President John Dramani Mahama has urged churches to turn faith into community service as he opened the 10th Triennial Congress of the World Assemblies of God Fellowship in Accra on Wednesday, October 14, 2026. He delivered the address at the Accra International Conference Centre before more than 10,000 participants from across the world.

President Mahama, who acknowledged that he and First Lady Lordina Mahama belong to the Assemblies of God Church, argued that worship earns its meaning when believers carry it into homes, workplaces and neighbourhoods.

He anchored the appeal in the congress theme, Commissioned, One Mandate, Every Nation, which draws on the Great Commission in Matthew chapter 28.

“Our faith becomes tangible when a hungry child receives a meal. Our faith becomes tangible when a patient is treated with compassion. It becomes tangible when a young person acquires a skill.”
President John Dramani Mahama

A Historic Welcome in Accra

President Mahama opened with a note of history. He stated that he believed the gathering was the first global congress of any church held in Ghana and the first World Congress of the Assemblies of God held in Africa.

He greeted delegates with the Ghanaian word of welcome, Akwaaba, and acknowledged guests including former Malawian President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera, Global Chair Reverend Dominic Yeo and Congress Host Reverend Stephen Wengam, who leads Assemblies of God Ghana.

He thanked the organisers, volunteers, congregations and public institutions that made the event possible. Delegates, he noted, had crossed oceans and borders with different languages and cultures but a shared faith. “Here in Accra, the world has gathered as a family,” he told them.

The President spent considerable time on the meaning of the theme. He explained that the Great Commission begins with divine authority, assigns a responsibility and promises a constant presence. Service under such authority, he argued, carries accountability. “A commission is a trust and it places something precious in our care.”

He insisted that each generation of the church must renew that trust by meeting people where they live. An anxious young job seeker should hear hope, a strained family should find care, and a grieving person should find comfort.

Someone who feels forgotten, he added, should discover that they matter. President Mahama observed that the church’s witness gains strength when people see its compassion reflected in its conduct.

Worship That Follows Believers to Work

President Mahama then asked the congress to give renewed attention to the link between proclamation and service. He called on delegates to let the energy of their worship strengthen their bond with the communities around them. Many people who never attend a congress like this one, he pointed out, will still judge the church by how its members behave.

They will meet that faith in a teacher’s patience, a business owner’s honesty, a health worker’s care, an employer’s fairness and a public servant’s integrity. For that reason, he maintained, “our worship should follow us into our workplaces and our neighbourhoods.”

The President turned to those who hold public office and described a particular duty. Faith, he stated, should deepen humility, strengthen respect for citizens and sharpen attention to people whose voices rarely reach the centre of power. He treated the prayers offered for leaders as a solemn obligation to serve conscientiously.

He dedicated himself to serve with humility and to remember that “the most enduring measure of leadership is the difference that it makes in the lives of people.” Whatever distinction may attach to his public journey, he added, its meaning must come through service.

Practical Commitments for Returning Delegates

President Mahama closed by asking delegates to leave Accra with something concrete. That could be a new partnership between churches, a pledge to mentor young people, a plan to support a school, a decision to strengthen a health ministry, or a promise to stand with a congregation serving under difficult conditions.

He hoped the congress would support communities facing hardship and open opportunities for young people. He wished delegates fruitful deliberations, a memorable stay in Ghana and a safe journey home. He then invoked blessings on the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, on Assemblies of God Ghana and on every nation represented at the congress.