‘Give kidnappers my number if they pick you’ – Oyedepo tells congregation

Founder of Living Faith Church Worldwide, David Oyedepo, has instructed members of his congregation to provide his phone number to kidnappers in the event they are abducted, saying he has the spiritual authority to secure their freedom.

He made the statement during a recent service at the church’s Canaanland headquarters in Ota, Ogun State. A clip from the sermon circulated widely on social media on Thursday.

“If anybody picks you, give them my number, give them my number,” he said.

The cleric supported his directive with accounts he described as past instances of divine intervention involving kidnapped church members.

In one case, Oyedepo recounted that a pastor affiliated with the ministry was abducted and that he was connected directly to the kidnapper via phone.

He claimed he issued a stern warning, saying the abductor would die within 24 hours if the victim was not freed.

He said, “One time, one of our pastors was carried by, what do you call them, kidnappers.

“I said, give them the phone. I said, in 24 hours, if you don’t take him out, you are dead.

“The place was vibrating. On the spot.”

In another account, he narrated how a female church member was held captive but declared she would regain her freedom by 7 a.m. He said no call was placed to him, yet the abductors allegedly began harming themselves before releasing her.

“She said, ‘My father said, I’m getting out of here latest by 7 a.m.’ They didn’t call. They started cutting themselves,” he said.

Oyedepo told congregants that they possess the same spiritual authority, urging them to recognise and apply it.

“You have been raised far above the devil. If the church does not conquer these devils, God has left heaven,” he said.