Sustainable Development in Ghana
Our 2011 Medical Team is off! The team members departed from Toronto this evening, along with their 126 hockey bags of luggage.
Please pray for health and safety for these volunteers as they face a long journey and a grueling schedule over the next two weeks.
NEA just hosted its second Christian Chiefs’ Conference. This year about 120 chiefs were present from 13 tribes; 60 of the chiefs were new to the conference. Just as last year, our days together were rich and full.
Some of the chiefs shared how last year’s conference had impacted their lives. These testimonies were encouraging for us and we wanted to share them with you:
“I want to encourage you with how the Lord works. Last year when we came together there was a very difficult situation in my place. The village was divided into two and it was very tense. I asked many to pray and now the whole town is together!”
“Even though I was a Christian before I came here last year, my faith deepened and I think that helped me know better how to speak to people because the Lord’s Spirit was speaking through me. It brought we more respect and people always wanted me in their midst before taking decisions because of the way I was trying to bring them together in Jesus name. Not just in my community but wherever I go.”
“I learned that I may not be able to create cement fish ponds but I can start somewhere. I called some sub-chiefs together and was able to get hold of some land in a valley that wasn’t being used. I was able to get rice seed and tractor services and formed a co-op of 80 women and 20 men who farmed in the area and when each farmer harvested their crops, they gave me a bag of rice. I’ve used the proceeds of that rice to send 3 boys to secondary school.”
“The way I live with my wife is different now that I have seen Dr. David and the wife. The important lesson I learned was that I need a partner to work together with for the Lord. Now we are together more and work together. Even in the village people are wondering what has happened!”
Apart from testimonies, the days were filled with discussions of common concerns, learning together from the Scriptures, touring the NEA project site, communion, and even a baptism!
Once again, as we closed, it was unanimous that we should meet again next year. The chiefs have gone so far as to elect zone coordinators to help facilitate organizing next year’s event.
Please continue to keep the chiefs in your prayers as they seek to be salt and light and to declare His praises in each of their corners.
For those of you who have been following the news from the 2010 Ghana Health team online, we wanted to inform you of two main ways that you can hear more stories from this team.
First, GRID plans to release a newsletter to report back on the team’s experience. We hope to email it out in the week of November 22 – 26. To receive the newsletter automatically you simply need to subscribe to GRID’s quarterly e-newsletter by November 21st. We will also post it on our website shortly after emailing it out.
Second, the medical team will be sharing a report with us at Uxbridge Baptist Church on Sunday, November 28th at 10:30 am. All are welcome!
Thank you all for your interest in and support of this team.
The team ran into some traffic as they neared Accra which put them a bit behind schedule. They were able to spend a short time in the market before they got to the airport.
When they arrived at the airport they were met by a representative of the Prime Minister’s office who had them bypass the normal checkpoints. The team was very thankful for this blessing.
They boarded their plane to Heathrow at 6:30 pm eastern time.
The team finished two very busy days in Yaara. They saw an incredible number of people in all of the stations; patients came from far and wide, some even came by canoe.
On Thursday night a party was thrown in the team’s honour. Local women patiently taught their ceremonial dance to the Canadian women.
They saw baby Joshua from last year and he was running around completely healthy which was an emotional time for the people that saw him so sick last year.
The bloggers are too tired for an official update tonight. More details to follow soon.
David and Brenda Mensah are in Canada right now and will be speaking at a few events. You are welcome to join us at any of these and hear our news first-hand.
The one-of-a-kind conference for Christian chiefs in Ghana’s Northern Region was a wonderful success.
Over 100 chiefs and 40 of their attendants met, despite the tribal differences that so easily could have separated them. They were able to share their unique challenges with one another and receive encouragement to continue as faithful leaders in their communities.
Thank you for your prayers for this event. We provide an in-depth report with our next newsletter later this spring.
Gary and Elenor Paisley, members of Talbot Creek Community Church, have recently returned from visiting GRID/NEA projects in Ghana. They’ve posted a summary report, with photos, of their visit. The report gives a nice overview of some of the things that GRID/NEA are doing in the region, so please check it out.