We offer hope, deliverance
The sprouting of parallel Christian ministries from mainstream churches continue to cause controversy. While some accuse these ministries of encouraging religious promiscuity, others blame the increasing divorce rates on their teachings, which apparently seem to bring in a strange sense of independence to women. In this interview, I spoke to Mai Luhana, founder of Memory of Christ Ministries.
Tell me about your ministry
We started in 2004 and are based in Chirimba, Blantyre. This ministry is premised on five major pillars namely; to let people know the true word of God, teach how to pray, free the afflicted from the devil’s bondage, restore broken marriage bonds, bring back lost hope and deliver the afflicted in different aspects of their Christian lives.
Ministries such as yours have been accused of encouraging religious promiscuity through alleged insistence that people leave their churches in pursuit of the “true gospel”.
That’s not true, at least as far as our ministry is concerned. In fact, we discourage such tendencies because our teaching is centred on building men and women of God to build a strong and living Church of God. For your information, we meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so that we don’t interfere with mainstream church programmes.
Parallel ministries have been strongly accused of fuelling marriage
breakaways and divorces due to your insistence on women independence. Some say married women who frequent ministries like yours display strange behaviour and attitudes towards their husbands leading to numerous divorces. What would you say to that?
A true ministry, founded on God’s principles on marriage would not encourage women to be rude to their husbands. In fact, the bible advises all God fearing women to submit to their husbands. If there is any ministry teaching to the contrary, it is not from God. We teach about family and marriage according to Genesis 1:27 and Ephesus 5:29-33, which emphasise limitless and unconditional love among couples; and that there should be an unbroken relation between God and marriage. God puts so much emphasis on this because it aides His mission of procreation.
How would one know a true ministry?
A true ministry from God exudes the Holy Spirit in its deeds and by its leaders professing God. A true ministry will not promise riches to unrepentant people. People have to be taught the word of God, delivered from the chains of the devil and then blessings flow.
How big is your membership?
Our membership is growing by the day. As a matter of fact, we are being overwhelmed by the numbers coming to our services. Our only challenge is we meet at my home, which limits the numbers and variety of congregants.
