“May I ever have a fresh desire to be engaged in the service of Christ, for it is perfect freedom! … Thus, the day of my captivity was to me a blessed day, when considered in this respect; though certainly, it must be unhappy also, in my being deprived on it of my father, mother, sister and all other relations” – Bishop Ajayi Samuel Crowther. The formation of the Anglican Church in 1532 under the guide of King Henry VIII recalls the first-ever consecrated Bishop of the Church of England in West Africa, the Niger Territories, on June 29, 1864, by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Bishop Samuel Ajay ..read more

The poetic line by Dylan Thomas, ‘And death shall have no dominion,’ appears to be thin in the light of the fact that Very Rev Dr Honore Mahupego Sewapo is no longer amongst us. The Very Rev Dr Honore’s transition strikes as lightning by clear daylight. Methodist Church Nigeria, Wesley, University, Badagry Diocese, and the University of Ibadan have lost one of the missional, brightest, liveliest, creative colleagues.  Archontissa Honore… Archontissa, in Greek, means man or woman of great power and incredible generosity, whose power to guide or lead people is boundlessly from his ability t ..read more

No church can go diseased spiritually and morally for effective and impactful missions and evangelism. Pray for church and leadership renewal ..read more

‘A mighty tree has fallen’ is the traditional response in Africa, to the passing of such a great soul and a towering international figure of monumental moral and missional authority as His Eminence Sunday Coffie Mbang (1936-2023). His broad smile and hearty laugh will be challenging to forget. Beyond the order of ministry and episcopacy to which he was called and elected as the second Patriarch and first Prelate, Methodist Church, the offices he held locally and internationally, or the titles he bore as a renowned academic theologian of his age, the most distinguishing mark of His Eminence Mba ..read more

God often uses the most unlikely character to fulfil His purposes. He elevates a Jewish orphan to become queen of a great empire. The testimony of Chief Mrs. Esther Ebun Abe, Grand Patron, Methodist Church, Oke-Oja, Osu, exemplifies the story of Queen Esther, who began as a nobody and became a somebody, a woman who somewhat reluctantly risks her life to make a stand and an enduring legacy. In her death, Chief Abe lives on as God’s revelation of His penchant for using the most unlikely, ordinary people to accomplish His divine purposes. Mama Abe was willing for God to use her, and God used her ..read more

The testimonies about ‘golden mouthed’ preachers from Chrysostom and Augustine[1] to John Wesley, Billy Graham, Apostle Ayodele Babalola, Patriarch Professor Bolaji Idowu, and Charles Stanley, among others, warn us of ‘double-tongued’ preachers today (1 Tim. 3:8). The lamentation of John Wesley towards the end of his earthly ministry at age 87 to Alexander Mather on August 6, 1777, on the danger of ruin to Methodism resonated with the need for faithful preaching in the Christian Church today. According to Wesley, “Our preachers, many of them, are fallen. They are not spiritual. They are n ..read more

When death comes to find you, may it find you alive – African Proverb. With emotion, I celebrate the life of a highly respected, noble, kind father and leader, a Patriarch and a Prelate emeritus, Methodist Church Nigeria, His Eminence Dr. Sunday Coffie Mbang (1936-2023). I feel in my heart such gratitude, gratitude to God for having gifted Prelate Mbang to the church and the world. From the vantage point of the glorious world, Prelate Mbang, a renowned theologian, triumphantly and joyously “…have arrived.” Death found Prelate Mbang alive on Tuesday, 16th May 2023, at the Specialist Hospit ..read more

In times like this, with the decline and wars against the Church, the words of a hymn by Baylus B McKinney offers hope and renewal. The hymn challenges and reminds Christians what we should strive and contend for. The hymn calls us to make the Bible a centerpiece of our home, daily life, and teachings. The lyrics remind us that true revival begins at home, “Home where the Lord is an honored guest.”  Jesus’ original purpose of coming on earth to build His Church was with a prayer that the gates of hell should not prevail against her. The wars against the Church, the bride of Jesus Christ ..read more

‘Deji, your name is all over places. I have been telling people about you, about the minister in Askew Road, your kindness, your care for me when l had a fall on the road. You are a good minister. ‘ After our service today at Askew Road Church, one of the church leaders came to call me that an elderly woman is waiting to see me. Behold, she was the woman l assisted couple of weeks ago who had a fall while walking back home from an outing. She was so overjoyed telling my members how l assisted her after a fall on the road and took her to her house. She said, “I was in the morning Mass this morn ..read more

The vision of a missional leadership model of renewing a declining church in a post-Christian nation is not to mistake means for ends. The vision is the missional renewal for the leadership and the church as the community of the Holy Spirit rather than a restoration of churches and Christian institutions to their former states of strength. Jack Hayford will not only be remembered as the Foursquare Church leader ‘who taught evangelicals that God is enthroned in the praises of his people.’ Hayford’s identification with evangelicalism or ecumenism is found more in its Pietist and Wesleyan roots ..read more