There is hope for the world

Thu, Jun 2nd 2011, 11:01 AM

In the wake of disasters occurring worldwide -- earthquakes, hurricanes, wars, famine, crime and lawlessness at every turn -- the newly elected president of the Bahamas Conference of the Methodist Church (BCMC) Reverend Christopher Neely says there is definitely hope for this world as long as a few good men are willing to take a stand and work together.
Neely, the pastor at New Hope Methodist Church in Freeport, Grand Bahama, was elected president during the 18th Annual General Conference of the BCMC held in Eleuthera, and will officially begin his three-year tenure on Thursday, September 1, with a slate of goals he and his executive council want to achieve with guidance, support and cooperation of God and those around them. The incoming president takes to his new appointment with a passion he knows is God-given.
"Being elected president is an awesome task," says Neely. "I believe that it is God's call to me and to the church to take this time to be more sensitive toward the mission given to us by Jesus Christ. We believe that the Methodist Church has been called to reform the nation.  We have a voice and the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to help us to make that difference in our Bahamas. I will use this term to fulfill God's task to me and try to bring people together to make this a better conference and nation."
The 53-year-old incoming president says that there are three main things he wants to focus on during his tenure.  He wants to ensure that there is a greater awareness of the church's mission by spreading the good news. He says this will mean better evangelistic methods and going into the communities. He wants to expand youth ministries so that more young people are touched and brought to Christ. He says this could mean going to the youth no matter where they are or what they are doing and getting through to them somehow so they know that they do have a place in the church.
He also has a mission to enhance outreach to people in need whether they are Methodist affiliated or not. He also hopes to continue the current programs the Methodist Church has such as the Bilney Lane Children's Home, the building of the new Zion's Children's Home in the Current, Eleuthera, visitations at the prison and work at the HIV camp. He anticipates more programs being put in place and older ones continuing to be enhanced because he believes ministry should never be confined to the four walls of a church structure.
Pastor Neely says he has come a long way to be able to take this bold step forward from the introverted young man he was in his younger days. He recalls never being one to push himself to his limits or to set goals or challenges to better himself.  He says the nonchalance he embraced in his teenage years regarding his education is the biggest regret he has in his life.
"Everyone makes mistakes and I am sure I have done something here or there that has not made me proud, but as a person, what really stands out in my past as my biggest mistake would be not valuing my education and my days in school as I should have. I graduated from school with no qualifications such as the A-levels or O-levels. I took the regional CXC [Caribbean Examination Council] exams and even then I did not receive high grades. I really never pushed myself and it was only when I had to enter the real world after finishing high school that I wished I had done more. I saw just how much I was not living up to God's potential for my life. I made a choice after that to do more and continue my education at The College of The Bahamas."
After enrolling in numerous evening classes where he excelled, Neely decided to obtain an associates in sociology and psychology.  With the passion of learning finally gripping his life he didn't stop there and opted to challenge himself by pursuing a Bachelor's of Science in Psychology at Howard University in Washington, D.C.  The pastor says it was this fire in him and a desire to learn and do more that drove him to expand his wings and take leadership roles in other areas of his life.
"I was always interested in the church as a young man," says the incoming president. "I was encouraged by the older church members to always be involved in the church and what was going on. I found myself becoming a Sunday School teacher and then a youth pastor. I always wanted to be of service in the church no matter which capacity I could fill -- but even so, my goal was never to really be the pastor.  So becoming one was something that just happened for me.  God has always been calling me to do something in the church and with the path that I was on I guess it naturally happened even though my qualifications were leading toward becoming a counsellor or even a psychologist."
Pastor Neely has been in ministry since 1983, but was officially ordained in 1996. Although it was easy to sit back and accept his position as a minister he says he was not done yet with his education and pursued a degree more focused on religion. He studied for a Master's of Divinity in Theology at the School of Theology at Emery University in Atlanta, Georgia.  The newly-elected BCMC president says he is glad that he made that choice as his life continues to expand and grow with each passing day.
His love of learning and desire to give back has also manifested in his accepting a position at the Jack Hayward School in Grand Bahama as a religion teacher which he says is the perfect environment for him to push young people to live up to their position in their youth so they won't have to regret not doing all they can now and later have to work even harder to catch up in life. He is glad that his life lessons are things his students can learn from without having to experience them. The minister says continuing to encourage young people in the right ways and to value their gifts and blessings is something he will continue to stress even during his tenure as BCMC president.
Also elected to officer were Philip Clarke, a lay person from Ascension Methodist Church, as vice-president; Deacon Elmena Bethell, pastor of Coke Memorial Methodist Church, as general secretary; Reverend Jacinta Marie Neilly, ministerial moderator for the eastern Abaco region of the conference, as treasurer; Andrea Gibson, principal of Queen's College, and Reverend Philip Stubbs, pastor of St. Michael's Methodist Church, as assistant secretaries; and Audrey Culmer, a member of the Wesley Methodist Church in Tarpum Bay, Eleuthera, as assistant treasurer.
 
BAHAMAS CONFERENCE OF METHODIST CHURCH OFFICERS
President: Reverend Christopher Neely, pastor Of New Hope Methodist Church, Freeport Grand Bahama
Vice-president: Philip Clarke, Lay person from Ascension Methodist Church, New Providence
General secretary: Deacon Elmena Bethell, pastor of Coke Memorial Methodist Church, New Providence
Treasurer: Reverend Jacinta Marie Neilly, ministerial moderator for the Eastern Abaco Region of the Conference
Assistant secretaries: Andrea Gibson, Principal of Queen's College and Rev. Philip Stubbs, minister of St. Michael's Methodist Church, New Providence
Assistant treasurer: Audrey Culmer, a member of the Wesley Methodist Church in Tarpum Bay, Eleuthera

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