Posts in category: Church News

Pastor James W. K. Annan is a pastor of The Church of Pentecost in charge of the Ajah District in Lagos East Area in Nigeria. He narrates how he was abducted by unknown armed men who shot him in the eyes but was saved by the Lord Jesus Christ:

It all happened on Thursday, 30^th July, 2020, when I left the house for lkorodu to convey my daughter who was doing a nursing internship in a hospital at lkorodu.

I set out at about 5:30 AM Nigerian time (04:30 GMT). Whilst waiting for a bus, a Toyota Camry saloon car emerged at the bus stop and the driver called the transit point I was heading to, and so I boarded the vehicle. Inside the car were four passengers, including the driver. In less than ten minutes into the journey, the man sitting beside me at the back seat pounced on me and dislodged me to the middle seat (in between them at the back).

They asked me to cooperate with them as they searched my pocket and removed all the money on me. Then they demanded my ATM card. And I told them that the card was not with me at the moment. They then asked me to give them the ATM PIN, which I did. After that, they asked me to disclose the total amount in my account, which I did. But they said that looking at my age and personality, the money I mentioned wasn’t true. They told me that since I was not forthright with them they were going to dump me at their base and my people will rather beg them to request the amount they would need to release me.

At that point, they seized my Samsung tablet phone and subjected me to severe beatings. One of them pulled a gun and targeted my right eye and fired it straight at me. All that I could remember was that I shouted JESUS! And as he fired the gun, I heard a blast in my head and slumped dead in my seat.

I did not see anything again for about twenty minutes and while the vehicle was still in motion, surprisingly I regained consciousness. They became frightened, thinking that I have extraordinary charms, so one of them asked me in pidgin English, “Baba na so you be.”

They decided that since I could not die from a gunshot, they would rather send me to their base for me to die over there. However, the one who shot me exclaimed that it was enough and that since I have survived the gunshot, if they take me to their base something strange will happen to them. He continued that this man [referring to me] has shown to be a great spiritual person and it is not every time they can succeed in their expedition.

He then ordered the driver to stop and allow me to go. At his orders, the driver stopped and they opened the door for me to alight and they sped off. 

I had to trek for about 5 miles to a nearby town to see a deaconess of the church for transport support to my house. As soon as I reached home, my two eyes closed completely. I never thought that I could see with my eyes again. However, after three days, my eyes miraculously opened without any surgery of a sort. I have been certified fit by medical doctors.

Jesus Christ is truly a healer. His spiritual operation on me has been awesome. I thank Him for saving my life.

PENTECOST NEWS.

The Chairman of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, has entreated Christians, especially leaders to guard their hearts against harbouring bitterness which tends to destroy their physical and spiritual lives.

“Do not nurse grudges which will end up in bitterness,” he said adding, “Bitterness can destroy a person, marriage, family, friends and the church. And such bitter persons think everyone is against them.”

Apostle Nyamekye said these when he interacted with officers in the Teshie-Nungua Area of the Church at the Fred Stephen Safo Memorial Temple at Nshorna, Nungua on Wednesday and Thursday, November 4 & 5, 2020.

According to the Chairman, “if you open your heart to anything, not of God, you invite evil to enter your heart and when you nurse it, it germinates into other vices such as bitterness, anger, rancour, among others.”

Reading from Hebrews 4:12; 3:12-13; 12:14-16, Matthew 12:35, among other scriptures, Apostle Nyamekye encouraged Christians not to harbour bitterness in their hearts against one another since offenses are inevitable.

“No one is born with bitterness but through what one hears and what people say to them, one is exposed and may harbour bitterness in their hearts which destroys the body,” he pointed out.  

According to him, bitter persons normally portray a level of shyness, keep records of grudges (Leviticus 19:18, Deuteronomy 32:35), and nurse grudges (Genesis 27:41, Genesis 4:5-6, Mark 4:13), very unforgiving, and sometimes have sleepless nights. 

Apostle Nyamekye stated that when one is bitter, he or she is likely to express it (1 Samuel 25: 12-13), suppress it (2 Samuel 13:22-23), repress it (2 Samuel 3: 26-27) and confess it (1 Samuel 1: 15-16, Mathew 18:15). He advised Christians not to be bitter or angry about things of this world and not to let the sun go down upon their wrath as Apostle Paul admonished Christians in Ephesians 4:26.

He further urged officers of the church to always check their motives and be mindful of the heart with which they serve in the house of the Lord, saying, “Do not glorify yourself in the position as a church leader but be mindful of the heart with which you serve the Lord and others.”  

“If your heart is clean and that of mine is also clean, then God will come and reside in us and the church will be prosperous,” he concluded.

The meeting was also attended by some Executive Council Members of the Chruch, the Pastorate and their wives, among others.

The Area Head, Apostle Dr. Alfred Koduah, was grateful to the Chairman for the visit to the Area.

Report by Yaa Asantewaah Adu Boahene.

The Wa Area of The Church of Pentecost has dedicated 13 projects. The dedication ceremonies, which took place separately from Tuesday, October 27, to Saturday, October 31, 2020, were officiated by the Wa Area Head, Apostle Daniel Nii Tetteh Tackie, assisted by the Area Pastorate.

The projects include nine (9) Community Based Church Buildings (CBCBs), two (2) Mission Houses, and two (2) mechanized boreholes.  

Delivering the sermon on the topic, “You Are the Glorious Temple of God To Possess The Nations,” based on Exodus 29:44, Revelations 21:3, and 1 Corinthians 3:16, Apostle Tackie stated: “God through His Spirit has made the believer’s body His dwelling place such that wherever the believer goes, God’s presence goes with him.”

He added: “In the Old Testament, God dwelt amongst His people in the temple made by human hands but in the new dispensation, God, through His Spirit, dwells in the believer, making the believer’s body His temple. With this knowledge, we must all endeavour to live holy lives by eschewing all forms of evil so we can possess the nations for Christ.”

The colourful service was well attended by members of the church and key stakeholders including chiefs, landlords, and Assemblymen in the beneficiary communities.

In a remark, the Chief of Dapouri lauded The Church of Pentecost for citing the project in his community and promised to support the church in any way possible. At Bulenga, the Bulenga Chief donated GH¢1,000.00 in support of the Bulenga Central Church building.

The dedicated CBCB projects were Loho Assembly of Wapani District, Kumbiehe Assembly (Kumbiehe District), Dapouri Assembly (Bamahu/Blue Hill District), Bulenga Central and Danyokura Assembly both of Bulenga District, Nanvilli Assembly (Nator District), Buli Assembly (Lassie Tuolo District), Lambussie Central Assembly in the newly created Lambussie District and Kalsagri Assembly of Lawra District. Also, the mission houses of newly created Sabuli and Lambussie districts which were carved out of Jirapa and Nandom districts respectively were dedicated.

Meanwhile, the foundation stones for the first-ever church building among the Chakali people (Gurumbelle Assembly) and the Bulenga mission house have been laid. The project is being funded by the Pentecost International Worship Centre, Dansoman through the Home and Urban Missions (HUM) of the Church.

The mechanised borehole projects commissioned by the Area Head at Babile and Eremon were funded by the Suhum Area and the Headquarters of the Church respectively through the Pentecost Social Services (PENTSOS) Directorate.

Fundings for the remaining projects were secured from the Headquarters with support from the Wa Area, District, Local, and individuals freewill offerings.

Report by Pastors Gordon Ansah & Nathaniel Adjei Okpoti.

The immediate past Youth Ministry Director of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle David Nyansah Hayfron, has said that the trajectory of the life of the ministers of the gospel and believers, in general, is fraught with opportunities and challenges although God is always on the move with his people.

He said these opportunities and challenges in a given generation are linked intimately to the divine call of God and that God makes infinite provision at all times.

“God is always on the move. He is always doing a new thing. It is important to follow God with the right spirit in the right direction in order to excel,” Apostle Hayfron stated.

Speaking at the farewell service held in honour of Pastor Isaac and Mrs. Beatrice Annor and family at the Born Again Worship Centre (BAWC) in Dome on Sunday, November 8, 2020, on the theme “Moving with the Fiery Cloud of God’s Glory,” Apostle Hayfron explained that God took the Israelites through the journey in the desert for several years for reasons best known to Himself.

“The path to the Promised Land was not straight and the weather not constant,” he said, adding, “Your path may not be short and the weather not stable; the reason is only in the hands of God. As a Chirstian, you must never run a race or thread a path that has not been marked for you.”

Reading from Exodus 13:17-21, Apostle Nyansah Hayfron explained that God became a pillar of cloud to provide rest and coll them from the sun and also a pillar of fire to provide light for their path and warm them up in the course of their 40-year journey.

He gave the assurance that with the right spirit, motivation and energy, Christians should be able to follow God’s leadings and directions in their life journey to the end as God has ordained for every individual.

Pastor Annor, who is the Publications Manager at the Headquarters of the Church, has served as the Resident Minister of the Born Again Worship Centre (BAWC) in the Achimota Area for three years. Within the three years at the helm of affairs, he transformed the BAWC to a ‘Champion and Digital Church’ with state-of-the-art digital facilities. He is on transfer to the Pentecost International Worship Centre (PIWC), Downtown Ofaakor Area, near Kasoa.

Testimony from the District Presbytery described Pastor Annor as a minister who is passionate about prayers with a Christ-centred sound teaching ministry which touches on faith-building, encouraging and the prophetic. “As a development-oriented and digital media savvy pastor, it is not surprising that the Born Again TV, an online television channel, was established during his brief stint providing services to the Achimota Area and beyond,” it stated.

The Women’s Ministry also described his wife, Mrs. Beatrice Annor, as a “Woman In Full Effect” who complemented the successful ministry of her husband with her tenacity, drive and enthusiasm which contributed to the healthy organisation of BAWC as a Champion Church.

The Personal Assistant to the Chairman of the Church, Pastor Benedict Eghan, on behalf of the Achimota Area pastorate described Pastor Annor as one “empowered by the Holy Spirit, passionate about his calling and undeniably, a minister of the gospel who so earnestly serves the Lord with all his heart and might.”

In attendance were Pastor Emmanuel K. Dana (Media Ministry Pastor, Headquarters), Pastor James McKeown (Kwabenya Point 1 District), and Pastor Emmanuel Agyekum (UK), as well as family members, some staff from the Headquarters and the Pentecost Press Ltd, among others.

Report by Samuel Owusu Amofa.

The General Secretary of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Alexander Nana Yaw Kumi-Larbi, has panegyrized the outgoing Finance and Administration Director (FAD) of The Church of Pentecost, Pastor Dr Nicholas Darko, describing him as an institutional memory of the Church.

“When you come to the Head Office, FAD [Pastor Dr Nicholas Darko] is institutional memory. Having served as a Deputy Accounts Manager for the Pentecost Press Limited for seven years, an Internal Auditor at the Headquarters for one year, and Finance and Administration Director (FAD) for 19 years, he knows everything about the church, especially the finance and administrative policies. To work at one place for 27 years and rise through the ranks to the top is no mean achievement,” the General Secretary said this in a sermon he delivered at the farewell service held on Sunday, November 8, 2020, in honour of Pastor Dr Darko and his family at the D. K. Arnan Worship Centre in Teshie.

Pastor Dr Nicholas Darko has been transferred from the Headquarters to the Twereboa  District in the Dansoman Area after serving as the financial controller of the Church for 19 good years, serving under three Chairmen of the Church, namely Apostles Dr Michael Ntumy, Prof. Opoku Onyinah, and currently Eric Nyamekye. He also worked with three General Secretaries – Apostles Albert Amoah, Dr Alfred Koduah and Alexander Nana Yaw Kumi-Larbi, while working with four International Missions Directors, namely Apostles Prof. Opoku Onyinah, B. K. Arthur (of blessed memory), Dr S. K. Baidoo (of blessed memory), and Emmanuel Gyesi-Addo.

The send-off service which was officiated by the General Secretary, assisted by the International Missions Director (IMD), Apostle Emmanuel Gyesi-Addo, and the Teshie-Nungua Area Head, Apostle Dr Alfred Koduah, was graced by Apostle Prof. Opoku Onyinah (former Chairman), Apostle Ridgwell Ato Addison (former General Secretary), Elder Prof. Stephen Owusu Kwankye (Finance Board Chairman), Mrs. Mary Nyamekye (wife of the Chairman), and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lodzokuku and Deputy Minister of Health, Hon. Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, among others.

Speaking at the service on the topic, “What Do You Want To Be Remembered For” taken from Proverbs 22: 1, 1 Samuel 16:7c, Apostle Alexander Nana Kumi-Larbi noted that anyone who occupies a position and leaves the scene will be remembered by the impact they make in the lives of the people.

“When you leave a community or die, some people will remember you by the imprint you have left in their lives, hearts, and minds. People shape their perceptions of you through your interactions with them. Sometimes, the way you affect others is based on things that you may never be aware of,” he said.

According to him, how one’s legacy or life’s story is remembered can be up to them, saying, “It’s made up of a combination of your successes, failures, contributions, words, actions, or inactions, and other ways you have made a lasting impression on others.

“Your successes are measured by others based on the external things they place the greatest value on. Sometimes it has nothing to do with what you consider a success or failure in life.

“For example, the simplest act of kindness on your part might have changed someone’s life for the better without you ever knowing.”

Quoting from Romans 16:1-16, he said that Apostle Paul remembered and eulogized some 29 persons who played vital roles in his ministry.

The General Secretary further read from Luke 7:1-5 stated that sharing one’s time, talent, and treasure, are some of the ways to live a life of significance and make an impact on others.

The former Chairman, Apostle Prof. Opoku Onyinah, touted the indispensable roles that Pastor Dr Darko played at the Headquarters which consolidated the financial gains of the church. He noted that Pastor Dr Darko did not use his privileged position to manipulate the finances of the church for his personal gains, but rather managed it with all faithfulness and diligence.

The MP for Lodzokuku who also doubles as the Deputy Minister of Health, Hon, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, who described himself as an associate member of The Church of Pentecost due to the unique relationship he has developed with the church over the years, extolled the personality of Pastor Dr. Darko, describing him as a knowledgeable man of God with impeccable integrity.

The MP, who presented some PPEs to the church, commended The Church of Pentecost for being one of the most COVID-19 compliant churches in the country. He advised the members to continue to observe the safety protocols since the disease is still around.

Various testimonies were read to acknowledge the impact Pastor Dr Darko and his wife Mabel have made in the district, Teshie-Nungua, and The Church of Pentecost as a whole.

PENTECOST NEWS.

An investiture ceremony was organised on Saturday, November 7, 2020 at the Pentecost University to induct the newly appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University, Pastor Prof. Kwabena Agyapong-Kodua, into office.

He takes over from Apostle Dr Daniel Walker who leaves for Tarkwa as Area Head and Chairman of the Western Regional Coordinating Committee of The Church of Pentecost after twenty years of meritorious service to the university.

Pastor Professor Kwabena Agyapong-Kodua was born on 17th July 1979 to Mr Tweneboa Kwame Kodua and Mrs Elizabeth Kodua, both of blessed memory. Since birth, he benefitted greatly from three major things which moulded his world view: (1) the intellectual drive of his father, who served as a teacher within the Ghana Education Service; (2) the spirituality of his mother, who was a devout Christian; and (3) the training, opportunities and support offered by The Church of Pentecost through its leadership.

He completed St. Peter’s Secondary School at Nkwatia-Kwahu in 1994, and his first degree in Mechanical Engineering at the then University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, in 2000.

He was employed as a Design Engineer at the Ghana Regional Appropriate Technology Industrial Services (GRATIS) in Tema when he completed his national service with them.

At GRATIS, young Kodua was instrumental in a number of nationally acclaimed government and industrial engineering projects involving the design and prototyping of food-processing machines and many environmental management equipment.

After a very successful career at GRATIS, he joined Nestle (Gh) Ltd as a Mechanical Engineer in charge of preventive maintenance plans, technical stores and schedules for all production and auxiliary equipment in the factory.

Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua then attended the Wolfson School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering of Loughborough University in the UK where he studied and obtained his Master of Science degree in Advanced Manufacturing Systems Engineering and Management, and PhD for his research in the domain of complex systems modelling, systems integration and business process improvements.

Before he finished his PhD in 2009, he was appointed Assistant Lecturer at Loughborough University and supported the teaching of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. Also, he was co-opted into the HIEF3/DTI funded technology exploitation activities of the UK Centre of Excellence in Customised Assembly (CECA), where he worked closely with about 20 postdoctoral engineers alongside Ford, BAE Systems, Airbus and JCB Engineers involved in digital modelling and life cycle engineering of large scale assembly systems.

In addition to these appointments, he was a co-consultant on behalf of the University for Shenling AirConditioning Manufacturing Company, Guangdzou, China. Whilst at Loughborough, he was appointed a full-time Lecturer in the Engineering department of Leicester College, UK in 2009.

From Leicester College, Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua was appointed a Research Fellow and later promoted to Senior Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham.

In these roles, he was responsible for extending research in the domain of factories-of-the future and to support-teach modules in Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM), Robotics and Automation. As Work Package Leader, he led a number of European FP7 large scale integration project on factories-of-the future and became known for his development of a unified modelling language (ontology) for describing and integrating products, processes and resources.

Within the Universities of Loughborough and Nottingham, he contributed to a number of successful EPSRC and FP7 grant applications and researches. Notable among them were: (1) Unified Modelling of Complex Systems; (2) Cloud Manufacturing; (3) Evolvable Assembly Systems; (4) Plug and Produce Intelligent Multi Agent Environment based on Standard Technology.

These achievements led to his appointment as a member of the European scientific and technical board for the committee on Nature Inspired Cooperation Strategies for Optimisation (NICSO) in 2011, a field which later became predominant in Artificial Intelligent systems. Also, his research work and academic exploits led to the development of one UK spinout company, Manufacturing Systems Integration Ltd, in 2011.

From this strong academic, research and consultancy background, he received a prestigious offer of a full academic on professorial track at one of UK’s most respected Universities, the University of Warwick in 2013, where he served initially as an Assistant Professor until the completion of his probation as an Associate Professor.

Whilst at Warwick, Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua’s research and academic initiatives led to the development of new modules at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels; becoming an external examiner to some institutions in Europe and directly supervising and examining PhD and EngD students. He extended his horizon to include leading research activities and teaching in collaborative fields such as healthcare systems engineering, mechanical systems modelling, data mining and analytics, economics and policy formulation.

For instance, in collaboration with Tech4i2 Consult, he gave strategic input into the UK Government and European policies on SME adoption of digital technologies; as a demonstration of his strong ambition as an academic for research advances in digital manufacturing systems’ sciences. Also, through his works, he pioneered institutional research and teaching collaborations with some leading Universities in his field.

This included the University of Windsor, Canada; Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Hungary; University of Naples Federico II, Italy; Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation, University of Stuggart, Germany; and the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), University of Sheffield, UK.

Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua is also a Chartered Engineer from the Royal Institute of Engineering and Technology, UK, and a Member of the Engineering Professors Council, UK. In addition to his science and engineering qualifications, he holds a Master of Arts degree in Practical Theology obtained from Mattersey College, UK; Prince 2 qualification in Project Management and professional certificates in Teaching and Learning.

Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua’s activities stream across Science and Engineering, Business and Management, Theology and Education. He has authored seven books (three on Engineering Systems & Management; three on the interface between Science and Theology; and one on Tertiary Education); contributed to four book chapters, and published over 40 papers in leading international journals and conference proceedings.

In Christian ministry, Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua was ordained an Elder on 16th February 2003 at the Safo Memorial Temple, Tema by the late Apostle Robert Akwaah. In the UK, he was a National Executive Member and Trustee of the church (2013-2015) until his call into the full-time ministry in 2015.

Currently, he serves as a council member of two colleges: Birmingham Christian College and Regents Theological College, both in the UK.

For his family life, Reverend Professor Agyapong-Kodua is married to Vida, who is an Educationist with specialties in Early Years and Special Needs Education.

They are both blessed with three children: Nana Darkoa (16 years), Mirabel (13 years) and Oheneba- Kobby Jnr (10 years).

PENTECOST NEWS

The Ashaiman Area of The Church of Pentecost has constructed a bus stop shelter at the Ashaiman Senior High School.

The Area Head, Prophet David Kankam Beditor, who is also a Member of the Executive Council of the Church, on October 21, 2020, handed over the facility to officials of the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly.

Prophet Beditor explained that the construction of the bus stop shelter formed part of the Church’s 5-year strategic vision dubbed “Vision 2023” in her quest to contribute to national development and possess the nations for Christ.

He was hopeful that the bus shelter will provide comfort for all and sundry, especially the physically challenged and pregnant women, who will access the shelter.

Receiving the bus shelter on behalf of the Municipal Chief Executive, Hon. Albert Boakye Okyere, the Head of Transport at the Municipal Assembly, Mr. Albert Labrik, expressed gratitude to the Church for the kind gesture and promised to maintain it regularly.

Mr. Labrik, in turn, handed it over to the Headmaster of the Ashaiman Senior High School. He charged the school authorities to take good care of the facility and also assured them of the Assembly’s support for maintenance when the need arises.

The event, which took place at the forecourt of the Ashaiman Senior High School, brought together the pastorate and some members in the Ashaiman Area, as well as key stakeholders in the Ashaiman Municipality.

Report by Ashaiman Area Media.