The Catholic Ministry Team series, “MVPs of the New Evangelization,” seeks to highlight individuals who have answered the call to evangelize the modern western world. The first individual to be featured in this series is Ike Ndolo, a worship leader and musician who was born in Missouri and grew up in Mesa, Arizona. The Catholic Ministry Team caught up with Ike after his recent performance at St. Mary’s of the Isle in Long Beach, New York, where he performed as a part of the Fools for Christ concert series.
After releasing two albums and touring the country, Ike Ndolo and his band have made a name as one of the top Catholic bands in the industry. Ndolo’s call to music ministry comes easy as it allows him to praise God in the midst of his work. “Doing the job and leading worship is my favorite part of the job. If it is a concert or a youth event, I love hearing the church sing, and playing my music. Despite the planes, the bus rides, and the van rides it all makes sense when I get to play,” Ndolo said.
Some of his favorite events to play are the Steubenville Conferences. The University of Steubenville hosts a series of conferences aimed at evangelizing young people. In 2013, 18 conferences were scheduled in 11 States and Canada aimed at evangelizing 40,000 young people. The conferences feature numerous priests, speakers, and worship leaders who bring Christ to today’s youth. “I like the Steubenville Conferences, the ones I have been to have been great. I like Atlanta and West. Atlanta is always a good time and west is close to home. I love leading worship at Steubenville Conferences, and working with the Steubenville staff.”
Ndolo started his work at St. Tim’s Parish in Mesa, Arizona. He began as a youth minister, but after some time he heard the call to switch to music ministry. “I was a youth minister for several years. In the midst of me being a youth minister, I would also lead worship. It was real organic; it wasn’t something that I planned. I decided to serve God and do what He wanted. For several years that was youth ministry, He called me out of youth ministry and brought me into music ministry. It was nothing that I thought or planned of even doing, but God made a way,” Ndolo commented.
After answering God’s call to music ministry, Ndolo has produced two albums. Ndolo released his first album is 2011 titled, We Are the Beggars. This year he released his second album titled, Rivers.
Through his touring, Ike has become a featured performer on Long Island. “It is great. I have done several things with Chaminade and with Justin (Justin Magaldi, the founder of Fools for Christ). It’s cool there is such a great vibe here. It is great because selfishly, I get to stay longer and go to the city. I do really love this area and the people are great.”
When he is not performing, Ndolo likes to travel, read, and watch movies. His favorite city is Boston, followed by San Diego. New York ranked third on his list. His favorite books include anything written by C.S. Lewis.
Ike Ndolo is a powerful worship leader and writes music that reflects God’s glory and goodness. The New Evangelization seeks to bring Christ to areas that were once Christian yet have lost their fervor for Christ. It further seeks to engage the culture and show that Christ has a place in this modern world. Ike Ndolo, through his music ministry, has answered that call.
For more information on Ike Ndolo, you can checkout his websitewww.IkeNdolo.com, or you can follow him on Twitter at @IkeNdolo. Both of Ike Ndolo’s albums, “We Are the Beggars” and “Rivers,” can be found on iTunes.
For more information on the Catholic Ministry Team check out their website atwww.catholicministryteam.com, follow them on twitter at @CatholicMinTeam or like them on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/CatholicMinistryTeam.