A Sunday Service Experience at The SCOAN (Behind the Scenes)
Behind the majestic choir, the glorious worship, awesome praise, uplifting sermons, faith-building testimonies, healing and deliverance that typify the SCOAN Sunday Live Service, a lot goes on behind the scenes…actually. A lot more than you can see on Emmanuel TV.
Live Sunday service at The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN) never disappoints. The ambiance is electric, supercharged with the Spirit! You won’t want to blink when in church because you could miss a lot of details.
Whether you visit SCOAN for religious tourism, healing, deliverance or miracles, Sunday service is what you wouldn’t want to miss…not even for a moment. But it can be very hectic for the first time visitor, especially if you are not an official visitor living in the SCOAN premises.
SCOAN is not the conventional church that you know, and Sunday service procedure and protocol at the SCOAN is also different, what you may want to know before your visit.
The SCOAN Sunday Live Service Procedure
Sunday service at the SCOAN begins at 3am…or earlier! Yes, you read that right. I know what you normally see on Emmanuel TV is 8am or 9am (local time). If you go to SCOAN by 5am, you may have to settle for the overflow crowds. This is one of the reasons you should get a nearby hotel at Ikotun Egbe so you can walk to the church premises at anytime.
The crowds at the SCOAN are usually very large (even the overflow crowd alone runs into tens of thousands), so people go to church from 3am in order to have access into the main church auditorium. Just so you know, I was in church the Sunday of December 31, 2017 (last Sunday service of the year) as early as 4.30am and still couldn’t get access into the main church. I had to settle for the innermost tent in the overflow.
Unless you are an official SCOAN visitor or a ‘certified’ member with a pass, all visitors (other church members inclusive) must first wait at the tents before being ushered into the main church auditorium.
For security purposes, everyone is thoroughly searched both at the gate to the tents and the entrance to the church. This process starts from as early as 3am, first at the gate to the tents. There is one section for international visitors and another for regular members and local (Nigerian) visitors.
You can watch Emmanuel TV on large screens, relax in the tents and wait for time to proceed to the main auditorium. The ushers are always readily available to attend to you should you have any questions. Though they can be a bit cocky and impolite, maybe due to pressure. You’ll just have to put up with them and achieve your aim of visit.
At the tent, the ushers will make several announcements. Repeatedly. Be sure to listen up as it may concern you. The church is very strict on their rules and there would be no compromise.
The early morning queuing and waiting at the tents continues, but at about 6am gate passes would be handed out on “first-come-first-served” basis for procession into the main church auditorium. Wait, that is not all. That pass would be exchanged for another pass at the gate before you get across to the church entrance. This is part of the thorough access control procedures at the SCOAN. Safety is key.
Like I said earlier, the whole procedure can be very hectic, especially for the first time visitor. But be patient, it is totally worth it, and it is to ensure a good and safe experience while at the SCOAN. The place would be much of mess if there was no strict control, really.
Okay. At the entrance to the church, you would be searched again. And you must pick the “Message” for the day (a service bulletin) before entrance to the church. This is compulsory, as you won’t be let into the church auditorium without it. You would have picked the bulletin already by now at the tent, or you should get one at the main church entrance.
You are finally in the church. The ushers will coordinate seating. As a rule, no one disobeys the ushers. Security is tight in the church. Foreign visitors are always given preference though, whether official or not once you’re in the church.
Normally, regular service starts from 9am as people take turns to fill the seats in the church. The rest of the others will usually settle for the overflow crowds in the tents and watch on Emmanuel TV live.
Everything inside the church looks heavenly and set to perfection. From the sound to the lighting. The chillers are heavy to keep you cool while you flow in praise and worship. The choir is awesome and easily worldclass. The cameramen, along with security and ushers, are almost certainly the busiest. The sound engineering is superb.
The church auditorium is large to accommodate a very huge congregation (an estimated 20,000). Once you’ve secured a seat in the church, you can take breaks if you like but be sure to get a pass from the usher on your way out.
There are 5-star rest rooms even right inside the church. The ushers are always at your beck and call. There is also a canteen within the SCOAN premises to cater to everyone (local and continental). Food and drinks are not allowed into the church auditorium, unless of course bottled water.
The rest of the service is as you would normally see on Emmanuel TV.
You would also know when it’s time to pick the Morning Water, but you can always ask the ushers to give you some direction.
Even though service closes earlier these days, activities still go on in the church till late in the night.
Very importantly, stay back and identify as a first time visitor (or foreign visitor) after normal service. This is a chance to meet one-on-one with the Man of God (Prophet TB Joshua) or at worst any of the Evangelists. You could even get an appointment with them right there.
I love the SCOAN choir ministration, the simple but didactic preaching of Prophet TB Joshua and every other activity in the church, even though the testimonies can become a bit boring and repetitive at times. Hey, but all that is necessary for faith building. The main emphasis at the SCOAN is faith and love.
But I love mass prayer the most. That is easily the most interesting part of the service for me. It is always Spirit-charged. This is when most people get their deliverance, healing and breakthrough.
There is undeniable power and presence of God at the Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Lagos – Nigeria. It is definitely a place you’d rather love to be.
If you’re a foreign visitor and can’t get an official invitation from SCOAN, just be sure to get a letter of invitation to Lagos, Nigeria. Also, book a nearby hotel room with Destinali so you can be in church in good time.
That is much of the guide and information you will need as a first time visitor to The Synagogue, Church of All Nations (SCOAN), Lagos – Nigeria.
Good morning!
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