Yesterday was a big day here in Ghana. After the team had our breakfast and devotional time, we got all dressed up in our Ghanaian prints and boarded the bus for the Bible club community.
One year ago while visiting Ghana, Brother Philip introduced me to Madam Paulina at her private school we are using for the Bible club meeting place. One year ago we talked to her about the idea of building on top of her school room so that Arm of Hope could have a permanent meeting place and community center right in the heart of our sponsored children’s neighborhood. I remember Madam Paulina thanking me profusely, and I remember what I told her.
“I am nothing special. I can’t make something like this happen. If it comes to pass, it is God who has done it. I will just do my part and pray and see what God has planned for our future partnership.” I encouraged her to pray with me.
As we walked the narrow corridors to the Bible club room yesterday and entered its doors, several of our team members exclaimed that it wasn’t the same room as the room we visited last Sunday. It was completely unrecognizable! Indeed, I did a double take myself until I realized that we were in the same place. The walls were painted a cheery pink, the ceilings were equipped with lights and fans, the whole place was decorated with balloons and banners, and the windows were covered with wire mesh. The change was mind-blowing!
There was a ceremony of sorts with various people sharing, including Madam Paulina’s son who is the headmaster of the school and the builder of the building.
The children performed some choreography for us, their faces excited at the amazing change in the room around them.
Pastor Kirk prayed and dedicated the building, reminding everyone that the building is amazing but what we are really building here is precious lives. I read the dedication plaque, and the ribbon was cut. Arm of Hope’s first community center, library, and computer room were open.
Not only was the Bible club room at the school transformed, but we climbed the stairs to the second floor and were able to see the library…
the office…
the computer room…
and the two washrooms!
To you this may not seem like much, but in this community, it is a miracle! In a place where there are no real restrooms, we have 2! In a country where only 15% of the schools have computer rooms, this little community, considered the least of all communities, now has one to call its own. In a place where children have never entered the doors of a library, they will now have access to books. In a community where there are no roads and where concrete bags had to be carried in by hand for an entire night and mixed on the spot and where the walls of one building are connected to the next, there is now hope! If God did this, what else is he going to do?
I climbed above our new facility to the room where we will eventually be putting up a wall so we can use the space for a meeting place. I stood quietly and looked out over the patchwork of tin roofs in various colors and sizes, all pressed up against each other, knowing that each of those tiny roofs represents a family with hopes and dreams and needs.
And I just enjoyed the moment. I stood there in thankfulness for what God has done. I stood there and just took in the realization of the awesomeness of God. It was a moment in which I realized that I don’t need to worry. I don’t need to strive. I just need to put one foot in front of the other and quietly go on to the best of my ability. When God is ready to act, He will act, and I will know its His doing.
I did not do this. Arm of Hope did not do this. Hope Community Church did not do this. It’s beyond our capabilities. God did this.
Yesterday I entered the building, complete after only one year, and I sat at the dedication next to Madam Paulina. She thanked me profusely. I reminded her of our conversation from last year. I reminded her that it is God who has done this amazing thing and not the “obronis” from America.
I didn’t get to speak at the dedication, but if I had, I would have said this:
“This building is not from us, the white people, the Americans. This building is from God. When you enter it overwhelmed with gratefulness, thank God. It is all His doing.”
“This building does not belong to us, the Americans. This building belongs to you and your community and your children. It is a precious investment in the lives of your young people, and it belongs to you. Take care of it, use it, and feel the love of Jesus every time you enter its doors.”
