By Benjamin Njoku
Although, many have criticised their decisions to embrace
Christ, blaming such decisions
principally on the turn of events
in their lives, it is not out of place today to come across celebrities who have become preachers of the Word.
From Eucheria Anunobi
to Zack Orji, Ndidi Obi, Pat Attah, Ernest Azuzu and many others, it has been a
steady influx of fire-brand celebrity
Pastors into the Vineyard of God. But the question on the lips of
everyone is whether these celebrities have found true happiness after all, and
if they do, how much has the pulpit paid off, in place of dumping their
flourishing careers in acting for the work of God. Like the Biblical saying,
“When we come to the Word of God and we pray over His Word, when His Word
shines on us, we are exposed and emptied of any other thing.”
Zack Orji
Ex-President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria,AGN, Zack Orji
can be described as “a gentleman without blemish.” This, no doubt informed his decision to
become a worker in the Vineyard of God. Zack Orji ordained a full-time
evangelist by Bishop Emma Isong of Christian Central Chapel International
(CCCI).
He is said to have dedicated his time to preaching the
gospel of good tidings across the nations of the world. The veteran actor has
been spotted in such cities as Abuja, Nasarawa and Makurdi where he is engaged
in various evangelical activities. But this, however, has not stopped him from
storming the celebrity hangout, in Surulere to fraternize with his friends and
colleagues in the movie industry.
Eucharia Anunobi
In fact, Eucheria Anunobi’s conversion was the most talked
about conversion to Christ in recent times. The actress who ruled the screen in
the early 90s with her role in the film “Glamour Girls” has been trailed with
many controversies and scandals, most of which bothered on her relationships and
crashed marriage. But after many years of being in the news for the wrong
reasons, Eucheria shocked her fans when she announced she had given her life to
Christ. Few months after the announcement, UK was ordained at the Fresh Oil
Ministry, Egbeda, Lagos, as an evangelist.
Interestingly, with her ordination which was performed by
Pastor Psalm Okpe, Eucharia willed the power to preach as a pastor and she’s
doing so, without looking back. Those in the know said, she already counsels
youths in the church and travels at random to spread the gospel of salvation.
This, however, has not taken away some of the traits that
made her fans term her “a bad girl” before her transformation. She is still
flashy and daring. Just weeks after the ordination, Eucheria bought a brand
new BMW X5. Severally, she has refuted
reports that she has abandoned her acting career for the work of God. Instead,
she pointed out that she would be choosier in accepting roles in movies.
Pat Attah
Pat Attah? That play boy actor who broke the hearts of many
‘Nollywood babes’ during his time, and left as soon as the ovation was loud.
The once-upon-a-dreadlock-turned clean cut actor, is currently based in
Hamburg, Germany where he’s winning souls for Christ. Those in the know said,
he does not preach in churches, rather he is now very much a born-again.
Many knew him before he left the shores of the country as one who was close to the ladies and in
love with the bottle. Today, reading his posts online, one would acknowledge
the fact that Pat is a new creature in Christ. He often uses social network
sites including Facebook to deliver his sermon and messages to those who care
to read them. But what we don’t know is how he has been faring over there.
Liz Benson
Elizabeth Benson, popularly known as Liz Benson used to be
the toast of many lovers of Nigerian films and TV series. Her journey into
stardom began when she appeared on the set of the popular television soap
opera, Fortunes, in 1993. Liz Benson played the part of Mrs. Agnes Johnson in
the soap, which ran for about two years on the NTA. After that, she acted in
various TV series and many movies.
In 1994, her role in Glamour Girls, a very successful home
video that focused on prostitution, literally changed her fortunes. The movie
shot her into prominence and soon, she became a subject of many scandals and
controversies, forcing her to disappear from teh scene, in order to rebrand
herself. But as luck would have it, she got married to her Bishop Great Emeya husband in 2009, at the
Rainbow Christian Assembly in Warri, Delta State. She has since been ordained
an evangelist in the church. Presently, she runs the church with her husband.
Charles Okafor
Charles Okafor who staged a comeback to Nollywood recently
in Uche Jombo’s film, “Misplaced” after disappearing from the radar is also one
of the actors that are winning souls for Christ. He used to act alongside Saint
Obi, Zack Orji and Richard Mofe Damijo and has made a name for himself
before disappearing from the scene.
The UNIPORT trained actor who starred in such films as
Forest of Promises, Ocean Deep, Across the River, Between Love, Boiling Point,
and Executive Connection, worked briefly with the Security and Exchange
Commission, before resigning to go into full time acting. Recently, he was
spotted at a filling station around Isolo area of Lagos, and from the way, he
looked, the handsome actor has surely given up the things of this world.
Okey Ogunjiofor
Okechukwu Ogunjiofor is known to be the founder of
Nollywood. He produced the film, living in Bondage which gave birth to
Nollywood. With the explosion of this
movie in 1992, Nollywood prides itself today as second to the largest movie
industry in the world after 20 years of its existence. But this man who started
this innovation engage himself more in other aspects of movie production. He
hardly features in movies but appears on special arrangement. He has since
reconciled himself with his maker. Today, he is not only a preacher of the
Word, he is also House of God. He is also a motivational speaker and unknown to
many, Paullo as he’s fondly called by his fans is an author of many Christian literature.