The Hospital and Prison Visitation ministry held their annual conference from Friday 25^th May 2018 to Saturday 26^th May 2018 at GEWC Mile 1 Church, Port Harcourt. The conference covered talks on, the consequences of Neglecting Hospital and Prison Ministry by Pastor Ibim Alabraba; The Importance of Hospital and Prison Visitation to the Church by Pastor Ledum Vite; Effective Hospital and Prison Ministry Visitation by Pastor Dr. Nonyem E. Numbere.  There was also a book review on Catch the Fish and Keep it alive.

Pastor Dr. Nonyem E. Numbere as part of the introduction into her talk on Effective Hospitals and Prisons Ministry Visitation, said the hospitals and prisons ministry consists of two ministries or departments in the Church that should ideally be independent bodies because of the vast scope. Both belong to the ministry of helps but each to a specialized group of people. More details from her talk can be found below.

Hospital and Prison Ministry (HOSPRIM) is a care giving ministry, others may say “We won’t serve at tables, we will give ourselves to the ministry of prayer and the Word” (Acts 6:4), but the HOSPRIM cannot say that. She is to care for the physical as well as the spiritual. It is a ministry of help, mercy and service to a special group of people namely: those who are sick and are in hospitals and those that are in prisons including police detention cells (Romans 12:7-8; 1 Corinthians 12:28).

Such people are often lonely, depressed and therefore need love, compassion and care. People in prison are there because they committed a crime (although there are some case of wrongful imprisonment) but people are sick not necessarily because they have done anything wrong. Ministering to both groups brings light, hope, deliverance and recovery to them. No ministry or church is complete without this department.

The Importance Hospital and Prison Ministry (HOSPRIM)

HOSPRIM is a ministry that is predicated on love and compassion. It is a way of showing love to others thus fulfilling the second part of the summary of God’s commandments as given by Jesus Christ Himself (Matthew 19:19; 22:37-39; Mark 12:31).

To buttress His point, He told the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37). Today, the phrase, “good Samaritan,” is used to describe someone who is good to stranger. Apostle James refers to it as “the royal law” (James 2:8)

It is a means by which believers fulfil the Great Commission to make disciples by working in a specialized category (See catch the fish and keep it alive page 19). It is therefore a tool for church growth.

How to Have an Effective Hospital and Prison Ministry

1. Have a burden and give yourself to prayer and the ministry of the word of God. You need divine guidance and assistance.
2. You must be fully committed to this ministry and make out time for it. This work is for people who have a compassionate heart and have the gift of help and service as mentioned above.
3. Have a focus through the Vision and Mission Statements of GEWC and this department because “where there is no vision, the people perish” (Proverbs 29:18; Hosea 4:6). Vision and mission statements answer basic questions such as, “Who are we?”, “What do we value?”, “Where are we going?” Generally, organizations that have clearly defined vision and mission statements that are aligned with strategic plans perform better than those who do not.

What is a Vision Statement?

• This is a brief sentence encompassing all you want to achieve as an organization and comes first before the mission statement. It addresses the future as to what the organization wants to achieve over time. It answers the questions

1. who are we or when we were established.
2. Where are we headed i.e. where do we aim to be?

• It is meant to inspire or motivate members of an organization and also clearly demonstrates its goals in alignment with its organizational values and culture.
• It helps a group to

1. acknowledge their past i.e. who they were when established
2. identify their present i.e. who they are now
3. Prepare for the future i.e. who they want to be in the next few years

• Encourages a people to focus on what is important and to better understand organizational changes and alignment of resources even when there is a change of leadership
• Guides the members to put in their best.
• Guides the mission statement and the rest of the strategic plans.

What is a Mission Statement?

The mission statement describes the purpose of the organization or group – what they do and how to get to where they want to be i.e. how to achieve their vision. While the vision statement addresses the future, the mission statement talks about the present leading to the future.

• The mission statement is what puts the feet to the vision of a church/ministry and gives it a sense of purpose and provides the motivation to quickly and clearly move the vision forward.
• It addresses four essential questions
  • What do we do?
  • How do we do it or how do we get there?
  • What values are we bringing?

  

• It lists the broad goals for which an organization is formed at the same time, clearly stating its purpose, main objectives and values.
• It consists of an internal mission and an external mission. The internal mission is for the members and the external mission is the effect of the group outside itself.
• Measures the organization’s success
• Outlines the benefits of the organization.

4. Have a plan as to how to carry out your mission. The bible enjoins us to make plans (Proverbs 20:18). From the modern translations you can see that counsel means consultation, deliberation, plan. Jesus Christ Himself also talked about planning (Luke 14:28-32).

Planning is basically nothing more than attempting to decide in advance what we will or will not do in the next minute, hour, days, months or years. It is an arrow that points to the future as to what we want to achieve and therefore help us to affect the future with a purpose.

Planning should begin in time because it takes time. Do not rush into programs e.g. your planning for next year’s program should not start in October this year. You should not start later than April to give room for consultations, deliberations and prayers.

Frequent reviews of your achievements are necessary in order to know whether your plans are effective. Do not hesitate to change plans and strategy where necessary.

5. Recruit volunteers especially young ones by being very vocal about the importance of HOSPRIM. Many of our people are not interested because you have not been pressing enough. Also pray about it (Luke 10:1-2).
6. Training is very important. Jesus spent three years training his disciples so that when He left, there were people whom the Holy Ghost would use to carry on with the work. Adopt the technique called “Training the trainer” in order to be effective down to the grassroots. HOSPRIM should be in every local church of GEWC, not just in a few churches so they can reach every hospital, police cell and prison in the vicinity of our churches. Develop a work manual using “Catch the fish and keep it alive” and teachings peculiar to hospitals or prisons visitations.
7. Have faith in God and trust Him for provisions to carry out this mission and expect a bountiful harvest, no matter the difficulties that may come your way.

To wrap it up, Pastor Dr. N. E. Numbere inaugurated the National Officers and Zonal Coordinators of the Hospitals and Prisons Ministry and prayed for everyone present.