Obi and Boi Outpourings
A spontaneous revival broke out in Gindiri in 1972. However, the first signs of this revival appeared in Obi, in the Mada Hills area just south of the Jos Plateau, in 1971.
At the Obi Bible School, a small group of staff and students began holding special prayer meetings. The Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ in Nigeria had founded the school.
During this period, the group experienced an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Their experiences included visions, healings, and speaking in tongues. The outpouring continued through much of 1971.
The Revival Spreads to Boi
In December 1971, one of the students returned home to Boi. There, he shared stories about what had happened at Obi.
His testimony inspired the people of Boi to begin their own special prayer meetings. Soon, they experienced a similar outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
The revival produced several striking results. People publicly repented and confessed their sins. Others reconciled with one another and made restitution for wrongs they had committed. The gift of prophecy also manifested among them.
By January 1972, news of the revival had reached Gindiri. A native of Boi who attended the Gindiri Pastors’ College carried the news there.
Shortly afterward, two women from Boi visited Bitrus Auta, pastor of the Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) in Gindiri. They told him that the Holy Spirit had revealed something concerning his congregation.
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Auta’s Vision
According to the women, the Holy Spirit had shown them that some people in Auta’s congregation were doing wrong. They believed God wanted Auta to confront the situation.
Then, on Sunday morning, February 27, 1972, Auta experienced something unusual during the church service.
He later described his experience: “I saw people in the church, pure white and transparent as bottles, and these were those with faith. Those without faith were very black—like blackened cooking pots, even if they were wearing white clothing. I heard a voice say to me, ‘Do not allow them to go out today. Call to them loudly and show them what they are doing. Truly, unless they repent, they will receive great judgment from the Lord.’”
Auta then called people by name and told them what he believed the Holy Spirit had revealed about their actions.
According to his account, the Holy Spirit touched the congregation. People began weeping over their sins. Then, one after another, they openly confessed their sins.
The confession continued from 11:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m.
The Gindiri Secondary School Chapel
That same night, another remarkable event took place at the Gindiri Secondary School chapel. The event had no direct connection to the earlier COCIN service.
The preacher, Tambaya Jibrin, had been singing words from Psalm 23. Suddenly, he stopped and said: “No, it will not be so unless my sin is covered and I am free in Christ.”
By these words, he meant that people who had not experienced conversion could not share in the blessings described in the song.
His statement set the stage for what happened next.
A Sudden Response
Derek Joy, the principal of the boys’ section of the school, later recalled that what followed was completely unexpected.
A woman who attended the meeting also described the scene: “There must have been well over 1,000 people in the church, although the three aisles were only wide enough for three abreast at the most. Almost the entire church rose up, forced into the aisles, and came seething forward. Some came right upon the pulpit (platform) and knelt.”
The response of the congregation marked another significant moment in the revival. People moved forward in large numbers, seeking spiritual renewal and responding to the message of repentance and freedom in Christ.
Thus, the experiences at Obi and Boi helped set the stage for the remarkable revival that soon spread through Gindiri and beyond.
Date: 13th September 2022
Title: The Gindiri Revival – A Confession Spree
Source: A Heritage of Faith: A History of Christianity in Nigeria
Author: Ayodeji Abodunde
Tale Tuesday 008
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