Our qualification was unmerited favour

All the glory must be to the Lord. For He is worthy of our praise. No man on earth (in Nigeria) should give glory to himself. All the glory must be to the Lord. On behalf of all Nigerians - at home and abroad - we want to thank the Lord God Almighty for His divine intervention that has enabled this great nation to qualify for the FIFA 2010 World Cup in South Africa. We appreciate you, Lord God Almighty, for performing such an awesome miracle.

We thank you for the way you have defended this country. In the multitude of your tender mercies, You have proved once again that You are indeed a Nigerian and Your headquarters is right here in this country. Oh, what a loving God You are. What a gracious God You are. What a compassionate Father You are.

We thank You Lord. We know there is none like You. You are greater than the greatest. You are stronger than the strongest. You are higher than the highest. You are richer than the richest. You are the greatest sportsman in heaven and on earth. Who is like unto You Lord? You are the causeless cause of all causes. T

he Pillar on which Nigeria stands. Who is like unto thee Lord? The One whose merciful kindness is great towards Nigeria. We thank You for the way You have glorified Your name in Nigeria. From the depths of our hearts, all we want to say now is THANK YOU LORD.

We know Lord, that were the tongues in the mouths of all Nigerians - especially those who believe that You are a miracle working God, as many as the sand of the beaches or as many as the stars in the sky, they would not be enough to thank You. But all the same, Father we thank You and pray that You will please accept this token of our appreciation.

God of possibilities

Well! Well!! Well!!! So, with God, all things are possible after all. To millions of Nigerians it still looks like a dream. It is not a dream. Nigeria's flag will be flown in South Africa, during the FIFA World Cup finals in 2010. There is the reality.

We wish to thank all Nigerians, who responded positively to the call made on this column last week to fast and pray - for three days and nights for God's intervention. We thank you Nigerians - who have pledged to Nigeria, to be faithful, loyal and honest. We sincerely appreciate those 1,000 volunteers, who denied themselves of food and sleep, so that this great nation will not be put to shame.

Let me quickly add that we appreciate all those who did not believe in that call for prayers. I want to personally thank those who went on air during one of the phone-in programmes on one of the very popular sports radio stations, to condemn in no small terms, the call for prayers. It is because of people like you that God has performed this miracle, so, you can now believe that ... "It is not of him that wills or of him that runs, but of God that shows mercy ..."

Now, you know that God will be gracious unto whom He wishes to be gracious and be compassionate to whom He will have compassion. We told you last week that "... the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong ... but time and chance happen to them all ..."

Before the Holy Ghost

I also want to thank Olukayode Thomas, for paying me a visit on Friday November 6, 2009. Thomas got to my apartment just as I was dressing up to go for the November edition of the Holy Ghost service at the Redemption Camp.

As we sat discussing issues concerning Nigerian sports generally, Kayus or Mr. Kay - as I always refer to him - looked me straight in the face, and said "... Sir, I want Nigeria to qualify for the World Cup, bla, bla, bla ..." I have known Mr. Kay for about 15 years now, but have never seen him in such a serious mood before.

I asked why and his answer was equally punchy. I told him my plan was to write a love letter to Shuaibu Amodu, telling him certain things I believed should be done towards the Nigeria/Kenya match. He agreed but still reiterated the need for divine intervention. I reminded him that Pastor E.A. Adeboye led almost a million people in special prayers for Nigerian sports during the October Holy Ghost Service, after Peter Rufai (Dodo Mayana) wrote a letter to Pastor Adeboye on behalf of the Super Eagles for prayers.

I think it is pertinent to let Nigerians know that two ex-internationals, both goalkeepers, were at that October Holy Ghost Service as points of contact to the Super Eagles. They are Angus Ekeji and Peter Rufai. It was while we (Kay and I) were discussing that I made up my mind to write the piece published on Tuesday November 10, and to go to Abuja and facilitate the possibility of Pastor Adeboye meeting personally with the Super Eagles in Abuja.

Adeboye and the Super Eagles

Once again, to God be the glory for the trip and all that transpired in Abuja. Mention must be made here of the efforts made by coach Shuaibu Amodu, despite the very tight schedule he had before travelling to Lagos on Thursday the 12th. We were exchanging calls and text messages until late that evening, just to make sure that all went well. Thank you coach, the Lord will continue to honour you as you honoured the man of God.

Permit us to also appreciate the spiritual support given by Pastor William Kumuyi and other anointed men and women of God, who sincerely lifted up the Super Eagles in prayers. We thank you all.

Now that we have succeeded in chasing the proverbial "foxes" - Kenya and Tunisia - away, the question is what do we do to the chicken? Simple. Maybe it is necessary for us to remind ourselves that to everything there is a season and a time for every purpose under heaven. This is the time for us to appreciate God. We will deal with the chicken, when the time comes.