The Daily Jot: Good News – Your Witness in West Africa

Good News: Your witness in West Africa

The Daily Jot thanks readers for their prayers and gifts in response to our August 4 bulletin asking for assistance in preventing Ebola at our rural churches in Ghana, West Africa’s bush country. The threat remains and the nation is still on alert, but Christians in predominantly Islamic areas are now equipped with both sanitization supplies and direct education on how to prevent Ebola. Because of your generosity–your prayer and action (and those who are praying and those who are acting), we are able to conduct prevention measures rather than reaction to crisis. Lives of those who the large churches refuse to touch are protected from unnecessary risk. And we are able to provide strong witness to Muslims.

Pastor William Agbeti, with whom I have worked in ministry to the less fortunate in Ghana since 1992, writes: “We had a highly successful program yesterday (Sunday), distributing complete sets of water filtration systems to ten poor families in the village of Busuafise, benefiting some 80 individuals.  Besides, we educated the village folks on how to use the systems and how to regularly wash their hands.  Pastor David Ablorh of the village church also received a set of the system with his entirely family.  He will be sending us a letter of acknowledgment. The water filtration system serves a dual purpose – to filter unclean water, making it possible for human consumption and washing of hands.”

Pastors Agbeti (far left) & Ablorh (far right) pray with one of the families who received an Ebola Prevention and Sanitation kit.

“For the records, the village folks confessed that the exercise was the first of its kind in the life of the entire village, and wondered why the Government of Ghana has not been able to reach them with such help.  By now, the news has spread far and wide; giving glory to God. We will carry out a follow-up exercise for some 10 more families from the outskirts of the village, next Sunday.  Also, I will be going to a Muslim-dominated slum in Accra to distribute 10 more systems to deprived families, bringing the total to 30 families or households.” This type of outreach is made possible by the tenacity of Pastor Agbeti (whose name means Tree of Life) and the commitment of Daily Jot readers and our small Living Spring Church.

I say this because we have been working some 22 years in Ghana. The process has been slow. For example, it took us three years to save up enough money to buy a used pick up truck for William to utilize for ministry work. We have had little or no support from the very wealthy mega churches in Ghana. This is a labor of love toward those who are often shown no love. These days, they are also having to contend with a hostile Islamic threat similar to that in Nigeria and most everywhere there are large concentrations of Muslims.  I am reminded of the words of Christ in Matthew 25:40, “Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” Thank you, and may the Lord bless and keep you as through this small ministry that you support in prayer and action, great is His hand!

The Christian congregation in the remote village of Busuafise