God’s Appointment

As I’ve told people here several times, I am convinced that one of the things that will make heaven so heavenly is that there will be no more good-byes! Yes, I cried when Daddy and Benjamin left (but not as hard as I had when Mommy had left a few months earlier – knowing that you’ll see someone in five months is a little easier than knowing that you’ll see someone in a year!). There was definitely wistfulness in having to stay behind and not flying away to my dearly loved family.

And here God’s goodness intervened, for on our way north, Abba and I picked up three men who were looking for a ride. “Are you going to witness to them?” I asked Abba when we made a bathroom stop at one point, which our passengers used to perform their Islamic prayers. “You can,” he suggested, adding a few moments later, “Or we could just forget about it.”

Well, why would God put us in a car with three Muslims, if He didn’t intend for them to hear His good news?! So there I sat, wondering how best to start, when I noticed they were speaking the local dialect I’ve been learning; so I asked in their tongue, “Are you speaking this language?” They were amazed, and we exchanged a few basic lines of conversation with each other. Then they told me where they were from, and I replied, “Ah! Then you are pure-blooded members of your tribe!” Oh yes, they assured me proudly. “And I see you’re pure Muslims too,” I observed, referencing their devotion in prayer – a praise they happily accepted.

That was the opening that was needed to talk about what makes us acceptable to God, and how Jesus is the only Way to heaven. They questioned, commented, and listened intently as Abba translated; then I listened carefully as Abba translated their feedback at the end. When they first waved at us to stop, they made eye contact with Abba; then they saw me, and “all hopes went from our hearts,” because they were sure a white lady would never allow her driver to stop for other passengers. But I did, and was kind to them, and so “we know you are a good person, and you are speaking God’s words to us.”

No praise to me – all praise to God, Who so graciously used this ride to remind me that He still has purposes for me in Ghana if I will depend on Him. Please pray for “Suleiman” and “Abdulai,” who have now heard the truth – may our ride together have been one step in their journey to the true God!