Greetings Dearest Brothers and Sisters!
We are now in the last month of your summer and here in Ghana the close of the rainy season. Unfortunately, here in the Volta Region the rainfall has been scarce. Thus, much of the farm crops have suffered. It’s funny how we never thought much about things like rainfall and water supply until coming to an area of the world where such issues are truly a matter of life and death.
Those of you who follow our blog may remember that we recently met
Gladys, the grown daughter of a former Trokosi. The first time we met her, she
sat alone, isolated and completely bent over, staring at her feet, apparently
the victim of severe depression. Gladys did not look at us or acknowledge us
when we spoke. Her family reports that she spends her days like this, just bent
over in silence. At our first meeting, we simply prayed over her, asking God to
heal her and to fill her with His abundant joy. During subsequent visits with
Gladys, we read scripture to her and prayed over her. At those visits there was
some response. She still did not speak, but tears rolled down her cheeks and
her lips moved as if she wanted to speak. Today we took her to a prayer
meeting. While she kept her face covered and did not receive deliverance today,
the fact that she went to the service was a big step. We will continue to
minister to Gladys. Please pray God will soon release her from her bondage.
Most of you have probably heard
that the president of Ghana died in July. He was very popular in our region so
there was much fanfare. There were many parades and many people wore black and
red for weeks: black for mourning and red for danger.
Some of you may remember that one of the former Trokosi, Dorcus, lost
her son in June. The funeral was postponed twice so it fell on August 10th, the same day
as President Mill’s funeral (bodies are often kept refrigerated for months or
even years). There was much less pomp for Dorcas’s son’s funeral, but it was
still very involved. Funerals are big business in Ghana. Funerals are typically
held on the weekends. Friday nights begin the ceremonies with drinking and
revelry. The actual funeral is held all day Saturday. It is an extravagant
affair with even the poorest families expected to provide live entertainment
and a meal for all of their guests. Funerals here are not just attended by
family and friends, but everyone in the community. You can imagine the burden
this places on families.
You have all been such a
blessing to us as you have prayed for us and supported us financially. You are
truly an integral part of our ministry. As such, we want to let you know of a
need we have seen among the Trokosi women we serve. Most of these women, about
50 of them, are illiterate. Because they are illiterate, they have no access to
God’s Word. Every day you and I take our Bibles for granted. What if we could
not read our Bible? How could we grow? How could we learn about our wonderful
Savior? There is no greater gift we can give anyone than God’s Word. Audio
Bibles in the form of solar powered players downloaded with the New Testament
in their own language (Ewe) would give them access to God’s Word anytime they
want to hear it. It costs $50 for each audio Bible, so it would cost
approximately $2500 to provide them all with audio Bibles. $2,500 is a small
amount, indeed a small price to pay to give them free access to God’s Word, but
it would put quite a strain on our small missionary budget. If any of you feel
led to partner with us in providing God’s Word to these women who cannot read,
please let us know.
Prayer Requests
Ø Greater
boldness and diligence in evangelism
Ø Salvation
of shrine priests
Ø Salvation
and discipleship of former Trokosi women
Ø Liberation
of more Trokosi women
Ø Health & safety of all ECM workers &
missionaries
Ø Spiritual
growth of all the Forkkios
Ø Healing
for Gladys, mentally and spiritually
Ø Audio
Bibles for former Trokosi