'My pastor said God cannot bless me if I don't pay'

I used to work with a shipping line in Apapa and I was doing quite well and was able to provide the basic things for my family.

We lived in a three-bedroom flat and my children attended one of the best private schools in my neighbourhood. My wife was also working at a time but I had to stop her from work so she could take adequate care of the children.

I was planning to open a boutique or a restaurant for her but while I was putting plans together to that, our company started experiences difficulties and before we knew it, some members of staff were being laid off.

Within six months, the company announced that it was closing shop and moving out of the country since it could no longer continue with operations due to the harsh economic situation in the country.

I thought I would be able to get another job easily and sent applications to many companies while also begging friends to hook me up if anything came up.

Little did I know that things would never turn out the way I expected as I roamed the streets fruitlessly looking for jobs. I could have set up a little business but shortly before the company crumbled, I had spent over N2 million on my mother's health and I had nothing to fall back on.

Things became so hard that I had to resort to using my car as a taxi but the engine of the car could not hold out for long and I could no longer use it for transportation again. When our rent expired, I had to move my family to a two-room apartment and withdrew my children from their school.

To feed became a problem and it got to a point that my family would go for days without a decent meal. Friend and family deserted me and I had no option but to turn to God for a solution.

I started attending a church in my area and went to the pastor for prayers to help me find a way out. I was first shocked when the pastor told me that for him to pray for me, I must pay the sum of N250,000.

I told him that I did not have such money and that if I had, I would set up a small business instead of running to him for prayers.

He then told me plainly that as long as I do not have the money to give him, he would not pray for me and that God has told him not to because He would not answer me.

Now my problem is this: does God need money from people for Him to help? Why would a man of God insist I must pay money for prayers?

Steve."

Dear readers, on Morning Teaser today, we want you to weigh in on this issue. Do you think the pastor is right that God cannot help anyone who does not sow seeds?