“Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen,” (Eph. 2. 20-21, NRSV).
On behalf of Pentecost International Worship Center (P.I.W.C), I express great appreciation to residents of Rocky Hill for welcoming us into their historic community. It is with the same attitude of hospitality that we extend an invitation to all residents of Rocky Hill town and its surrounding communities to come and worship with us.
The P.I.W.C has deep roots in the early 19th century classic Pentecostalism. As such, we have a strong sense of the Church as a community of active believers. That is to say, P.I.W.C members are expected to serve each other by using the spiritual gifts that the Holy Spirit bestows on them (1 Pet. 4. 10).
From a theological standpoint, P.I.W.C has a robust pneumatological outlook and Christological grounding. Precisely, we consider manifestations of the Holy Spirit via spiritual gifts in and through believers, as outward signs of the inward grace in our Lord Jesus the Christ.
To be sure, these gifts of grace include but are not limited to: the utterance of wisdom; the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit; faith; gifts of healing; the working of miracles; prophecy; the discernment of spirits; various kinds of tongues; the interpretation of tongues (1 Cor. 12. 8-10).
Notably, these spiritual gifts have eschatological value to the extent that they remind us of the Second Coming of Christ who promised to always be with us (Matt. 28. 20).
In addition to experiences of spiritual gifts in ecclesial life, P.I.W.C takes seriously the Pauline appeal to Christians to develop the fruit of the Holy Spirit in its sevenfold dimensions including: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Gal. 5. 22-23).
It is our deepest conviction that charismata and character enable us to reflect the life of Christ who went about doing good and healed all the oppressed (Acts 10. 38).
By creating space for manifestations of the gifts and fruit of the Spirit in ecclesial space and the wider community, P.I.W.C partly confirms Christ’s call for Christians to be the light of the world and a city built on a hill cannot be hid (Matt. 5. 14).
Accordingly, the P.I.W.C values the primacy of love by endeavoring to embody the Christ’s basic message of love so that, “by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another,” (Jn. 13. 35).
In conclusion, P.I.W.C family again invites all that seek to experience the love of God in Christ and the Spirit poured out at Pentecost in a multicultural, multiracial, and prayerful congregation. Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord (1 Tim. 1.2). ■
Pentecost International Worship Center
91 Washington Street
Rocky Hill, NJ 08553
Phone: 609.888.6063
Email: piwcprinceton@gmail.com
Website: PIWCPRINCETON.ORG
Apostle Mbanyane Socrates Mhango is the Minister in Charge of P.I.W.C., which opened in Rocky Hill in August. He was born and raised in The Republic of Malawi. He earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting at the University of Malawi in 1997 and worked as an accountant. In 2001 he moved to Dallas, Texas to earn an advanced pastoral studies degree at Christ for the Nations Institute, an interdenominational charismatic Bible College located in Dallas, Texas. From 2003 to 2005 he attended Dallas Baptist Univeristy’s School of Business to earn his MBA. In 2004, he married Phyllis Nyameyie, who was born in The Republic of Ghana. Her father was a Pentecostal missionary. They have three children: Alicia, 13; Charissa, 11; and Yawaka, 10.
Apostle Mhango is currently a PhD candidate at Regent University based in Virginia Beach, VA. The university was founded by Pat Robertson in 1977 as Christian Broadcasting Network University, and changed its name to Regent University in 1990.
