Barbados PM: Faith makes a difference

IN the face of turmoil and the tumultuous storm clouds of life, the message must be sent that, when all else fails, faith works.

This was the message delivered to hundreds of regional delegates in attendance at the 2013 Caribbean Assembly, hosted by the New Testament Church of God (NTCOG) Barbados, in conjunction with Church of God World Missions, Caribbean Region.

The message came from The Honourable Freundel Stuart, Prime Minister of Barbados, as he gave an address at the opening of the conference, which was held in Barbados November 7th through 10th, under the theme, “Living the Word: Empowering the Caribbean”.

The historic event, the first of its kind, saw delegates from Church of God assemblies from across the region – including those from French and Spanish speaking territories – joining their local counterparts, as well as those from the international community, for the opening ceremony held in Barbados, at the Garfield Sobers Gymnasium .

“As a New Testament Church of God, you will be ever mindful of the fact that when all is said and done, the mission of the church has not changed, ever since there was a church, to preach the gospel to the poor, to heal the broken hearted, to preach recovery of sight to the blind, to preach deliverance to the captives and to minister to [those] that are bruised,” Prime Minister Stuart announced.

“There are many who are captive to crime and drugs in the region today. There are many who are bruised by unemployment. There are many who have been rendered poor by lack of economic opportunity. There are many who are socially blind, who are spiritually blind… I know you hear the noises being made and those noises are not to be ignored,” PM Stuart told those gathered.

“I hope that you will reflect on these things... that you will reflect on the fact that this region needs you now more than ever, because, despair, frustration, insecurity and a whole miscellany of emotional and psychological states is gripping our people, and we need to show that it makes a difference to be Christian... it makes a difference to have a faith... that faith works, and that when all else fails, when the storm clouds of life gather, that answers can still be found; answers can always be found in Jesus Christ,” the PM said to rousing applause.

Meanwhile, Caribbean Field Director, Dr. Ishmael Charles, encouraged the delegates to “be carriers of the flame”.

He beseeched the delegates to live out The Word and reach out to those who may have somehow lost their faith. He stressed that it is time for Church of God to arise and bring transformation to the region. (RSM)