The Lay Movement Council of the Northern Accra Diocese of the Methodist Church Ghana, over the weekend held its 2nd annual general meeting.
The meeting held in Accra was on the theme “Discipleship: Living the Transformed Life in Jesus Christ (Romans 12: 1 and 2)”.
Opening the ceremony, the Immediate Past Lay Chairperson of the Accra Diocese, Mrs Agatha Ennin Osei, who read on behalf of the Lay President, Mr William Orleans Oduro, said the theme for the programme had been repeated by the church for the third time because it encouraged them to live the changed life in Jesus Christ.
He noted that “transforming lives to live like Jesus is possible, personal, progressive and practical.”
Mr Oduro added that, transformation was possible since the Lord and Saviour died for them, all they needed was to accept him as their Saviour then they could be transformed.
“The acceptance of Jesus as your Saviour is personal. As you saturate your mind with the word of God, as you pray, as you attend class meetings, as you fellowship with one another etc, you progress from one level of maturity in Christ,” he stated.
Mr Oduro explained that the Methodist Lay Movement made up of all Lay Members of the Church was recognised by Conference as a body made of all Lay Members of the Church, with the aim of mobilising lay persons to assist in the implementation of the church’s decisions at the various levels like Conference, Diocese Circuit and Society.
He added that it also co-ordinated the work of the various organisations within the church.
This, he encouraged the Leadership of the Council to work to ensure effective co-ordination of the activities of the organisations at the Society, Circuit and Diocese to maximise their resources that are scattered by virtue of the number of the organisations in the church.
“May I also encourage you to discuss and appreciate the dictates of the church’s strategic plan of 2022-2028 which is a tool to revive, transform and grow our church,” he said.
The Lay Chairman, Northern Accra Diocese, Dr Kenneth Dadzie Sagoe, in his remarks appealed to all laity of the church to take up the voluntary call to contribute to the Wesley Towers Financing Scheme to address the needs facing the church.
He noted that some challenges facing the church were, inability of circuit councils and organisations to meet reporting deadlines and disrupting review of reports and submission of reports to the connexion, participation of some key council members in lmc programmes not encouraging, among others.
Addressing these challenges Dr Sagoe asserted that, the diocese had taken measures, such as nominating members of the Diocesan Executives as Zonal Parents for the zones in the diocese, and adopting the zonal system of meeting the Circuit Lay Movement councils to review the activities of the circuit councils as a way to mitigate these challenges.
BY CECILIA LAGBA
