WHEN MEN RESOLVE…GREATNESS BECKONS!

"Adam, the very first man that lived, we recalled, failed not only to rein in the appetite of his wife for exotic fruits, he failed to resist the temptation to join her in the perfidy of disobedience. The result was the curse, which all of mankind inherited. The rest, as the cliché has it, is history... the same scenario is still playing out today; men failing and families, communities and nations reeling from the repercussions."





Men's Summit 2012...fitting climax

On Sunday, June 17, 2012, about 200 men of various age, ethnicity and socio-political status, but united by the saving grace of God through Jesus Christ, and determined to reclaim their place in God’s original plan, took a resolution.

For four days they had been together at Men’s Summit 2012, this year’s gathering of men in pursuit of Christlike manhood, organized by Christ Chapel International Churches’ Christian Men’s Network Nigeria.

They had listened to Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, senior pastor and founder of Fountain of Life Church, and a minister to men who has run Discovery for Men of which he is president for about 15 years talk to them about “Redefining Manhood” at the opening session on the eveing of Thursday June 14.

These men were at the 2B Okanlawon Ajayi Street, Surulere venue of the Summit all day Friday when Rev Wale Oni and yours sincerely spoke on topics around the theme, Rediscovering Manhood in the morning. Rev Mike Udonquak an experienced player in the corporate world spoke on the sub-theme, Rediscovering Stewardship from the corporate angle, while optometrist turned politician, Rev Dr Ronald Eyime addressed the same sub-theme from a public governance perspective. Later that night, these men spent two hours watching a movie that was to yield the resolution they subsequently voluntarily subscribed to, Courageous.

Saturday was no less busy for these men. They had the opportunity of listening to and asking question of Dr Christopher Kolade, the 80-year-old Chairman of Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme, SURE-P, a well-known minister of the word of God, whose integrity credentials, we once said on this page, are among our nation’s few consensus.  It was the Summit Breakfast and for many, absolutely unforgettable.

Later that afternoon, at a session closed to women, Rev Dr John Akachie Ahamzie, senior pastor, Holy Fire Overflow Ministries, who has presented a weekly radio programme, with the provocative title, “What’s All This Noise About Sex” for about five years now, spoke on the sub-theme, Rediscovering Sex. In a no-holds-barred session, he and Rev Dan Ibekwe, a veteran marriage counselor and Chairman, CCIC Church Council left little to the imagination on the subject – from a Kingdom angle.

Saturday night featured, for these men, who were determined to drink as deeply as possible from the well of godly wisdom that the Summit availed, a session on another sub-theme, Rediscovering Prosperity.

Rev Bayo Oniwinde, otherwise known as Rev B or “Bishop” amongst us “chapelites” whose international word ministry has taken to such diverse parts of the world as India, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, the United States, Canada and South Africa, spoke on prosperity by inheritance based on the blessings of Abraham. Rev Dr Biodun Adedipe, a well-known, highly in demand business and economy consultant also spoke on the place of the supernatural in wealth creation.

Then came the glorious climax on Sunday night! Continuing on the main theme of the summit, Dr Kolade not only addressed the need for men to rediscover manhood for their own and that of their family, but for the sake of our nation which currently needs men.

This you will recall was one of the rationales for putting the conference together, in the first place. We had said that when men fail; when we fail to do all the things men are assigned to do, by their maker, the inexorable result is: disaster. And we saw from the Bible that it didn’t begin with the current generation of men.

Adam, the very first man that lived, we recalled, failed not only to rein in the appetite of his wife for exotic fruits, he failed to resist the temptation to join her in the perfidy of disobedience. The result was the curse, which all of mankind inherited. The rest, as the cliché has it, is history.

As we said then, the same scenario is still playing out today; men failing and families, communities and nations reeling from the repercussions.The most recent evidence of the failure of men, as was also pointed out, was the Dana Airline crash into the densely populated Lagos suburb of Iju-Ishaga.  While acknowledging the fact that the Aviation minister, we declared: “if you look beneath all of these and you’ll find at its very root, a man who failed! Check out the trunk, the branches, the leaves, you’ll find men who failed to take their place in the divine plan; men who charted their course away from God’s assignment. We concluded that what we have to do to prevent incidences like the Dana Air crash, and many more like it, we must change our men, beginning with each one of us.

That is what these 200 men chose to do; to change the men of Nigeria, beginning with themselves by subscribing to the following the resolution:

·         I do solemnly resolve before God to take full responsibility for myself, my wife, and my children.

·         I WILL love them, protect them, serve them, and teach them the Word of God as the spiritual leader of my home.

·         I WILL be faithful to my wife, to love and honor her, and be willing to lay down my life for her as Jesus Christ did for me.

·         I WILL bless my children and teach them to love God with all of their hearts, all of their minds, and all of their strength.

·         I WILL train them to honor authority and live responsibly. ? I WILL confront evil, pursue justice, and love mercy.

·         I WILL pray for others and treat them with kindness, respect, and compassion.

·         I WILL work diligently to provide for the needs of my family.

·         I WILL forgive those who have wronged me and reconcile with those I have wronged.

·         I WILL learn from my mistakes, repent of my sins, and walk with integrity as a man answerable to God. ?

·         I WILL seek to honor God, be faithful to His church, obey His Word, and do His will.

·         I WILL courageously work with the strength God provides to fulfill this resolution for the rest of my life and for His glory. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. ? (Joshua 24:15).

Won’t you please join us?