Need prayer? Send a message to the M-Church 

From basic communication to lotteries, sales, making payment and product advertisement, mobile phones have not only changed the way we live but also the way we conduct business.

Business people have exploited both text messages and calls to market and promote their products. You can now get the latest news or read about a product through text messages by subscribing to certain services.

In 2006, Safaricom introduced M-PESA, a mobile money transfer service which was followed by M-KESHO, a mobile bank account from Equity Bank…and now there is M-CHURCH, an SMS powered service that people can use to receive spiritual when they need it.

To demonstrate this, a Nairobi based church published a newspaper advert recently announcing an SMS service that enables people to receive help in matters such as marital problems, lack of a partner as well as to offer political/leadership solutions among other issues.

Cost of message

“M-CHURCH powered by the holy spirit presents a ground breaking new programme which makes it easy for Christians to solve their questions of life,” read part of the advert from the Oasis of Grace Church in Nairobi.

This mobile church service is also recommended to those who want to secure good business deals, those who are childless, as well as to help solve conflicts in marriage and other relationships.

However, obtaining the message comes at a cost. One needs to subscribe to a four digit number offered. Every message costs Sh30, which is deducted depending on the number of services you have subscribed to.

Benjamin Maruate, a job seeker in Maralal town tried his luck. After reading the newspaper advert he sent the word ‘Job’ to the four digits number and waited patiently.

“I received the first message which gave me guidelines on how to secure a job opportunity and which describe what the Bible says about unemployment.

“But I ended up receiving messages on love, marriage, how to get a spouse and dozens others that I had not subscribed to. I have a lost about Sh1,890 because I was receiving three unsolicited messages a day for a period 21 days,” he says.

According to Simon Ndirangu the director of Information Convergence Technology that issues the four digits numbers to companies, one is supposed to send the word ‘STOP’ to the number offered to unsubscribe from the SMS service.

However, Mr Maruate says he has been receiving several texts confirming that he has been unsubscribed but he was still being deducted another Sh10 every time he received the message.

“After sending the word stop, I received about four messages that said that I was no longer subscribed but in the process I was deducted Sh10 per message, I lost Sh40 in less than 30 seconds,” he explains.

He says that he has been trying to contact the Church through a help line offered but the number is either busy or rings unanswered when it goes through.

Mr. Amos Mirera, who works with Smart Pen Ltd, a company that gives media services to churches and other organisations, says that the M-CHURCH is intended to spread the gospel and help people in matters of life using biblical truths and principles.

“The service is used to update church members on new church programmes, church meetings, prayer requests and networking. The mobile technology is changing the world and the church is embracing this change in a positive way,’ he says.

However, according experts, there is a fine line between the intention to make money and the desire to help Kenyans use the Bible as a reference for solutions to their life issues.

“The M-CHURCH may be a good idea for the Church but the mobile crime is rampant. Again, many Kenyans may not trust it and they would even like to compare it with SMS gambling games that have been going on for a while now and which took the by storm towards the end of last year,’ says Sam Wambugu, a technology expert.

So is there a relationship between the SMS lottery services and the M-CHURCH idea? Mr. Mirera, does not think so.

“When you observe the revenue models adopted in the two scenarios, the difference is clear. In the case of the M-CHURCH, there is no car, house or Sh50m to be won, it’s just an encouraging biblical message which has a ‘follow-up’ number for one to call or inquire,” he explains.

He says that the mushrooming of scoundrel churches is ruining the M-CHURCH idea. “There are many rogue churches stealing money from their followers.

“They even send messages purporting to provide an M-CHURCH kind of service. As far as I am concerned, the M-CHURCH service is a personal choice.

“One should only subscribe to the service they need; no one will force you, but you should be wary of criminals who may claim to be running fictitious church ministries and who normally place stickers in buses and other public places.”

Since the arrival of mobile phones money transfer services, a good number of pastors have made a lot of money in their ministries.

Some of them now have mansions, expensive cars, and some are even said to own private jets. They get money (salaries) from their churches. They sell thousands of books and sermons to their followers who send money via MPESA or ZAP.

“To enable us continue to serve in this great ministry, support our endeavour to reach out to people. Support our radio, TV programmes and all that we do.

“Please make a donation through MPESA today to help us reach out to people and to provide products of basic needs to them,” says an advert on the church website.

According to Prof Zablon Nthamburi, who teaches religious studies and philosophy at Kenya Methodist University in Nairobi, the M-CHURCH is more of a business idea than a service to spread the gospel.

“When you look at their charges you can tell that this is a pure business entity. This means that the M-CHURCH idea is encouraging some sort of business and love of money in the church which the Bible condemns,” he says.

“No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money,’ says Prof Nthamburi, quoting Mathew 6:24.

Psychologists say that the reason many people subscribe to such services is because of the trust they have in their churches and church leaders.  

“A great number of people believe that their church leaders can solve all their problems. This makes them embrace any spiritual idea the church advertises.

“In the case of the M-CHURCH many end up subscribing to as many services as possible which means spending a lot of money to get solutions to the their problems.

“But the best way to deal with them is for Christians to read and understand what the Bible says about money, when they do this it will be difficult for them to be deceived,” says Dr Joe Omollo, who is a clinical psychologist at Crossway Psychological Institute.

It’s said that everything comes with a price. In this case, Sh30 is the price to pay for the M-CHURCH service and whether it is a good or bad, the truth is, someone is benefiting from it, someone is making money out of it and another Kenyan will start another M-CHURCH service!