At a Thanksgiving Service held at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Diobu, Port Harcourt, Rivers State to mark the end of the administration of the former Rivers State Governor, Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike and welcome the new State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara and his Deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, the Archbishop of the Ecclesiastical Province of Niger Delta and Bishop of Ikwerre Diocese Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), Most Reverend Blessing Chinyere Enyindah commended Wike for his numerous projects, especially the consruction of overhead bridges and good network of roads.

Thanking God for the gift of a new day, the privilege to be in His presence, he described the day, last Sunday, as Pentecost Sunday — a day in the liturgical calendar that the church marks the coming of the Holy Spirit to empower the children of God for a better service to God and humanity.

He said even though Peter denied Jesus three times, he was able to address the Jews after he received the Holy Spirit and 3000 people accepted the gospel of Jesus Christ.

“It is a good coincidence that this service is holding today. As leaders, political, religious and secular, need the power of the Holy Spirit to lead well,” he said.

In his sermon titled, “Thus Far The Lord Has Helped Us,” taken from Exodus 15:1-2, Enyindah eulogised the former Governor of Rivers State, Barr. Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, describing him as an astute politician, outspoken leader, a forthright and candid personality, and a transformational leader.

He disclosed that Wike’s administration was not only impactful, but recorded monumental achievements that could convince even the pundits and his critics that, indeed, the former governor was Mr. Project.

Enyindah said: “I listened to a joke recently and someone said, ‘if there is holdup in your backyard call Governor Wike to come and construct a flyover there. Today, I can drive into my family compound because of his internal road project in my village, Omerelu. We are happy with these beautiful descriptions and nomenclature given to our dear governor. We would have been sad if it was otherwise.

“We have come to count our blessings as a state, recognise the grace of God that was sufficient for the outgoing administration of Governor Wike, and ask God for more of this grace for the leadership of Sir Siminalayi Fubara and Prof. (Mrs.) Ngozi Odu.

“Our text today was a thanksgiving song composed by Moses after the Lord divided the Red Sea and brought the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses took cognisance of the hand and power of God that delivered them from the dangers of the Red Sea and the Egyptian bondage. He knew it was not — military prowess. Of course, he had none that delivered them from Egyptian bondage. He recognised that it was not the multitude of the soldiers; for they were slaves and had no soldiers with weapons,” he said.

The Archbishop who noted that the efforts of the former governor and his team would have been futile without the help of God, said: “This is why the governor and Rivers people are thanking God today. Like Apostle Paul, they are saying, ‘but by the grace of God I am what I am: and the grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me,” (I Cor. 15:10).

Also like the Psalmist, the governor and the people of Rivers State are saying: “There is no King saved by the size of his army; a mighty man is not delivered by much strength,” (Psalm 33:16). I can perceive the governor as an Ikwerre man singing, ‘Sobula Chiokike mezere eme ola.’” There is no gainsaying the fact that except the Lord built this state, the builders would have laboured in vain and except the Lord watched over us, we would have been consumed by the fire of the enemy. So, we thank God for His goodness on this administration.

And we join in their celebration because as a people, we are the beneficiaries of this good governance. Like Julius Caesar said, “you have come, you have seen and you have conquered.” And like Apostle Paul said to Timothy, “you have fought a good fight, you have ran the race, what awaits you now is God’s reward. You did the best you can with the resources and the grace of God available to you. We say a big congratulations.”

He called on the govenors to forgive their offenders for their own good, adding that it is not easy to serve the public.

Enyindah said: “Some would love you and some would hate you and your ability to forgive those who wronged you will determine how happy you become. When Nelson Mandela was released from prison, he said, ‘As I stand before the door to my freedom, I realise that if I do not leave my pain, anger and bitterness behind me, I will still be in prison.

“Your Excellency, if you don’t forgive your offenders, you cannot be free. Meanwhile, everyone of us offends at one point or the other and we are forgiven by God in the same measure we forgive others.

“There are still more lands to conquer: When Joshua was old and he thought he had done much for God and so should retire, God told him, there are still more lands to conquer (Josh. 13:1). Your Excellency, you can still do more; the onus lies in you to figure out how you can do more for the state in particular and for our dear nation in general.”

Advising the incumbent governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara and his Deputy, Prof. Ngozi Odu, Enyindah quoted the words of the former President of America, Abraham Lincoln, as saying: “With malice towards none, with charity for all; with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right.”

He urged the governor and his deputy to carry everybody along. He said: “You are governor of Rivers State and not of a section of Rivers State. You must not show hatred to anyone whether they are in the opposition or not. I heard you say, ‘the doors and windows are open.’ I advised that you allow them to come through the door only not the window because only criminals come through the window.”

The Bishop called on the new administration to depend on God for wisdom like King Solomon did and succeeded.

“You have to be firm in what is right. Do not be swayed by the antics and selfish interests of power brokers. Stand up for what is right. Stand up for what would be in the interest of Rivers people. You need to know that in governance if you have not stepped on toes, it probably means you are standing still. When you do these things, you would succeed even more than your predecessor and this would make all of us who gathered here today happy. We wish you well,” the cleric said.

Concluding, Enyindah said that the church would continue to pray for the former governor and his team for God’s grace to be upon them to attain higher heights in their careers and for good health and long life to enjoy the fruit of their labour. “I also wish Governor Fubara and his team the same thing to enable them serve Rivers people in God’s will and for them to win the battles in governance.”

The Bishop also extended his gratitude to Bishop of the Diocese of Niger Delta North, Rt. Reverend Wisdom Ihunwo for making his Cathedral and pulpit available for him to preach.

He equally acknowledged the former deputy governor and Senator-elect, Dr. Ipalibo Harry-Banigo, and other Bishops for their steadfastness.