Several popular churches in Lagos State have adjusted their service time for crossover services this year.
This follows a directive from the Lagos State government that curfew times will be imposed from 12 am to 4 am.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has since instructed worship centers to adhere to government directives.
In the years past, most churches began their Crossover services by 9 pm or 10 pm and it ended way back midnight on January 1 of the New Year.
However, this year, they have been forced to push back by several hours.
The House on the Rock Church in the highbrow Lekki area, for instance, will begin their service by 6.30 pm with an end-of-the-year praise and worship session. The main service starts at 7 pm and ends at 9 pm.
It will not be streamed online until 10 pm.
Also, The Covenant Nation has announced through its senior pastor, Poju Oyemade, that the on-site service will be held from 7 pm to 9 pm.
Oyemade said it would be “a time of teaching praises and declarations”.
The senior pastor of the Daystar Christian Centre, Sam Adeyemi, is however not new to this arrangement.
He has always ended his services before 11 pm, encouraging families to cross into the New Year together, in their homes.
This week, Adeyemi tweeted: “If you say “Happy New Year” at 2 pm on 31st December in Lagos, you won’t be wrong. You’ll only be joining people in Sydney Australia to say it at that time. You’ll be 10 hours ahead of others in Nigeria.
“Don’t stress over time to crossover. Just crossover. #HappyNewYear.”