A'm Methodist by birth, but I go to Deeper Life Bible Church founded by God and Pastor W.F. Kumuyi. One suprising thing here is that adults and children make up 80% of the congregation. Where are the youths? What is your view about the church?

Related: Deeper Life Bible Church: Why Avoid Us?

becos it's deeper life meaning their life is way too deep

pearldrops has answered it gggggooooooooooooooodddddddddd!!!!!!!!!

Youths prefer to go to some churches where "everything" is accepted.
I like Deeper life for they are the same anywhere in the world.

Johnny,
1. you have to understand that there are many churches today in Nigeria
2. Deeper life Bible Church have some principles which youths cannot just follow e.g The sisters
(female church members) are not allowed to wear EARRINGS and girls just can't
imagine not wearing earrings
just like Akolawole said

Akolawole:
Youths prefer to go to some churches where "everything" is accepted.

so you don't have to blame the youths just serve the God who created you GENUINELY

the funny aspect is that the ladies are not allowed to perm their hair; they are made to look all like widows while their men are suited up.

pearldrops:

because it's deeper life meaning their life is way too deep

I wonder how a shallow life would look like. I bet it will be so shallow, you can't make a meaning out of it.

otokx:

the funny aspect is that the ladies are not allowed to perm their hair; they are made to look all like widows while their men are suited up.

It is not compulsory to perm hair.

My friend, if you want to know beautiful a woman is, examine her when she wake up early in the morning, then you know difference between Artificial and Natural.

i don't know much about them but i think they call some of them suegbe union(SU)because they think they are suegbe maybe that's why they ran away

The reasons why a lot of youth run away from Deeper Life Bible Church are as follows;

1.If you happen to have Deeper life as your family church,and your parents happens to be the type that imposes decision or rules on you as such, they don't allow you get the conviction as a person why you shouldn't do certain things as stated by the church, a little escape you get from the grip of your parent either by going to school or elsewhere and you begin to mingle with other youth,you will want to live the church immediately.

2.Most Deeper Life youth are not sociable as such,they don't mingling with other youths and this can be trace to lack of self confidence on the part of some of them and this does not encourage other youths t

3.They also fail to put into congnisance the perculiar,unique and natural nature of every youth for example, the craving for opposite sex attraction, adolescent trait and character, personality make up and identity, peer group pressure, social status, biological formation, quest for independence and juveline delinquency all this and many more are the factors affecting growth and development depending on how well handled.

For a youth to enjoy an environment like the church, the church needs to understand this perculiar traits of the youth and make room for them to be helped to manage this factor positively. When once the church gets to the realisation of this basic fact, it will be very easy for any youth to belong to the church.In summary, deeper life youths are being indoctrinated and this repels them.

Notwithstanding all this, the good Deeperlife has done to some of the youth who overlook all these are far more greater than the harm because,human relation can be learnt and builded through reading and exposure while all this other areas can be worked upon as one comes to realises these flaws.

Finally, I am glad I was brought up in this DeeperLife and it has contributed immersely to what I am today and I will ever live to be greatful to God for that .

HA!!!
I have a branch close to my house, though i like their way of worship (lack of noise) unlike some ''Mushroom'' churches that keep loudspeakers outside the church premises (calling for customers?).
There are few YOUTHS-guys and boys and more of Men (gallantly suited up) and ladies- both young and old (dressed like , sorry ''mary-amaka'') have been thinking of a word to use but had to resort to my mother tongue. pls bear wt me!!

I guess they run away because they teach you to ''do this'' and 'leave that'' without creating room for how to do it. and they attach such RESTRICTIONS to the ''Bible ie its in the bible''

so my friend, it all depends on what you are looking for in your worship or better still were you can worship and be happy.

Guys,
I've just had myself a hell of a laughter medicine reading your posts,

Let's be honest:

Man want's freedom.

Man wants to be accepted: We're all emotional beings and God created us to have feelings that want to be accepted. Youths want that and want it 100%

Youths want to be expressive. They love to express themselves, and God doesn't mind that AT ALL

Face it! Is it not liberating to know that you can live a better life while serving one and the same God. Why D'you think churches like Living Faith , are booming? Apart from the fact that the lives of these youths are being transformed

I've been a Christian since 1994 but never had the chance to visit other churches let alone know their mode of worship. Left for America and lived there till 2004, so when I moved back to Nigeria I had to start looking for a place of fellowship, tried some mainstream churches but couldn't grip with their prayers and teachings, checked Deeper Life and fell in love until I began to learn the reasons behind their doctrines. I must say that Deeper Life is to the extreme for the singular fact that you're looked upon as sinner and wordly if you dress gorgeously. Clothing means nothing to God - whether you dress to kill or piously - If I had to pick a wife, I would not look for one at Deeper life.

Flesh is much stronger and gripping than what Deeper Life proffers to checkmate its excesses - Yes! I can say that again!

On the far left is Chris Oyakhilome's church where anything goes - I really don't know what is happening in the world. You can imagine church members getting sexually aroused in the church. I've seen so much in Nigeria since 2004 and must say that Tunde Bakare's Church Lagos,  RCCG Holy Ghost Camp and Winners Chapel Sango Otta branch are some of the places to look for a balance spiritual life.

simple!!!!!!! it's all because there are soooooooooo manyyyyyyyyyyyyyy of their dont's more than the do's

dont relax Ur hair
dont leave Ur hair uncovered
dont wear short stuffs
is just toooo damn much
youths of today wonna chill not act holy holy

dont wear earrings or is it big one's

Deeper Life Bible Church have different views about so many things they make Xtianity so cumbersome that it makes me wonder if God is so hard definitely not.

Pastor Kumuyi seems to enjoy it since he does not believe in so much crowd remember may are called but few are choosen.

Imagine! to cap it up they hold retreat programmes in their camp @ Ibadan express way,on Xmas and boxing days,were so many are catching fun.

Wahala dey as Bash Ali will always say.

I've been a member of DEEPER LIFE since 1994 and am still there. Agreed that d youths are flocking away, but we need to know d reasons why it's like that.

In d district church where I belong, we have many youths (boys and girls) in our midst and they are up to 120 in number. I've gone through 3 different district churches since then and what i see that contributes to this are as follows

1. Home background of the youths
2. Literacy on d part of d parents
3. No spending time with the youths at home to really guide them according to what saith the Lord
4. Youthful exuberance
5. Christian lives of the parents
6. The attitudes of the church leaders where u belong

Kumuyi's own is to preach the word, urs is to pray according to what he preached and how the Holy Spirit interpretes it to u and live ur life.

Cant lie to u all, many of our so called members are pretenders, thus leading the youths to believe that all is fake. The district I worship in is a typical example of a would like to worship in church.

You may dress decently but extravangance is not encouraged.

Will still explain more pls

just like some ppl have said, the reason why many youths run away from the Deeper Life Bible Church is because they want the Liberty to do what they want to do what they want to do.

On the other hand, its rightly observed, a lot of Mature people attend the Church, should we put two and two together, would it be right to say Mature minded people can find the True Gospel most convenient. Perhaps maybe because they know that life is too short to waste any longer.

The reason why I appreciate the Deeper Life Bible Church is that in a generation of vipers like the one we are presently in, they still teach the Word of God, in all truth.

@Akolawole

Youths prefer to go to some churches where "everything" is accepted.

The greater truth is that:
God Invites everybody to Heaven, but Heaven will not accept everybody(sinners). Whoever chooses to remain in sin(like youths that run away from church and live in sin) will not be accepted in Heaven.

@otoks

the funny aspect is that the ladies are not allowed to perm their hair; they are made to look all like widows while their men are suited up.

Are you saying that until a woman perms her hair and wears all the earings etc, makes up and down, she looks like a widow? ehen.
Let me ask you something the following:
- How many earings did Mary, the Mother of Jesus put on?
- does any Biblical record, or any historical fact ever give us any info that Mary wore Trousers or faded jeans? why is this mode of dressing accepted by churches today?
- How many perms here and there did she do, and what was the color of her lipstick.
- did history potray her as someone who wore miniskirts, hugging pants, backless, frontless and all the g-strings whatsoever, graceless and scanty clothings that the ladies of today wear and feel cool?
- what is the definition of covering your unclothedness? does it include see through clothes?, i mean lets be realistic. The kind of skirt that a woman puts on that doesnt allow her to climb the bus, does that form decent clothing? or the kind that makes big-eyed men begin to whistle up and down, do you think the Mother of Jesus could have put on such? Do you think she dressed in such a way to make Roman soldiers carry her around for a ride in their wagons?

She didnt do any of the above, besides, there were many women in her time, but God in Heaven looked down on the whole earth, searched and searched and picked just one person, Mary. Dont you think that she must have been someone of great virtue?

Im not preaching about Mary here, im just trying to set an example. Man likes to live by an example, especially good ones. Now if we truly live by examples, and Churches will follow examples, i think they can clearly see an example of how a woman should comport herself.

Let the guys take a look at Jesus. Was he a truant, NO. was he a roughian, NO. didnt he dress respectively, He did. how did he talk, was he a street fighter like many young boys today? was he disobedient to his earthly parents and to his heavenly father? NO. He gave His life for the whole of Man. That was the assignment God gave to Him, and He carried it out in detail. Did he dress up like a hooligan? If Jesus is the ultimate example for all youths today, then the world will have less of a problem. abi.

Our fore-fathers never had these kind of problems we have today. Where was the lipstick of my grandmother, how about yours. Our grand-fathers might have had many wives, but at least they married them, not fornicated with them and dump them. How many bastards did they rear up? Werent the homes then better than what we have today? How many times did a man with 6 wives divorce one of his wives? didnt they rear their children in love and harmony? where was the hate in such large families, as we have hate among blood-brothers today? our grand folks never knew how to read and write, some never read the bible, some had the Bible read to them, and that was only on special occassions when the English speaking master came to town, they didnt hear as much doctrines as are free and available today, how many deliverances, crusades, etc, did they attend and run to every now and then. Didnt they live free from sickness and the petty problems that shake man today?  They were guided by their conscience. Doesnt that tell us that God is in every humans conscience, if only they will listen?

Twas this love after gold, jewerly etc, that brought down Gods wrath on Israel as Moses came down from the mount with the tables of the commandments. The origin of all these jewerly and makeup is of an idolatrous fact. In the past, a woman who wore lipstick was suspected to be a prostitute, since it had to do with the color of an sexually-aroused females(u know what), thats a bit of history. sorry if anyone is offended, but thats the truth. i could go on with other details, but let me pause here:

Maybe we could say Deeper Life is over doing(if its possible) and over preaching the righteousness stuff, but dont you think its better to be too Holy(and get to heaven) than not to be Holy enough. Remember, each of us will stand before God at the end time. Especially here in Nigeria, i think we need a Church who can preach the Word of God like it should be preached. It is better to score 101% in an exam than to score 99, if 100 was the required passing mark.

The reason why the Disciples were called Christians was a combination of how they physically dressed, how they looked, how they cut their hair, how they talked, smiled, lived, loved, related with humans around them, and the passion with which they spoke about who they believed in: Jesus.

With regards to Restrictions: doesnt the Bible give its believers Restrictions? thats why the 10-commandments were right there in Genesis. Deeper Life or no Deeper Life, God will not ask you which chuch you went to. He will not forgive your unrighteousness if you say it was because your pastor did not teach you the word of God. You have the eyes to read, go read the Bible. Its everywhere, in every bookstore, free on the web. Read it and obey it. It will not be me-and-my-friends idea, and no one is going to go to heaven/hell because of somebody else. Just like bus-conductors in NIgeria are neither in or out of the vehicle thats moving, its not possible in the Bible. Its either you are for Christ or youre not.

I personally do not approve of a church where everything goes. It would have been better if a person were a total idolater, than to be a Christian in a church where everything is accepted, where fornication and adultery is the order of the day. When I was small, even tho we didnt attend Deeper Life, he was so strict that I dont think that any Deeper Life daddy can do better, as per rearing up children.

This must be some Church, dont u think

You can imagine church members getting sexually aroused in the church.

Imagine after church, you begin to pray for forgiveness, for lusting after a half-naked lady. Its better to sin outside the church, not inside. And a lot of youth and adult today who attend these kinda churches today go there primarily to look for the opposite sex. Ask them, they'll testify. Look at what happens after service, its either business men/women gather together for business talk and begin distributing call-cards, while the young one pair together boy and girl, after Church. Tell me that they will remember what the pastor just said? its impossible.

@Multioption

I must say that Deeper Life is to the extreme for the singular fact that you're looked upon as sinner and wordly if you dress gorgeously.

Dont worry, pls forgive the Deeper Life, but on a more important note:
Does God, the Author of the Bible look at a worldly person as a Saint? If God and the Bible wont count a worldy person as a saint, doesnt that connote theres something else to the whole story? And where does the "worldly" perspective come from, is it not to connote that there its something different from another kind of lifestyle? what is that kind of lifestyle? A Godly lifestyle.
So we have those that are 'Godly' and those that are 'Worldly'. Which do you think the Deeper Life presents in its doctrines, and which of the two is 'right' according to the Bible, if you believe in it.

sorry for your perception @

Deeper Life Bible Church have different views about so many things they make Xtianity so cumbersome that it makes me wonder if God is so hard definitely not.

Christianity is not so Cumbersome, and I Deeper Life doesnt in no way make Christianity cumbersome. Christianity is so much fun, and its a great way to live. Imagine having the constant feeling that you are a Child of God, that God loves you, is watching over you, imagine telling the truth without much effort, living without suspecting anyone, and trusting that you have a ready backup 24/7: God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit. Imagine God speaking to you, telling you what to do, where to go, how to answer a difficult question. I myself have a testimony of how i scored a perfect score in an Advanced Mathematics exam, which I never read for, and for which twas like the 8-page solutions were practically dictated to me during the 3hours exam, only me, in the class, without anyone else hearing, imagine Praying and having instant answers, imagine living for years without visiting the Hospital, imagine having a premonition of events, and for which you avoid without stress, these are some of what God does His children.

Its not all about donts and donts and donts. What if there were no rules in the world. The problem is that the truth is very hard to stomach, so people kinda go where they are told what they want to hear-which is not always the truth.

Yes asange, wahala dey, and the wahala be say even when people see truth korokoro, they refuse to believe it. The Bible is now a free-for-all, yet many people dont believe it. Thank God for Kumuyi and the Deeper Life.

I attend the Deeper Life. I took my Bible and read what God said and as far as ive searched, its the Bus that can get me where I want to get to - Heaven.

@ kimba,

Many thx for d words. I actually wanted to finish my explanations d way u summed it up, but went out. Just back in d house.

People wants freedom @ d expense of their souls, forgetting that life is very very short and must be lived according to thus saith d Lord. Leaders may lead u astray in d church, but u have ur bible to guide u aright. Youths and adults are adventurous and should be guided in d perfect will of God in this perverse world. Deeper Life teachings are not rules as it's believed by all

Thank God for Kumuyi's life. Dont have any regret being a member pls. More later based on ur reponses

I am not a member but been there several times. you just summed everything up now that they're trying to live according to the bible times, live and walk in the steps of Mary and Jesus.

I don't want to offend anybody neither do I want to offend God. Maybe I am wrong, but I think "Deeper Lifers" kinda discriminate against other churches as well as they are too quick to judge people.

ma 2 cents!!!!

@ Busta,

We dont judge any church, but point out errors where found and correct when necessary pls.

We dont discriminate too pls. Many times I've travelled out of Lagos on official assignments and worshipped in other churches. It is d word that I need, not what is being done in those places

kimba,

Well said - I attended deeper life most of my teenage years, I thank God for that. Deeper Life is straight forward and that is why most people don't like the church especially youths.

It's either you are worldy or Godly - most people don't like to be called worldly. Got is not lukewarm - he doesn't expect any of us to be either.

the obvious reason is simple.

the Bible says it is a narrow way to heaven! the youth want a pastor to tell them it isnt a narrow way, that can still go to heaven even if u indulge in worldly things. and thats what new generation pastors tell them.

i hope these pastors have a heaven where they will put these pple sha!

@ cabali,

U summed it up all

-Quote from: pearldrops on April 03, 2006, 07:23 PM
because it's deeper life meaning their life is way too deep

quote from ono
I wonder how a shallow life would look like. I bet it will be so shallow, you can't make a meaning out of it.

that will be called shallow life CHURCH

@busta

I don't want to offend anybody neither do I want to offend God. Maybe I am wrong, but I think "Deeper Lifers" kind of discriminate against other churches as well as they are too quick to judge people.

hi Busta, there are a whole lot of people naturally with a judgmental attitude, whether or not the talk or the situation is about religion or even the secular. thats one point. Ive interacted with people from other denominations as well, and while they think they are making a point, they are outrightly judging someone else, Another is that perhaps, the Deeper Lifers that you could have come across/seen discriminating against other churches, did not know how to express what they wanted to say. Its a matter of presentation, you know. Its possible for me to present you the best food in the world in the dirtiest of plates/vessels. which would make the whole thing repulsive to you, right. The same is true vice-versa. The Church doesnt teach anyone to discriminate. What are we discriminating against anyway. The Bible is not about Church, or pastor or anyother thing, its about you, the Word of God and God Himself. But ofcourse, we have to tell one another the truth.

If I see someone physically drowning in water, it will be very wrong for me to give a report to another person saying "i found out that the man was swimming very slowly". The truth is at the time i saw him, he was drowning. and to the drowning person, he must know, o boy, if you dont get out of there, you're a gonner, i mean putting things in right perspective.

still on the descrimination, you know pastor Kumuyi even allows non-members in conferences. I think twas in Feb when he came to Abuja, and held a 3-day conference with a Crusade. At the beginning of the conference he asked to see those who were non-members, i was surprised man, they were twice the number of members that attended. In fact, he was very delighted. Now if you see a DLifer descriminating against another Christian, while you know Kumuyi himself doesnt, you know that that particular DLifer has a personal problem. abi.

Kimba, Well said! I applaud you, however I must give you very strong and sound advice for leaders, if you want to pass a message across to followers(or listeners), here's the simple trick: Keep it short, Keep it simple! But you had beautiful and sound words, ok!

Here's my opinion,

Deeper Life's a church as far as they preach the word, praise God. Truth is this, I won't attend there except I'm instructed by the HolySpirit because there's too many rules and Brother Paul in the book of Acts STRONGLY suggests that ", the law entered, that the offence[sin] might abound, " Romans 5:20 and if your sin quickly abound(is revealed) thanks laws everywhere and for everything, then there's condemnation almost everytime which Romans12:1 speaks against.

But THANK GOD! Romans 7:6 says ", But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held, "
It also says "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ, " NOTE: It mentions THROUGH THE BODY OF CHRIST - and that's the church

@multioption

Multioption, i don't think it's fair to pick on Christ Embassy simply because of the way some of its members dress. Jesus befriended the tax collectors, and what happened--he was accused of making friends with them, He didn't turn back simply because of who they were or what they did--He saw it as an opportunity to reach out to them, at the end of the day Judas was the thief! my point is this, i've been a member of Pastor Chris' church for 6yrs now, and when i got there, i was nought but a recalictrant teenager, trust me, i dressed just the way you described, but now, when i step out you'll think i'm a minister. They didn't look at me as in "see what this girl is wearing o!" they accepted me, and with time the word changed my mindset, and i had good mentors--mind you they were not half naked men or women. I don't live in Nigeria anymore, but that dress code is still with me. I'm still a Christ Embassy member, and my dress code's really formal, as are the dress codes of a lot of brethrens in that ministry, it means when you went there your focus was on the wrong thing. I was in Nigeria over Christmas and i went to my church, and people still dress decently, so don't judge a whole church based on how a few dress. It's not our place
**** someone said it's better to sin outside the church than inside, i'm so sorry, that's wrong, sin is sin, where you do it doesn't matter--it is still sin. This is why youths are running away from deeper life, you can't force them to adhere to rules, what this generation needs is teaching on how to be Christ minded, and how to handle of the word of life, Col 2:20-23 "Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 21"Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence"

@ Sir Kay & Kimba

In the process of changing my cds i've lost what i'd typed several times! but it's all good. Yeah! what i was saying before that occured is this, all the laws and 10 commandments you're holding so strongly to have been fulfiled in Christ, Bible says "Christ is the end of the law" (Rom 10:4). Your next argument might be what happens to the 10 commandments we were given, the Bible answers that already, they were a fore-shadow of better things to come, Heb 10:1 "The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves." Christ fufiled all of that, and as many believe in Him and allow the Holy Spirit work in them, they can be all that you want to see, but then again, it really doesn't matter what you want to see, cuz God's looking at the heart anyway! not their dressing (not like it don't matter) 1 Sam 16:7. Think about it, Christ did it all, what can be better than that there are no 10 commandments anymore, we have 2 now: Jn 13:34-35, 1 Jn 3: 23-24. The commandment of love, Christ said if we love we will not do what the 10 commandments wanted us to--the bible said they couldn't accomplish in themselves that's why Christ had to come, so, i guess your youths are just finding themselves where they're accepted, and being taught rightly. People want to see overnight transformation, but they forget it's the Holy Spirit that does the work, the pastor just sows the seed of the word!

I fink deeper life is vry good 4 bringin up children especially if u want to put the fear of God in them. I am nt disputing other churches bt i was brought up in dat church, even though i dont attend d church again, there r somethings that i fink twice b4 doing.
And deeper life is not forcing all its doctrines down anyones throat, u r allowed to wear ear rings, make up, they believe that once u r convienced, no one would tell u not 2 wear ear rings again b4 u stop.

whatever the case is, no pastor will stand for u on the day of judgement and there are no churches in heaven so if u know God will frown on something, dont do it even if ur pastor says it is ok period.

christ embassy is good as well but the members shud stop starting their statements with 'pastor chris said, pastor chris this and that' instead say the bible says!

well, Pastor Chris said and Pastor Chris didn't say is not an issue any body should not be a controversy and here's why.
It hasn't occured to many that the man of God placed over you is not just a shepherd but also a father. Would you have
made that same accusation to guys you hear giving beautiful quotes by their fathers and other mentors?

Common folks! these are not secular mentors, these are men of God! If you don't fear them, don't you fear God before you
make such comments? If you can't respect the Pastors on earth which you call and see as "common men" which God placed
there for you, how do you show God that you'd really have respected Him if He were physically present on earth,

These comments and attitudes we show concerning men of God are physical actions that show our hearts which God sees!

I don't say that every "Pastor" is right or sent, but every MAN OF GOD! You've got to know the difference:
The bible seperates "Jesus of Nazareth, [as] a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know"Acts2:22

Nigeria has to learn a lot spiritually. Who says pastors in America don't have worse scandals? But is this how they respond?
, And you see that's their wisdom, and that's "one of the reasons" why America is not behind!

@papa look! do not judge me, i respect God and u probably do not stay in nigeria so u dont know what am talking abt!

to make quotes of great men is cool but u dont preach to pple like it is pastor chris that made the rules in the bible what happened to christ?