MOUNT CALVARY HOLY CHURCH

Our Pastor

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Bishop Michael Angelo Grayson is a dynamic leader with a heart for people, a love for God's Word, and a mission to affect change in the community-at-large.  As the pastor of Mount Calvary Holy Church-Columbus, Bishop Grayson is a man with a mission on the move in the city.  He is all at once approachable and kind, yet fierce in his commitment to make a difference.  Bishop Grayson is a gifted teacher, lecturer and expositor of the Scriptures.  

 

Born in Walterboro, South Carolina, he is a southerner at heart.  At the age of five, his family moved to Arlington, Virginia where he received his formal education.  Bishop Grayson was raised to put God first in his life by his mother, who ensured he and his brothers were in church every Sunday.  Bishop’s father made sure he understood the importance of a disciplined life.  Bishop Grayson came to love worship and the Word early on while attending Mount Olive Baptist Church (Arlington, VA) under the great leadership of the Rev. Dr. Aaron Mackley.  At the age of 18, he joined Greater Mt. Calvary Holy Church (GMCHC) in Washington, DC where he would meet his spiritual father and mother, Bishop Alfred A. Owens, Jr. and Co-Pastor Susie C. Owens.  This move proved to be providential as evidenced by everything that would follow.

 

Under the dynamic leadership of the Owens, Bishop Grayson’s life in Christ flourished and put him on a trajectory to fulfill God’s plan for his life.  It was Bishop Owens who identified, called out and began to cultivate the many spiritual gifts Bishop Grayson possesses.  Under his leadership, Bishop Grayson served faithfully as a deacon, usher, choir member and in several other lay ministries.  Throughout his early years in ministry, he was faithful in seeking the lost, visiting the sick, serving the community and edifying other believers.

 

After graduating from Calvary Bible Institute, Bishop Grayson went on to attend Lincoln Christian College (formerly Eastern Christian College) in Bel Air, MD where he earned his degree in Biblical Studies with a concentration in youth ministry.  While attending Lincoln, he served at Alpha’s Glory Crisis Pregnancy Center in Aberdeen, MD, counseling young fathers of babies conceived out of wedlock.  Bishop Grayson also served as the chaplain for a youth summer day camp sponsored by Aberdeen Bible Church in Aberdeen, MD.  While serving in this capacity, Bishop Grayson became acquainted with another great spiritual leader and pastor of the church, Rev. Nathaniel Johnson.  Rev. Johnson’s meaningful direction and guidance would further prepare Bishop Grayson for the paths ahead.

 

After graduating from college, Bishop Grayson returned to GMCHC where he would continue to faithfully serve and eventually receive his first ministerial license during the Mid-Atlantic Jurisdictional Convocation in May 1998.  It was during that convocation that Bishop Grayson would receive the greatest blessing in his life.  After the Wednesday night service of the convocation, Bishop Grayson met the former Natalie Solomon who would prove to be the love of his life.  Michael and Natalie exchanged marriage vows in August 1999.  They are the loving parents of three outstanding young men: Solomon, Elias and Micah.  

 

Bishop and Lady Grayson would faithfully serve GMCHC as children’s ministry directors until 2005.  In that same year, with the blessing of his spiritual father (Bishop Owens), Michael would accept the position of Youth Pastor at Heritage Fellowship Church in Reston, VA under the leadership of the Rev. Dr. Norman Tate.  In that capacity, Bishop Grayson led a vibrant teen ministry and worked to ensure the needs of the church’s youth were met.  Dr. Tate would become a great influence in his life, modeling so many of the virtues necessary to be a great pastor.

 

In August 2007, at the guidance of the Holy Spirit and direction of now Archbishop Owens, Bishop and Lady Grayson answered the call to move to Columbus, OH to lead one of the oldest legacy churches in Mount Calvary Holy Church of America, Inc.  In August 2008, Bishop Grayson became the 8th pastor of Mount Calvary Holy Church – Columbus.  With a charge to revive a struggling ministry, he set out to establish a place of prayer, where God's leading is prioritized; a place of purpose, where God's will is realized; a place of power, where Jesus Christ is testified; a place of praise, where God's name is magnified; and a place of peace, where God's people are satisfied.  During his tenure as pastor, Mount Calvary Holy Church – Columbus has increased in church attendance, church budget, and community impact.  Many souls have been saved, baptized, set-free, and delivered. Bishop Grayson has established various community outreach experiences, partnered with local schools to support staff, and advised local improvement initiatives.  Bishop Grayson’s desire to improve lives has also resulted in the establishment of the Kesia L. Hayes Memorial Scholarship Fund that has awarded thousands of dollars to local college students majoring in STEM disciplines.  

 

Lastly, it has been one of the greatest honors of his life to support the leadership, pastors, churches, and members of the Midwest Jurisdiction for over 16 years.  He counts it an esteemed honor to now serve in the capacity of Jurisdictional Bishop.

 

Bishop Grayson’s life has been guided by and can be summed up in his favorite Scripture,

 

“I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, in paths they do not know I

will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places

into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.”

 

Isaiah 42:16 (NASB, 1995)