Ministry to hold international ministers’ family conference in Lagos

Driven by the desire to provide the needed support for pastors and other ministers of the gospel, Family Booster Ministry (FBM), a non-denominational ministry of home affairs is set to organise a 3-day international ministers’ family conference in Lagos.

The hybrid conference, scheduled to hold between September 15 and 17 at the RCCG Maranatha Parish Gbagada, is tagged, ‘Excellent Family, Excellent Church’.

According to the conveners, Bisi and Yomi Adewale, Tony Akinyemi, Albert Aina, and Mike and Gloria Bamiloye are parts of the speakers for the conference that will include couples breakfast time-out on the final day.

“Our findings at FBM revealed that many pastors, Church leaders and ministers are passing through many challenges that they find difficult to discuss with anybody. Some of them, it is their marriage, emotional battles, others it is deep health issues and some need new knowledge to drive their ministry,” Bisi Adewale, the Set Man of Family Booster Ministry, a faith-based non-governmental organisation, said at a press conference held in Lagos.

According to him, the conference is borne out of the desire to look deep into the lives of pastors and church leaders in Nigeria. “Pains of pastors are much, with many being the subject of bitter gossip in Church; but they must not be angry but to continue to smile as they suffer,” he said.

Speaking further on challenges faced by pastors in ministry, Adewale said that FBM discovered that the majority of pastors’ wives are not happy with the state of things at homes. He said a lot of pastors’ children are turning against their parents, while many Youth are turning their backs against the church.

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“Pastors are special people, they are the ones that most Christians call first whenever they need help; they are consulted for almost everything, at times they have to act as marriage counsellors, financial counsellors, psychologists, trauma healing experts, guarantors, lawyers, accountants, health experts, fathers, and pillars, among others,” he said.

According to him, pastors are usually consulted for almost every problem by everybody. However, they are often maligned in the social media, stabbed at the back by their own people; but are seriously needed every day by the same people that are hurting them.

“They stand with people when they get wedded; stand with them if they can’t become pregnant, assist if pregnant, called by 1am when they are in Labour, raised money if there are complications that need surgical operations, name the baby, nurture the baby spiritually to youthful age, wed out the youth, attend to them if the marriage runs to trouble waters or hits the rock, bury elderly that dies, and support the bereaved families,” Adewale said.

He however, disclosed that despite all the support rendered by the pastors, they are still grossly undervalued, underrated; not appreciated, not recognised, abused, maligned, hated and not well paid.

He said: “We need to ask ourselves: Where do pastors go when they need help? Who talks to them when they are down? Who will help them if they have a marital challenge?”