Mindshift conference is an annual conference of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Youth Province 3; The programme that positively change the mindset of professional youth will hold on Saturday June 19 2021 at the RCCG National Youth Centre, Redemption camp, Mowe. Abioye Olaoluwa, the pioneer Pastor in charge of RCCG Youth Province 3, covering the youth churches in Ogun and Ondo states, speaks with SEYI JOHN SALAU on the Mindshift conference 2021. Excerpts:
Mind Shift focuses on the youth: the question now is; do the Nigerian youth really need a mind shift?
The Nigerian youth and everyone requires a mind shift. But, like you said, if we focus on the young people because the reach of the programme has gone beyond that strata. We had a full virtual programme last year and people registered all the way from the U.S., UK, Island, South Africa, and a number of European nations because everyone needs a mind shift. Everyone needs a mind shift; and what that signifies is that ‘your mind is you’ and whatever goes on in your mind determines who the person is. I give you an example: if you take a glass of water and you fill it to the half; if you ask somebody what can they see? somebody will tell t that what you have is an half empty glass of water. If you ask another person; he will say half full glass of water. The two of them are correct but their mindset is different, and the bible says in Philemon 1:14; “that without your mind will I do nothing”. So, our mind is very crucial. The same scripture says to him who is able to do exceeding, abundantly above what you can ever ask or imagine according to the power that is working inside of me. So, if God wants to do something and our mind cannot handle it; then it becomes a problem. So, for a Nigerian youth environment might look the way it is but we need to start the correction from the mind. When somebody have a mind of abundant – if you take the person to a place where there is scarcity; he creates abundance there. But, when somebody has a scarcity mentality, if you bring the person to a place of abundance, he will create scarcity. That is why you see that people steal public funds because they might be rich in their pocket but in their mind; they are poor.
With that is mind; to what extent should the youth focus on this shift considering the socio-economic situation of the country?
Like I said, it has happen in other nations before and when we have socio-economic challenges as a country; the young people should focus on the shift – that should be the Paramount thing. If you ever ask some young people; you will hear people say things like national cake – when I get there; I will eat my own. Those people are eating our money, when I get there I will eat my own. So, it tells you that such people are going through poverty of the mind thinking that public things, public funds supposed to be consumed . So, to actually correct the socio-economic situation; we need to get the mind of the young people to have a shift. For example, when you look at the leadership carter of the nation: people have also advocated that when young people get there, they will do it better. That is provided that a point in this country we have had governor was in his 40s; a senator was in his 40s and a speaker of the House of Representatives was in his 40s. But, has it actually change many thing. So, the mind is very key and like it is, a fish is better bend when it has not become hardened. So, it is better to work on the mind for now.
You have a roll call of seasoned ministers for the programme; what influenced your choice?
When you look at the programme Mindshift, our aim is to get to all the areas where human is actually defined. To touch the spiritual side, to touch them at the leadership so that we build them to enlarge their capacity. To touch them in the area of nation building and economy; then to touch in the area of relationship and them expressing themselves. So, since we want to reach out to all these salient i areas of life; that is something that always guide our choice of speakers. And like we have always had over the years; this year also we have an array of people. But more importantly we also focus on people that are excelling line and they are people who are also saved: who are also godly. So that nobody will come and teach something that is not godly because is it the blessings of the lord that make rich and will not add sorrow to it.
If we are to take a critical look at the roll call of ministers you have for the programme: there is always the conflicting thought about youth being leaders of tomorrow; will the tomorrow ever come?
In one of the editions: I think the 2019 edition I remember I said people have always said that youth are leaders of tomorrow, but if the youth did not prepare today then that phrase is going to become a future impossible phrase that youth are leaders of tomorrow because that tomorrow will never come. I think the missing link there is that many actually wait for that tomorrow, and they don’t know that the best time to prepare for tomorrow is today. So, when you start leading as a class rep; every human is a leader. The first person you need to learn how to lead is yourself. You must lead yourself – how well do you organise your time? how well do you improve on your skills to be able to reach out to the world? how well do you affect those around you: as a father, how well do you affect your family? as a child, how well do you affect your parents and your siblings? So, that is where it start from; then you can now begin to belong to a group. Some of us were boy scouts when we were young . How well do you influence your peer? So, how well do you now come to either the organisation where you work. In those two, five, ten persons that you are leading, how well do you lead them? And those things will come in and prepare you for tomorrow. So, a tomorrow you are not prepared for; you cannot perform when that tomorrow comes.
This year’s theme is “Exponential”. Can you tell us more about the theme?
We are led to choose the theme exponential this year because last year our theme was ‘Buy the Future’. But, we are going exponential this year because exponential talks to a raise of power. If you say two exponential three; you are saying two in three raised to the degree of three. Its the believe that whatever good that we are doing; we want everyone to take it to an exceptional level, and that is what you call excellence. So that is where the word exponential came from. In our mindset, in our creativity, in our community and our places, we want people to take it to greater height and that is where the word exponential comes from. People should come and be impacted so that what is given onto you: you will not just maintain it, but you will begin to multiply it in an exponential manner.
In 2020, Nigerian youth in their numbers spoke their mind to power via the #ensSARS protest. Would you say govt have responded positively to their cry?
The answer is capitally no. And, this is the first challenge concerning that protest. I don’t think government actually listened. Because what you did not listen to, there is no way you can understand it. They didn’t listen and here lies the plight of the young people. So, trying to answer it or to provide what those youth are asking for will be difficult because when you want to do a strategic planning, there is something called the statement of the problem. If you don’t understand the statement of the problem very well, there is no way you can proffer a good solution to the problem. I think the leadership of the nation did not get the statement of the problem and that is why you will see that at a point when the police began to harass people they will be telling them – you were the people who say they should proscribe us nah; but they didn’t know those people are actually fighting for them to say that how can you 7 have people like this that are not well paid, then you put a gun in their hand – so what do you expect. So, I think the government didn’t get the statement of the problem and I just pray that they get it right because almost a year after it still seems as if the statement of the problem is not really gotten well.
Finally, what is your message to youth of the province and others that would be attending this program?
For those who will be attending this programme , I will imploy them not to come alone and they should bring others because when we pull all our energies together we will be able to make a great effect. In our local pallance, the elders says that when sneak walks in isolation they become less a danger to anybody. People will easily kill a sneak that ia just wondering; but imagine you see about five, ten sneaks at the same time, the person will be left with no choice than to run. They will run away because they have put their effort together. So, they need to come with an open mind because when they come to that conference, they will first unlearn, before they will now relearn. More importantly they should go out there and put to work all the things that they will learn. And for the youth large; I would want them to still have a strong faith that things will still turn around better. But not only the faith, they should get busy; increase their capacity, then look at non violent means of getting every thing that they need to get. But they should put themselves under an ourte that whenever they have opportunity to stand for others, they will not go the way of the people they have complained about because if we keep doing the same thing, the same way, expecting a different result – that is the definition of insanity.
