The presiding bishop of the Methodist Church Ghana, Most Reverend Professor Emanuel Kwaku Asante, has thrown a challenge to the governing body of the church to consider setting up an ultra modern studio to promote the recording of Wesleyan evangelistic pastoral and educative hymns.
According to him, “such a studio would not only serve the purpose of recording the church’s traditional hymns as well as its modern compositions but would also serve as an income generating venture for the development and promotion of the quality Christian hymnody not in Ghana but Africa as a whole as people purchase the recordings and uses the facilities for a fee”.
Most Reverend Professor Emanuel Asante, threw the challenge when addressing this years annual conference of associations of Ghana Methodist Church Choirs in North America at Columbus, Ohio-USA on May 25, 2013.
Speaking under the theme:” the chorister as an evangelist” the presiding bishop made it clear that Methodist singers are hardly entertainers because they are singers of the evangelistical faith.
“Methodist singers sing with a view to winning souls for Christ, establishing believers in the faith and educating people in the mysteries of the Christian faith.
“Methodist singers are the sense, evangelists, pastors and Christian educators who perform the evangelistic, pastoral and educative functions through the hymns they passionately sing with meaning” he pointed out.
For this reason, the presiding bishop of Methodist Church Ghana who doubles as the chairman of the National Peace Council, urged the church’s choir to be at the forefront of the church’s strategic objective “to rekindle the Wesleyan zeal of holiness, evangelism and mission towards significant growth”.
Most Reverend Professor Emanuel Asante, used the occasion to encourage the hymn writers and music composers, to compose songs that will express the ageless truths members have as Methodist.
He observed that a renewed church is a singing church therefore if members’ hearts are not right with God as their commitment to the lord is seriously in doubt, their singing will be nothing but the blowing of hot air and the mumbling of meaningless lines.
If the Ghana Methodist Church choirs in North America are to consider holding periodic choral music nights, it will serve the purpose of bringing healing to the sick, comfort the dying, win souls for Christ and in all generate income for the church.
This the various choir groups proved through their sweet voices as they revealed on stage by singing hymns, canticles and other songs they have composed that truly brought healing and smiles to all who attended the show.
As if it was a competition, each and every choir group wanted to hear the sweet voices of members of the other groups singing songs which got the presiding bishop on his feet many occasions to dance, wave white handkerchief glorifying the lord.
He reminded the choristers about the change the church expects from them which must be an experiential reality in their lives saying,” it is only the renewed who can bring into effect renewal in the lives of others” therefore they must be the ones who lives what they sing.
End.