Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), has offered deeper insight into why he no longer works with female secretaries—a decision he says is tied to protecting his spiritual discipline and avoiding compromising situations.
The 83-year-old cleric shared this while preaching a message titled “Jonah Must Go” on the second day of the Holy Ghost Congress 2025 at the Redemption Camp along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway.
The sermon was later uploaded to the church’s YouTube channel.
Reflecting on his earlier years in ministry, Adeboye revealed that he once had a female secretary while stationed at Ebute Metta in Lagos. However, he said he chose not to retain her when he relocated to the Redemption Camp, believing the change was necessary to fortify himself spiritually.
According to him, the decision was part of a personal effort to ensure the “Jonah” in his life was removed.
He explained: “From the moment I got to this campground, from the moment I got to a stage where at night I still have to work, I ceased to have a female secretary. Some people think it is gender discrimination. I know myself. I know who I was before Jesus saved my soul.”
Adeboye further stressed that the issue was not the character of his former secretary, whom he praised for her integrity and devotion. He said:
“I see the possibility of being left alone at night with the opposite sex. Oh, but if you are to get a secretary like the last one I had, she was a wonderful child of God. She was my secretary at Ebute Metta. Wonderful lady. True child of the living God.”
He continued by painting a picture of the kind of late-night scenarios he wanted to avoid:
“And when I arrived, I knew I would still be in the office at 3 a.m. And I could imagine, after a long day’s work, everybody finally sees the last visitor. And then my secretary comes at 2 a.m.—‘We are through now, sir. Is there any way I can help you? Like, you know, a cup of tea to relax?’ Jonah must go.”
Adeboye also shared two real-life examples of RCCG pastors he had advised regarding similar situations. One pastor, he said, grew into a “great man of God” after immediately dismissing a female secretary he had become emotionally attached to.
The cleric recounted the interaction:
“He said, ‘The reason I feel excited about going to the office on Monday is that I want to see my secretary again.’ He said, ‘What should I do? What’s wrong? What prayer?’ I said, ‘Prayer? As soon as you get home, sack her.’”
According to Adeboye, the pastor obeyed and later flourished in ministry.
However, the second pastor ignored the same advice. Adeboye narrated that the man, who once led an RCCG congregation in the United States, was eventually relieved of his position after refusing to let the secretary go. The situation later escalated into a personal scandal.
Adeboye said:
“He said, ‘You’re joking, sir. We’re not talking about Nigeria. We’re talking about America.’ I said, ‘Is that so? Sack her.’ He said, ‘No way.’”
The cleric revealed that the pastor later married the secretary, only to face troubling revelations and eventually lose control of his home and ministry.
Addressing worshippers, Adeboye encouraged Christians to courageously cut off relationships that hinder their spiritual journey, comparing such decisions to throwing Jonah overboard in the biblical story.
He charged the congregation:
“When you look at the parable of Jonah… If I cut off this relationship… If I throw Jonah into the ocean… Leave the rest to God. Until they threw Jonah into the sea, he wasn’t going to where God wanted him to go.”
Adeboye stressed that letting go of certain ties not only safeguards one’s destiny but may also help the other person find their own path.
