Palm Sunday Village Trip

Palm Sunday was so special for us here in Ghana.  A group comprised of two of the full-time missionaries, the Dickens and the Hewitts, brought us along for an adventure down the dirt roads to a village named Nassuan just over an hour away.  Their kids came and so did three of the teachers for the missionary kids here.  We all went to support a missionary named Nathan and his wife Sarah, as Nathan preached on Palm Sunday.  The service was held in a humble concrete bulding with a few old wooden pews.  It was packed with lively colored dresses worn by the Ghanaian women and the lively spirits that resided within that room.  The women sat on one side and the men on the other as is customary here.  There were two palm branches displayed to remind us of how humbly our Lord entered Jerusalem as King.  The sermon kept relating to Jesus being like an African chief.  Normally, a chief would promenade into town being lifted up on others' shoulders, carrying a nice new stick and even wearing a nice new smock over his shoulders.  That is the respect the Ghanaians would show for a chief.  Now, how much more respect would we have for our King and Savior, Jesus Christ!  He set the royalties of kingship aside and entered humbly on a young donkey as it is told that he would in Zechariah 9:9-12.  Then, we were reminded of Philemon 1:5-11 as well as the rest of the story in Mark 15:1-47.  Yes, they read all of these verses out loud with no rush during the service.  I sat there thinking this may be the only Bible stories they hear.  Not everyone has the written version of the Bible here.  That is exactly what those missionaries, Nathan and Sarah, are here to do.  They are Bible translators in that village.

Last year on Palm Sunday, I had the privilege of walking the same path on which Jesus rode on a donkey into Jerusalem as King of kings. We carried palm branches as people from literally all over the world paraded together singing "Hosanna in the highest!" in remembrance of His humble entry to be our King, to sacrifice Himself for us as our Savior, and to redeem us from our sins. This year, I reminisced about the same story and how much Christ sacrificed Himself even for these seemingly almost forgotten people here who are in desperate need physically and spiritually.  They humbly gathered together and adored their Savior in this church.  They played the old blue beaten, crumpled drums, which nevertheless were used as an instrument of praise.  Then the voices sang in unison as loud as possible for worship of their Lord in this small concrete worship hall.  One by one, the women were convicted to form a circle at the front of the hall to dance and sing while moving forward in a circular formation.  I know Jesus must have appreciated their worship.

Afterwards, it was as if we gathered together as one body of Christ. All of the five missionary families, who do not live in the same place in Ghana, gathered after church for a picnic outside one of the missionaries' homes. These people live here full time with four children and have no electricity. God is good. You would have never known that they even needed it. Their lives were so full of gratitude and appreciation for serving here.

The afternoon grew into evening but before the sunset, we made it to an escarpment or ridge overlooking northern Ghana. It was just spectacular. It made you think of that scene in the Lion King (everyone thought this, not just me :)) Then I gazed from that cliff and thought about the Lion of Judah--the King, Jesus Christ. We do have a King worthy of praise and worthy of our worship. Thank you, LORD, for Palm Sunday this year and for the remembrance of You!