One of the most critical mistakes a man could make in life is to marry the wrong woman. Often times, the error could come with very grave consequences. A bad marriage could affect and destroy everything the man lays his hands on. It is even more complicated for men of God whose wives have not only declined to share in their ministerial aspirations, but have also made life difficult for the man simply because he has nothing to show yet for his pastoral work in terms of money. For this type of women, the husband has no business being a Pastor or founder of a church if he has no significant wealth to show for it. They insist the man must either look for another job or go ask his fellow founders and Pastors how they have been making stupendous money in their church so he can tow their line.
But some men of God have been extremely lucky. They have not only married women who share in their ministerial vision, these women have also gone on to make huge sacrifices to stand by their husbands through thick and thin and ensure the church continues to grow from strength to strength. Prophet Adetunji Adeonigbagbe, founder of Celica Church of Christ, is one of such lucky men of God.
Every member of Celica Church of Christ world wide knows about the incredible bond Prophet Adetunji Adeonigbagbe shared with his wife, the late Most Blessed Mother, Reverend Agnes Mofoluwake Adeonigbagbe, while she was alive. They were so close they were almost inseparable. She was always by her husband’s side from the very start of the ministry when they had nothing to the very end when death took her away from him in 2021. She was everything to Baba Adeonigbagbe. She was his pillar, best friend, sister and his Prophetess all rolled into one. Reverend Agnes Adeonigbagbe was not just a beautiful woman on the outside, she also had a beautiful personality to go with it. Everyone loved her for her simplicity, humility and kind heart. She had a smile waiting for everyone. You could never hear her get angry or yell at anybody in the church. She was always warm and friendly. Those who knew her closely will tell you that, ‘Mummy,’ as she was fondly called, never had issues with anyone. Everybody was her friend. She never related to people like she was the founder’s wife, rather she humbled herself and earned the trust and love of every member of the church, both young and old. She was mother to all, her fountain of motherhood and kindness was there for everyone to drink from.
According to the founder, when they first started out with setting up Celica church, things were quite tough at the early stages, but his wife weathered the storm with him. She never pressured him or pushed him to go looking for quick money, she was contented with the little they had. She loved her husband with all her heart and she made lots of sacrifices to help build Celica to the pinnacle it has reached today.
Two Sundays ago, at the 33rd Adult Harvest Thanksgiving service held on the 21st of December, 2025, at the Celica Church of Christ international headquarters in Ibadan, Rev. Adeonigbagbe, while expressing his gratitude to those who have been of immense support to the church, also paid a special tribute to his late wife. He eulogised her name and honoured her memory. It was a very emotional moment that drew tears from the usually strong Reverend Adeonigbagbe. He recalled a particular incident that happened sometime in 1980 that could’ve totally altered his trajectory. It was a frightening incident that could’ve claimed his life if not for the timely intervention of his wife who insisted he must do as she had advised at the time. He implored all the unmarried men in attendance to ensure they go for an unmaterialistic woman when making the choice of a life partner. Below are excerpts of his tribute to his dear wife, the late Reverend Agnes Mofoluwake Adeonigbagbe:
“I will never fail to use this opportunity to remember one special person, the one who stood as my pillar and made it easy for me to do the work of God. When I was nobody, she stood fervently by me. Though she has gone to rest in the Lord’s bosom, her voice still echoes around here. If I do not mention her name, then that means I am an ungrateful person. One of the things that can quickly bring down men of God is a bad wife, especially when you’re just coming up as a minister of God.
Many of the men of God who joined occult groups and who did money rituals or charms to attract large crowd to their ministry, most times, the reason is because their wives are often hungry for wealth and pressure their husbands to desperately look for money even through occult means. But the person I am going to mention her name now, never pushed me or pressured me to do any of such occult things.
I still remember very vividly the year 1980, I too would’ve spent blood money and would definitely have suffered the consequences. That year, somebody brought to me the sum of N5.6million cash along with a brand new Benz called Shagari Benz back then. I was excited. I was overjoyed that I had become a millionaire. So, I took the money to my wife. When she saw it, she said, no, this is not our money. She told me that God’s covenant with us is not sudden wealth but little, little drops of money that would gradually become a mighty ocean. She said, Daddy, please go and pray about this, God will show you the truth.
I felt back then that, perhaps she was scared I would probably take another wife that was why she was discouraging me from accepting the money and the car. I then proceeded to consult with my seniors in the ministry so they could also advise me on the matter. Every single one of them said I should accept the money. They said it was Angel Gabriel that brought the money to me. You know, sometimes you hear a voice speaking to you and you think it’s God’s voice, not knowing it’s the devil’s.
I returned home. They even said I should please buy them a Peugeot car once I decide to accept the money. How much was a Peugeot car then? A brand new one was about N6,000. So, when I got home I told my wife, I said, Mummy, I have been told to accept this money. My wife said, Daddy, go into prayers by yourself, God will speak to you by Himself. God always speaks to you, he will surely speak to you concerning this issue. Before God and man, I wasn’t happy that I was growing to pray about it, anybody who knows what the value of N5.6 million was in 1980, then, you would appreciate the kind of dilemma I was faced with. Part of the message of this sermon is that there is nobody the devil cannot wage war against. Despite how God was using me, the devil was still prepared to confront me. But God gave me a partner who always called me back to order whenever I was going out of line.
By the time I was ready to go to God in prayers, I started by saying, my father, I know you came to bless me with this gift and I am happy with this gift you have given me. Then, I slept off. Moments later, suddenly, this hunch back man appeared to me. He said, Prophet, Prophet, Prophet! I am the one they killed! Do you also want to spend this blood money with them? I shouted, no, I don’t want to spend blood money o! That was when I woke up. My wife said, daddy, what’s the matter? I said, my Prophetess, thank you. The next day when the woman that brought the money came, I returned her money to her. The car key, I returned to her as well. She said, what happened? And I told her what God showed me. She now said, but you’re not the one that killed him!
A lot of people have often wondered why each time I remember my wife, tears flow from my eyes. Some people would say, but you’re a Christian, why are you crying? When I went to sit on her chair moments ago, tears came down my eyes.
My dearest wife, Agnes Mofoluwake, a virtous woman, a gallant believer in Christ, continue to rest in peace, I know we shall meet again.”
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