By Okechukwu Onuegbu
The founder and Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Psychic and Healing Administration (CPHA), Awka, Anambra State, Chief Dr Mrs Flora Ilonzo, on Saturday, urged women to be committed, fearless, steadfast and resilience while professing their faith in Christ.
Ilonzo, an internationally celebrated humanist and healer, argued that every Christian should always stand by their faith in all circumstances, as well as contribute positively in the works of God so as to win more souls for Christ.
She disclosed this at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Awka, after receiving an honourary award/recognition from the Catholic Women Organisation (CWO) as a renowned philanthropist and one of the pillars of the church.
According to her, serving God also required focus, dedication, obedient and alertness in order to ensure that whatever the church needs to propagate the gospel of salvation were provided accordingly.
The CPHA boss, who was crowned the mother of the CWO in 2016, recalled how God used her in securing the present location of St. Thomas Aquinas parish when there was an attempt by some government officials to give it out to another domination and relocate them to a different site.
"On hearing from my brother (name withheld) who was surveyor of a plan to relocate Aquinas to another location while another denomination (name withheld) to occupy, I quickly contacted Bishop A. K. Obiefuna (late Archbishop of Onitsha and then Bishop of Awka Diocese).
" We rallied round the diocese; gathering bricks and sands from all churches in Awka and Okpuno to ensure that these whole place was fenced between Friday night to Sunday night. I provided the light used for the work at night. I also donated 100 bags of comments and bricks used for the perimeter fencing.
" On Monday, the government officials were surprised that the place planned to give out on Monday had been fenced and left us. I later provided the Church with its first generating set, 500 plastic chairs, as well as 6 first wooden desks modelled after those in used at St Patrick's Cathedral (and present day Church).
"I have donated several grottoes to the church here and other places. I have not stopped helping the church and I will never stop coming to church because am a member of this parish and very committed Christian. God has used me to resolve the frictions between man and nature, heal the sick and others, including settling the conflicts between the dreadful odo masquerade and Christians at Ukehe (Enugu State).
"This attracted pope JohnPaul 2 to Nigeria who equally invited me to Rome. I later succeeded in using the money donated for that trip (through assistance of Bishop Obiefuna) in building a school and sponsoring free education at Ukehe. One of the illustrious sons of the community who benefited from that scholarships is Rt. Hon. Eugene Odo (former Speaker, Enugu State House of Assembly). The community also crowned me Olinandu," she recalled.
She, therefore, charged women to continue contributing towards building the church of God, including rendering community service and humanitarian services with the little they have as God will bless them richly.
Earlier in the programme, the Chairman of the occasion, Prof. Charles Nweke, charged women to always seek the grace of God in whatever they do, because according to him, grace was needed to become a good Christian, woman, wife, mother, trainer and to achieve heaven at the last day.
Earlier, the President of the CWO, Mrs Ngọzi Nwankwo, while welcoming the awardees, explained that they were selected based on their wealth of experience and contributions at both the church and Nigeria society at large.
Other awardees at the occasion were Mrs Chinaeze Obih, Surveyor Chukwuma Obannese and Surveyor Chidiebere Obannese, while the Parish priest, Rev. Fr. Francis Oranye earlier held a mass (church service ) before the programme.