Church must combine spirituality with action – Methodist Church Ghana Bishop
The 52nd Conference of Methodist Church Ghana has opened with a call for spiritual revival, commitment to Scripture and renewed reliance on the Holy Spirit to transform the Church.
The focus aimed at deepening the spiritual life of the Church, translate faith into action and strengthen stewardship and accountability.
The Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church Ghana, Most Rev. Prof. J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, made the call at the opening of the conference at St Paul Cathedral in Tema yesterday.
The conference, hosted by the Tema Diocese, is being held under the auspices of Most Rev. Prof. Asamoah-Gyadu, Rt. Rev. Dr William Adjei Mpere-Gyekye and Kwasi Attah Antwi, on the theme, “Walking in the Word: Equipped for Every Good Work,” based on 2 Timothy 3:16–17 and MHB 305, Stanza 2.
Most Rev. Prof. Asamoah-Gyadu said the theme reflected a core value of Methodism and should guide the Church’s preaching, teaching, worship, pastoral care and ministry.
He said the Church needed revival, stressing that Christian revivals had been associated with deep commitment to the Word of God.
He urged ministers to take their devotional lives seriously and use the Church’s materials to strengthen their spiritual lives.
The Presiding Bishop advocated the translation of the Church’s lectionaries, daily devotionals and teaching materials into Ghanaian languages, saying Scripture must also be integrated into preaching, teaching, healing and deliverance, pastoral care and counselling.
He noted that spirituality had to be combined with action and said the Church had conceived infrastructure projects, including a youth auditorium and retreat centre.
He said the Church would continue supporting young people through entrepreneurship programmes and identified children’s ministry, youth ministry and the Methodist Prayer and Evangelism Programme as key areas, adding that the future depended on effective ministry to children.
On evangelism, he urged the Church to care for existing members while reaching out to win new converts, stressing the need to account for every member for the growth of the church.
He appealed to the Church to improve worship by restoring solemnity and reverence, while reducing lengthy notices, excessive fundraising activities and other distractions.
He said the Church had a prophetic responsibility to address illegal small-scale mining and environmental destruction.
Most Rev. Prof. Asamoah-Gyadu said the Church’s mission must encompass the physical, spiritual and social wellbeing of people as well as the environment.
President and Chairman of the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development (EBID), Dr George Agyekum Donkor, commended the church for its positive contributions and urged that it adopt a more strategic approach to evangelism by expanding its presence to communities without Methodist churches.
Dr Donkor also encouraged the Church to invest in digital evangelism and online discipleship to reach young people and other audiences, stressing that digital ministry should complement rather than replace the Church’s physical presence in communities.
He said the Church must remain relevant to changing times while ensuring that its mission of spreading the Gospel remained central to its work.
The 52nd Conference, the governing body of the Methodist Church Ghana, brings together ministerial and lay representatives from across the Connexion to deliberate on the life, mission, governance and future direction of the Church and is expected to conclude on Sunday.
FROM STEPHANIE BIRIKORANG, TEMA
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