Well, here we go. By order of the second highest ranking official in the Child Development Center of Yendi, Ghana (aka. Kandie Taylor, sorry Steve) I have been volunteered (more like voluntold) to do the notes for today so Kandie could do something else.
Today started with an early wakeup call of a heavy thunderstorm that sounded like hail on the metal roof of the house. The area has needed the rain and the people were all talking about how thankful they were for it this morning. Yesterday’s temperature was in the 100+ range with a heat index of unbearable. This morning at 8:00 am the temperature was 80 degrees and overcast with a breeze (Thank you, Lord). Because of the rainy conditions the stream of mothers with their babies was late in coming so there were only 16 seen today. Each of the children received a set of clothes to his/her size and a hat. It is believed that tomorrow, Lord willing, that the word will get out about the clothes and that there will be many to arrive. There were a set of twins that were the first to come in and Steve noticed that they were not well. He said that they needed to go to the hospital for care. The other children seemed to be doing well.
After lunch and a rest break, we all travelled to the village of Yowando, southwest of Yendi. A VBS was set up and conducted from 4:00 to 5:00ish. Since it was now warm again after the sun came out, classes were conducted outside in what shady areas there were. Pam’s class was in a shade with the children sitting on tarps placed on the ground. Pam, Kandie, Zorash and a lady from the village had 96 children to attend the Bible class. They were especially excited about the coloring sheet and after class were running away from the teaching area screaming about their sheet. About 43 adults attended the class that I taught with the help of Timothy translating. We had class in another shady area away from the children and they sat on wooden benches or what plastic chairs were available from the village. Pam’s class was about the lad providing five loaves and two fish. I taught about the leadership of Joshua and his faithfulness. At the close of my class, we let them ask whatever question from the Bible they liked. That format tends to go over well. There were only 3 or 4 who had ever heard the account of the fall of Jericho. One man said that he wanted us to come back every month. They were very thankful for the lesson as they let it be known before we left. We are to go back, Lord willing, tomorrow and teach a second lesson.
Before leaving the village we all went to see the chief and show respect. He said that he was thankful that we came to teach and that he knew some things about the Bible. Very few people in the village are literate. There is a congregation in the village with a building and a local preacher, Daniel, doing the preaching and teaching.
After saying our goodbyes and loading up Kandie’s purchases in the village (don’t ask as it is difficult to explain), we retraced our route through the dirt roads now slick with ruts with holes of standing water to take Timothy and Zorash back to their houses. Kandie bought some kind of yellow powder from a woman in the village that she shared with Timothy and Zorash. It is a kind of sweetener made of the powder from a pod that grows on a local tree. We also saw a set of women who were processing an early harvest of shea nuts. The resourcefulness of these people astonishes. While to us their ways are primitive, they are learning to survive in a tropical environment. We came back to Kandie’s kitchen for supper and are now ready for the shower and bed. May the Lord bless and keep you and these precious people here in Ghana.
Jimmy Clark
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