Alphonsus Nweze
The District Overseer of Foursquare Gospel Church, Asaba District, Rev Celestine Benson has urged parents to strive to bring up their children in the way of God so that they stand for God when they grow up.
Rev. Benson spoke last Sunday when he gave his pastoral charge during the celebration of children’s Day at the District Headquarters of the church, Umuagu, Asaba, Delta State capital.
The man of God challenged parents to equally invest in the education of their children to make them responsible citizens in their adult life who can contribute to the development of the society.
He lamented that today’s parents have failed in discharging their divine and secular duties of training their children because of inordinate quest for materialism. Rev. Benson admonished christian parents must train their children to know how to stand up for Jesus in the society.
He attributed the growing moral decadence and high incidency of cultism among children in our generation to failure of parents to do what is expected of them to do, like training their children in every aspect of serving God and sound education.
“Children are parents’ hope,” he stressed.
Regretably, Rev. Benson decried the long strike by university teachers in the country, which has kept students at home for several months now.
He said that the prolonged strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been wasting the destinies of Nigerian children.
Rev. Benson charged children and adults alike to always stand up for Jesus in today’s pervert world. He assured that if we stand up for God, he will continue to guide and bless the children to fulfill their destinies.
Also, in the same programme, Master Ajuluchukwu Eze, who preached the message of the day challenged the children and adults to share the gospel of Jesus wherever they are found both in deed and in words.
Speaking on the topic: “Little Girl Shares Her Faith”, which was taken from 2nd Kings 5: 1-19, Master Eze asked children to preach the gospel of christ in season and out of season.
He pontificated in the message which dwells on how a Jewish slave girl told her mistress that if her master, Naaman, a leprous Syrian general would go to Prophet Elisha he would be made whole.
While drawing analogy from the text, he pointed that nothing should be a hindrance to them, since the Jewish slave girl did not consider her situation as a limitation to share the faithfulness of God but was convinced of the God of her fathers.
Eze said, children are expected to preach Christ among their peers, in their schools, in their neighbourhood and wherever they found themselves.
He emphasised that christians have no option in preaching the gospel, since it is a command given to every one of them but Jesus Christ himself.
“Obeying the commandment of God in this regard carries the blessings of God.” He concluded.
