We took the same road trip today as we have done the last 2 Sundays; we drove right past the Nakpa church building on our way to Mpeasam and Attado. Today was Nakpa’s turn for us to visit. This is one of the larger congregations that we work with. Their attendance today was 150+. The congregation likes to do their own local mission work. They have several smaller nearby congregations that are visited each Sunday by the church leaders. This is not the norm for most congregations. Most are struggling to have enough men to service during worship, much less having enough men to send out to preach.
It had been several years since we had been invited to come visit for one reason or the other so the men asked me to teach the bible class and preach. I am always amazed at the number of questions asked when I speak about dreams and visions. I used that lesson for the bible class. The people here find it hard to separate their dreams from reality. For example; if a person dreams someone died then that means there is going to be a death in the immediate family. I can see why the Church at Corinth had so many problems because paganism permeates the people’s lives and their thinking. I guess if I had been told this since I was knee high to a duck, I would have trouble getting it out of my mind as well. Since I took extra time with the bible class, I shortened my sermon.
After services Timothy and I met with the men outside while Kandie met with the women inside the building. After finishing our meetings, we drove over to greet the chief. Brother Jacob, one of the leaders, went with us, but the chief was not home so we left the kola money with another church leader who would pass it on to the chief. Before dropping off Jacob, we stopped at another church leader’s home on the way to check on him and pray. His name is Lot. He had been recently hospitalized but was now home but he wasn’t in any shape to attend services. When we talked with him, he said he had been diagnosed with Diabetes. The problem with Diabetes over here is most Ghanaian diets consist of rice, TZ, and Banku eaten with a stew or light soup; all are jammed packed with carbohydrates that raise blood sugar. Kandie and I tried to educate Lot as to how he should eat to reduce his blood glucose. As a general rule, most doctors and nurses over here don’t explain the patient’s diagnosis or educate the patient like American medical personnel are expected to do. Before leaving Timothy had a prayer.
While we were in the village, the left rear passenger window decided not to roll up so Timothy had to ride with the window down till we arrived at the compound. I guess I will have to make a trip up to Gomda tomorrow to get it fixed and have the headlights fixed as well.
John, the mason, met us at Kulkpeni tonight before class. We inspected the 2nd toilet pit. He made it just like we wanted it to be. It looked good. Tomorrow he will have to remove the top layer of blocks on the 1st toilet pit so people will not have to have an escalator to get into the toilet!
Thanks so much for your continued support. The Ghanaian church members really appreciate your support also. May God bless!
In His service,
Stephen & Kandie Taylor
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