Ghanaian culture afforded me the opportunity to preach the Gospel at two unique occasions recently:
A Time to Be Born
I was invited to preach at a ceremony at which the name of the son of Akwasi Kwakye and Grace Hammond would be announced. Here in Ghana, when a baby is born, he goes by his day-of-the-week name for a month or so until the “baby naming” ceremony is held with family and friends. (You can use this chart to find your Ghanaian day-of-the-week name.)
Grace is the niece of my co-laborer Peter Frimpong, so he encouraged the family to invite me to preach. When I arrived that Saturday morning, about 50 people were gathered in a family member’s home. After the guests were introduced, I preached on “The Name That Is Above Every Name.” Those in attendance listened very well and responded at the end. (Brother Peter translated for me.) After the sermon, the father stood to announce the child’s name – Henrich Opoku Kwakye. I gave the mom and dad some brief advice about child-rearing and then prayed for the family. A few weeks later, Akwasi and Grace brought Henrich to church to give thanks (another Ghanaian tradition), along with several other family members.
“Day of the Week” Baby Naming Chart
A Time to Die
The following Saturday was an opportunity to preach that came at the opposite end of life. Ebenezer and Victoria are a brother and a sister who attend my class. Their father had passed away a week before. I went to visit them the following Saturday. Several of our church members met me in the area, and together we visited the home where about 15 friends and family members had gathered in expectation of my visit. They gave me the opportunity to share some words of comfort to them, so I preached the Gospel. Our Bible college graduate, Moses Amankwah, translated for me. Several of those, whom I believe understood the Gospel, are pictured below. From right to left are Ebenezer and Victoria’s brother George, mother Harriet, sister Grace, and sister Mary Jr. Not pictured is another sister, Mary Sr. (Yes, these two sisters have the same name; the mother likes the name Mary!)
Prayer Requests
We often request prayer for God to bring us the right Bible college students. This month, God blessed our college with 8 new students–2 from Ghana, 5 from Liberia, and 1 from Congo. Let’s thank God for them and pray they complete their programs successfully. Please pray that God would help us follow up on those mentioned above and that He would bless our church’s visitor program this month.
Mike, Maria, Joy, Faith, and Ben Sarver
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- George (a brother), Harriet (the mother), Grace (a sister)
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- Akwasi and Grace with their baby boy Henrich
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- Mary, Jr. (sister). Not pictured is another sister to whom I preached – Mary, Sr. Yes. Both with the same first name. Their mom, Harriet, likes the name Mary.
