Living a life of supernatural divine connections

03 Jul, 2016 - 18:07 0 Views
Living a life of supernatural divine connections

The Sunday Mail

Apostle Ephiel Mukamuri is founder and overseer of the Warren Park D-based Logos Rhema Ministries International, which is also known as Word of Faith Churches. He has been in ministry for more than three decades. He attended Bible school at the college run by the late Archbishop Benson Idahosa of Church of God Mission International, in Nigeria a man of God known as the first Pentecostal archbishop of Nigeria, whose proteges include Bishop David Oyedepo and Pastor Chris Oyakhilome. In this instalment, Tendai Manzvanzvike (TM) speaks to Apostle Mukamuri (AEM) about the founding of his ministry, doctrine and relationship to other men and women of God.TM: Welcome Apostle. Logos Rhema Ministries International and Word of Faith Churches, why two names?

AEM: Logos Rhema Ministries International is our all-encompassing name, and it is also our operational name, internationally. But in Zimbabwe, we are known as Word of Faith Churches. It’s just like the way Zaoga FIF is called locally and internationally.

Both names are used interchangeably. After some time, I realised that I had to explain what we meant. Logos is a Greek term for God’s living word, and it is also the term for the written word – the Bible. And Rhema is the spoken word or utterance.

TM: How long have you been in ministry?

AEM: We started in 1982, but in 1987 we adopted the name Word of Faith so that it would become easier for everyone to understand, for some people called us Legos Rhema.

TM: Are you the ministry’s vision career?

AEM: Yes. In 1981 I was in Bible School in Nigeria, but before I went to Bible school, the Lord had started speaking to me as far back as 1980, about starting ministry work. I had also been greatly impacted by the ministry of Kenneth E Hagin.

TM: A very powerful man of God!

AEM: A great man of God indeed! My life had been greatly impacted by him, and I had developed an addiction to the word of God such that when the Lord was dealing with me, the name of a ministry that witnessed into my heart was Logos or Rhema, because it really speaks both about the written word and the internal word of God. And I also know that the name of Jesus before coming to earth was logos (John 1:1).

TM: So, you go to Bible school and…?

AEM: I was at a school run by the late Dr Benson Idahosa, a man so mightly used by God, just like the way God uses Baba (Ezekiel) Guti. That was 1981. When I was there, I spent a lot of time in prayer.

Then God started confirming what He had spoken to me about the year before.

I returned from Nigeria in 1982 and started the ministry. Initially, we were just preaching the gospel in schools, churches, etc. But the Lord spoke to me about planting a church, because anyone who has thoroughly studied the New Testament will realise that the local church is the most effective way to evangelise communities and nations.

TM: But why go all the way to Nigeria for your Bible school?

AEM: Initially, I wanted to go to the United States of America to the college where Baba Guti studied. When I wrote to Christ for the Nations, they advised me to touch base with Archbishop Idahosa in Nigeria.

What then happened is that I don’t recall writing to Dr Idahosa, but he instead wrote me and offered me a scholarship to study at his Bible school.

TM: You continue making references to Archbishop Guti although you are not a Zaoga FIF minister. Why?

AEM: Baba Guti has spoken the wisdom of God in my life and our church over the years. He has done this directly and indirectly. He has preached at our church meetings a number of times. Baba Guti is a father of fathers in the faith, a true Christian patriarch.

TM: Have you also maintained relations with Archbishop Idahosa and the Bible school?

AEM: After leaving Nigeria, I only had direct contact with him in 1986. I am out of touch with his ministry, and he is also now late.

TM: Over 30 years in ministry is mark of feat. But were you raised in the Pentecostal church?

AEM: I grew up in the Dutch Reformed Church at Chivi Mission station. My parents were members of the church. From infant age, I was going to church, but as I was growing up, I started questioning the reality of Christianity, especially as a teenager, because I noticed that we were going to church as a family, but there were practices contrary to what the Bible teaches, which were in the family, and which were also being practiced even by church leaders.

I started to ask whether this was real or not. But deep down, I had a consciousness that there must be a God, but what I was seeing around me was not satisfying me.

TM: How did you resolve these inner struggles?

AEM: I did my Form 1 to 4 at Fletcher High School, and it was there that I got affected by peer pressure. I started to do some wild stuff — looking for satisfaction, happiness and fulfilment. I was in Form Two when I got so much fun doing wild stuff, but l was still telling myself that this was not it.

While I was doing all that, almost every night, I prayed. I would also always tell myself that one day I will die, people will gather, they will dig a pit for me, and they will say he is gone. Please God, where will I be? Those questions used to bother me.

But after my Form Two, a young evangelist came to Chivi Mission where my parents had a shop, and interestingly, the brother of the teammates of that evangelist was my schoolmate.

So, we connected and started going to church meetings. I then realised that this was different from what I grew up knowing.

But I did not immediately make the decision to follow Christ. It was only three months later that I committed myself.

My behaviour at school had become so notorious and so wayward, to the extent that I was now coaching other boys on how to be delinquent.

Some of my friends were expelled from school, but I wasn’t. I didn’t drink, but I was a womaniser and into immoral living.

But when I made my commitment to Christ, some of my friends did not think that I was serious. They thought that I was acting out, and that there was something I was after.

TM: When you started your evangelism which areas did you go to?

AEM: We used to witness the gospel here in Harare around the area they called the Vice Mile (red light district). We would knock on doors and witness Jesus to the people in those rooms, and prayed with them. A number of them came to know of Christ.

TM: So when was the ministry born?

AEM: The church started in September 1982. I had just gotten married to Elnah, and we started the ministry together, and this was full time ministry, and she was working.

TM: From preaching the gospel in notorious areas like the Vice Mile, to Warren Park D. How did it happen, and is this where your church headquarters is?

AEM: That is where what we call the mother church is, but otherwise, we used to meet in the city for years. Then we prayed to God for a place of our own, and we got it in Warren Park D.

TM: Where else are you apart from Warren Park D?

AEM: We are in Chitungwiza, Damofalls and Epworth. But beyond, we have churches in Chivhu (Njanja), Murewa, Bulawayo, Masvingo, Gweru; in almost every major city, we have a church. Beyond our borders, we are in South Africa, Lesotho and we are hoping to plant a church in Luton in the UK.

TM: We have touched on a number of issues about you and the church’s background. Now, let’s move on to the central element that defines any church, that is the doctrine. What is your church’s doctrine?

AEM: Maybe the first thing I can say is that our church is a member of the Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, which is very fundamental in evangelical doctrine, where not just everybody is accepted, but they have to know what you believe — your testament of faith.

We also have links with different fellowships of church leaders in the body of Christ, namely Ministers Fellowship International, Full Counsel Fellowship of Churches, and Fellowship of Inner City Word of Faith Ministries.

Now, there are no two churches that agree on everything, but there is what is called fundamental differences, and there are also certain differences that are not fundamental.

For instance, Jesus’ resurrection from the dead or that Jesus is coming again – those are fundamental.

But, there are certain differences where for example, some people might believe in female pastors, and some might not.

That does not change anything because there is nothing wrong with a woman pastoring, as long as biblical guidelines are followed in the way they do the ministry work.

But, salvation is salvation, whether it is a man or woman who preaches.

If we were to do a natural comparison — when you are sick and you walk into a room, you don’t ask whether the doctor attending to you is male or female. These are my thoughts on female preachers.

It is unfortunate that some of us are so hung up on gender issues when it comes to biblical issues.

TM: One of the things I picked about you is that you have the gift of divine connection. You have hosted a number of preachers and musicians from abroad, and some have ministered at your churches. Tell us more about that.

AEM: Maybe what I can say is that God has a purpose with each one of us, but the purpose with each and everyone is unique, thus we have to complement each other.

So, God has given us the grace to connect with different men and women of God, whom at one time we used to see on TV, but we now know very closely, and with some of them, we can even call them, meet and talk.

TM: How do you do it? Networking?

AEM: I have never used any tactic or skill to connect with any man or woman of God. It is just by His grace, and what I have done is to tell myself that every God-given relationship has a godly purpose, so I dedicate it to God.

If the relationship exists so that we introduce it to you, we would do that gladly.

We are not going to hide that relationship so that we have an advantage over you.

And we have seen God give us more and more relationships with no struggle whatsoever. As someone put it, it’s like it is supernaturally natural.

In the next instalment, Apostle Mukamuri talks about his passion in alms-giving, and the grace connection that has enabled his church to bring different men and women of God, including the likes of Dr Andre and Jenny Roebert of Faith Broadcasting Network from South Africa; award-winning American artiste, songwriter, pastor and producer of gospel songs Don Moen; Ron Kenoly, among others.

 

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