Founder and Senior Pastor of Daystar Christian Centre, Sam Adeyemi, has disclosed why he has relocated to the United States.
He mentioned this during a virtual interview with Seun Okinbaloye on the ‘Mic On’ podcast, during which they discussed Leadership Beyond Governance, Politics, and the Role of the younger generation in Nigeria.
The one-hour, thirty-minute, and forty-seven-second video was streamed on the Mic On YouTube channel on Sunday.
The gospel preacher and motivational speaker, who hails from Kogi State but was born in Niger State, disclosed that COVID-19, the EndSARS protests, and significantly troubling dreams about Nigeria, spurred the decision to relocate.
Adeyemi said, “When COVID-19 started, all our children were in the US, so everyone stayed with their families. We stayed with our children. The week services resumed was when EndSARS started, so we were preparing to return to Nigeria.
“When the EndSARS protests ended in violence, we stayed back a bit. When we were ready to return to Nigeria, a different experience altogether happened.
“My wife had a dream in which she travelled to Nigeria and returned to the US, which was a bad dream. I told her I wouldn’t say I liked this dream.
“Three days later, I had a dream. We both travelled to Nigeria in my dream, and I was in a big fight. I was being attacked violently, and I had to ask the Holy Spirit in my heart what to do.
“He said I should call the name of Jesus Christ. I shouted ‘in the name of Jesus Christ’ in the dream and didn’t realise I shouted out loud in real life.
“My wife woke me up at 2:00 a.m. by hitting me and asking what was going on. We decided to take it seriously, especially considering a dream we had three days earlier.
“We prayed fervently, sensing danger. Three hours later, I fell back asleep and had another dream. We were in Nigeria this time, and I was in a fight.”
The President of Success Power International, an NGO focused on leadership and motivational seminars, shared that repeated bad dreams and family concerns deterred him and his wife from returning to Nigeria.
Despite planning trips back, he experienced unsettling dreams, prompting him to consult family members who also felt uneasy about their return.
Deciding to pray and seek guidance, he informed the top leaders of Daystar Christian Centre via Zoom, who supported his decision to stay in the US.
After six months in the US, he realized the church was thriving due to its strong systems and training investments. His extended stay, initially planned to be brief, lasted almost three years until he felt the Holy Spirit’s guidance to return.
This period allowed him to shift his focus from pastoring a local church to embracing a global mission, using technology to maintain Daystar’s operations.
Daystar Christian Centre, based in Lagos State, was inaugurated on November 18, 1995, and now has branches across various states in Nigeria.