|
ACCRA CONGREGATION CELEBRATES YOUTH
DAY 2003
By Leslie Nana, Yaw Asare Akoto and Kenneth K. Konuah.
The
annual Youth Day celebration of the Worldwide Church of God, in Accra,
Ghana, is one of the significant programmes in the calendar of the Youth
Ministry. Though in the past there have been days set aside for active
participation of the youth in church activities, this special day
offers opportunities for the planning and execution of the entire
church programme. A significant portion of the service is also
rendered by the youth – worship leading, special music, ushering,
sermons, announcements, managing the information desk, and taking the
offering. They produce various talent shows such as poems,
choreography, song, and dance .
 On 30th September, the youth of the
Accra Church presented the third Youth
Day celebrations. The theme, designed to address the rising
indiscipline among the youth, was Enjoy the Love of God by enduring
His chastisements (Heb.12:7-8) The menu for the day consisted of
song, dance performances, a drama, choreographies, speeches and
exhortations that highlighted the theme. All categories of youth took
part in these activites, from YES who read the scriptures and sang,
through YOU and including the singles or young adults. Youth
representatives from all the local church areas attended - from
Kutunse, Ho/Hohoe, Kumasi as well as from Lomé in Togo. They expressed
the desire for similar programmes to be organised in their church
areas. It is hoped that an international event between Togo and Ghana
would be started in the near future.
The programme was also devoted to
raising funds to assist the Youth Educational Programme (YEP). This
two-week long event has been highly appreciated by the youth and this
celebration offered them an opportunity to express how much they would
want the programme to continue and expand. A fund raising drive to
assist this year's YEP, which was the main activity of the second half
of the programme yielded GH
6,300,000 ($740). Though the target of
GH
10,000,000 ($1,176) was not achieved,
it will go a long way in assisting those in need to attend this year’s
YEP programme in December 2003. Young people from Togo, Benin and
Nigeria, as well as the host nation Ghana have gained enormous
benefits from YEP. The present youth and young adults who passed
through YEP extol the wonderful experiences and the training which has
made them what they are today. They are trained for leadership roles
in spiritual and secular environments. Their talents are discovered,
and most importantly, they are provided with tools for their own
development, spiritually and mentally and physically. They are better
able to see their responsibility to society at large.
The level of commitment and sacrifice
displayed among the youth before and during the celebrations was not
surprising. There was much joy in the hearts of the youth as the
events unfolded and especially in the hearts of the parents who
watched and applauded with pride at the capability of the children.
“The church will fly”, most commented, because they realise that
capable and devoted leadership is being built to take care of the
affairs of the church in the near future and beyond.
Our profound gratitude is extended to
all those involved. We would also be most grateful for any form of
assistance from our brethren who like to help grow our youth. Please
contact the Chairman of the Ecclesiastical Committee of the Worldwide
Church of God, Ghana, Mr. Emmanuel Okai at
komadel@ghana.com.
Return to Contents |
