Churches should subsidise their schools by 50% — Pastor Adegboro

Founding Pastor of Kingdom Purpose Assembly, Morayo Adegboro, speaks on sundry issues relating to his ministry and the church’s challenges over the years in this interview with KUNLE FALAYI How was it easy for you to go into church ministry after graduation instead of picking up a job? Giving my life to Christ was a big step for me when I was in school. I was very controversial in the old Ondo State University, Ado Ekiti (now Ekiti State University). They thought I was a cult member. But I was just an undergraduate having fun. So, my conversion was a big one. After two years, I started receiving the call that I needed to preach the gospel. I needed direction for my life. My father, Prince Olu Adegboro was a commissioner during Chief Adebayo Adefarati’s regime in Ondo State. So, I had opportunities to work on a platter of gold. I knew it would be difficult to leave a lucrative job later to respond to God’s call. Were your parents receptive about your going into the ministry? Initially they did not like the idea. You know there are so many people saying God has called them. That was also the way my parents saw me. They had expectations. It was difficult for them initially. But over the years, they have come to love and support me. My mother especially was very supportive because I was raised by her and her family. They are proud of what I am doing right now. Your church celebrates its 10th anniversary this month, how has the journey been? Kingdom Purpose Assembly has come a long way. It was not my personal agenda to start this ministry. I was working under the ministry of Chapel of His Glory in Ado Ekiti headed by Reverend Kunle Salami, my father in the Lord. I started to minister in the Surulere branch of the church and worked for about five years and was posted to the Ikeja branch. God started to talk to me about pioneering a ministry. Initially, I felt inadequate. I did not think I would be able to do it. But by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we launched out in 2003 with just a few people. After eight months, we had to look for another location when we started having accommodation challenges. We had grown to about 20 people at the time and that was how we came to this present location. Did you take part of the congregation when you broke away from Chapel of His Glory and how did your Father in the Lord take that? Our track record shows the way and manner we started. The composition of our congregation did not show we broke away. I remember when I informed my Father in the Lord about my intention. He said no and told me to come back to get the branch to a particular level. I actually went back and did that before I left. We left with his blessings. There was no membership transfer. This church was not established until two years after I left Chapel of His Glory. So, there was no conversion of membership. Over the years, Rev. Salami has been of great help to us and we are proud of him. What were you doing in those two years? I was waiting for the prompting of the Holy Spirit. There is a time to receive a vision and there is a time to launch out the vision. If you miss this timing, you’d pay dearly for it. God was using this period to prepare me for the mission. I was just a regular Christian going to church. Which church were you attending then? I spent some time in the Winners’ Chapel and then became a regular congregant for a while at Daystar Christian Centre. But as soon as the prompting of the Holy Spirit came, we launched out. People expect the church to give back to the society when they begin to do well. Does your church do that? At our level, we have been able to do that. We have a scheme through which we feed the needy. If you come to our service and you are hungry, all you need to do is go to our welfare department. We give some quantity of food items and condiments. We don’t have a clinic of our own but we pay the hospital bills of those who are in need and approach us in this direction. We also do not have a school of our own but we pay 50 per cent of the school fees of needy people who approach us for help. Some believe it is not right for churches to establish schools their own congregants cannot afford. What’s your opinion of this? Some of our pastors are beneficiaries of missionary schools. I strongly think those missionaries left the comfort of their homes to do a selfless service. That is the same attitude we should have as missionaries. There is no justification for any church to charge fees that 90 per cent of their congregation cannot afford. That is a betrayal of trust. Church money is on trust. I strongly do not subscribe to this. Most of these institutions are expensive to maintain and most of them are maintained by charity and the church’s purse. The churches should cut those fees by 50 per cent and make their medical care free for the people because if you talk about subsidising medical care, an average congregant may not be able to afford it. They cannot afford to run the schools for free though, but the fees can be reduced. Culled from Punch Newspaper