Nathaniel Olayinka Abimbola

A man of courage and quiet impact.

Nathaniel Abimbola was born on December 10, 1949 to the family of Late Pa Asani Abimbola and Mama Mary Adetoun Aweni in Igbogila, Ogun State, Nigeria. His mother had 9 children, but only 2 children survived. Baba Nathaniel Abimbola was the 8th child out of the 9 child while his sister was the eldest child of the 9 children by Mama Aweni. Pa Asani's first wife had died and had sons, some of who died early too, leaving two sons , late Taiwo Abimbola and his brother. Both of them were older than Baba Nathaniel and died early. He mentioned that it was a pattern that looked like a curse to the males in the lineage that they died before they got to 50 or around that time. He made this a prayer point and believed God to keep him. At 75, he has lived a very full life with impact in many nations spreading the gospel of Christ. His early life experiences contributed to shaping the man he became.

According to Baba, he was born at home and his grandmother had blamed his mother when she heard the cry of a baby and saw that Mama Aweni had self delivered. She did not call anyone when it was time to deliver her baby. At the time, she had gotten 8 deliveries under her belt. So, she was quite the expert. Perhaps, Baba learned that daring courage from her. He never feared for his life.

There are so many stories about his birth and childhood including how he beat an Ara orun (masquerade) and everyone in the community blamed the masquerade saying Nojimu (his Muslim name as a child) would not do wrong to anyone.

Due to the times, baba did not go to school on time. But would play around town with his friends.

Baba used to talk about how he had a crew of 11 disciples who followed him around the town of Igbogila. They would drum and dance and were famed for chasing “jemego kidnappers” in the community. He said he would ask each of the “disciples@ to pick a stone, then would ask one of them to approach the kidnappers , pretending to be enticed by the sweets and candies the kidnappers lured children with. Immediately, the kidnapper tried to put the child in his bag, 11 stones would rain down on him and the “jemego” would flee.

This continued until the kidnappers stopped terrorising Igbogila.

He attended primary school at Igbogila, then went to Yewa college , known as Egbado High School where he could not continue due to financial constraints and went to Trade School. After getting his certification, he worked at Top Breweries known then as West African breweries for a while. He took correspondence courses and examinations.

He was sent to Ilaro at some point to live with a relative and go to school. At the time, he joined others to carry unripe bananas and plantains from the farm, a long trek… He was a school prefect and would sometimes go to school late because of the chores he had to do. But, he was well loved and would have students come to the house to get his box to school. He dropped out in class two of the secondary school and came to Abeokuta where he lived in Totoro, Alaafin for many years.

There he had an encounter in his room where he saw a ball of fire on his room wall that looked like the sun on fire and a voice coming out of the ball saying “I am the sun of righteousness, look for me and you will find me”. The voice spoke to him in Yoruba language saying

"Emi ni Oorun ododo. Wa mi, ri mi ,waa si ye."

In 1974, he got to CAC Arowolo through watching a soldier burning his numerous charms but one refused to burn. He asked the man to stop burning it, the man said he had seen a better superpower and he followed him to CAC AROWOLO. He rose to the disciplinary officer and Assistant Choir Master.There he saw the rottenness in religion which saddened his heart.

He was born a Muslim and studied Quran 1974 ---- Joined and baptized at CAC AROWOLO ONIKOLOBO ABEOKUTA

There he heard preaching using the exact same words and saying that “ Jesus is the sun of righteousness” and so he went there to listen more. He became active in that congregation, but was not yet saved. There were also some practices that bothered him while there and his speaking up about it eventually led to a falling out. The church leader claimed to place a curse on him that he would die, but God preserved him and he left the congregation.

He eventually started an auto mechanic shop and invited his friend Mr Oladimeji to join him. Both combined their names to form the Olayinka Oladimeji Technical Enterprises. They would get vehicles that so many other mechanics had not been able to fix and they would get it working well. In one of the stories he told, there was a Citroen that had defied fixing as one of the parts was not available in the market. He said while working on it, he looked at one of the faulty parts and realised that it resembled a similar part in another vehicle. So he bought that spare part instead and replaced the faulty Citroen car part and this worked and the car was fixed. One of his bosses Mr Akinsara reportedly wanted to take him overseas.

One day while passing in front of the Alake palace in 1976, there was a crusade by the All Nations that later became the New Life for all Nations and there he answered the call and gave his life to Christ and began to actively study the Bible - word of God. The All Nations had an active discipling programme and there he was discipled in Christ.

1976 -- Re -dedicated his life to Our Lord Jesus Christ and like Paul the Apostle he left the error of religion and became a true disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Shortly after, the Shield of Faith Missionaries from the US came to Nigeria to disciple brethren. Baba Nathaniel Abimbola was among the first set of the CLAMTI alumni (Christian Leadership and Missionary Training Institute) trained in Nigeria. Among the disciplers include Pa Roger Bagley (of blessed memory), Pa Larry Montgomery, Pa Jack Ring of SFMI.

Pa Jack Ring described Baba Nathaniel as “a diamond in the rough”. He reportedly was sent out from class one day because he was dozing in class after travelling from Abeokuta to Ibadan. He was convicted in his spirit about not fully focusing on the training and repented with tears.

In 1984, he got married to his wife and love, Mrs Felicia and together with her, they raised many sons and daughters in the Lord. Because of his frequent travels for missions, he would often tell her that if at any time he does not return, that she should continue the work. Thankfully, God preserved him and he was not brought dead from any of the mission trips.

At the time he was separated for full time service, he was called out from the New Life Gospel Church in Ijemo Agbadu, a prophecy was given concerning him, that “it is the work unfinished that he has been called unto, that a door is opened before him which no man can shut”.

Prophecy in January 1985 @ New Life Gospel Church Ijemo Agbadu I HAVE CALLED MY SERVANT. WHEN HE IS ON THE MOUNTAIN I SHALL MEET HIM THERE. IF IN THE VALLEY HE (NATH) WILL MEET ME THERE. DO THE WORK OF AN EVANGELIST, DO THE WORK OF AN APOSTLE.

This became his life's mission - to go into the interior villages and bring the gospel to the many tribes of unreached nations.

This Nathaniel Abimbola did faithfully, never looking for personal glory , but always focused on the will of God. He entered palaces and the most interior villages with the message remaining the same. Evang. Prof. Ebenezer Obey Fabiyi MFR gave this tribute of him that "one can not be in a conversation with Bro Nath in 5 minutes and the conversation will not be steered back to Christ and the word of God".

He also talked about a revelation where he saw many people in a carnival like gathering and he was called out and pointed to a small shed area and told , your bag is there and that was where he faithfully stayed , working with Ethnos Christian Missions, an indigenous missionary organisation with ministry work in Togo, Benin, Ghana, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire and other West African countries.

This formed the fulcrum of many years of quiet service in the Lord's vineyard spanning almost 50 years of travelling through forests and crossing many rivers for the gospel of Christ.

His time here on earth is done. His own book here has been concluded. He has gone about his life's work as written concerning him in the volumes believing that God's work done in God's way will never lack God's support.

For you who read, do you know the Lord Jesus Christ yet? Are you living for him and His will? Or chasing your own goals?

Narrow is the way and few there be that find it.