JEMIMA: When The Dove Turned Golden!

BY SIMON REEF MUSA

26th June, 1973 might have passed as an insignificant day without firmaments heralding the birth of a child, but not to the family of the late Mr. Joseph Ogbo Adakpo, and his wife, Mrs Blessing Owuzo Ogbo, that welcomed the birth of a beautiful baby girl that would be named Patience Aruoriwo.

She commenced her primary education at the Olordo Girls’ Primary School, Ozoro, in the present day Delta State in 1979. After the completion of her basic education, she was admitted into Anglican Girls’ Grammar School (AGGS) Ozoro, in 1986, before proceeding to Olodi Apapa Secondary School, Apapa-Lagos, where she completed her Junior Secondary School.

the young Patience  would later be admitted into the Government Secondary School Bwari, Abuja where she sat for her Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) in 1991.

At the completion of her secondary education, the young Patience relocated to Kano where she briefly worked as an office secretary. She would later enroll for a Fashion Design course to become a certified fashion designer in 1994.  Her stay in Kano drew her closer to God Almighty, as it also marked the beginning of her divine encounter with her Creator.

It was while in Kano that she got wedded to Pastor Joseph Inda-John who later relocated to Abuja in 1998 to start a Church known and called Bible Believers’ Assembly (BBA), Abuja.  Looking back through the years, Mrs Jemima Joseph, who is popularly called Mama is full of praises to God for the boundless mercies of God in making it possible to attain the golden age.

She recalls, “Growing up as the first child of my parents in a polygamous home was an experience that helped shaped my life tremendously. I grew up with my grandparents in the family house, but started cooking for crowd during my primary school years.

“I was also involved in taking care of my younger siblings and assisting my grandparents in the farm before joining my parents who were then living in Lagos. I was also engaged in helping my mother who was also involved in selling so many things, including hawking on the streets of Ajegunle, in Lagos, and Kano market”.

On the challenges of married to a pastor, she has says, “Being a pastor wife, hmmmm, it has not been quite easy. Well, I saw it even before my marriage. Yes, sometimes, as a human being, I get frustrated and confused over certain issues, but everything gets sorted out at the end of the day.

“I have identified that my major task in life is to help my husband in the ministry God has called into and to create some form of stability for him when the enemy rages. In these 25 years of our marriage, God has always been mindful, faithful and gracious in making a way out of every junction of life I have encountered”.

What does she consider as her greatest achievement in life?

“My greatest achievement in life is being fully convinced that I now have a personal encounter with the Almighty God since from my youthful years. This has kept me and not only broadened but also solidified my trust in Him.

If Christ tarries and she is alive for the next decade, what dream or vision does she intend to realise: “My earnest desire in the next 10 years, if Christ tarries and I am alive is, by the grace of God, work towards making myself to progress in life on every positive side. I have dream and I am committed to seeing my husband and Pastor, having relief in the ministry, being established in his vision as a Minister of the Gospel”.

Recalling her enthusiastic dream for her four children, comprising a girl and three boys, Betty, Gabriel, Lemuel and Zuriel, she says: “I want to see my children loving and serving God and praying for more of God in their lives. More than this, I dream of most of them being married, and advance in their career choices, and doing so well to the glory of the Almighty God.

Pastor Inda-John, who describes his beloved wife as someone born just for him, recalls the circumstances leading to their marriage on October 25, 1997 at the Kano Christian Assembly, Kano: “When I met her in 1993, after praying to God for marital settlement, I knew she was God’s answer to my prayers. But, from the moment I declared my interest to take her for a wife, all hell was let loose. Oppositions and resistances, from Church members and from relations, mounted, but God, who ordained the marriage to be, fought for us and prevailed over the storms of resistance.

“Despite protests from the opposition camp, all the traditional rites were accomplished amidst the turbulence, and we eventually got wedded. I changed her first name from Patience to Jemima (Dove) in order to reflect and celebrate her gentle disposition. My wife has been a virtuous, gentle, loving and unassuming life partner of over 25 years. Throughout these two and half decades of our marriage, I have never and I know that I will never regret marrying her. She has thus far proved to be that missing part of me that God brought back to make me complete. We complement each other”.

Commending the attributes of a godly mother she deployed to bring up the children and her accommodative nature towards children that are not hers biologically, Pastor Inda-John notes: “My wife has been a godly mother whose voice is never raised, but is quietly understood by the children. With her, she has a way of talking to the children to fall in line without screaming out.

“Her accommodative nature is evidenced in the number of children that always live with us in the house, at any given time.  Like my Mother of blessed memory, she is not vindictive. While there are lot of people, even among the most unexpected, have taken advantage of her gentle nature and offended her unprovoked by her, my wife is always calm and devoid of bitter guile against those who seek her hurt.

“I couldn’t have wished for a better wife than her, as I remain eternally grateful to the Almighty God for not allowing me to marry anyone before I met her, even though I tried without success. I am glad I got her. It looks to me like she has not aged any bit, since I met her 25 years ago,” the pastor declares in a tribute.

Without an iota of doubt, the life of Mrs Jemima Inda-John, JP, remains a true reflection of Christian virtues and a commitment to excellence in whatever she does. Her calm disposition and stylish dressing, with always a smile, reveals the essence of her faith and professional career that combine to bring out teenage years in her golden crown.

She is the Chief Executive Officer of Betty’s Fashion and Outfit Academy that has produced scores of fashion designers, and still involved in the business of providing the right training for those interested in providing clothing for those interested in dressing fashionably.

As she hit the golden point on Monday June 26, not a few believe that this Golden Dove may have falsified her age to claim the golden age. Indeed, @50, Mama seems to be clothed in an age too young for her age! Congratulation for being golden, but we shall celebrate the golden crown over and over again in the years to come.

Mama, may you continue to be golden in the decades to come, not minding your ageless physique!