God's Plan in God's Time

On September 10th we visited our church in Worivi. Worivi is a remote village and has a small church. The leadership has led the church with some difficulty over the past years, but thank God they have persevered. A few members of the Videre team also joined us on our visit. As we arrived at the village our car was surrounded by many children. A car full of white people is not a common scene in Worivi. After a while the members of the church gathered and benches and chairs were brought from the surrounding houses to give everybody something to sit on. Two teenage boys were standing at the window at the outside of the church and Abukari called them to come inside.

Worivi village

The service then began. After we had sung, we prayed for the needs of the church and its members. A number of people were sick and we prayed specifically for these individuals. Still people continued to enter the church. The church leader told us that some people from the village had heard we were there and they wanted the Christians to pray for them. They are Muslims who do not normally visit the church – a man with a swollen hand, a woman who has been married for years but still barren, a father with a sick child – but they all came forward to be prayed for. We committed them into God’s hands for healing as well as for open hearts to the Gospel.

Worivi church

Brian, one of the Videre team members, preached from John 4 about the meeting between Jesus and the Samaritan woman; about living water. This is a story that has so much in common with the lives of the people in many villages in Dagbon; to never be thirsty again, but to be full and filled with Jesus Himself, eternal life.

After the church service the two teenage boys came to speak to Abukari. One of them, Adam, indicated that he wanted to give his life to Christ. Wonderful. Whilst Abukari talked with him, many of the church congregation also listened in and heard what Abukari was saying, including some Muslims. An old woman tried to discourage the boys – it is so hard to be a Christian in an environment where people offer resistance. But the boy was determined. Abukari prayed with him and told him that he would meet with him later in the week.

Last Thursday, Abukari had another talk with Adam and his friend, Mareek. Adam told him that he had visited the house of the church leader in Worivi several times to inform him that he is ready to become a Christian. However, each time he went to the house the leader was not at home. On the Sunday we visited the church at Worivi, Adam was riding his bicycle towards Yendi. When he saw that our car turned towards Worivi, he decided to return to the village. Although he was reluctant to enter the church, because of what other people would say, when Abukari called them inside it was as if God Himself had invited them.  Mareek also indicated that he wanted to give his life to Christ. It is so great how God in His time, executes His plan and how many people can be a link in His chain.

Abukari meeting with Mareek (l) and Adam (r)

Last Sunday we visited this church again. However, the boys could not come to church as Adam’s father told them to help with the yam harvest. At the same time Muslim evangelists had come to the village to warn and discourage people about becoming Christians.

Please pray for these two boys, as they will have to face a lot of oppression from family and friends.

The church service last Sunday

Making Christ Known

One of the many joys of being on furlough has been the opportunity for us to spend time worshipping with our church family here in the Netherlands and also share news of our work and ministry in Ghana. Recently, as part of the Easter preparations we’ve had the privilege of preaching at our local church, Beth-El, in Hoogeveen.

This was a joint “ministry” for us both as Abukari preached in English and Joke translated that “on the spot” into Dutch for the congregation! The full English text of the sermon can be read here, but we thought we would share with you a summary of it below:

We spoke about “Making Christ Known” (Luke 9:18-27, 9:7-9) and the fact that each of us needs to be sure that we really know who Jesus is and what he represents and then allowing that knowledge and experience of him to make a difference in our lives so that those around us can see that we are not just “one of the crowd”, but that we demonstrate the uniqueness of Christ and what he stands for in all that we do and say. As Jesus challenged the disciples when he asked “but what about you, who do you say I am?”, so he challenges us to examine our ourselves and our reasons and motives in life and not just follow the modern secular beliefs that seek to distort our knowledge and belief in Jesus Christ. Jesus also challenges us to take our faith and share with others as part of his “bigger” picture for salvation for everyone from every tribe, creed and nation.

How can we do this? We explored five areas that can help us to put this into practice:

• By not following the crowds: Jesus enquired of his disciples as to the “public opinion” of him. What were the crowds saying about this man Jesus and his ministry? Jesus obviously stood out from the crowd because of his teachings and lifestyle (v18-19). The same can apply to Christian believers today. To what extent do we use our faith to confront issues happening in our countries, nations, and our world today? To what extent do we let the Bible speak for us instead of the crowds? As Christians where are our standards? When and where do we dare to say this is right, when the “crowds” say it is wrong? When and where do we dare to say this is wrong, when the “crowds” say this is right? For those of us who are fortunate enough to live in countries that are have freedom, especially in speech, do we as Christians enjoy that freedom when it comes to expressing our faith and who we are in Christ? Will your “crowds” – your neighbours, co-workers, friends and family – ever notice you or see that you are different in your life and opinions?

• By knowing him personally: The question of who Jesus is to us forms the foundation of our faith and belief system – Christianity is all about a personal relationship with Jesus and that makes it different from all other faiths/religions (v20). Jesus also warned the disciples that their long awaited Messiah, long expected king would have to suffer, to be rejected by authority and put to death (v22). Jesus went through suffering alone so that we might never go through it alone. He will always be with us. He is our Saviour. He holds the key to our lives and this knowledge gives our lives new meaning and hope. Jesus died for each and every one of us personally. He paid the price on the cross for every sin in our lives.

• By enduring suffering for his sake: Jesus also makes it clear that following him is a choice with consequences …... to “take up your cross” (v23). This implies self denial, complete dedication and willing obedience. Self denial here means ceasing to make self the object of one’s life and action. We live in an age of instant solutions, tranquilizers and painkillers. We think that our sophisticated technological advancements can help us avoid pain and give us instant gratification. Our society has forgotten how to suffer and wait. Our self sufficiency seems to tell us that we do not need God any longer. However, we only have to look at the overwhelming natural disasters, wars, famines and manmade catastrophes that occur around our world, to realise that we cannot always control everything. Jesus warns us against making choices that become so important to us that we become slaves to them instead of trusting Him.

• By denying ourselves for his sake: In verse 25, Jesus seems to be saying that all the things we could possibly acquire or achieve in this world are worth nothing if we do not have Jesus as our personal Saviour. Our love for the things of the world, such as wealth and status are meaningless without Jesus. “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self.” The “very self” here means, what makes you the person you are – what makes you who you really are on the inside. 

• By not being ashamed of Him in all our relationships: If we think that gaining and loving the world is better than knowing Jesus then we are well on the path of being ashamed of our Lord (v26). In our work places, in our neighbourhood, on the streets, in shopping centres – do people see Jesus in us? Do we stand for Him? Or is Jesus confined to our church buildings? So often, we are too careful and even sometimes too afraid to even share our faith with our children and grandchildren. Let us be reminded and encouraged by the generational passing on and the multiplying faith of Timothy’s family (2 Tim.1:5).

About 2010 years ago, Jesus relied on twelve men called disciples to pass on his message of good news to humanity, and through their faithfulness we were reached. Today, Jesus is still relying on you and me to make Him known. Making Him known is not only the work reserved for the Pastor, Elders, Missionaries or Sunday school teachers. It is also the work you and I are called to do as his disciples. Christianity in Europe is ever decreasing, it is becoming a minority group thus making our task of evangelism even more necessary and urgent.

May we be part of the chain of passing on the message of God’s grace to a lost world.

Please pray for:

• For Samuel and Micah to cope in their Dutch schools

• That we will find time between meetings to rest and relax

• For good health and strength

• For a safe trip to Germany for a one week holiday

Praise for:

• The time of fellowship with family and friends here in the Netherlands

• The opportunities we’ve had to speak and preach in recent weeks