For the better part of my childhood, I grew up with my grandparents (my dad’s parents). They had everything – a cook, a gardener, a driver etc. It was a lonely childhood. I remember the driver would take me to school and bring me back home in the afternoon. My grandparents would have gone to work, so I’d be home alone with the cook. One day, I came back from school. I was 7 years old at the time. The cook said he wasn’t going to give me food until I opened my legs for him. I was just a kid. I didn’t know what was happening, so I opened my legs; moreso I was hungry. Fortunately, he didn’t penetrate me, but he played with my genitals. This continued for a very long time. He also warned me not to say anything to anyone. Because of this experience, I started masturbating at age 7. I got into secondary school and was still masturbating. I changed schools in SS1 and I started thinking about stopping, but I just couldn’t because it had become an addiction. 

I gave my life to Christ when I was in SS3, but I surrendered completely in my 100 level at Covenant University. I remember there was this youth ministry pastor who came to preach once. He made a call for a covenant of purity. Here I was, an usher and also the financial secretary of an association in school – NUASA. I was well known but no one knew what I was struggling with. It was really tough to keep up appearances –to everyone I was spiritual, but back in my room I was masturbating. After I responded to the call for purity at the programme, I didn’t masturbate for like 2 months. I was excited, thinking I had overcome it, but somehow I fell back and then I got to my breaking point. I cried out to God to help me. I was tired. After that, I fell quite a few times, but I got back up and moved on, unlike before where I’d condemn myself and enter a shell. This went on for a while until I totally stopped. Honestly, it wasn’t by my power or might, but it was God who helped me overcome the addiction.