TIME WITH DR. WILLIAM OKYERE-FREMPONG

Who would you say Dr. William Okyere-Frempong is?

I am a medical practitioner by training, a radio show-host, an itinerant preacher and a leadership coach by divine design. I believe I am called of God and blessed with gifts and talents for God’s purposes and his people. I usually say there is a ‘P’ and ‘M’ version of what I do. The P-version – Physician, Presenter of Positive Pulse on 3FM, Preacher, President of Human Development Group [HuD Group]. The M-version – Medicine, Media, Ministry.

You are known to hit on purpose a lot when you speak. How did you get this ‘purpose-conscious’?

Purpose is fundamental to living; it gives meaning to life. Jesus’ purpose was to die to set us free from sin, and he got that right from the beginning. At age 12, he spoke about doing His father’s business when he should have been playing with his age-mates. I got to understand this quite early in life, and this has enabled me to live a pointed life. Purpose motivates my actions, defines what is important, clarifies my goals, and keeps me at peace knowing that success is the realization of one’s assignment and not necessarily what others consider as important. If all of us could understand that purpose is not about making a name for ourselves but carrying out God’s will, we would not have a problem serving under people. Many ministries divide because they are concerned about egos and logos. Our calling is to declare God’s name and spread His fame. God doesn’t call us to stardom; He calls us to sainthood. Not being exceptional doesn’t mean you are not significant. Jesus’ life of ministry was about three and a half years long, but His impact is still remarkable and all of history is defined by Him.

“Our calling is to declare God’s name and spread His fame. God doesn’t call us to stardom; He calls us to sainthood. Not being exceptional doesn’t mean you are not significant…”

How early did you discover your purpose?

I think it was after secondary school. Most of my curious questions got answered in that period. Some people helped me out. One of such contacts is Dr. Newman-Arthur. When I was laid back, he provided the drive. He exposed me to preaching in lecture theatres, dawn broadcast etc. Another person is Dr. Yaw Perbi. I met him when some senior colleagues recommended me to him for a leadership assignment in medical school. He trained me under the Maxwell leadership programme. I used to have my lessons online over Skype at midnight because internet services were better then. He gave me the opportunity to facilitate some of his training sessions.

How practical can we be as far as purpose is concerned?

Purpose is not abstract. People who don’t even believe in a God-sense seem to have an agenda in life. Purpose comes in when you know who you are, what you’ve been given—your talents and abilities—and know how to apply these for God’s glory and His people. Purpose gives meaning to how we live our lives daily. I see Christ as an example. He got it right and said ‘it is finished’ at the end. It’s almost like he was sending a text message to the Father. Many people are rather saying ‘I’m finished’ instead of ‘it is finished’ on their death beds. Our lives are time-bound; we can’t spend them experimenting.

You mentioned the will of God and accomplishment. Looking at people like Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates, would you term their successes as having accomplished purpose?

I believe purpose is fulfilling God’s design for your life. I don’t think people who don’t know God can talk about purpose because purpose starts from having a relationship with the Maker. Purpose comes after a relationship with God, and works come after faith in God.

Last words.

Life is all about God. Let’s find Him early. Let’s cause our lives to bring Him glory. God seeks to continue what He started in Genesis. When He had created from the first to the fifth day, He said it was good. But when He created man, He said, ‘This is very good.’ Man brings Him the greatest pleasure and He yearns to take pleasure at our works and say again, ‘this is very good’.

The above interview is an excerpt from an original published in the October, 2017 issue of our magazine