A GNA feature by Beatrice Asamani Savage
Accra, June 12, GNA - Growing up in his native Asueyi, a village near Techiman in today’s Bono Region, George Yeboah determined that his purpose in life was to help nurture plants and animals to grow healthily and abundantly for the nourishment of the bodies of mankind.
To accomplish his destiny, George, born March 28, 1960, set himself on the course of becoming an Agricultural Extension Officer- a profession that would enable him to aid many farmers to produce a harvest so bountiful and far reaching. It was, therefore, all excitement when he received a Diploma Certificate, in 1984, from the Agricultural College at Ejura in the Ashanti Region, and after a year of practical training he got employed by the Ministry of Agriculture.
But that was not God’s will for His servant because He needed George to rescue souls and guide them to live godly and fruitful lives on earth, while their souls were nurtured for glorious living in heaven.
This message came to George in many a prophecy and wise counsel but he was deeply set on his prime mission: to serve the physical needs of man. And this was not because he did not know His maker, or that he took the things of God lightly.
Grandma Akua Brago, a peasant farmer, whom George and his younger brother lived with until they turned 13 and 11, respectively, had done a very good job giving them the Catholic Christian values they needed to stay out of trouble. They embraced the training of the woman they thought was their biological mother and studied hard, regardless of the subsistence living they had to endure, to outperform their classmates at their Asueyi L.A. Basic School.
Their staunch Methodist parents, Stephen Kofi Yeboah and Anna Manu, both of blessed memory, were then living at Techiman with their three other siblings.
At a very young age, George knew he loved God, and was fortunate enough to hang around some Pentecostal fire-brand young adults with similar devotion - so at 12 years, one of them led him to say the sinner’s prayer and accepted the Lord Jesus as his personal savior and received the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
There was always this compulsion in his heart to pray and so in obedience, he kept his flame alight with all-night prayers, fasting and evangelism, and it just thrilled him to remain in the true vine.
One day in 1982, while George was praying on the Asueyi Mountain (now the site of Our Holy Cross Calvary Grotto- Church) the Holy Spirit led him to the church God wanted him to attend - Christ Apostolic Church - International (CACI).
“I had been praying there for some time and I was so unkempt, but I went straight into the service,” he states. “I felt so much relief once I became a member of the Church”.
Before the Mountain incident, he had accompanied his mother, on occasions, to attend prayer sessions at the local CAC Techiman. One of his spirit filled friends, Joshua, was a member of the church and sometimes invited him to their services.
His father wanted him to be devoted to the Methodist Church and loved attending Christian fellowships with a non-denominational character, until he decided to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit.
He was then living in Techiman with his father, who had earlier on (when he turned 13) taken him and his brother from Gradma Brago, to enroll them at the Techiman Methodist Middle School, from where he continued his education at the Techiman Secondary School and completed in 1982.
All this while, the young man was having this growing feeling that his destiny was in full time Ministry, but his ultimate desire in that field was to become an Elder in the Church.
“The pressure in my heart to be in the House of God to pray, worship and share the word of God was too much for me and this reached its peak in 1985,” he recalls. “People were also advising me and prophesying to me to go into full time ministry.”
But it was also in 1985 that the Ministry of Agriculture presented him with the opportunity to practice his chosen career so he gladly embraced his employment as an extension officer.
George says the blessing did not come with peace as the pressure scaled up and stirred in his soul like a mighty storm, compelling him to leave the office any time he had a break from his work to find a solitary place to pray.
“The zeal for God’s work motivated me to go to church and pray, even on days when no one else attended the service; and also when there was a downpour and no one stepped out of their homes, I felt the impulse to go to church and pray”.
So eventually in 1992 George, at this time an Elder and a Secretary of the Techiman Assembly of the CAC, heeded the Master’s call to pursue full time ministry and enrolled at the Christ Apostolic Church Bible Training Institute at Kwadaso, in Kumasi. In fact, when he made the enquiries about admission, he was informed that the class was full but because his move was in the will of God, He made a way.
Upon graduation in 1994, the Reverend George Yeboah says, he continued to pray to God to confirm that He had, indeed, called him and he got his answer in a very dramatic way.
“I was praying for a confirmation about my call when I fell under His presence. I attempted to get up a couple of times but I fell each time and just rolled and rolled. Then God told me that he had finished every work on me, and that he would use me in His ways for everyone to see His glory. He also told me that he would elevate me to the highest office of the Church, so I kept all these promises in my heart”.
That prophecy was fulfilled when at the 62nd General Council Meeting of the CACI, on February 28, 2019, Rev Yeboah, who had served his way up to become the Territorial Apostle of the Accra East Territory, passed a two-level test to emerge the 8th leader of the first Pentecostal movement in Africa.
In his 25 years in Gospel Ministry, he has served the Church in various stations: Pra River (1994-1997) as Observation and Probational Minister; Sefwi Bekwai (1997- 2000) as Circuit Pastor and Regional Secretary for Western ‘B’ Region; Teshie (2000-2003) as Circuit Pastor and Regional Secretary for Greater Accra Region ‘D’; Odorkor Central (2003-2005) as Associate Pastor to Ex-Chairman , Apostle Michael Nimo; Nungua Central (2005-2007 as Area Head Pastor for Nungua Area; Sunyani Central (2007-2011) as Area Head Pastor for Sunyani Area, and Territorial Secretary for Brong Ahafo Territory; New Tafo, Kumasi ( 2011 – 2016) as Area Head Pastor for New Tafo Area, and Territorial Secretary for Ashanti East Territory; and then Accra East Territory (2015 to Date) as Territorial Apostle.
Apostle Yeboah secured a total of 359 votes out of the 655 total valid votes, cast by the Electoral College, comprising members of the Executive Council, Area Heads, Territorial Apostles, all ministers and representatives from Areas and Territories, to lead the Church in a four-year tenure.
Before, the election, the leadership of the church had characteristically locked themselves up for prayers for the Lord to pick His choice, and so it was that Apostle Yeboah broke the convention to become Chairman who had previously not served on the Executive Council of the Church.
He simply defines himself as a man of prayer and a seeker of knowledge; but fellow congregants, especially those close to him, say he is much more than his praying credential.
“He is very spiritual, his integrity is phenomenal, he loves unconditionally, he is humble and stands up for righteousness, says the Rev. Samuel Osei, the Sekondi Circuit Pastor of the Church.
The pastor, who has known him for about 18 years, adds that people who know Apostle Yeboah from a distance tend to misunderstand his meekness and gentleness for feebleness and weakness; but those who really know him, nurse a reverence fear for his unshaken integrity and objectivity.
“He is a powerful man of God. Apostle Yeboah has what we call a power ministration, which comes with the presence of God and healing abilities. In fact, he is so much of a blessing for the church and the real man to lead the CAC at this time to also advance what Apostle Anim started with the Spirit of God, and others have built on,” concludes Rev. Osei.
Mrs. Stella Yeboah has been married to the man of God for more than three decades and speaks highly of him - his love for humanity, his fear of the Lord with his passion for his work.
She noticed this, very early in their marriage, when in 1994, he was pastoring the church at Pra River, a village near Nkawkaw, where they faced a lot of material hardships.
There were 11 smaller congregations who submitted their tithes on monthly basis to the then Minister for him to deliver to the relevant authority. Mrs. Yeboah said there were times that her husband would discover that the money submitted fell short of what was captured, borrow from elsewhere to make up for the shortfall before sending it. In the reverse case - when the money exceeded what had been recorded, instead of keeping it as a windfall, he would save it in an envelope and add it to the following month’s tithe before sending it.
“There have been many times when we have to endure hardships in his ministry, but even when we had to go to bed hungry, he would never touch any church money in his custody. He won’t even borrow from it because he fears the Lord,” she says.
“Indeed, at every station we have been, the members of the church will attest to his integrity, his indiscriminate love for all, his devotion to service and hard work. Actually, there was a time that an elder of the Church asked if he had two hearts - because of his tireless efforts”.
Apostle Yeboah explains why he presses on: “If you’ve really been called by God to serve him, you empathise with your members. You have to be there for them, counsel and encourage -them to steer the course of righteousness, pray and fast with them and also for them to solve their problems without counting the cost”.
On how he balances the near total offering of his services to the church with spending quality time with his family - a responsibility which is costing modern pastors their marriages, Apostle Yeboah says his first congregation is his family.
“Every man of God must treat his family as his first church, spend time with them and pray for them, otherwise the devil will target your wife and your children and when people start finding faults with them it will tarnish your image and gradually cause your fall.”
His principle seems to be working good as Mrs. Yeboah is full of admiration for him and sees his elevation as a well-earned reward from God, while their five children: Patrick, Michael, Joshua, Gideon and Jemima walk in obedience as they also continue to climb the academic ladder.
For someone who believes in Paul’s admonition to Christians to study to show themselves approved, his heart is filled with warmth and praise that God has made a way for Patrick to get a scholarship to pursue his doctorate degree in Accounting and Finance in the United Kingdom. Indeed, he was the only applicant who got the grant and it was prayer that paved the way. His three other sons are in the university, while Jemima is in Senior High School.
The Apostle himself holds both a First and Master’s Degrees in Integrated Communication and Theology from the Oracle University College, a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theology from Christ Apostolic University College, graduating as the Over-all Best Student in 2016. He also holds Master’s Degree in Guidance and Counseling from the Methodist University College, Ghana.
He knows that God has been faithful to his promises, as he continues to use him to impact lives and heal the sick with all kinds of conditions. His healing gift manifested much earlier at Pra River, when Fosua, a seriously ill - mentally deranged woman, was sent to him at all night service for healing and the Lord delivered.
It was also at Pra River when the Lord answered his prayers to save his new Twi bible from being destroyed in a downpour, when he was returning from an evangelism mission on his bicycle. The rain followed him from a distance of about 30 metres. Awed by the miracle unfolding before their eyes, some elders of the local Church of Pentecost, followed up to seek answers. It was the same Prayer-answering God, who on another day, restrained the rain from falling within the arena where he was baptizing some new believers.
Through his ministerial work 14 churches have been established and others have been revived for the CACI.
As he occupies the highest office of his church today, Apostle Yeboah is not complacent at all because he is wary of the caution given in 2 Chronicles 25:8b, “…for God has the power to help overthrow”. Therefore, he is determined to lead his team in the pursuit of righteousness and good works as they carry out their mission of rescuing and restoring souls for the Kingdom of God.
Apostle George Yeboah now has inner peace heeding the Master’s Call!
GNA
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