RFP IN HOLISTIC COMBAT AGAINST COVID19

By: Bester Kayaye and Mercy Maulana

The Raised For Purpose (RFP) Ministries, under the Senior Pastor Aubrey Mwasinga, has scaled up its spiritual approach towards the combat against novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic as it is set to host “Covid-19 Prayers for Malawi.”

The Covid-19 Prayers for Malawi, which is a 2 hours (6 – 8pm CAT) virtual event to be hosted on Saturday 30 January, 2021, seeks to pray for diverse things relating to Covid-19 and its effects in Malawi.

Through the prayer program, the Ministry will also have physical patronage at the Ministry’s Dawn auditorium in Blantyre where only 50 people will physically attend the program with the rest set to stream via Facebook: RFP News and Updates and Mxlr: mxlr.com/raised-for-a-purpose.

The Ministry is to host the event in response to calls by President Lazarus Chakwera who repeatedly emphasized the need for faith leaders and churches to take part in seeking divine intervention to catastrophes exacerbated by the pandemic.

In his remarks regarding to the event, Pastor Mwasinga said, “I believe that the fight against Covid-19 requires a holistic approach where everyone brings to the table what they can contribute to the fight.”

“For example, Government should bring policies, Scientists should bring medical solutions, organisations and people that can give money towards it should do so; comedians should continue to entertain people on social media so that people are happy and laughter is good medicine.”

He also said, “Similarly, we are bringing spiritual solutions to the table because we know how far the spiritual weapons of warfare go in both healing people as well as encouraging them to have hope. And hope alone increases the immune system of people, while fear of death causes infected people to think Covid-19 is a death sentence and that weakens their immune system. “

Pastor Aubrey then called upon every one in the body of Christ to tune in and pray together with them as these are prayers for the nation and not specific for RFP members.

The specific petitions to be prayed for on the day include: Praying against the spread of the Virus; Praying for current patients; Praying for the Health workers so that they have wisdom, strength and protection as they help patients, as well as Praying for the President and the Government’s efforts against the virus, among others.

Since it is not a call-in programme, people that have been diagnosed with Covid-19 may also send Pastor Aubrey their names and the symptoms they are feeling through [email protected] and he will pray for them on the day without mentioning their names to the public.

In bid to minimize hopelessness during the pandemic times, RFP also rolled-out Covid-19 Prayer-line Programme that saw hundreds of people get strengthened whilst some got healed through the Special Phone Call-in weekly programme and other avenues.

Mavuto Thomas is the Acting Deputy Director of Preventive Health Services responsible for Health Education Services and he commended the initiatives the Ministry is undertaking in uplifting people’s lives through the holistic approach.

“As we are on the course of fighting the pandemic, we have seen a lot of people are engulfed in fear, hopelessness and anxiety, hence it is high time churches came in and helped people in dealing with hopelessness as well as consolation to the families that lost loved ones due to the pandemic.”

Thomas then urged churches to emulate what the Ministry is pursuing in fighting the pandemic by among others, ensuring that they take their ceremonies online via social media platforms and scaling down number of participants in the ceremonies.

“It is good that now a number of churches are embracing the call to assist in bringing back hope to the hopeless. However, they should see it that all Covid-19 preventive measures are adhered to, such as wearing of facemasks, social distancing; they can also minimize high patronage by just arranging the congregants to be praying in zones.”