SPOTLIGHT ON THE ORDINATION OF BISHOP MATTHEW A. OKPEBHOLO

Rt. Rev (Dr) Matthew A. OKPEBHOLO gave his life to Christ at a crusade organized by Archbishop Benson Idahosa (of blessed memory) in 1974 and was appointed an assistant Pastor in 1979. He became a substantive pastor in 1985. Subsequently, he was formally ordained into the five-fold ministry as a Reverend Minister under the Church of God Mission on 6th August 1989 by Archbishop Benson Idahosa.

Rt. Rev (Dr) Matthew A. Okpebholo is married to Rev. (Mrs.) Veronica and they are blessed with six lovely children and so many grandchildren. He holds two Honorary Doctorate Degrees from the Igbinedion University Okada (2013) and the University of Benin (2014) both in Edo State. He has also attended numerous workshops, seminars and courses both within and outside Nigeria in various fields of; leadership and management, engineering and road construction, financial management, church planting, missions and church growth, Christian marriage and family to mention but a few.

Rt. Rev (Dr) Matthew A. Okpebholo has trained and equipped over 4,000 pastors and church workers, and has created a new paradigm for the church in Nigeria on the true meaning of The Church by providing on a consistent basis since 1975 financial and material support to various churches including assisting them in the completion of their church buildings as well as financial empowerment of Pastors and Men of God outside his own denominations of Church of God Mission.

A Philanthropist par excellence, he continues to model true Christ-likeness via the provision over the past twenty years of his annual research grant, come rain or sunshine, to final year indigent student of Edo State studying in tertiary institutions across Nigeria. To date over 5,500 have so far benefited. His Micro Finance scheme made of cash and material donations also include settlement of hospital/medical, school and examination fees and other indebtedness for widows and single parents and to date over 2,000 have benefited – there are also some widows on a monthly allowance which would run until they are called home in glory.
For over twenty years the Rt. Rev Okpebholo has consistently provided free legal aid services to prison inmates and where the courts impose a minor fine he pays it for those who are unable to afford it. One major hallmark of the prison outreach is the provision of money and rehabilitation materials to those who have been released to enable them go home and be reunited with their loved ones or to start life afresh.

Though his multinational conglomerate -The Ray Royal Construction Company with its international headquarters in Uromi which started in 1976 as a little acorn that refused to yield its ground to negative projections of doubters and nay sayers and which today has become a mighty oak tree. He provides employment with one free daily meal for all its teeming workers as well as opportunities for internship training and in skills acquisition and practical exposure to many youths with great multiplier effect on their extended families and the larger community. Ray Royal is therefore not just a business concern but a Christian Mission where the blend faith in God with business ethics enabling it to impart on the integrity of her workers positively, affect the quality of their goods and services, improve on their clientele base exponentially and regularly, thereby making their profit have great ethical value. Indeed God has used Ray Royal to break jinx that no one can do clean or legitimate business in Nigeria or that every business man in Nigeria is greatly compromised or that a wealthy Christian cannot be a good pastor or a true Christian.

The Nehemiah Project recently, Rt. Rev (Dr) Matthew A. Okpebholo JP received the confirmation of a mandate earlier given to him by God which is to go round using the entrepreneurship model in Ray Royal to teach youths entrepreneurial skills raising them to become world class entrepreneurs who will become ; job creators turning chaos into order, who like JESUS will be risk takers constantly seeking for ways to challenge the status quo and do what was thought impossible. Entrepreneurs who in the spirit of Nehemiah will get a VISON of a better society and match that vision with action not looking at the decay in the system or the rot in society and telling everyone “YES WE CAN! SO COME! LET US RISE AND BUILD”; who will always add and create value and new opportunities; who will entrench the Godly virtues of integrity, fear of God, sense of stewardship, services, self-sacrifice and humility, thereby self-sacrifice and humility, thereby making young people to becomes self-reliant. This mandate he has tagged – “The Nehemiah Project”.