Pastor Mensa Otabil
The General Overseer of the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC), Pastor Mensa Otabil, has advised his members to strictly comply with government’s measures to stem the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) which has killed thousands around the world.
As of March 20, 2020, Ghana had confirmed five more cases of COVID-19, increasing the total number to 16.
In an address televised on Sunday, March 15, President Akufo-Addo ordered the suspension of all public gatherings for the next four weeks.
These public gatherings, the President disclosed, included festivals, political rallies, conferences, workshops, funerals, sporting events and religious events such as services in churches and mosques.
Reacting to the suspension in a press release on Monday, March 15, Pastor Otabil urged his church members to look for one another because he believes “it is a good opportunity for us to show Christ to the world…Pray for one another. Connect with one another. Encourage one another. Help one another. Share with one another.”
According to the renowned motivational speaker and entrepreneur, although the measures being put in place by government to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 would profoundly alter the normal way of life as Ghanaians, including how Ghanaians assemble in various places, he indicated that “the ICGC is fully supportive.”
ICGC App
The various temples of the ICGC would conduct their worship as a congregation through their online platforms called ‘My ICGC App’.
“…We will continue to use our various social media platforms to reach out to our members and the larger public who need encouragement and support as we face this global danger together,” Pastor Otabil highlighted.
In another statement he shared on his YouTube page, he maintained that one of the most important interventions to keep coronavirus at bay is social distancing. “We have to keep distances. We have to keep our spaces so that we don’t infect one another. The important thing is don’t get infected and don’t be a carrier of the infection,” he advised.
Sounding optimistic in the wake of the challenges confronting the body of Christ in time like this, Pastor Otabil said the suspension could in one way or the other be a disguised blessing because “we have Facebook Live. Thank God for that. We have other live broadcast through social media that can help us to reach out with God’s word…Through these accesses, we can get the word of God to as many people as possible.”
He urged his congregants not to panic but “to trust God that he uses this for His glory to touch as many people as possible.”
Dzigbordi Fomenyah
dfomenyah@ymail.com