PROSPERITY MESSAGE IS SENDING THE CHURCH INTO STUPOR – Kofi Adu Labi

… social media has eroded interests in reading
… gullibility of Christians is made possible by an unwillingness to study the Word
… In Ghana, Christians hold the key to solving national problems

* Kofi Adu Labi and wife

Arriving at the hall of a writers’ conference in Accra Ghana a few years ago, your attention was arrested by the books on display as you waited to be registered. Some of the books carried the name Kofi Adu Labi. The titles were riveting: All things Bright and Beautiful; Musings from the Hilltop; Wisdom, Faith and a Song; Nuggets for Victorious Living; Stories to warm your Heart; Pearls of Wisdom, etc, You were prompted to pick them one after the other to read their blurbs. Right there and then, you made up your mind to have an interview with him. You were fascinated by the fact that you are meeting with the literary siblings of writers like Ayi Kwei Armah, Kofi Awoonor, Ama Ata Aido, etc, great Ghanian writers you have read their works back home in Nigeria. Journey with me into the mind of Kofi Adu Labi, a Christian writer with an uncommon mind and understanding.

Why do you write? How do you get inspired to write?
I write to help shape all those (both the young and not so young) who are looking for answers to life’s questions and guidance on how to live meaningful lives. I have always loved storytelling and the lessons that so often go with them. From an early age, I developed the love of reading at home and in school. I adopted storytelling as part of the informal interactions at home with our children when they were very young, and I did not fail to notice that they enjoyed the stories and the lessons so much.

This is the reason why, as a lay preacher and speaker, I have always made it a point to start and end my presentations with stories. That style has always left an indelible impression on my audiences, judging from the feedback received on each occasion. Storytelling has the advantage of getting the audience to remember the lessons and key points one wants to send across.

Kofi Adu Labi and family

Explain the messages in all your books? What do you intend to achieve?
We have only one life, that goes without saying, and that makes it imperative that we do not waste time on things that will not add value to our time on earth. I am convinced that there is so much to learn, to do and relish in life if only we would have eyes that see. We just need to pay attention to the things around us.

Each day brings home to me the conviction that there is a major need for some of us to share our thoughts and experiences with the wider world, especially the younger ones. Everywhere I go in response to invitations to speak at various fora, I meet people, of all ages, asking questions and struggling with real-life situations.

Having worked and related to people of all ages and different social backgrounds for about fifty years now, I have seen that there are basic principles we all need to apply in our day-to-day living to give us the edge and satisfaction we all deserve to have in life.

I expect that the reader will be educated, informed and enlivened by the narratives in my books, and that out of this inspiration will come the desire for us all to pay attention to the things that matter in life.

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As a writer, what support is there for the Christian writer in Ghana? Is the Christian writer fulfilled? Do Christians read in Ghana?
Whatever support may exist is not structured and is very informal, at the very least. I sense, based on questions budding Christian (and other) writers put to me that many writing projects do not see the light of day due to the lack of support for such writers. The support could be both financial and editorial. Do Christians read in Ghana? They are not reading as much as they should, and this could be due to the dearth of very good and engaging books speaking to contemporary issues. Having said that, those who love reading are reading!

How can your books make a greater impact in a world filled with darkness? Are Ghanaian writers creative enough to penetrate the darkness with the light they bear in their hands? How well distributed are your works across Africa?
Based on the feedback (considerable) I keep receiving on my books, I am convinced that my books (and those of other creative writers) are affecting lives for good. Readers are being liberated to see the possibilities around them and the grace from God available to help all willing to step out to fulfil their God-given purposes. I don’t have a distribution network in Africa. Seven of my books are available through Amazon, but there is no formal distribution channel for them. And the vast majority of readers in Africa neither have access nor knowledge about Amazon anyway.

What is your comment on the current Church vis-a-vis the Church in the 1970s/80s? Is this Church ready? Is this Church rapturable?
Good question. I suspect, and I am not sure if that is the right word, that there isn’t the same sense of urgency about rapture now as there was in the 1970s and 1980s. The pull of the secular world with its emphasis on prosperity may be sending the Church into a stupor. There has to be a wake-up call for the Church to remember the Master’s last command and our first concern, a call to obedience.

Nigeria and Ghana have come a long way, relating like brothers. What area of partnership is there between the Nigerian and Ghanaian Christian writers and authors? Are we on the same page? Do we cross-fertilise ideas?
Certainly, there is a lot that we can learn from each other. In any event, from what I have seen and heard, the landscape for writing (and publishing) in Nigeria is on a higher pedestal than we have in Ghana. We can learn best practice from each other through structured partnership arrangements. Vital lessons about what works can be picked from such collaboration.

Are you satisfied with the quality of pastors and pastoring in the African Church!
Yes and No. There is evidence that a group of pastors are hungry for Kingdom business and expansion. They are focused on mission, evangelism and discipleship. I cannot say this for others. This latter group appear to be more concerned with amassing wealth and thriving on the gullibility of their members. A situation made possible by the unwillingness and failure of people to study the Word of God for themselves.

How do you rate Christians in politics? Are you happy with them?
Talking about Ghana, I am convinced that Christians hold the key to solving the perennial problems of corruption, poor attitude to work, lack of integrity and indiscipline in the society. After all, Christians are about 70% of the population and if they got their act together, things would be so much different.  In my view, the impact of Christians in politics has been minimal. This is both due to many otherwise capable Christians shying away from politics and those in it not making their presence felt enough.

Ghana has produced so many great writers well reputed across the world. What is the state of literature in Ghana today? Is Ghana reproducing a new set of writers today?
Yes indeed, Ghana has produced great writers like Ayi Kwei Armah, Kofi Awoonor, Amu Djoleto and Ama Ata Aidoo whose works have gained international recognition. Unfortunately, the state of literature in Ghana has not made the incremental progress I would have expected by now. The advent of social media has eroded interest in reading. Poor reading habits have affected writing skills and this is showing in many sectors.

Fortunately, this state of affairs is engaging the serious attention of the authorities and bodies like the Ghana Association of Writers (GAW). Avenues and incentives have been rolled out to encourage people to write and more importantly, to encourage reading. It’s early days yet, but the potential dividends could be worthwhile.

Tell me about your history…
Kofi Otutu Adu Labi is a lawyer, management consultant and author. He is also a Church Elder, teacher and preacher. He was educated at Ofori Panin, Achimota School, University of Ghana and the University of Bradford School of Management. He also studied at Georgetown University Law Center, the International Law Institute (Washington DC), the Cranfield School of Management and London Business School. He is an alumnus of the Haggai Institute for Advanced Leadership, Hawaii. He served as Adviser under two Governors of the Bank of Ghana (Dr Paul Acquah and Mr Kwesi Amissah-Arthur). He started his banking career at the then SSB Bank (now Societé Generale Ghana) as a pioneering staff in 1976 and was the founding head of the Legal Department, before rising to the position of General Manager.

He has held several directorships including Commissioner, Securities and Exchange Commission Ghana, the National Pensions Regulatory Authority, Taysec Construction, Taysec Properties, Scripture Union Ghana, Victory Presbyterian Church School and the Bible Society of Ghana. He is a Trustee of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana Education Foundation as well as a Member of Council of the Christian Service University College, Kumasi. He is a Trustee of the Esther Ocloo Memorial Foundation. He has served as Senior Presbyter and Presbyter at the Dansoman Emmanuel and Victory (Fafraha) congregations of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana respectively.

He has written nine books of which seven have so far been endorsed by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) as supplementary readers for schools in Ghana. His tenth book, Memoirs from the HillTop, is due for release in 2021. He has been married to Elioenai since 1978 and they have five adult children and three grandchildren.