BY CHRISTY ANYANWU
A wind of change has swept through the House of Freedom Ministries leading to the
emergence of a new leadership at the helm of the various arms of the church.
The change, not unconnected with the unprecedented change foisted on the world by the
novel Covid-19 pandemic was announced via a signed statement by the founder of
the ministries, Dr Tony Rapu, who has hitherto been the Senior Pastor and is
presently the Chairman Board of Trustees, Freedom Foundation.
In line with the new change, Pastors Gbenga and Joy Olumurewa are now Senior
Pastors over the House of Freedom, while Pastor Jude and Dr (Mrs) Fejiro Nwoko
takes stewardship of the Present House, the church’s flagship ministry.
“The God Bless Nigeria Church, which has undertaken a majority of our fieldwork in
indigent areas will now be supervised by Pastor Solomon Akpo,” Dr Rapu stated.
House of Freedom, a group of ministries comprising This Present House, The
Waterbrook, and God Bless Nigeria Church is a leading religious institution that is
involved in the development of lives and communities through strategic intervention.
With the new changes in the structure of the church leadership, Dr Rapu now
assumes increased oversight and mentoring of the ministry’s extensive pastoral
team. He outlined his new roles thus: “God is calling me into an apostolic structure
where I focus more on the work beyond the local church. My new responsibilities
would include oversight of Freedom Foundation and deeper work with the House of
Refuge and our addiction medicine programs. I will also be extending my leadership
mandate as an apostle to build a global network of leaders. I also intend to devote
more time to research and publication projects.”
While observing that today’s Church is navigating uncharted waters, Dr Rapu assured
that in the “spirit of liberty that our faith espouses, the House of Freedom will
continue to focus on spreading the gospel of the Kingdom in a variety of ways across
the world.”
The coronavirus, he noted, had only triggered a deeper awareness of the digital world,
as many churches were already streaming online. “Indeed, Zoom was already in use
before the coronavirus. So, the lockdown pushed us to better use of existing
technology to deliver our timeless message,” he said.
As the world grapple with prescribed protocols, and while debate and discussions
rage over when it would be safe to gather again, Dr Rapu urged the congregation to
remain circumspect. “Our priority is the health and safety of the people and we must
focus on minimizing transmission. Be assured that the pandemic will pass and we will
gather again. We will one day look back and see that God was with us, working in our
midst for good,” he said.
Noting that community and relationship are at the heart of the Church, he intuited that
when it is time to return to the building, some may still prefer the online options. “We
may eventually create an integrated process with a hybrid church, keeping the online
experience, while complementing it with the physical gathering,” he said.
In this dire time of the Covid-19 pandemic, the House of Freedom has through the
God Bless Nigeria church extended its feeding and relief programmes beyond the
usual communities to other areas in Lagos, a feat made possible by members and
corporate donors’ generous support, revealed Rapu.
He further stated that though the pandemic has brought major changes, it has been a
great learning experience on how to run a church in difficult times. “We are learning
to separate what really matters from what is irrelevant,” he stated.
This season of global uncertainty, Dr Rapu reminded, is full of new opportunities,
noting that God is reminding the Church that ministry extends beyond the walls of a
physical location. As he put it, the uncertainty brought by the coronavirus pandemic
presents unusual opportunities for creative ministry.
“As Senior Pastor, I intend to pivot into different responsibilities and permit new,
younger leaders to emerge, while I provide oversight over the House of Freedom,” Dr
Rapu avowed.