As the servant of God celebrates another year, his remarkable journey from engineering and academia into a far-reaching ministry stands as a testimony of faith, sacrifice, compassion and an enduring commitment to the service of God and humanity.
There are lives that are measured by the number of years lived, and there are lives that are better measured by the number of people touched, encouraged, transformed and given hope along the way. Archbishop (Dr.) Taiwo Akinola belongs to the latter category.
For more than three decades, his name has been associated with the preaching of the Gospel, the teaching of the Word of God, prayer, evangelism, discipleship and a deep commitment to making faith meaningful in the everyday lives of people. From the beginnings of Rhema Christian Church & Towers in Ota, Ogun State, to the emergence of a ministry with branches, networks and influence extending beyond Nigeria, his journey has become an important part of the Christian story of Ota and beyond.
As he celebrates another birthday, the occasion provides an opportunity to look beyond the title of Archbishop and reflect on the man, the minister, the teacher, the mentor and the humanitarian whose life has been devoted to lifting others.
For Archbishop Akinola, the pulpit has never been merely a platform from which sermons are delivered. It has been a place from which hope is restored, lives are redirected, families are strengthened, young people are encouraged, ministers are equipped and communities are reminded of the importance of faith, integrity and service.
He is the President and Founding Pastor-General of Rhema Christian Church & Towers International, headquartered in Ota. The ministry was inaugurated on November 2, 1991, with a mandate centred on raising people of “power, purity and purpose.” Over the years, that vision has developed into a Great Commission ministry with a worldwide outlook.
But the story of the man behind the ministry began long before the Archbishop’s robes, the international responsibilities and the recognition that would eventually come with decades of service.
Trained as an electrical engineer, Archbishop Akinola also spent about 13 years lecturing in a polytechnic before eventually leaving his professional and academic career to embrace full-time Christian ministry. According to his published biography, his conversion experience dates back to April 4, 1977, an encounter that profoundly influenced the direction of his life.
His transition from engineering and academia to the pulpit was therefore more than a change of profession. It was, in his understanding, a response to a divine calling.
That calling eventually led to the establishment of Rhema Christian Church & Towers in 1991, and the ministry has since developed around the Word of God, prayer, evangelism, discipleship and practical Christian living. Its stated mission is to raise people of power, purity and purpose, while its vision places emphasis on glorifying God and enthroning Jesus Christ in families and communities.
Yet, perhaps the most striking feature of Archbishop Akinola’s ministry is the emphasis on people.
His published profile identifies him as an evangelist, teacher, author and global minister with a particular burden for reaching the unreached. He has ministered in churches, conferences and seminars in different parts of the world, carrying a message centred on faith, purpose, spiritual growth and responsible Christian living.
His concern for the unreached has remained an important part of his ministry philosophy. The Gospel, in his understanding of ministry, must not remain within the four walls of a church building. It must reach people where they are, speak to their circumstances and give them the spiritual strength to confront the challenges of life.
That people-centred approach is also reflected in the structure and programmes of Rhema Christian Church & Towers.
The ministry has departments and initiatives covering children and youth, welfare, teaching and discipleship, missions and outreach, prayer and deliverance, publications and administration. Its counselling services provide prayer and biblical guidance for people dealing with family challenges, grief, addictions, faith struggles, personal difficulties and spiritual growth.
For a young person searching for direction, there are youth programmes. For someone struggling with personal or family challenges, there is counselling. For ministers seeking fellowship and development, there is ministerial networking and training. For people in need, there are welfare and humanitarian initiatives. For those seeking a deeper understanding of their faith, there is teaching and discipleship.
It is this combination of spiritual instruction and practical concern that has helped shape the character of Archbishop Akinola’s ministry.
An earlier published biography of the Archbishop offers a particularly revealing description of his personality, noting his love for meeting people and sharing the fellowship of Jesus’ love with them. Behind the public title, therefore, is a man whose ministry has consistently returned to the fundamental question of human need — the need for faith, hope, encouragement, compassion and direction.
His concern for humanity has also found practical expression through initiatives associated with the ministry and the GIGI & Akinola Foundation. These include scholarships, care for motherless children, hospital and prison visits, borehole projects, diabetes initiatives, community seminars, crusades and ministerial empowerment.
Such initiatives demonstrate an understanding of Christianity that connects faith with compassion.
A sermon can inspire a troubled heart, but a meal can provide immediate relief to a hungry family. A prayer can encourage someone in distress, while access to healthcare can address an urgent physical need. A scholarship can open a door that education alone might otherwise leave closed, while a borehole can improve the daily lives of members of an entire community.
It is in these practical expressions of care that the humanitarian dimension of Archbishop Akinola’s ministry becomes particularly visible.
During the 2024 Rhema World Convention, for instance, the Archbishop spoke about the church’s partnership with public-spirited Nigerians to meet the physical needs of people by providing food items to those in need. The convention also featured arrangements for free medical consultations, treatment of minor ailments and health talks for participants.
Such initiatives reflect a ministry in which spiritual welfare is not completely separated from human welfare.
In a society where many families continue to face economic pressures, unemployment, healthcare challenges and uncertainty about the future, practical acts of compassion can provide not only immediate assistance but also a reminder that people are not forgotten.
Archbishop Akinola has equally used his public voice to speak about the condition of society. Although his primary calling remains Christian ministry, he has not confined his interventions exclusively to matters within the church.
Over the years, he has commented publicly on Nigeria’s economy, unemployment, security and other challenges confronting ordinary citizens. In April 2026, while speaking during the Christ Global Network New Wine Fire Conference, he described youth unemployment and underemployment as serious national challenges and called on people of faith to pray for the nation.
At the same conference, he emphasised the need for ministers to be spiritually empowered and adequately prepared to minister to the needs of their congregations. The gathering brought Pentecostal clerics together in Sango-Ota under the Christ Global Network.
His interventions reflect a minister who sees the Church as having an important role in the moral and spiritual development of society, while recognising that the problems confronting Nigeria require collective responsibility from government, religious institutions, communities and citizens.
Another significant dimension of his contribution is his investment in the development of other ministers.
Christ Global Network grew out of what the organisation describes as a burden that began in Archbishop Akinola’s heart in 1994 and developed into a formal assignment in January 1998. According to the organisation’s account, he made a commitment that if God lifted him, he would in turn help lift the next generation of ministers.
That vision eventually became the foundation of CGN, bringing ministers together for fellowship, prayer, teaching, encouragement and renewed direction.
This aspect of his ministry is important because leadership is not only about what a person achieves personally. It is also about the people that person prepares to carry the work forward.
Through ministerial fellowship, teaching, conferences and mentoring, Archbishop Akinola has sought to create an environment in which other ministers can develop their calling, strengthen their ministries and make their own contributions to the growth of Christianity.
In that sense, his ministry has never been solely about building a congregation. It has also been about building people who can build others.
The next generation has similarly occupied an important place in the Rhema vision. Its youth and children’s ministries are designed to help younger people grow in faith, discover purpose and develop leadership qualities.
This emphasis has become particularly significant in a country where young people are confronted by difficult questions around education, employment, skills, identity, values and purpose.
Archbishop Akinola’s public concern about youth unemployment and underemployment in 2026 further demonstrates his interest in the circumstances confronting younger Nigerians. His approach is not simply about bringing young people into church; it is about helping them develop values, direction, responsibility and a sense of purpose.
The journey from 1991 to the present has consequently been one of considerable growth.
What began as a Christian ministry in Ota has developed into an organisation with international branches, ministerial networks, conferences, welfare initiatives and multiple departments. In 2024, the church marked its 33rd convention, themed “Exceeding Grace”, during which Archbishop Akinola was formally installed as a Charismatic Archbishop superintending Rhema Christian Church, Christ Global Network and the International Communion of Charismatic and Apostolic Ministers. He had previously been proclaimed Archbishop-designate in 2015.
The elevation was therefore not simply an honour; it represented another level of responsibility in a journey already characterised by years of service.
Behind the public ministry is also a family story.
Archbishop Akinola and Bishop Ireti Akinola serve together within the Rhema ministry, with Bishop Ireti involved in teaching and discipleship. The couple are parents to four children.
The family dimension complements the broader Rhema philosophy, which places considerable emphasis on the family and community. The church describes itself as a place where “everybody is somebody” and presents itself as a spiritual family committed to faith, discipleship, prayer and practical care.
That philosophy mirrors a central feature of Archbishop Akinola’s ministry: faith must not only be preached; it must be lived, demonstrated and translated into service.
For him, therefore, the pulpit has been a starting point rather than an endpoint.
His ministry has extended into counselling, education, ministerial development, humanitarian assistance, youth development, community initiatives and national conversations. His message has travelled through church services, conferences, books, television and other media platforms. His long-running “Freedom Across the Airwaves” programme has also formed part of his evangelistic ministry.
But beneath all these activities is one common denominator — people.
People who need faith.
People who need counsel.
People who need encouragement.
People who need food.
People who need healthcare.
Young people who need direction.
Ministers who need mentoring.
Families that need strengthening.
Communities that need practical intervention.
And a nation that needs citizens who will continue to believe that its future can be better.
Every birthday provides an opportunity to count the years, but for a servant of God, it can also be an opportunity to count the impact.
For Archbishop Taiwo Akinola, that impact can be found in the Rhema congregation, in ministers connected through Christ Global Network, in people who have received counsel, in beneficiaries of welfare and humanitarian initiatives, in young people nurtured through the ministry, in communities reached through outreach, and in countless worshippers who have encountered his preaching and teaching.
The full measure of such a legacy cannot be reduced to statistics.
Some impact is visible.
Some is remembered only by the person who received help.
Some is carried quietly by a family that found hope.
Some lives are touched through a sermon.
Some through a scholarship.
Some through a meal.
Some through a word of encouragement.
Some through a prayer.
And some through simply meeting a man who took the time to listen.
That is the deeper story behind Archbishop Akinola’s public life.
As he celebrates another birthday, the occasion offers his congregation, family, colleagues, friends and admirers an opportunity to celebrate not only the years but the values that have defined those years.
It is a celebration of faith.
A celebration of service.
A celebration of sacrifice.
A celebration of compassion.
A celebration of leadership.
And, above all, a celebration of a life devoted to the service of God and humanity.
From the engineer who answered a divine call, to the lecturer who eventually left academia for full-time ministry; from the founder of a church that began in Ota in 1991 to the Archbishop now providing leadership across wider ministerial networks, his journey has been one of continuous transformation, sacrifice and service.
His story carries an enduring message for generations coming behind him: leadership is not simply about occupying a position. It is about accepting responsibility for the lives that come under one’s influence.
The enduring question of a meaningful life is not merely, “What did this person acquire?” It is, “What did this person give?”
In Archbishop Taiwo Akinola’s case, the answer can be found in decades of preaching, teaching, mentoring, counselling, evangelism, ministerial development and practical expressions of compassion.
As he marks another year, the prayers of those who have encountered his ministry will be for renewed strength, wisdom, grace and many more fruitful years of service.
May the years ahead continue to deepen the work.
May the ministry continue to inspire lives.
May compassion continue to reach the vulnerable.
May the next generation continue to benefit from the wisdom and experience of the generation before it.
And may the story of Archbishop Taiwo Akinola remain, above all else, the story of a man who chose to dedicate his gifts to God and to the service of humanity.
Happy Birthday, Archbishop (Dr.) Taiwo Akinola.
May your new year be filled with renewed strength, divine wisdom, good health, greater grace and many more fruitful years of impactful service to God and humanity.
