By Patrick Ochei
The founder of June Vision Foundation/Ministry, a Non Governmental Organisation that takes care of widows and less privileged persons within and around Issele-Uku, Evangelist Eunice June Odika has celebrated the 2023 Christmas with Issele-Uku, Issele-Mkpitime and Onicha-Ugbo widows, distributing wrappers, rice and tomato paste to 287 of them.
The celebration took place on Sunday 24th December, 2023, at the Issele-Uku Royal Palace, where His Royal Majesty, Agbogidi Obi Nduka was present with other dignitaries who came to give solidarity support to the widows’ benefactor.
Obi Nduka was full of praises to June Odika, daughter of the renowned Late Rev. Eugene Odika of the Church of Faith Bible Ministry, for her consistency of love towards widows in Issele-Uku and environs.
The Monarch acknowledged the efficacy of the prayers that were usually said during the annual event, thereby thanking the Pastors for always committing Issele-Uku to God in their prayers.
His words, “We live by prayers, especially prayers from our parents. The women that are gathered here as widows are our parents, and when they join you to pray for our children and the land, there is no doubt that such prayers will make great impact.
“On this note, I want to commend our daughter and sister, Eunice Odika who has deemed it necessary to always remember the widows in our midst every Christmas in the past seven years.
“This benevolence is massive, not minding the expensive nature of things in Nigeria of today.
“My prayer is that God will replenish you, and continue to endow you with the grace to do more for the good of our people and community”, Obi Nduka said.
In her short but precise response to the commendation of the Issele-Uku Monarch, Evangelist Eunice June Odika, said she learnt the act of benevolence from her late father who used to gather widows for giveaways and empowerments.
According to her, “My father was exceptional in the area of giving for charity. We grew up to learn the culture of reaching out to the needy in love as commanded by our Lord Jesus Christ.
“With the economic situation of the country this year, it was obvious nobody who was involved in charity work wanted to take the risk of sharing rice in December.
“People were already asking me what to do having assessed the economic reality of the time, because they knew it had become a yearly ritual for me to give to these widows who might not have anybody to remember them for Christmas. But I responded that God would provide. Indeed, God provided.
“I want to sincerely appreciate the Obi of Issele-Uku who had been with us in the past seven years, supporting us in numerous ways, especially providing us with a space in the Palace and always joining us in the fellowship.
“I must say I am always overwhelmed by our Obi’s humility and undiluted show of love towards us.
“I thank my team of Pastors for their assistance; and of course, the women who have continued to meet under this umbrella, to fellowship in love and act as instrument of help to one another.
“My prayer is that the Giver of the June Vision will continue to give us the grace and wherewithal to execute this project annually”, Odika posited.
During the sermon by Pastor Sunday Ikelede, titled “Pure Religion”, he dwelt extensively on the need for the children of God to give selflessly for charity, especially to widows and fatherless, citing James 1:27 and Job 29:12-14.
Pastor Ikelede noted that Evangelist Odika has got the grace of God to show love to the world through her outreach ministry for the widows – Widows For Christ, maintaining that the best way to please God is to show love and compassion to others.
The Widows For Christ is a project of the June Vision; a Foundation/Ministry that was founded by Evangelist Eunice June Odika, through which she has continued to bring God’s word to the widows on weekly and monthly basis, and then climax it with the sharing of Christmas gifts to them on the 24th of December every year.
Before now, the annual Widows For Christ celebration was centred around widows from Issele-Uku alone; but for this year, their benefactor had included widows from Issele-Mkpitime and Onicha-Ugbo to also benefit.
