By Style Reporter
Tabernacle of Worship Family Ministries International will next week host its annual conference, which will run concurrently with the church’s 10th anniversary celebrations.
Thousands of people drawn from across the country and foreign lands will gather for the celebrations.
Running under the theme; There is much land to be possessed, the conference would be held over three days, starting next Friday to Sunday.
The main speaker is US-based preacher Apostle William Glover.
Lead preacher and founder of the church Bishop Rodgers Jeffrey confirmed Apostle Glover’s presence at the conference, which will also be graced by UK-based
Pastor Kudzi and Priscilla Kofi.
“We are having our 10th anniversary where we will be celebrating the ups and downs as a ministry. Running a ministry is no stroll in the park, but since it was
God’s idea we are here as a ministry,” Bishop Jeffrey said.
“Our anniversary celebrations are coinciding with our annual conference and we are gathering as we praise God for His blessings and growth of the church.
Apostle Dr William Golver will be the main speaker and also we have Pastor Kudzi Priscilla Kofi from the UK gracing the conference.”
Bishop Jeffrey said the church has grown in leaps and bounds, opening assemblies in Epworth, Mutoko, Glen Norah, Mufakose, Budiriro and Sunnigdale.
“Our thrust is to spread wings across the country and reaching out to countries such as Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and South Africa,” he said.
The preacher said the hallmark of the church was to empower people through the Word.
“We are not into giving anointed oils, anointed pens or anointed bangles, but we give people the gospel. The Bible is the final authority and we give people
the whole gospel,” he said.
“We empower the saints with the powerful word of God so that they may unleash their full potential and win when church over, making the kingdom of God relevant
in our community.”
He said as a church, they were augmenting government efforts in alleviating the plight of people.
“As a ministry, we are complimenting government efforts. Where the government fails we chip and assist,” he said.
He said apart from empowering with the word of God, his ministry was involved in a number of community development programmes, including charity work and
economic developmental projects.
“It’s not spiritual, spiritual and spiritual. Our aim is to develop a whole individual and we are active in philanthropy and self-help projects aimed at
empowering communities,” Bishop Jeffrey said.
“We have land in Mufakose where we are building an orphanage which will be administered by my wife Pastor Monica. This and many other economic empowerment
programmes will complement our work as a ministry because at the end of the day, we want to create an economic prayer.”
Bishop Jeffrey, who represents faith-based organisation in the National Aids Council-run Provincial Aids Action Committee (PAAC) for Harare Metropolitan, said
his ministry was also involved in a number of health awareness programmes.
“We do a number of health awareness campaigns and we are part of the HIV and Aids response action team. As a ministry, we encourage people on ART not to
default and we have been active on HIV and Aids issues in the country,” he said.
He said the other component of his ministry was around youth development.
“As a ministry we have a responsibility to teach our children what matters to God. It doesn’t mean forcing them into a certain set of beliefs or rituals;
rather, it means demonstrating a real faith — one that puts the focus on loving God and loving others,” he said.
“Our focus is directed by Proverbs 22:6, which says; ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.’
The conference will be spiced up by entertainment from youth groups as well as the church’s praise and worship team.
“We will also have Vabati VaJehovah and St Luke Vabvuwi performing during the conference. We invite people from other denominations, politicians, community
leaders and civic leaders to join us on these special three days of spiritual empowerment.”