Jonathan Sapeh and his family have been on the mission field working with FAME Ghana since 1992, and he has served as a cross-cultural evangelist at Kumdi, among the Nchumburung and Konkomba people in the Northern region of Ghana. He faces major challenges of a high illiteracy rate and idol worshipping among the people in his area.
The following is Jonathan's report from the mission field in November/December. Please join us in thanking God and asking for his continued work:
“Even though I walk through the valley of shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4). I and my family arrived in Kumdi in the Northern Region of Ghana on November 23, 1993. In February 1994, a serious tribal conflict broke out in the whole region. We ran into the bush for our safety because the whole town was burnt down. By that time my wife was 7 months pregnant. Stayed in the bush for 2 weeks, drunk dirty water because all the water bodies in the area had dried up. We were later sent to Borae in the Volta Region as refugees for 3 months; there, my wife delivered our fifth-born, Yayra, on April 15, 1994. In May that year we came back to Kumdi. Even up till now we have been hearing rumors of war; that means conflicts can break out anytime. In March 1995, I started a church at Kumdi with 10 souls baptized. There was no electricity in the area until 2012. The roads in the area are very bad, which make traveling on these roads very dangerous.
ACHIEVEMENTS:
1. 15 churches planted.
2. 1,852 souls baptized.
3. Trained 3 church leaders (pastors Kingsley Nyindam, Felix Nsejamesi, and Daniel Liwamor, to the glory of God Almighty).
SOCIAL INTERVENTIONS:
1. I supervised the building of the FAME clinic at Kumdi, which was commissioned in May 1996.
2. I chaired the Chumburung Old Testament translation committee until the whole Bible was completed and commissioned.
3. I chaired the Kumdi Local Council of churches for 12 years.
4. I taught as a voluntary classroom teacher for 6 years at Kumdi when all the teachers left the schools because of the conflict. I stopped the teaching when [they] returned to the area. [What] I did helped me [become] accepted in to the community more up till this time. Some of the students are now my church members. Some of the students are now lawyers, police, graduates, etc.
5. Through my initiative, Tadando, where one of my churches is, is having primary school.
CHALLENGES:
1. Transportation need.
2. Educational support for children including mine.
3. Low/insufficient monthly income.
4. Adequate retirement benefit.
VISION FOR THE YEARS AHEAD:
1. Raise more leaders to take care of the churches, because having fewer churches with committed leaders is better than having plenty of churches but no leader or few leaders.
Thank God two people were baptized.
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