Uncompromising Faith

Esther is a member of the Kunyukuo Methodist Church. Recently, she received word that her daughter had died down south. The daughter, who was not yet 20 years old, had left the village to travel south hoping to find a job carrying things at market.. Esther traveled to the south for the burial and funeral. But, there also needed to be a funeral in her home village, too. Her culture requires this to happen.

Esther is a follower of Jesus. Her ex-husband follows the Traditional relion. So, when the time came for the Traditional rites to be performed on the parents of the deceased girl, Esther refused. "I am a Christian. I will not take part in these rites." she said. The community elders were not happy. They wanted both the mother and father to participate and, among other things, have their heads shaved. I was notified of this situation. So, I hopped on my motorcycle and traveled to Kunyukuo to meet with the family and some of the elders of the community. A compromise was made, one that was satisfactory to both parties. On the same day and at the same time as the Traditional rites for the father of the girl, the mother, Esther, would meet with us and the pastor. We would have a Christian counterpart to the Traditional rites. 

Saturday, the day for the ceremonies to take place, had arrived. We drove out to Kunyukuo and met at the house of Ester's ex-husband. Chairs were set out. Water was offered. Greetings were made. And then, the service began. The pastor preached an appropriate sermon. Songs were sung. Hands were laid on Esther and we prayed for her. And, soon, it was finished.

I had been touched by Esther's faith. She did not compromise in a difficult situation. Her faith held firm. I don't see that very often. Most times, a little bit of both traditions is done. But, Ester held onto her convictions and was not afraid to speak up. I asked if I could speak. I commended Esther for her faith. And, then I did something that I didn't plan. It was most likely an American thing, totally against culture, but people didn't seem to mind. I took off my cross necklace that I had been wearing since I came to Ghana. It has the word "faith" written on the side of it. I put it around Esther's neck and told her to continue sharing her faith. This cross itself has no power, but, Who it represents does. I encouraged Esther to tell her story of faith in the One True God when people asked about the cross she was now wearing. Then, I sat next to her, and we grieved together. I pray that the Lord will continue to keep Esther's faith strong until the day she sees Him face to face.

Elijah Has Taugh Us All

A week ago, today, a friend of mine died. His Christian name was Elijah. Elijah was not always a follower of Christ. As a matter of fact, he was a Christian for only 21 months. But, in those few, short months, he was no longer living as the local soothsayer or Fetish priest, he was living for Christ. He was baptized a few months after becoming a believer. He was very active in the local church, always there whenever the doors are open. He prayed that God would give him a wife. And, God answered that prayer. Elijah had paid part of the bride price for her and they were living as man and wife for some time. Elijah had traveled to Techiman to find work so he could finish paying the dowry. He told the pastor before he traveled, "I am leaving my wife in your hands. Take good care of her while I am gone." Of course, the wife was still in the village, not at the pastor's house, but Elijah trusted the pastor so much, he knew that Rev. Baiden would watch over her. Anyway, Elijah arrived in Techiman but could not even alight by himself, he was too weak. A taxi was called and he was taken to the hospital where he died.

I could not believe the news when I heard that Elijah had died. I wanted to see the body. It was uncertain if the burial would take place in Techiman or here in the Lawra area, in the village of Yagtuor. After a lot of discussion and several phone calls, it was decided to bring the body back north for burial. Saturday was the funeral. When I first arrived at the house, Elijah was sitting in a chair, looking as if he was napping. The grieving, the mourning and weeping had gone on all Friday night, after the body arrived. Then, the body was taken inside of the house to change clothes. Elijah was given a smock, trousers and a hat to wear, all made out of northern cloth. He looked quite handsome, fit for a Naa (Chief.) The sat him in a chair, with a cross around his neck, a bow in his hands (he was a hunter), and Guinea corn and millet (he was a farmer) and a Bible on top of the bow. The wooden xylophones were playing the funeral dirges and people were wailing. The hand made casket arrived...a cross was put on it to symbolize Elijah's faith. I did notice that a couple of men took a stick and measure the height of the casket to make sure that the grave was dug deep enough.

Members of the church had come early to the house to grieve with the family. Later, in the morning, many, many people from several of the Lawra area Methodist churches came to morn, grieve, pray and give testimony to Elijah's faith and to speak on how his life touched theirs. Rev. Baiden held the service for a Christian burial. People sang and praised God all the way to the cemetery - he was buried in the Christian cemetery. The entire day was a testimony to how he lived the last 21 months of his life for Christ.

Sunday morning, the family came to the Lawra church to worship and to give thanks for Elijah's life. His senior brother said, "Elijah has taught us all the One thing that is important." Praise God. I pray we will all know that One Thing!