Till she breathed her last, Prophetess Christiana Adesola Adufe Abiola led an exemplary life; one that glorified the Supreme Being.

From being an office clerk in early years, to an expert seamstress, to nursing officer and midwife of repute and later Prophetess, she imparted many lives who have in turn become leading lights in their various spaces globally.

Indeed, she struggled and strived, but remained unbowed until she saw herself and all her children to breakthroughs and to different countries of the world.

Prophetess Abiola was born on February 14, 1948, in Gbagura, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria. Unfortunately, her life started on a difficult note as her mother, Emilia Tinuade Kodaolu, passed on when she was still a young child. Additionally, her father, John Taiwo Adekunle, did not live to see her begin her primary school education.

During her early life, Christiana lived with a relative named ‘Sanni Akoni omo omiran,’ her mother’s immediate elder brother, in the historic city of Ibadan in the Western part of Nigeria. She was later entrusted to the care of other family members.

After several years, she relocated to Papa Ajao in Mushin, Lagos state. There, she resided with her mother’s younger sister, Woman Elder Alice Olufunke Ajala, whom she affectionately called ‘Maami.’ Later, Christiana tied the knot with Prophet Emmanuel Kehinde Abiola, and they raised their family while serving God in the mission house for many years.

Prophetess Abiola worked as an office clerk for the government offices in Mokola, Ekotedo, and Inalende after completing her first school leaving certificate in Ibadan. After learning how to sew dresses, she became an expert seamstress, specialising in sewing cassocks (aso adura).

She had a strong determination for excellence. The church sponsored her to pursue auxiliary nursing, where she excelled beyond her peers. Out of the five young ladies sent by the church, she was the most dedicated and successful. She even became the trainer for the others. Eventually, she became the first midwife and the most senior nursing staff at Ile Abiye Hospital in Akowonjo, Lagos. Her training has influenced many successful nurses in her circle today.

She was a highly skilled and dedicated nurse who achieved a remarkable 100% success rate in delivering babies during a time when infant mortality was high. Families specifically requested her services when their pregnant relatives were ready to give birth because she lived on the premises of the maternity hospital, making it easy to call on her at any time. As a result, she was always on duty. She was the first staff nurse at Ile Abiye in Akowonjo and was affectionately known as “Mama Staff.” Her impeccable appearance and excellent work ethic earned her the admiration of everyone who crossed her path.

Give it to her! She was a dedicated servant of God, deeply committed to serving others with passion and genuine love. Observe people who are good at their work— skilled workers are always in demand and admired; they don’t take a backseat to anyone. If you are uniquely gifted in your work, you will rise and be promoted. You won’t be held back— you’ll stand before kings!

That was the case with Mama Staff! Mama Staff was destined for greatness beyond her small community, as ordained by God. However, circumstances led her to leave the mission house she shared with her husband and start anew on the streets with her four children. This was a heartbreaking and humiliating experience for her, as she had no husband or helper and spent many days and nights crying without comfort.

Despite being a single mother, Mama Staff remained strong and resilient during difficult times. After facing challenges for a few months, she eventually found a nursing job at Moyo Medical Centre in Ladipo, Mushin, Lagos. She was then posted to work as a Staff Nurse at the medical center of GDM Textile Company located at Toyota bus stop on Mile 2 express road in Lagos. As with everything she ever did, she gave her utmost best at Moyo, going beyond the call of duty to serve everyone who crossed her path.

Christiana Adesola Abiola would later go on to have two more children, Gbamila and Toyin, and resolved to raise her children by herself through unbelievable grit, dedication, doing whatever her hands dared to touch to ensure that her children do not only have a roof over their heads but hope for the future.

In all her challenges, she never gave up on God. Her journey in life tortuously brought her to a C & S family, where she later attended a C & S Bible College and became a pastor in the house of God. At C & S, she found a family of God’s people whom she would remain eternally proud of. Mama Olufunmilayo, as she’s famously called at C&S, became a nurse, sister, mother, mentor, teacher, prayer warrior, spiritual counselor, to name a few, to everyone she met since C$S, further continuing her legacy as Gods messenger of love.

Christiana would go on to encounter many hardships in life, some of which included losing a roof over her head, temporarily placing her children in the care of others while she hustled to make ends meet for them, and all of these while her hope for a future for her children remained strong and without flaw. It would come as no surprise that in spite of the tremendous odds against her, she became the ‘cornerstone that the builder had rejected’. Through her children, Christiana became a success, unsurprisingly helping everyone she could, including making several contributions to the house of God; she would not forget God or serve Him any less than she did when she had nothing.

Christiana, a child born in the village of Gbagura, found herself traveling in her latter years to nations of the world to spend time with her children and grandchildren in Canada, South Africa, and the United States where she was primarily based until the good lord called her home.

Adufe, One That People Love To Rush, lived to her name till her dying breathe. She had children that were not of her own biology, longing to bless her however they could because of the impacts she made in their lives, not least of them was her son-in-law’s and daughter-in-law’s who adopted her as their very own mother. Oh, to live a life never to be forgotten!
Christiana Adesola Adufe, Mama staff o!
Omo Olalomi, omo ab’isu j’oruko;
Ijakadi l’oro Ofa,
Omo eye mu’mi saasa l’oje,
Iran oje kan kii je ‘ga, beeni won kii j’orofo;
Ara Oje Ipetu, omo ar’oti we bi ojo!!!

Christiana Adesola Adufe Abiola, who died on June 17, 2023, has since been buried. She is survived by children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.