January 1, 2022
“The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, and sermons are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose.” C S Lewis
“In reality, holiness is the goal of our redemption. As Christ died in order that we may be justified, so we are justified in order that we may be sanctified and made holy.” Dr J. I. Packer
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.
I write to express my deep gratitude to you for your support, prayers, and partnership in gospel ministry in our Diocese. Thank you for your financial giving and expressions of good-will. Many of you, especially our clergy, sacrificed personal and family time for the growth of this diocese. It has been a blessing and a joy working with you all this past year. May the Lord bless you, in Jesus name. Amen.
The Year 2022 is the beginning of our “Decade of Evangelism & Discipleship”. I invite everyone in our Diocese to join hands together with diligence and determination to make this a priority. As you are all aware our Diocesan mission is to make disciples of all nations for Christ which is a very crucial divine mission. With the exception of divine worship, I believe that leading sinners to Christ so that they are reconciled to God and saved from an eternal Hell takes precedence over every other activity in Christian ministry and our secular occupation and pre-occupation. C S Lewis put it well when said that “The salvation of a single soul is more important than the production or preservation of all the epics and tragedies(Literature) in the world.” This is because in and through the gospel, as Henry Smith noted, God “hides our unrighteousness with his righteousness. He covers our disobedience with his obedience. He shadows our death with his death, so that the wrath of God cannot find us.”
In fact God does more than “cover” and “hide” our sins and disobedience, he washes, forgives, sanctifies, transforms and sends us out to do the good works of holiness of life, helping people in need, and heralding the gospel of Christ.
So as we begin this year 2022, I ask you to take on the challenge of concerted evangelization. As a Diocese I want us to focus our energy on Evangelization this year and for years to come. Do not be daunted by evangelism as many Christians are because as Darrell Johnson reminds us “Evangelism is joining a conversation the Holy Spirit is already having with another person.” We ask Clergy to be intentional in training and equipping every member and parish to “DO THE WORK OF AN EVANGELIST”(2 Timothy 4:5). We ask all clergy, lay leaders, vestries, parishes and Archdeaconries in the Diocese to pay particular attention to active personal and corporate evangelism. This year in obedience to Christ we must “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”(Matthew 28:19-20). God in his mercy will grant us the power and fruitfulness we ask for in this mission.
I wish you a Happy and prosperous new year in your personal life and in the work of spreading the gospel of Christ.
The Rt. Rev. Dr. Felix Orji, OSB. D.Min, M.Div, DipCS, M.Ed, BA.Ed, DD, ECCK.
Diocesan Bishop | Anglican Diocese of the West.
Coordinating Bishop of CONNAM.
Holy Trinity Cathedral Church
8402 Howell Sugarland Road
Houston, Texas.
www.adotw.com
