The history of the Methodist Church is a history of a MOVEMENT, and
ultimately, an EVANGELISTIC MOVEMENT. The birth of METHODISM brought a
spiritual revolution that saved Great Britain from bloody revolution.
Nigeria is on the verge of a similar revolution, which the Methodist Church
Nigeria should, as a component of World Methodism, forestall.
This inspired thinking could not have come at a better time than now, after
two decades of the move of the Holy Spirit for REVIVAL OF EVANGELICAL
CHRISTIANITY around the world, across Africa, and Nigeria in particular, the
people called Methodists have not been left behind.
From the beginning of the decade of the 70s, after the Nigeria Civil
War, there was a wind of revival for commitment to the things of God. In
those years, the evangelically minded Methodist individuals shared and lived
their vision of an Evangelical Methodist Church, from the second half of the
decade into 80s, the evangelical groups started to spring up within the
church for nurture, witness and for intercessory Ministry to heal and bind
the wounds of the wounds of the Methodist Crisis. With the springing up of
more evangelical groups, various evangelically minded Methodist began to see
the need for a coming together of men / women of like minds, as in the days
of the Wesleys.
This led to an assembly of some gospel groups and evangelical leaders in
November 1985 at Jesus College, Otukpo, to consider the possibility of
having a National Evangelistic Front in the Church. This gave rise to the
formation of a body known as National Congress of Evangelizing Methodists (NACEM),
which was born in February 1986, to enhance and Coordinate the work of
evangelism in the church.
There were some other concerned Methodist evangelical leaders who did not
know of the evangelistic efforts and labours of the above until both of them
presented their different agenda for evangelism before the 1988 Conference
of Methodist Church Nigeria.
In that context the conference expressed its need for an embracing
evangelistic body for Methodist Church Nigeria. The answer of God to the
prayer of the church came through the Emergence of METHODIST EVANGELICAL
MOVEMENT (MEM) at the 1989 conference. This was happening, providentially,
just as the re-unification process was getting to the climax.
The re-unification and ratification of the new constitution came up on May
24, 1990. The Church appointed a full time Director of evangelism with
effect from the 1st of August, 1990. The inaugural seminar of the Methodist
Evangelical Movement (MEM) came up from 7 - 13 August, 1990. A rented house
was secured for the Conference Department of evangelism at 7B water Works
Road, Sagamu, Ogun State on October 1, 1990. So the Methodist Church
Nigeria's work of a concise Evangelistic Mission has been put in place.
Hallelujah! Amen.
Following up on the resolution from NACEM Exclusive Congress of November
1990, the Director of Evangelism summoned a meeting of the operators of
NACEM and MEM to work out together, the operational guidelines for METHODIST
EVANGELICAL MOVEMENT (MEM). The meeting which was held at the Director's
office, 7B Water Works Road, Sagamu, between 8 - 10 June, 1991, gave rise to
the document herein called MEM CONSTITUTION.
This Constitution, prepared by the Department of Evangelism and vetted by
the Law and Polity Committee of Conference, provides the necessary
guidelines for METHODIST EVANGELICAL MOVEMENT (MEM), whose goal is the
rediscovery and promotion of all that made Methodism an over towering branch
of the historic Christian faith. May God do it again in Jesus Name.Amen.
This inspired thinking could not have come at a better time than now, after
two decades of the move of the Holy Spirit for REVIVAL OF EVANGELICAL
CHRISTIANITY around the world, across Africa, and Nigeria in particular, the
people called Methodists have not been left behind.
labours of the above until both of them
presented their different agenda for evangelism before the 1988 Conference
of Methodist Church Nigeria.