There have been some terrible wounds on our more recent visits: accidents, burns, open sores (an invitation to flies), and amputations. We made our way from bed to bed, using body motions when our words didn’t make sense, and securing permission at each place to pray. About halfway through, Leah and I noticed a 15-year-old boy was trailing us. He was a family member of one of the people for whom we’d prayed, and it seemed that what we were doing had piqued his interest.  He listened carefully to the intercession we made at each bedside.

After praying for a person I asked his name – “Samed” – and then whether he would be willing to serve as our interpreter, so we could explain to people that we were Christians who would like permission to pray for the sick. He eagerly agreed to do so, and when our hour was spent, he trailed us out into the corridor. As soon as we reached a quiet place, I began to question him gently about his faith, quickly realizing that I had to share the gospel with him.  Leah, as is her practice, stood aside praying fervently.

To our God’s and our joy, Samed understood what was being shared, then gave his life to Jesus being Savior and Lord! I asked Samed if he needed a Bible, he said yes.  So I told him, I would try and get him one soon.  Leaving Samed a new person in Christ, we walked outside the building and entered a taxi. Just as we were pulling away, we saw Samed running out the doors: his face lit with a big smile when he made eye contact with us, and he waved excitedly.

The next morning, he called me twice to see when he would get his Bible.  It was Friday morning, so I had plans for the day so I could not meet.  Unfortunately, I tried to call him repeatedly after that day unable to reach him.  Events of my departure overtook me, so I was unable to deliver the Bible promised to him. All is not lost, as Leah will continue to try to reach him.  I am trusting God, He wants someone else to meet this need.  The one time I did connect, I think his mother answered the phone but she could not speak English and I had no Dagbani speaker near me to take over the conversation.  So it may be that God wants Leah to establish a relationship with Samed mothers; time will tell what the will of God is in this matter.

Praise God for Samed’s new spiritual life! Please be praying for his continued growth in the Lord.

Leah, a fellow missionary serving at the Center until next June, walks home to meet people along the way in hopes of building relationships to perhaps be given an opportunity to share the Gospel. She met “Yerri” on her second walk through town (a few months ago). Right from the start, Yerri was an intense fellow – reaching out to shake her hand, and holding it tightly, while looking intently into her eyes and earnestly saying such cheerful things as “Leah, you shouldn’t make too many friends in this town; be careful.”

Yerri tends to be a very guarded fellow. While most men in town will introduce themselves and quickly follow up with “Are you married? Will you marry me?” Yerri waited a few weeks to ask, “By the way, Leah, are you married?” He accepted Leah’s “No” thoughtfully, unlike the others who proposed.

Leah was getting a bit weary of Yerri’s intensity though, dancing around being more than “friends.” God’s timing is so good, because she had in her mind to end their acquaintance. When they next met, Yerri casually mentioned, “Oh, by the way, did you know that ‘Amos’ is my brother?” That stopped Leah in her tracks: ‘Amos’ is a dear Christian’s brother of mine and Leah’s with ties to the Center of Good News! She certainly couldn’t try to end the acquaintance. She prayed, “Lord, You are somehow at work in Yerri’s life – help me to discern the part I need to play.”

On Monday, Oct. 12, Yerri and Amos came by Leah’s and my office. Amos announced that it was Yerri’s birthday, and then in front of his brother stated that “it is very important that you pray for Yerri and try to help him become a Christian.” Pretty bold, so you know that Amos has shared the Good News with his brother many, many times! After Yerri left, Amos turned to Leah with his brother’s earnestness and urged, “Please do everything you can to help him become a Christian. He likes you, Leah.”

Due to this statement, it seemed appropriate to me to have a discussion about God using all our emotions and expectations to draw us to Him, even when our motivation and associated emotions and expectations are misplaced. We all agreed to gently and respectfully try to move Yerri’s focus from Leah to Jesus. Yerri thought he was visiting to court her; God had other plans.

That evening Leah walked home again, passing Yerri. He joined her and accompanied her for half a mile or more. Yerri kept saying things like “Leah, I told my brother I will come to church, but I said that only because of you.” God was continually gracious, because every time Yerri made a relational comment, they passed someone that Leah was able to greet in the local tongue, thus breaking the flow of conversation; Leah would then turn their discussion to spiritual things.

God is so good and obvious sometimes! They passed a sign with the words “Born Again.” Leah pointed it out to Yerri, saying “Today is your physical birthday (God’s timing is perfect); but I want you to know that my prayer for you is that before I leave Ghana, I will celebrate your spiritual birth.” He’d never heard the phrase before, and she gave him a thorough explanation. Separating now, Yerri said intently, “Leah, we have very important matters to discuss about ourselves. I will come and see you tomorrow.”

So Yerri’s big day was at hand — he had worked up the nerve to ask Leah to marry him. It was 10:00 am, Tuesday Oct. 13, and Leah had a visitor: Yerri. We all said our greetings in our office. God was so gracious, because almost immediately they were discussing spiritual topics. Yerri’s attention shifted toward me, as he asked for my perspective on Jesus, God, sacrifice, good works, and much more. Yerri had some questions about his religion’s holy book, which I was able to help him with, not that I’m an expert. Again, God’s plan is so detailed: I had just finished a book that did a great job of expressing the religion’s worldview and life. It helped my perspective immensely to understand the issues Yerri was internalizing in the moment.

We asked Yerri many questions, too, allowing him full expression of his worldview and learning what God had revealed to him. Yerri understood that Jesus is the Son of God, the need for the Cross, and that he had sinned in his life; but….

Yerri changed the direction of our conversation. Yerri began to tell us how worried he was about Leah walking alone through town. He vividly recounted the story of another white woman who got attacked. As he wrapped up his horror story, he said, “Leah, I’m just warning you. If I do not tell you of the danger, then I am only loving you through my teeth, not from my heart.”

We had previously talked a lot about love. Wow, talk about a divine opening: Leah said, “That is the kind of love Mr. Joe and I have for you! We see the danger you are in if you die without Christ in your life, and if we do not warn you to trust Jesus, we love you only through our teeth, not from our hearts.”

A little later Leah asked him, “You say you like to listen to sermons sometimes on the TV; you say you’ve read the Bible sometimes; we’ve been talking to you about Jesus, and we know Amos has been talking to you about Jesus. What more do you need to help you with your decision about Jesus?” Yerri looks at me and says, “Mr. Joe, she is making things very hot for me, isn’t she?”

I had a sense that Yerri wanted to believe, but God gave me a sense that he was thinking about the cost of being a Christian. So, I ignored his remark and said there is a cost to following Christ. After I had given him a few examples of possible repercussions, allowing Yerri to really think about possible persecution – that God would demand His desire before Yerri’s, and other costs – Yerri realized that the potential repercussions would not really bother him, because he would be doing what was right. I said that in that case, there really wasn’t anything preventing him from talking to God right now and asking Jesus to be his Lord and Savior, and – Yerri agreed!

As I led Yerri, he talked to God in his mother tongue. After some discussion, I suggested that Yerri thank Jesus, out loud, for being his Lord and Savior; he did so in his mother tongue, while we prayed along with him.

Yerri left our office shortly after noon, commenting that God is so great, because he had come to our office for one purpose, and found that God had a different purpose for him that day! Praise God with me for this answer to the prayers of many. We are just little pieces of God’s beautiful puzzle: to Him be all the praise and glory! Please pray that He will protect and nurture Yerri at this critical time.

Thanks for the part you are playing through prayer and support. Nothing God is accomplishing through me would happen apart from your prayers and support. Please continue praying with me: may Yerri simply be the first-fruits of many who will come to eternal salvation in this city and beyond! God used so many circumstances and people to bring Yerri to Himself: Yerri getting a Christian name at birth played a role, a missionary from the 70s and 80s, his brother, TV sermons, a sign by the road, a Bible he’d previously read, Leah, and lastly myself.

So has God put anyone in your sphere of influence who is seeking real answers to life’s biggest questions, seeking the best and most satisfying path in life? Are you available to God? You have the time, but are your priorities supportive of being God’s chosen vessel for them? We need to wake up and re-prioritize our lives around loving God and other people, as nothing else is more important. You will suffer, but it will be eternally rewarding!

In July of 1991, the Center of Good News after being in existence since 1983, became an officially registered nonprofit with the Government of Ghana.  Ghana is a country that has made great strides since gaining independence in 1957; however Northern Ghana has lagged the rest of the country on almost every front. This is what the US Government is reporting on the living conditions in Ghana:

“Over the past decade, Ghana has struggled to address rising levels of poverty, with nearly 40 percent of the population falling below the poverty level, and rates of poverty ranging as high as 70-80 percent in some regions [Northern]. This has been compounded by high inflation rates and lack of access to capital, technology, and the skills training that would enable the small and medium-enterprise sector to realize its potential for creating greater employment and income-generating opportunities for the vast majority of Ghanaians.” (reference African Development Foundation)

“Ghana Agriculture employs 60 percent of the work force, but a vast majority of farmers are subsistence smallholders. Environmental degradation especially in forests, is taking an increase toll on Ghana’s ability to sustain livelihoods. Natural resource stocks are degraded the equivalent of 10 percent of GDP per year and resource depletion is reducing GDP growth potential by an estimated one percent annually.

Health care delivery at the village/community level is weak. Maternal and infant mortality rates are high. Under five mortality has not changed in the last ten years. The mortality rate has remained at 111 per 1000 live births. Malaria is the cause for 40 percent of outpatient visits as well as 25 percent of deaths of children under five years or age. The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate among high-risk groups, such as commercial sex workers, is as high as 60 percent. In the northern regions, most people live on substantially less than $1 a day and have limited access to clean drinking water and sanitation facilities.

Another critical development challenge is the low quality of education. Out of every 100 Ghanaian school-age children, it is estimated that close to 90 will enter Grade One, but only 67 of these children will complete Grade Six. Of those completing primary schools, only seven will have the reading comprehension level of a child in Grade Six. Thus, access to quality basic education remains a major challenge in Ghana. 

Food insecurity is a problem in Ghana, especially in the three northern regions. Low rainfall, poor soils, and low agricultural productivity are key factors to food insecurity in Ghana. These factors are further worsened by the subsistence nature of agriculture as well as low incomes, inadequate education and poor health status of the population. Most households lack stable foods for several months of the year, resulting in high rates of malnutrition.” (USAID, emphasis added).

The Center of Good News exists to elevate the living conditions of the very hospitable people of Northern Ghana; both physically and spiritually. Its goals are to publish literature, undertake social services and community development, to plant churches, and train leaders. Some of the projects that the Center of Good News, which is affiliated with an African denomination, has implemented are: a Child Sponsorship Program, completed a multipurpose facility, Ostrich Farming, a She-Goat Project, a Micro-Enterprise Department, Women’s Vocational Training Program, sanitation and water improvements, and many other project.

My goals as a long-term missionary are to build healthy relationships with Ghanaians by respecting their culture and each individual. I will be facilitating humanitarian and educational efforts in Ghana. I will be helping the administrative staff of the Center of Good News. I will be sharing the gospel and my walk with God, yet with gentleness and respect. God humbly allows each of us the choice: ask to be accepted by him or to reject him.