December 2000
Dear Hull Congregation and FMC and other Churches:
Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
We are fast approaching the end of another
year, and again it is necessary to praise God and lift our
thanksgiving to Him for the blessed care we have received and for the blessings upon our
labors here in
Ghana. In this year we have become much more mature as a Mission group and even as a
Missionary. The
labors have been extensive and the grace to carry them forth has been given us in
abundance even though
we are unworthy of it. Our Lord Jesus Christ comes ever more quickly and we are
grateful that it has pleased
Him to give us some time yet to bring the gospel to some here in Ghana. It is our
prayer that our Lord will
prosper the work here in the future, this according to the will of God. We do
rejoice in His faithfulness that is
shown to our churches and to the work that we are able to do to bring the gospel to His
people even through
out this world.
As we come close to the end of this year we are ever
conscious that for the true church things shall not
be easier; but, even as we have witnessed many trials in this last year as churches, so we
may expect to see
more. The wickedness of man is great, and the evil in the midst of this world
grows. The apostasy in the
Church speeds on and is very much evident also in this land. Hardly any know the God
Who saves His people
by Sovereign grace, and many there be that think that they can earn their way into
heaven. To walk in
obedience to the Word is almost unheard of and is a struggle also on the field here in
Ghana. The people are
in need of constant admonition to stand fast in faith and to walk in this obedience to the
living God. The
absence in any real knowledge of the Word of God is seen on every side, and the walk in
direct disobedience
to the Word is the norm in the church world.
In this season we celebrate the coming of Christ into
our flesh to deliver us from our sins. Now it is
evident that He comes again in final judgment, how necessary that the true gospel of
salvation be sounded
forth unto the salvation of God’s people and to the condemnation of the wicked ways
of man. How we need
this from Lord’s Day to Lord’s Day especially in the light of our human frailty
and our inclination only to sin.
How blessed the love of God for His children that He gave His Only Begotten Son to come in
our flesh, to be
born of a woman, to be born under the law that we might be redeemed. May we never
tire as Churches to
proclaim this gospel wherever it pleases the Lord to send us.
By God’s grace it is the only gospel that has been
brought on the field here in Ghana. The plain
preaching of the Word of God has been our privilege to bring to the people here. It
always humbles us to
think that the Lord uses us in this foreign land to bring this gospel of salvation by
grace through faith only, and
it humbles us to witness the way in which He has caused His people to come under that
Word.
There are so many ways that we have had people come in contact with our
Fellowship. The Radio has
continued to be a source of contact for us in this land, and we believe that it has been
the means to bring the
gospel to others outside of our own immediate fellowship. We experience that this is
the case by the nature of
calls we receive and by the fact that in different parts of Accra we have heard people say
we have listened to
Rev. Moore on the radio.
We still have people inquire because of our signs and
because of the sign on the Pickup. We still have
opportunity to speak to various groups and schools from time to time; and especially we
still have opportunity
for personal witness. This includes the Mission House: Jan and John and Judy
beside myself. Often I have
been able to talk with people here and there on the streets of Accra and tell them of our
labor here in Ghana.
But, it is also true we have had many visits to our worship or Bible Study as a fruit of
the personal witness of
our members. An example is that the Lord led brother Stephen Acheampong to begin
working a stone quarry
in a village about twenty kilometers (12 miles) from our house. And, while spending
time at this village he has
spoken to some of the people in the village about the blessings we have under the Word
here in our Mission.
This has resulted in some coming into Accra to attend the worship services here. We
also have taken some
time to sit and talk with the people in their village and to pray with them.
We cannot of course expect them to
travel this far every Sunday, but the Lord has placed them on our path for a
purpose. We will keep contact
with such and may arrange to speak in the village in the future for further investigation
to see where it is that
the Lord leads.
The Lord has blessed us richly during this year.
We never know exactly what to expect from day to
day. We do not know how many or who will be in our worship services, Bible studies,
or catechism. We have
no office-bearers to carry out discipline, only the visits of the Missionary in concern
for the spiritual welfare of
those with whom we are working. So there is nothing but the power of the Word itself
that brings such as God
has ordained to come and listen and to grow in understanding and faith. But, this is
also the wonder of the
Word. God does work by His Word and the group has stayed consistent in numbers and
more consistent in
those that are always there. When occasionally one quits coming to worship with us,
it seems as though God
guides another one or two to take his or her place. And, thus, the work goes on.
We had some special blessings in this past month. It is
hard to determine which to put in the list first;
but, I think I will start with the return of John. It has been a help to Jan and I
to have him back. He can take
up some of the driving and all of the supervision at the work site. I have continued
to pursue the obtaining of
the legal documents and permits to build. This should be about concluded.
After Wednesday of this week, we
should have it all finished according to the authorities at the Tema Municipal
Assembly. This will be a relief to
have everything in order. I believe that John is quite pleased with the progress at
the site, and is again a
blessing as he labors with the people here in Ghana.
Secondly, the elder delegates arrived from the
States. This is an important thing for us on the field and
for our churches. The delegates represented both our calling church and the Foreign
Mission Committee.
This is true because both elders Don Ver Meer and Jim Andringa serve on Hull’s
Consistory, and Don is a
member of the FMC. The oversight over the field by these two bodies is very
important to the welfare of the
labors in Ghana. Our people here understood that they come to oversee the labors of
the Missionary and to
observe and obtain first hand knowledge of the field itself. The men were well
received by our people, and the
men kept busy visiting Bible Studies, catechism classes, and of course the worship
services. The latter
included being present at the first wedding that we have solemnized in Ghana. We are
confident that both
bodies will have an even greater understanding of the work in Ghana and the needs we have
here, especially
from the spiritual point of view. The encouragement was good for Jan and I, and the
fellowship was precious
for the Mission House.
Thirdly, we solemnized and confirmed the marriage of a
couple in the Lord during one of our regular
Sunday worship services. This was a joyous occasion for its simplicity and spiritual
beauty. After the sermon,
the “Form for the Confirmation of Marriage before the Church” was read while the
couple stood, the vows were
taken exactly from the Form in our Psalter, and the answers were “yes” and
“I do.” The marriage certificates
were signed, and the worship service was concluded with the doxology and prayer.
There were no special
clothes, flowers, or candles, but a beautiful message from Ephesians 5:22-26 on the true
character of
marriage in the Lord. All there seemed to be blessed richly. We had about a
half hour after the worship for
some refreshments, punch and Tea biscuits and time for some fellowship. Then all
returned to their homes.
The married couple was also at our evening worship as they began their life together in
the Lord. Richard is
35, and Margaret is 26. We are very grateful to God for the privilege of solemnizing
their marriage.
The numbers have stayed about the same averaging over ninety in morning service and
a little over
forty in the evening services. The latter we continue to encourage the people to
improve. But here in order to
have an evening meal done in time for church it means starting a wood or charcoal fire
about three in the
afternoon. It means walking maybe a half mile to carry water for cooking and
dishes, etc. Some of this can
be done on Saturday, but not all of it. And then they must be ready an hour before
our evening service in
order to get picked up by a vehicle to come to worship by six.
Finally, Jan and I would like to thank all that
remembered us at the time of our fortieth wedding
anniversary and Jan’s sixtieth birthday. We both are still quite healthy and
continue to enjoy our labor. We do
look forward to this summer when we will be able to see several of our grandchildren that
we have not met.
We also want to extend our greetings to you all during the Christmas and New Year
Holiday season.
What a joy to remember the great love and mercy that our God has shown us in coming into
our flesh to bear
our sin and guilt that we might be saved.
Holiday greetings from the Mission House.
In Christ’s Service,
Rev. Richard Moore and the Mission
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