Tribute

Adebodebosin! ,Morascoco!, JadesolaOmo Oba. The unique names you gave to myself, my darling wife & our daughter. You are my sister in the truest form of the word.

Our pain was yours, and so our joy. You are (still not yet used to referring to you in past tense) an exceptional human being, a special gift from God to us. We were privileged to know you, and for this, we are so grateful to God.

I remember calling you out in my typical fashion – ‘sista Ronke!’ whenever I felt you were taking on too much as you went about with your God-given tasks and you would respond ‘Debo! Kini problem e?’ (Debo!, What is your problem? meaning, let me be).

Hmmm, you are a General, I recently heard someone describe you as a force of nature…there was no human being on the face of the earth you could not talk to with your unique language of selflessness and the physical demonstration of the love of God.

Even while going through your health challenges, when most would be focused on self, you continued to speak in your unique language to this & that assignment. I sometimes wanted you to just rest, but this was the essence of your life. Several times, I would ask about your welfare, but you were only too quick to change the topic to how others were and what needed to be done. Eventually, I did get it.
Thank you for teaching us and demonstrating that the reason why we are blessed is for us to be a blessing to others. Thank you for teaching us to give, knowing that we cannot out-give God – The giver of life. Thank you for teaching us to be selfless and to always physically demonstrate the love of God.

We reconnected when you relocated with your family from Nigeria to the UK in 1998. And even more so when you visited us in Strood, Kent, and took on our advice to move from Croydon and join us in Kent. You were our older sister in the UK and later, the founding Pastor of our church – RCCG, The Covenant Assembly.

You were in the hospital with us when we had our daughter – JadesolaOmo Oba – prematurely at 25 weeks. You prayed and you helped with childcare. You celebrated our new jobs & new houses and birthdays. You were there for every milestone – to celebrate every win, to encourage and to hold our hands during any challenge.

Sister Ronke, you were an absolute immense supporter and a prayer warrior, a blessing to me and mine. Even when we had differences in opinion, you were always magnanimous. You gave of yourself to all you came across both young and old. I sometimes wondered where you got so much energy from, but in your selfless nature on numerous occasions, you would be the one praying for us to receive strength in your unique way – “Receive strength in Jesus’ Name, Amen!”

….Our great loss is indeed heaven’s gain, and your life is a reminder that we should focus on heaven’s agenda.

Adieu, sister Ronke, my ‘true’ sister, my friend, my encourager, my supporter, and my Pastor…sleep well till we meet again by the grace of God. Amen! Adebodebosin
Adebowale Ojedokun