aegis of Evolve Workshops™. In an emotion-laden voice, Joe Blue shocked the listening audience when he started dissecting his life from birth, his unhappy childhood including the pain and agonies he suffered, what led him into the world of homosexuality, Nigerian Idol odyssey and his ultimate triumph when he had an encounter with Christ. Also In attendance were Afro Jazz diva, Yinka Davies; 2010 MTN Project Fame finalist, Tolulope Abraham Adesina and Mr. Gson Ebuka, coordinator of Evolve Workshops™.
Below are excerpts of the interview:
Tell us a bit about
yourself
I appreciate Jesus Christ and Nigerian Idol judge, Yinka
Davies who I have come to see as my big sister. I was born into a family of
seven and studied theatre arts in UNILAG. Unfortunately I couldn’t finish my
study and had to drop out.
Growing up to be
something you never dreamt about can be quite funny. What was your childhood
fantasies like?
Well, I grew up seeing my siblings as perfect. Many believed
that I was born by mistake and subjected me to a life of torment. I live a very
unhappy childhood. I was what you could call a child of rejection while growing
up. However, the stigma has turned out to work in my favour now.
Didn’t that trauma
leave a scar on you?
It did! You see, I turned out gay because I found myself in
the company of friends I couldn’t help mixing with. That was an era when people
don’t talk much about this ‘gay thing’ unlike the way it is now.
Are you still a gay?
No! I finally got transformed when I came across my current
spiritual father, Pastor Simeon Adeola, less than a year ago. Prior to that, I
lost my biological father three years ago. I was confused and knew I needed
somebody to guide me because I wasn’t happy with what I turned out to be. How
do I explain spending almost 23 years of my life as a gay? It was a terrible
moment for me. After I crashed out of the first season of Nigerian Idol, I was
seriously depressed. There was a time I told myself I won’t mind sleeping with
anybody for N30 million or even go as far as getting a mark of the beast. At
the time, it was one of those demonic thoughts I had as a kid.
That must have been a
terrible moment for you, wasn’t it?
Yes, it was. My transformation was a personal decision I had
to make. If I had not taken that step, I could have turned out worse. It was a
time I even slept with three persons at the same time. Just as smoking, the
addiction was too strong. Looking back now, I can say all the friends in my
life were a waste. Rather advised against my lifestyle, they urged me on and
contributed negatively to my life.
Let us talk about
your spiritual father. How was he able to transform you?
At first, it wasn’t easy. But Pastor Adeola kept reassuring
me that change don’t come if I don’t desire it. So I walked towards getting
that needed transformation. That was how he brought Jesus into my life. He gave
me a book to meditate on, observed my actions and inaction, talked to my soul
and helped to study the Bible assiduously. With time I got to understand that
Christ cannot help me unless I am ready to work with Him. In fact, Pastor
Adeola taught me to change my confession from ‘I was GAY’ to ‘Now I am a new
man!’ He understands me and can tell when the devil was about invoking the
spirit of homosexuality back into my soul. He made me feel special and showed
me the kind of genuine love I have craved all my life. Now I want to pray the
way he prays, dress the way he dresses and prophesy the way he does.
It has been said that success has many friends. Do you still retain your old friends?
No! With all I passed through, you know I can’t do that. I have cut away from old friends, because they are all gays. The fact remains that if you mix with drunkard, you will become one. If you follow prostitutes, you will equally become one soon. Unfortunately, I know not everybody is privilege to break away as I did.
What are your plans for the future?
I aim to teach transgressors the way of Christ is my dream.
I have a lot of projects I don’t want to start mentioning here. The little time
I have here on planet earth, I want to live in serving God
Do you have a girlfriend?
Girlfriend? That is not even in my plan right now. It is not
the ultimate, not even cars or money
What is your regret in life?
Not knowing Christ early enough
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