One month and counting......I'm basically Ghanaian!

    The past two weeks have been ones of growing more and more accustomed to living in Ghana, teaching, and learning more and more about my Savior.  School is now in a routine and has been going relatively smoothly.  It is still not too hot here, but today and yesterday have been the two hottest days since I have been here.  So I know it's coming!!  As of now I can still be outside for PE all day and not be drenched with sweat!
    Last Saturday I went on my first trip to Medina.  Medina is the market where you can buy basically anything you want.  Wednesdays and Saturdays are the main market days when people go to buy anything they need or want to sell.  The vendors on the streets generally go to Medina on one of these two days to get their supplies.  Medina was definitely a new experience for me.  Even though I have been to Ukraine and Costa Rica, I have never been to a market like this one.  There were people and vendors everywhere and traffic was rediculous.  You could get almost everything and anything you could want, and smell almost everything you want to and don't want to smell!  While I was there I bought several things I needed including a broom and dustpan, matches, cutting knife, and welcome mat.  Check out the broom handle wrapping:

    While I was at Medina I had an interesting experience while trying to cross the road.  I had just walked across the busy street to ask about the price of a broom at the place where I eventually bought mine and was getting ready to cross back over.  There was a car coming so I tried to start jogging.  As soon as I started to jog I ran straight into a Ghanaian man.  I'm not sure if he got the worst of it, but I ended up with a sore forehead and a mark on my chin.  When I ran into him he started yelling at me, but I couldn't understand a word he was saying.  The vendors behind me were laughing and so were my friends watching on the other side of the street.  I just told him I was sorry and didn't mean to run into him, but he was still quite upset when he walked away.  I thought it was funny, but evidently he didn't have the same view of it as me!
   The container for the school finally came on Wednesday, August 31st!  There were so many things on the container including: lots and lots of books, chairs, house furniture, and some soccer balls and playground balls.  I also found some Nerf footballs in the office!  Wednesday also included another adventure.  While walking over to A & C (shopping mall where I get most of my groceries) after lunch I met Godwin.  I said good afternoon and he asked if we could be friends.  I was hesitant at first, but eventually said yes.  He walked with me and followed me the whole time while I bought groceries.  On the way back I told him what I was doing over in Ghana and asked him what he thought about me being a missionary.  He didn't have too much to say about it, but eventually we started talking about God and who He is.  We were almost back to my house and so I asked him if he would stay outside and wait while I put my stuff away.  He surprisingly said yes, and so I took my groceries and everything I was carrying inside.  I brought my Bible and went out to meet him.  We walked for about 45 minutes toward where he lived.  We talked about everything from Creation to Jesus and overall he seemed to know and understand everything.  I am not sure if he really applies  his knowledge of God, but Godwin has a solid understanding of what the Bible says.  Before we arrived at his house I told him that I needed to head back to meet some of the other teachers.  He told me that he needed money and I told him that I didn't have any to give him (I didn't, I had put it all in the house when I dropped off groceries).  He seemed very disappointed, and I told him that he could call me anytime if he ever wanted to talk again.  I gave him my phone number and we took our separate ways.  This past Wednesday (September 7), Godwin stopped by Accrib and wanted to talk to me.  I came out from reading and we had a good conversation about our families and also about trusting God for everything.  Again he asked me for some money. This time I had planned on him asking me for money so I was prepared.  Godwin does not look like he needs money by the way he dresses or acts and so I am suspicious of him actually needing money.  I think he might just think I have a lot of money because I come from America, even though I have told him that I am not here to make money and am just being paid enough to live.  Because of my suspicions I only gave him a small amount of money.  It will be interesting to see if he comes back to see me and talk to me to ask for money.  I also prayed for him and encouraged him to be proactive in searching for a job.  The Lord tells us to give and I am looking forward to the opportunity to give to those that I meet in Accra who have less than I do and need the love of Christ!

      After my first conversation with Godwin I went to a birthday scavenger hunt for Kim.  We had 4 people on each team with each team having the same list of tasks to accomplish.   You can see the list above.  Some of the list that I participated in included being a mate on the tro-tro (which means I was yelling out where the tro-tro was going to anyone who was walking by while every Ghanaian laughed at me and told me I was doing it wrong!), pushing a fan ice cart, and wheelbarrowing for one minute on the new field.  It was a great way to celebrate Kim's birthday even though both teams accomplished everything on the list in the set amount of time.
     On Saturday September 3rd I was able to Skype my family for the first time since I have been over here in Ghana.  It was great to be able to see them and talk to them for a while!
    On Sunday a group of students and other teachers traveled about an hour to Pram Pram.  Pram Pram is outside of Accra and really close to the beach.  In Pram Pram there is a children's home where students who are not able to be taken care of by their parents live and go to school.  On the first Sunday of every month a group from the school goes and runs Sunday school for the little ones.  We talked about the parable of the talents (Matthew 25) and how God wants us to use our talents and gifts for Him.  After several lively songs and teaching we did a craft with the students.  The students decorated their crafts and some even wore them!

    This past Wednesday (7th) and every Wednesday I attend a men's Bible study with a couple of men from the school and others outside of the school.  Usually we have 4 or 5 men there.  This week we looked at several passages and discussed purity and having a strong devotional life.  Several lessons I learned include attempting to get to the point in devotions where I am enjoying the presence of God, not just reading and studying to complete a to-do's, and also focusing on the good (Philippians 4).
    Friday night was another interesting experience.  A group of people from AIS traveled out to the Korean church for their Korean Bazaar fundraiser.  They had food and performances for a few hours.  I ate a few Korean dishes including chap chae (picture below), bung-a bbang, and hoddok.

    Some side notes from the past two weeks: 1. Whenever the power goes out (which happens at least once most weeks) during school I have to deal with the extremely loud generators right beside the field.  It is very hard to get any student to listen to you when there is a constant loud noise! Here is a picture of the field after only 2 1/2 weeks of playing on it (the generators are in the shed in the background).

2. Last Friday night (September 2) a few of us teachers and a friend named Mark went out to eat.  On the way back while we were walking I was talking with Mark and decided to hold my hand.  I had heard before that it is Ghanaian culture to hold hands with close friends, but never had expected it to happen to me!  I was quite uncomfortable, but it was interesting to say the least!

3. John, Christy, and I have decided to run the Accra International Marathon which is on September 25th! We only have two weeks to prepare! Yesterday we ran for an hour (about 8 miles), and today we ran about half of that as a rest day.  We are hoping to complete the 13.1 miles in under 2 hours and I am already looking forward to when (Lord willing) we cross the finish line two weeks from now!

Prayer requests: 1.  Christ would continue to be shown in my life and the other teacher's lives and that the light of Christ would be clear to the students.  (Muslim parents of a 3 and 4 year old at school are already contemplating taking their children out of AIS because the 4 year old is praying to Jesus after just 3 weeks!!)  2. Pray for Godwin.  I hope that I can continue to talk with him and find ways to help him out in his struggle to  find a job and grow with Christ.  3.  Soccer IS starting this week!  Pray that the start would be smooth and that the other coaches and I would have many opportunities to teach skills in soccer and also life!  4. Pray that God would break my heart for what breaks His!  (You should also pray that for yourself!)