Church dedicates R2m building |21 July 2007
He said that the building was funded mainly through contributions from the congregation, with only one large donation, of US$10,000 coming from overseas.
Pastor Payet said that, “the com
Giving the history of the church, he said:
The church opened its doors to the Seychellois people on September 3, 1989 in obedience to a call from God. At the time Pastor Pascal Payet was a senior elder and an executive committee member in the Pentecostal Assemblies of Seychelles, the church where he grew in the knowledge of God and developed to become a steadfast and faithful follower and servant of the of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Les Mamelles church started very small with 15 members. Over the years as a result of the commitment, hard work and dedication of Pastor Pascal Payet and his wife Rosalie Payet with the assistance of a few faithful church elders and above all with the blessing and approval of the Lord Jesus Christ, the church started to grow. Soon the building which housed the church became too small to accommodate the fast growing congregation which had reached over 200 members. So a decision was taken to extend the building which could then accommodate up to 350 people and over 100 Sunday school children. The church kept growing and in 2003, the church’s executive committee took a decision to demolish the old church building and build a new one which could accommodate between 800 to 1,000 people.
Whilst the building was being demolished except for one Sunday, the church members continued to meet for prayer and worship amongst the rubble. The enormity of the project and the work which lay ahead could not be u
Satan was not happy at all and he tried every means to ensure that the work did not continue. The contractor who was hired to put up the main structure of the building abandoned halfway through the work. Thanks to the good Lord’s grace, mercy and guidance the work progressed slowly but surely. Under the relentless effort and supervision of the pastor with the financial contribution from faithful church members and the assistance of a team of very tenacious servants of God the building is now completed.
The ground floor of the new building consists of the main foyer where the congregation will meet for worship services, the stage is set on the south end of the church. The pastor’s office and library have been placed at the front on either side of the building. The first floor houses five Sunday school classes, a middle foyer which will accommodate church members. Toilet and shower facilities as well as a fully functional kitchen have also been included on the first floor. On the same floor also is an air-conditioned conference room where meetings, seminars and training in bible courses will be conducted.
With a current membership of at least 1,000, the church is now ready to receive more people into the family of God. It’s vision has been and will always be to reach and bring the Gospel of the Lord to the lost souls of the Seychelles according to Mark 16: 15,16.
The Church will put into effect its vigorous and evangelistic programmes and will continue to nurture its members through the other ministries which include Men’s and Women’s Ministry, Children’s Ministry, Youth Ministry, Ministry of Intercession and Deliverance and house meetings and home cells.
Over the 18 years that the church has been in existence it has witnessed the faithfulness and greatness of God Almighty through signs and miracles. The sick have been healed and the demon-possessed have been delivered.
Testimony of deliverance
The ceremony will today see the release of a newsletter which bears a number of testimonies of people who say that they have been healed or delivered from different kinds of problems.
One of them is from Veronique Morel who says:
About five years ago I became very ill and felt very troubled and afraid. I experienced very bad dreams and could not sleep at night. I visited the doctors on countless occasions and after undergoing different types of tests the doctors could find anything wrong with me.
My condition however did not change. I was even prescribed a certain type of medication which I later understood was used by people who had severe mental problems. Upon the advice of friend I refused to take the drugs. I sought the help of a herbalist, but the concoction which he asked me to brew did not work. At the time I was a faithful Roman Catholic who attended mass every Sunday and was also involved in other church activities. Since my situation did not improve I sought help from two priests. One of the priests advised me to go and see someone who could pray for me and the other one offered no help at all. My situation aggravated and I became desperate. In my desperation I called to God and asked him to take my life away as I could not bear it anymore.
That night whilst I lay in my bed I had a vision of the Assemblies of God Church.
My neighbour who attends this church had on previous occasions spoken the word of God to me so the next day which was a Saturday I approached her and told her that I wanted to attend her church. She invited me to attend the Sunday Service which of course I did. When I got there I was warmly received. Pastor Pascal Payet prayed for me and led me to accept Christ as my Lord and Saviour. That night I slept very well. Then I got baptized with water and since I have received my total deliverance. I thank the Lord Jesus for his faithfulness.
I would like to encourage everybody to invite Jesus Christ into their life. He is the answer to all our problems. Whether you are sick, healthy, rich, poor, minister or you hold a higher office, you also need Jesus in your life.
Jesus loves you and wishes to come and live with you permanently. So when you hear his message do not harden your heart as Hebrews: 3:8 says. Open your heart and allow him in as advised in Revelation 3:20, and may God bless you.
Captions:
Pastor Payet ministering