A Joint Effort

As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up--one on one side, one on the other--so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. – Exodus 17:11-13

I was reminded in reading this recounting of a battle between the Israelites and the Amalekites that everyone has a part to play.  We rely on one another.  For the sake of this particular blog I could specifically discuss mission and how some are needed to go to the harvest while others are needed to sow into the mission financially, others to serve through intercessory prayer, others through encouragement, etc.  But the honest truth is that this concept of needing one another extends far beyond just mission.  We are the body of Christ.  We are called to be united, functioning as one to glorify our Lord and Savior. 

The only way Israel won this battle was through the joint effort of each individual.  They won because Joshua and the soldiers fought with the sword while Moses was postured in praise (raised hands), supported by Aaron and Hur.  Had any one of them decided their part really wasn't that significant, the battle would have been lost.  Each person has a part to play.  This brings to mind the passage in I Corinthians 12 where Paul reminds us that a body is made up of many different parts with different functions, yet all are necessary.  Whether you realize it or not you are vital to the body.  You are important.  You are significant.  You are needed.  And you have a part to play.

A Day of Rest and Fellowship

Unlike any other day we've had here thus far, there was only one brief event scheduled for us this morning.  After group devotions and breakfast, we heard a professor from Legon University in Accra, Dr. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu, speak on Contemporary African Pentecostalism.  Originally we were going to the University to hear the lecture, but the students are taking exams now so we met in the conference room at the hotel instead.  The lecture was incredibly informative and the professor was a very intelligent, yet approachable gentleman.  It was a pleasure to meet him.

When the lecture ended at noon we were given free time for the rest of the day.  For the first hour or so I worked on a school assignment using the textbooks I brought on the trip with me.  As soon as someone mentioned lunch, however, I headed out the door!  We walked to the local "mall" to get some snacks from the grocery store before heading over to a local restaurant.  They had galaxy chocolate ice cream bars!  Oh my goodness, it was so good.  The last time I had galaxy chocolate was in Jordan in 2007 so it was a great treat to find it here!  Then came our adventure of a lunch.

While we were deciding whether or not to eat at a restaurant outside the hotel we met Zsofi.  She's a missionary in Ghana who came to assist in planting a church.  She told us she's originally from Hungary, but currently lives in England.  She helped plant several churches there and when this church was being discussed she decided to come here to live, work, and help with the church for six months.  Another church is being planted in Germany in October so she said she might be moving there for a bit.  It was such a blessing to meet her.  She just had this presence about her - she exuded joy and peace!  And that was before we even sat down to eat!  :)

At lunch we had an absolutely wonderful time of fellowship.  We took time to hear each person's testimony and talk about our lives.  It was a really great experience as much of what we were hearing from one another was new.  I think it went a long way to drawing us closer to one another.  After an wonderful, HUGE meal, we walked back to the hotel.  We found out when we returned that we had been invited to the church service at the church of one of my friends from school.  During the few minutes we had before leaving, I met one of Charlma's friends from here, Perpetual.  She was a beautiful, kind woman.  Her sister is a seamstress so we were also able to arrange to have some dresses made for a couple members of our team.  They should be ready by the time we return from Tamale next week.

Next came church at Trinity Baptist Church with Abigail and her parents.  Our bus got stuck in traffic on the way to meet us so we ended up pretty late for service, but what we did hear was wonderful.  And afterwards we were invited into the pastor's office for refreshments and fellowship.  The people here are so hospitable.  They put southern hospitality to shame! 

We were able to debrief on the bus ride home so that when we got back to the hotel we were released for the night. 

Other tidbits:
- Call and response is pretty big here.  So far I've heard three prominent ones.  If some says "hello?" the response is "hi."  This I've found through watching the schools and even at church tonight is a way to regain attention or make sure people are listening.  The others are "amen" with the response "amen!" (Like little Nancy yesterday!) or 'hallelujah" with the response of "amen!"  It was really interesting to hear these responses in church tonight after hearing them at the school yesterday and recognizing that they're pretty common occurrences.
- Another random fact - in order to have hot water for a shower here you have to turn on the hot water heater.  There is a switch on the wall outside the bathroom just like a light switch that turns on the hot water.  You have to turn it on then give it a while so you have enough warm water for your whole shower.

Praises:
- Praise the Lord for the wonderful time of fellowship with some of my team members today.
- Praise God for the chance encounters with people like Zsofi and Perpetual today - two lovely sisters in Christ!

Prayer Requests:
- Pray for Zsofi and her team here in Ghana as they work to build their new church.
- Pray for Perpetual - for blessing, grace, and job opportunities.  She's hoping to move out of Accra, but is waiting for a good job offer to come before she can go.
- We'll be driving to Cape Coast tomorrow.  It's about a 2.5 hour drive to get there so please pray for travel mercies, comfort, and rest for each of us.

Praise the Lord for the great things He has done!  Our Father is so worthy of praise!  Thank you, Jesus, for all you have done in my life and the opportunities You have provided for me to come here and meet these wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ.  It is only through you that I am here.  Praise the Lord!
Prayer Requests:

T-9 Days

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for us all—how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things? - Romans 8:31-32

There are only 9 days until I catch a flight to Accra, Ghana with my team from Regent University! With so little time left I've been up to quite a bit over the last couple weeks since my last post. In hopes of not making this post too long, here are some of the highlights:


Commissioning:
This past Wednesday our team was invited to a special combined chapel between Regent University and CBN. At the chapel our team, along with a missions team going to Europe and another team going to India, was introduced and then Dr. Campo, president of Regent University prayed for us. It was an awesome commissioning chapel.

Visa:
My visa also came in last week so I can now officially enter the country of Ghana! As of now everyone on our team has their visa and vaccines. Now we're just waiting for the 11th!

Toys and Cards:One thing we have the opportunity to do on our trip is visit schools and orphanages. This particular aspect of the trip is especially significant to me as I love to work with children. For this reason I gathered together some small stuffed animals and other fun surprises to use with the children and leave with them. I've also enlisted the help of the children's ministry at my church. This Sunday morning I was invited to speak to three Sunday School classes to talk about where I'm going and ask them to draw pictures and write letters to the children I'll meet on my trip. The idea is to first show the children here that they can have an impact on someone halfway around the world and, second, show the children in Ghana that they are loved. The children's pastor at our church, Pastor Billy, and his wife, Kim, came up with an awesome idea to make cards. They provided the paper, cut-outs, markers, and time in their classes for the children to put these cards together. I can't wait to post pictures of some of them next week and pass them out to the children in Ghana! The cards are absolutely awesome. Our kids did a great job with them!

It was so funny to hear the questions the kids had.  They were very concerned about the animals there, what people wear, if they drive cars, and the best of all . . . where do they go to the bathroom in a village with no electricy or indoor plumbing!  I can't wait to visit the kids again when I get back so I can better answer some of the their questions and tell them some stories.

How you can help:
Many people have asked how they can help so here are several ways you can get involved:

Prayer -

Please be praying for our team. Pray that our minds would be opened to quickly understand and adapt to the culture and language. That our eyes would be opened to see these people as Christ sees them. That our hearts would love as Christ loves. That our hands would touch and heal and that our feet would boldly go wherever the Lord directs us. Pray also for safety along the way as well as open hearts and doors when we arrive.

Financial -
As I come down to the last days before the trip there are a couple expenses I could use help with. One of my flights, from Norfolk to New York, has not yet been paid for. This flight cost $120. Also, I'm gathering together small toys and school supplies to take to the children. If you would like to give money towards what I've already purchased or have small toys or supplies you would want to donate that would be great! If you feel led to give towards any of these opportunities please email me at crysfle@regent.edu.

Upcoming:This week we'll have language and culture training so I look forward to sharing that will you in the next post!