‘I nearly became a pastor at 19; today, prayer and healing are my calling’— Tonto Dikeh

Nigerian actress and singer Tonto Dikeh has opened up about a lesser-known chapter of her life, days after reconciling with her ex-husband, businessman and philanthropist Olakunle Churchill.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Dikeh has remained in the news since announcing that she and Mr Churchill ended a decade-long public feud and agreed to co-parent their son, King Andre.

Speaking during a livestream that went viral on Tuesday, the 40-year-old reflected on her spiritual journey, revealing that she once came close to becoming a pastor.

The mother of one said, “I have always had this calling right from when I was a child. At 19, I was going to be a pastor until I just ran away for no reason. I’ve been in church since I left secondary school. So I’ve known God intimately, I’ve known God intensely, for as long as I was a child. And I’ve always known that I have this calling.

“If you watch what has happened in my life, it’s not ordinary. Anybody who may have or may walk in my shoes may not have survived, would not even survive. Because God called me for something and He needed me to go through all of these things to come out of the firebrand that I am today.”

She added that no one can make a mockery of God, noting that some people are divinely called and, no matter how much they try to run away, they are always aware of that calling.

Reasons

Additionally, the actress said she had no intention of walking away from the pastoral role at the age of nineteen. Still, she did so because she felt she had missed specific experiences.

She added that she believed God wanted her to experience life fully and noted that, at this stage of her life, she had experienced it all.

“So what is it that can take me away from the presence of God now? I have already done everything. You know, the other time when I came to Christ, it wasn’t like I didn’t want to stay, but there were some things in life I hadn’t experienced. I didn’t even know that existed. Something like that, some different kind of thing. Like my testimony, I was saying that pain was one of the reasons why I always ran away from God. Because I serve God with so much intensity, and in the middle of that intensity, a significant pain would just come.

“And I’m like, God, why? What’s the reason? I now know better that no matter what happens, God remains God. It doesn’t matter whether the pain will come. He never even promised us a smooth and rosy bed. He only says that He’ll be with us. He’s going to walk with us through it all. It does not matter what we face. It doesn’t matter the challenges. He will walk with us. So I think I know too much now to say that I am for God and I’ll be with Him to the end”, said Dikeh.

My calling

Furthermore, the actress revealed that her calling lay in prayer and healing.

She also hinted that she would establish an online prayer platform once she received divine approval.

Dikeh stated, “Prayers and healing are my calling. God can heal. It depends on what God asks me to do. I think any good Christian can. Any firm believer can. At this stage of my life, I’m just letting God lead. God asked me to start praying for people online, and that’s what I’m doing. He’s the one taking me day by day. I’m just a vessel.

“So if He says to do that, I will do that. I don’t know about monetising. My calling is not about money. I was talking to somebody the other day, and I told the person, “You see, there are some people who are just going to be there for God forever.” I didn’t run to God because of money. I’m already rich.”

She stated that her turn to God was not for fame, but for survival and a desire to live.

“Because I wanted to turn a new leaf. Because I wanted to step into the mandate. You know, the extra vessel mandate that He wanted me to step into.”

Backstory

In December 2025, this newspaper reported that Dikeh, during a Sunday service at Streams of Joy International in Abuja, said God delivered her from demonic anger that once destroyed her life.

She added that God also freed her from smoking, a habit she said she began at the age of 13.

The actress further revealed that she struggled with alcoholism, often consuming large bottles of vodka until she passed out, a habit from which she has recently been delivered.

Dikeh noted that she was delivered from masturbation and healed from severe back pain that she endured for 20 years.

The founder of the Tonto Dikeh Foundation also recounted her experiences with sexual encounters in dreams, stating that following a conference in Ghana, her so-called “spiritual husband” disappeared.

Dikeh became one of Nollywood’s most recognisable faces for her roles in popular films such as “Dirty Secret”, “Night Wedding”, and “Divine Grace”, among others.