Story written by Oluwatoyin Ololade, edited by Sola Sanusi.
A married pastor and prophet in America have introduced a second wife to their congregation and announced that they now live in a polygynous marriage.
Pastor Lydia, the first wife, broke the news during a church service. She said she has no problem with her husband, the church prophet, marrying a member of the congregation, Minister Shakayla. 
“I wanna share that our prophet and I, we are living right now in what we call a polygynous marriage,” Lydia told the congregation.
“My husband, our prophet, has a second wife. Y’all know her; y’all love her; y’all benefit from her ministry every week. I just wanna take this time, as a pleasure of mine, to introduce to y’all pastor’s wife and my sister in marriage, Minister Shakayla.”
Lydia then invited Shakayla to the podium to address the congregation. The prophet, their husband, also stood on the podium.
Shakayla wife says the marriage is “the will of God”
Shakayla told the congregation that God willed her marriage to the prophet. She acknowledged that many people have questions about her decision to marry a man who already has a wife, but she maintained that the union follows God’s will.
Lydia and the prophet, who stood behind Shakayla as she spoke, nodded at everything she said. The congregation listened attentively and applauded.
“The cat is out of the bag,” Shakayla said. “I give all the honour to God for leading us and guiding us, and for my husband and sister in marriage. I wanna speak to the fact that people have questions, people have comments and concerns. One thing I want to address is that it’s amazing to know that this is the will of God and to live it.”
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“We don’t beef and fight”
Shakayla described the marriage as peaceful and said she and Lydia do not quarrel. She added that she has learnt a great deal from the prophet.
“I have gained and learnt so much from pastor,” she said. “He has poured so much into me, into our family, and we are a family. We don’t walk like individuals, fighting and beefing. It’s a family dynamic in the image of what God wants to put in the earth.”
She also said the couple enjoy influencing others through this type of marriage. According to her, churches have expelled many people after discovering that their husbands had married two wives, and those people now struggle to find a place of worship because others shun them.
Shakayla said God has continued to bless the family and help it grow.
“God keeps increasing us, keeps blessing us, keeps taking us through the journey, and we are learning, we are growing,” she said.
“We have had the pleasure of impacting so many people around the world. People in different states have reached out to us. This is our life; we want to live the life of God. Some people have lost their church because they live this life, and they have nowhere to pray or talk to God because people shun them. But God’s word is real, God’s word is true, and we are a strong family.”
Second wife says she will not replace the first
Shakayla insisted that she does not intend to take Lydia’s position. She explained that Lydia remains the pastor, while she remains a minister.
“I’m still Minister Shakayla I’m not a pastor, and I’m not here to take any light from Pastor Lydia, not at all,” she said. “I’m here to serve, to help, and to submit to our husband, and to help her whenever I can.”
Prophet reveals marriage is almost three years old
After Shakayla finished speaking, the prophet addressed the congregation and revealed that the marriage is nearly three years old. The couple therefore kept their union secret from the church until they decided the time was right to announce it.
“I also want to say a few things,” the prophet said. “The first thing I want to say is that Shakayla and I will have been married for three years in one more week.”
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