TESTIMONY : The Church built by Christ is relevant to problems facing the continent

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I recently saw a meme which said the reason Africa is poorer than China is because there are more factories in China than there are churches and in Africa the opposite is true. This statement implies that Africans spend more time building churches than they do building factories and that is the reason the continent is poor.

It is estimated that some 80% of the population of China, which is more than a billion people, practice some kind of Chinese folk religion; 13–16% are Buddhists; 10% are Taoist; 2.53% are Christians; and 0.83% are Muslims. So the reason there are less Churches in China than in Africa is because only 2.53% of the Chinese population is Christian and it is not because of the reasons stated in the meme.


But I am sure the creator of that meme is more interested in driving his point home than he is in the facts. I have seen different versions of this meme and videos and the point these memes and videos are making is that Churches are not relevant and they cannot solve everyday societal problems and in fact they are a stumbling block to the continents prosperity because Africans spend more time in them than they do thinking about creating business opportunities.


I must admit I held the same view before I started on my journey of faith. I thought Churches are not relevant to solve problems facing modern societies but I have had a personal experience that changed my view and that is what I would like to share here.

MY EXPERIENCE 

I am a Construction Professional with a recruitment background. Before I started my journey of faith I have always been fascinated by the way skills development in the Construction industry has impacted  the industry’s pace of adopting to digital technologies which is slow compared to other industries. It has always been my interest to find a way to play a role in enabling the industry to develop skills required in this digital age to ensure the pace of digital adoption is accelerated.


This to me was a business opportunity which I pursued with all I had. But the business opportunity did not work out how I had planned and in fact it failed. The failure of this opportunity and other negative incidents happening in my life made me want to find solutions as I realized there was something bigger than me at play and this is where my journey of seeking God started and in seeking him I found the following:

  • God’s will for his people

  • God’s purpose for my life

  • The source of my Passion

God's will for his people

Through my time seeking God I found out that his will is for His people to be right with him through Jesus Christ and he has an open invitation to all his people and those who accept they are guaranteed a spot in heaven. I accepted the invitation

God’s Purpose for my life

After accepting the invite I also joined a Church that not only taught me about God’s righteousness through Christ but I was also taught that being right with God is not the ultimate goal, the ultimate goal is to surrender our lives to Christ to allow God to reveal his purpose for our lives. Through the teachings at the Church  I then surrendered my life to Christ  and I discovered God’s purpose for my life which is to be his beacon of truth that encourages others to do good works. Through this purpose God intends to use my life to display his glory by impacting the lives of others.

The source of my Passion

What I thought was a means to an end for me to earn an income i.e. a business opportunity I discovered that it is a passion that God has put in me so that through me he can bring a solution that will enable the Construction industry develop skills that will accelerate the adoption of digital technologies.


God has always been the source of this passion but I was attempting to do it without him for my glory and that is why it didn't work out because God was not part of it. 


I also learnt that to fulfill God’s purpose for our lives he puts in us the following:


  • Passion -  so that through us he could create a solution to a problem facing a specific community in our society

  • Mission - so that through us  he could put  in display his glory to those who have not yet build a relationship with him

  • Ministry -so that through our experiences he can encourage fellow Christians who might be going through something similar..


SOLVING SOCIETAL PROBLEMS

God’s intention has always been to work through his children i.e. those who have accepted his righteousness to solve the problems of this world so his glory can be on display and the Church has a big role to play in this plan.


What Jesus taught about the Kingdom of God was revolutionary even the most educated Theologians at the time could not comprehend, that is the reason they sent him to the cross and when given an opportunity to rescind their decision they chose a  hardened criminal over him. He was a threat to them because what he taught did not line up with their Theology.


So Jesus was a game changer of his time and as children of God we look up to him as an example of what  is expected from us. So the children of God are supposed to be Game Changers in various areas of their lives they are supposed to be problem solvers not for their glory but to make an impact in the lives of others to put in display the glory of God

WHY IS THE CHURCH NOT AT FOREFRONT OF SOCIETAL PROBLEMS

If God is to work through his children to impact the lives of others and bring glory to himself, a personal relationship is required. This is the reason God yearns to have a personal relationship with us.

 

Religion is an organized system of beliefs, ceremonies, and rules used to worship God. In other words religion is a man made organized system and rules used to worship God.


Religion promotes compliance with human made systems and rules instead of a relationship with Jesus Christ as it is the will of God. Jesus is God’s way of being right with him and religion is man’s way of being right with God. Religion therefore is the reason why we are not seeing the Church in the forefront of our societal problems. As the Bible tells us no human wisdom can prevail against the will of God Proverbs 21:30.

PARTNERSHIP WITH GOD

Jesus was fully man and fully God and I believe one of the reasons this was the case was to demonstrate what humanity can achieve in partnership with God. This partnership requires us to humble ourselves before God and let Jesus Christ take the reins.


When we give our passions to Jesus we are then taken through a process as demonstrated by Jesus on the cross and the end result is God’s purpose fulfilled: God’s people benefit and his glory is displayed. And we receive our reward which is promotion by God both in this world and in heaven.


I have accepted God's invitation to partner with him so that through the passion he deposited in me his purpose in the world would be fulfilled for the benefit of the Construction industry and its Professionals.


Through this experience I am convinced that the Church that is built on the foundation of Jesus Christ is bringing up people that are significantly impacting the lives of people both inside the Church and outside i.e. in our communities.


I am also convinced that human rules and systems which are more concerned about compliance to religious rules instead of relationship with God are the reasons the world is not turning to the Church when seeking solutions that are impacting our communities.






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