great anniversary. I thought of the expectation of the people, what they would expect from us and how people would expect the anniversary to be. I thought of the huge financial implications of the Drama Emporium we were planning to built, and the struggling we were still putting forth to get the land secured at that time. I thought of so many impossibilities and I concluded in my heart, We shall not do any celebrations for the 30th Year Anniversary. I came to the meeting with my brethren, during one of the Sundays, and I announced, we are not celebrating anything. Afterall, what have we achieved yet to celebrate. Let's keep going on . Let 's put all what we counted as achievement behind us and let's move on doing our work for the Lord. I reasoned before them, saying, afterall, Paul said in the Bible that, he put behind him all he has achieved and look forward and pressed on towards the mark of the high calling. I told them, we should put all our years of work behind us and let us move on doing the work of the Lord. And they all listened to what I said and we ended the meeting on that note.
However, about a day later, I was praying in the morning, the Lord came calling. He descended upon me with His presence and began to speak into my heart the words that sounded like hundreds of whips and lashes: "Have I not tried enough for you? Have I not kept you all these 30 years? Have I been faithful to you all these 30 years? Are there no ministries that had scattered within 5 years of their existence? Are you taking these 30 years of existence for granted? So I am not worthy to be praised for keeping you all together these 30 years?....."
The rebuke of the Lord kept going on and on on me that morning till I was ashamed of my self. Suddenly, I began to realize I have been foolish to think the way I thought. 30 years! 30 years in the ministry of Drama Evangelism and I was talking so casually before my brethren like that. All what I said began to replay into my ears. I began to hear the words of a Proud man, who thought what he had achieved for God was by his power and could decide to do more if he so desired. I began to hear a replay of a word of an arrogant man who never appreciated the great victories the Lord had given to the ministry that started when there was nothing to point to ahead. When the Lord was done with rebuking me with a serious rebuke, I cried and confessed to Him that I said all I said because I was afraid of where to get the money to spend for such a huge anniversary. I knew there was no way the anniversary celebration was going to be a small celebration, I knew it was going to be great, but I was overwhelmed by the huge unpaid debts all around us, that was why I said all I said. I told Him in tears that I appreciated all He had done for us, we love celebrations, but I was afraid there was no where we would get the money to do the anniversary celebration. I cried.
Then, the Lord spoke a great word to me. My father said what I did not expect Him to say at that time: "I will do the Anniversary Celebration for you".
I came back to my brethren and announced to them my encounter with God. I told them, we were changing plans. I told them, we were getting ready for a huge Anniversary Celebration, because the Lord said He would do it for us, and He would take he glory.
But I did not know how He would do it. He began to speak to my wife and I. He began to give us instructions on what to do and what not to do ahead of the anniversary. He began to teach us the steps to take. He told us to increase our faith. One morning, as I was doing my prayer walk on our long passage, the Lord opened my eyes in my spirit, and I saw the anniversary hall. I saw all the brothers, (Daddies) in Mount Zion in a uniform Agbada outfit, with similar cap to match. I saw all of us with the women in the same uniform and most particularly, the bothers in Agbada outfit. then, the Lord told me, that is how He wants us to be on the anniversary day.
But I did not take it to heart. I was thinking on how we would get the money to make what I saw in my spirit a reality. So I did not share it except with my wife. Few weeks later, I was praying again in the morning and the Anniversary was approaching, we were getting scared and there were a lot of things yet undone and we didn't know how they would be done. Then, I began to pray, that the Lord would bring down His glory on the Anniversary and help us out. Then, He spoke to me again very clearly: "When you do what I told you to do, I will bring down my glory on the Anniversary." I heard Him clearly. I knew He said that. I went to my wife and I told her what the Lord said. Now the ball was in our court. To obey Him absolutely in doing all He said and obeying all His instructions, then we would see His glory. So we saw the secret: FAITH AND OBEDIENCE. My wife and I entered into a covenant with Him, to Obey all He says concerning this event and towards the event.
And that was the turning point of the whole matter. We took the steps the Lord asked us to take and continually began to do whatever said, even to the point of clearing our bank accounts to obey His voice. Then, things began to happen.
One of the miracles of the Anniversary Celebration was how the Lord used the Mount Zion Institute Alumni Fellowship and the Drama Ministers Power Night Workers to raise up a solid well organized Anniversary Planning Committees. They organized themselves in such a way that every aspect of the anniversary was properly covered. They opened up WhatApps through which they were communicating among themselves. They broke themselves into sub-committees: Protocols/Usherings, Welfares, Decorations, Security, Medical, Media, Technical, etc. They organized so many things we would never thought of organizing. The Media Committee contacted several TV and Radio Stations and arranged a lot of interviews towards the anniversary. They arranged a Press conference where a lot of press crew were present. We have never done that before. They organized about 5 kilometer Anniversary Walk in the street of the city. They pulled DVDs and books together for distribution along the Anniversary Walk. they went after the Police and Road Safety personnels to protect us during the Anniversary Walk. It was glorious. It was awesome. It was breathtaking. We have never done all such things before in our 30 years of drama ministry.
On their own, they made customized T-Shirts and branded clothes for the Anniversary, they provided branded bottled water with the logo and stickers of the Mount Zion Anniversary. THEY LITERALLY TOOK THE CENTER-STAGE OF THE PLANNING AND MADE US THE SPECTATORS. At a stage, I literally saw the spirit of the Lord possessing the members of the Planning Committee to do all these.
WE NEVER GAVE THEM ANY MONEY TO DO THESE...BUT THEY DID THEM.
WE NEVER PLANNED FOR MANY THINGS THEY CAME UP WITH...
WE NEVER EVEN KNOW WHAT THEY WERE PLANNING ON MANY OCCASSIONS.
THEY WERE INFORMING US AND WE WERE JUST FOLLOWING.
I knew when the Lord told me not to restrain them from doing anything they planned to do toward the anniversary. So, when they were telling me to follow them to various TV stations for interviews, I was just obeying without resisting or arguing. THE LORD HAD SAID HE WOULD DO THE ANNIVERSARY FOR US, BUT WE NEVER KNEW THIS WAS ONE OF THE WAYS HE WOULD USE. WE DIDN'T KNOW HE WOULD RAISE HIS WONDERFUL CHILDREN TO DO ALL THESE FOR US.
We have never enjoyed so much media coverage. And the Students have never stood up for us to that extent. They stood for us. They spent for us. They waited on us. We gave them no money to do anything they did. The Lord used them for us. The glory of the Lord came down on the Anniversary for the 3 days. International Guests came from Kenya, Australia, USA, Canada, and Sierraleone. Another Mount Zion Alumni couples, waited at the airport to serve as International Protocol Officers welcoming the foreign delegations. A drama ministry released their brand new bus for the transportation of the International guests to and fro the venue. A drama minister left his house to stay with the Kenya delegate and serve them for the four days they stayed with us. THE LORD FULFILLED HIS PROMISES....THE LORD HELPED US INDEED.
The Anniversary Thanksgiving held at Glory Tabernacle Ministry in Ibadan, the following sunday, and some drama ministers still followed us to the church to give thanks to the Lord. INDEED, THE LORD HELPED US. HE FULFILL HIS PROMISES.
Therefore, I use this time to express our thanks to all those the Lord used for us:
THANK YOU POWER NIGHT USHERS.
THAN YOU POWER NIGHT PROTOCOLS
THANK YOU MEDIA COMMITTEES
THANK YOU THE MEDICAL COMMITTEE, THE WELFARE, THE DECORATIONS, THE SECURITY.
Thank You Lord Jesus, for fulfilling your promises. May the LORD bless all those He used.
MIKE BAMILOYE
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