I am beginning this report by giving you the monthly reports from the church leaders and evangelists for the past three months. Timothy Niligrini sent me the reports for June and July but I was negligent in passing that information on to you.
The men reported that two people were baptized and four were restored to the Church in June. Twenty-seven men were present for June’s monthly class. In July twenty-four men attended the class with eight souls being baptized. August’s monthly had twenty-seven men in attendance which included both the church leaders and the evangelists. During the month twenty-seven souls were added to the Church which is wonderful!
We arrived in Accra on the 17th of August with all 11 pieces of our luggage. We always look like pack mules with our three wheeled luggage carts loaded down as we go through customs and pass out of the airport to meet our hired driver. Our main priority upon arrival was to go to the Interior Ministry to collect our visa quota for the Child Center. This was successfully accomplished the day after we arrived in Ghana. Having this quota allows us to have resident visas which give us the flexibility to come and go and stay in the country as long as we wish. There is no joking around when it comes to making sure we have the quota and the visas! Being in the country illegally will buy you a one way ticket back to your own country at your expense very quickly!!
We flew to Tamale on Saturday; Red, our part time driver picked us up and we drove on to Yendi. It usually takes 2 hours to get from Tamale to Yendi.
Timothy Niligrini arranged for us to visit the congregation at Borido on Sunday morning. It just so happened that the congregation from Kpanjamba was also present for worship because the congregations were holding a combined worship service. At the end of the worship service nine people requested baptism. At this time of the year water is plentiful so we loaded the people in the pickup and drove down the road about ½ a mile to a water hole. Brother Foster, one of the church leaders, did the baptizing.
Ghana still requires people to wear masks in group settings if some of the people are not vaccinated for Covid 19. We see a few people wearing masks but most are not. Kandie and I still provide masks for the people when in a group setting.
At the monthly class I extended the greetings from the brothers in the states. It always brings a smile to their faces to know that the brothers in the states care about the welfare of the brethren in Ghana. I gave the men t-shirts that we had brought from the states. Everyone loves to get a gift.
The lesson for the August class dealt with the man’s responsibility to the family. I taught the class and came down pretty hard on us men. I emphasized the man is to be the physical and spiritual leader of the family and if the job is not getting done it is the man’s responsibility. This cuts across cultural bounds because the men don’t like to take the blame for their mistakes. I emphasized to the men they needed to listen to their wives ideas when making decisions for the family. Most of the cultural practices in the family are rooted in traditional and pagan customs. This makes it difficult for Christians.
The last three days of the month we spent at a church leader/evangelist seminar located at Takoradi on the coast of Ghana and sponsored by the West Coast School of Preaching affiliated with the Bear Valley School of Preaching in the USA. The theme of the seminar was taken from Joshua 24:15 – “Choose for yourself this day”. Four men from the Wa area were sponsored by the Center along with three of our men . The men from our area were Timothy Niligrini, Francis Waja, and Divine Gmalan. The lessons were geared towards following God’s Word instead of creeds of men and keeping the Church from apostasy.
Kandie and I would like to thank all of you who support this work whether it is by prayers, kind words, financial support , or making/ sending items to be given out. It is very much appreciated by us and the brethren we strive to assist. May God bless you for the sacrifices you make to support the work.
Memorial: Many of you knew our brother Jimmy Stroud who kept the books for us as well as my in-laws, Royce and Cindy under the oversight of the W. Hobbs St. C of C Eldership. Jimmy passed on from this life this month. Jimmy and his wife Mary were staunch supporters of the work in Yendi. Jimmy was a gentle giant! Kandie and I will not forget our friend and our sympathy goes out to Mary and Jimmy’s family.
In His service,
Stephen and Kandie Taylor
