By Bro Daniel Okelezo
The year was 1975, and the venue was the National Teachers’ Technical College, Akoka—now known as the Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka.
At the University of Lagos Staff Quarters, Flat 2, Brother William F. Kumuyi, as thousands fondly called him, glanced at the December calendar and noticed something simple yet significant: the Christmas holiday that year would stretch into the weekend.
Then it happened.
An idea dropped into his heart—quiet but powerful.
Why not gather the more than 1,000 people attending his weekly Bible Study into a single place, a place where they could pray, learn, grow, and be fed—spiritually and physically—over the long holiday?
That spark became the very first Deeper Life Retreat.
What began as a holiday camp meeting soon transformed into a spiritual revolution—one that would reshape lives, ignite revival, and eventually spread across nations. And behind the scenes of that historic first gathering were earnest, persistent prayers, offered both privately and publicly, for God to breathe upon the event.
FIFTY YEARS LATER
Today, five decades after that humble beginning, the Retreat has grown far beyond a single location. The upcoming December edition will be held simultaneously across Nigeria and in multiple regions across Africa, Europe, and other continents.
What started with a calendar and a burden in one man’s heart has become a worldwide convocation—a testament to how a simple divine nudge can birth a movement that touches millions.
