As part of activities to observe the second Kaneshie Area Week, the Israel District of The Church of Pentecost organised a Marriage and Family Life Summit at the Peace Assembly church auditorium.
The event, which was held from June 18 to 24, 2018, was under the theme: “My Marriage, My Family, O Lord”. The summit was organised to address the growing concerns of family and marital issues in the contemporary world.
Speaking at the summit, the Israel District Minister, Pastor Emmanuel Kwasi Appiah indicated that marriage is the first institution of God and one of His priorities and as such, it should be honoured and kept as sacred. As a result, he added, only those who are mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically prepared for it should consider being a part of it.
Quoting from 1 Timothy 5:8 and Hebrews 13:4-5, Pastor Appiah noted that a lot of Christian couples are depressed, frustrated and living with regret due to marital challenges.
According to him, “one of the greatest indoor enemies that bring about various predicaments in marriage is anger”. He explained that uncontrolled anger in marriage has led to divorce, aggression, violence, evil thoughts, jealousy, loss of confidence, curses, all kinds of abuse, shameful acts and use of filthy words against each other. He mentioned divorce, suicide and loss of the righteousness of God (James 1:19-22) as the three most dangerous effects of marriage.
He, therefore, challenged Christians to get rid of anger and become good examples of Christ by learning to control their temper, forgetting past issues, tolerating each other’s view, accommodating “nonsense”, and forgiving one another.
Among the topics treated at the summit were: “Contracting Marriage in the CoP”, “Divorce, Broken Home & Law”, “Handling A Difficult Marriage”, “Marriage Covenant & Its Challenges”, “Family Planning”, “Good Parenting & Child Care”, “Causes of Marital Disputes & Its Remedies”, and “Celebrating the Institution of Marriage in God’s Way”.
Other speakers at the week-long event include Deaconess Rita Yedu, Elder Geoffrey Arthur, Elder Peter Okyere, Mrs Vivian Appiah, Deaconess Lydia Adjabeng, and Deacon Derek Y. Gyamfi (Esq.).
Patrons were highly impressed and impacted during the summit and this was evident during the “Questions & Answers”
sessions of the programme.
Report by: Augustine Ampadu
