The Owl's! | 27 February 2011 13:32 CET

FEMI BRANCH QUITS MOVIES, TURNS PASTOR

By odublack
FEMI-BRANCH AND IBITOLA-MOORE

FEMI-BRANCH AND IBITOLA-MOORE

Another one heeds the divine calling. Femi Branch, one of the famous faces in the movie industry is set to climb the pulpit, mind you, not in a movie set but for life. Femi, in an exclusive interview, said he has heard the call to leave the thespian art and woo lost soul for the vineyard of God.

The handsome hunk who was ordained an associate pastor since 1996 in his King's Chapel's church since 1996 told E-247 that he had a vision regarding his pastoral calling and directive to sing gospel music. His dilly-dallying attitude, he confessed caused him to to have a rethink>I realized that when certain things started happening like my family began to suffer, I could be on location for three months back to back, and it's only good that you notice these things when they begin to happen…”

Femi who has not been seen in movies lately explained: “Well, I have had a gradual pullout, especially from the Yoruba industry; I have changed my business line and gotten a new telephone number. Only some close friends and associate have that number and I tell them not to give it out. It's not as if I'm totally going to stop acting, but it's going to depend on the scripts and roles unlike before that I used to play any role. My new calling of course has marginalized things. So it's a gradual pullout.”

When asked if he has had doubt and challenges, considering the fact that his finances would change, he said “Because the acting thing was my sole source of income and for me to stop it like that and now go into a totally new thing, definitely, there will be a period of imbalance, that is it but when you know that this is what you want to do, so you just weather it. God has given me an open book, he has given me an open cheque as far as I'm concerned I'm beginning to understand life because God knows more than I can ever know what the challenges will be.”

Would he easily cope with his new status and the famous Femi Branch who many would think he's probably acting?

”Hmmm, it's really a very big deal for me, let me not lie. At a point in time I was contemplating some things but then I realized that it's not about you or what you think about me, it's about God, and I know when most people see me on the pulpit, they may think I'm acting, that's why when the church

starts, I will only put the name of the church so that when people come, they will see that it's this guy that is there. I know that God taking me through my acting career is all part of a bigger plan. I know that people will have different opinion, but the bottom line is whether he is a pastor, an actor, a producer, he remains Femi Branch.

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