Ronny's Discovery

I’m full of lots of stories about my trip to Ghana, so I always appreciate the chance to share a few of them. This summer I had the incredible opportunity to go on a two-month Discovery internship with Wycliffe and the Ghana Institute for Linguistics, Literacy, and Bible Translation (GILLBT). As I prepared to head to Africa, I naturally had a lot of hopes and expectations. However, God is a God of surprises: I didn't expect life in Ghana to be so… ordinary.


Sure, I was on an adventure. I got to find about – and help with – Bible translation. I got to interview people for language research for my linguistics degree. I now know way more about Avatime noun classes than you probably want to hear (although I’m very willing to talk about them). However, I also went shopping, cooked, did laundry, went to church, and spent time with friends – all of which I do at home. 

When I think of far-off places and far-off peoples, I tend to imagine that their lives are so different from mine that we can’t relate. Instead, I had conversations with my friend Michael about why he only went to church once a month. I cooked dinner with my neighbor, Mama Vero. She lives with her teenage daughter and the daughter’s four-year-old son. I talked with my partner Dorcas about our plans for the future. She just graduated from the University of Cape Coast – a school in southern Ghana.

I don’t want to say that I never struggled or never had a bad day, but that also happens in my life here in the United States.

God taught me two lessons through the everyday, ordinary activities I did in Ghana. First, I can be at home wherever God puts me, whether near or far, hot or cold, city or country. I did and saw and tasted and heard many new things, but I was also just living life: forming relationships, having conversations, and doing everyday activities. This summer, I happened to be doing these things in Ghana, but I can do them anywhere God sends me.

Second, I can do ministry wherever I am. Just because I’m not in Africa and I’m not on a missions trip anymore doesn't mean I have to stop connecting with and encouraging people. There are people right here like my friend Michael who don’t feel connected to the churches they attend. There are single teenage mothers like Mama Vero’s daughter. And I have endlessly sat around with peers talking about our futures. 

There is much ministry to be done around the world, but that doesn't mean I have to wait until God sends me somewhere. If He does, I can live and build my life in that place. In the meantime, I can continue to build relationships and minister to people right here and right now.

Another thing that surprised me about the trip was... (to be continued)