A Sunday service at LifeWorks Church in Wickliffe took an unexpected turn on October 25, 2026, when Prophet Israel Ford publicly introduced Shakayla Ford as his second wife.
The reveal came with a twist. Ford’s first wife, Co-Pastor and Prophetess Lydia Ford, was given the honour of making the introduction herself. She described the family arrangement as “polygynous” and called Shakayla her “sister in marriage,” noting the church had already benefited from Shakayla’s ministry.
Shakayla then took the microphone and addressed the “big elephant in the room.” She acknowledged the shock the news might cause but said she felt completely valued and was walking in God’s will.
The congregation split visibly—some clapped and cheered, others sat stunned.
There was more. Israel and Shakayla revealed they had already been married for three years, keeping the union entirely private from the church until Sunday.
Defending the decision on social media, Israel argued that teaching restricting a man to one wife is “unbiblical,” citing Exodus 21:10. He wrote that he has “no plans to choose pleasing man over what God has revealed.”
Critics online countered with 1 Timothy 3:2, which states a church overseer must be “the husband of one wife.”
