We Used To Buy Car Parts From These Guys

We were sitting in the gate area in Accra, waiting for our flight to Takoradi, when I heard two men a few seats over talking in Fante. I listened for a second, then caught our flight number in the middle of their conversation. I turned around and said something back to them in Fante, and one of the men just stopped talking and stared at me.

Old Friends in the Gate Area

It took about ten seconds for both of us to place each other. Turns out I used to buy car parts from these two guys, years ago. We stood there laughing and shaking hands right there in the gate area, catching up until they called our flight. Small world, and an even smaller airport gate.

Fifty Doctors and Some Rusty French

I got on the plane and sat down next to a doctor from Ivory Coast. He was one of fifty medical doctors from Ivory Coast on that flight, all of them coming back from a pharmaceutical conference in Dubai. I got to dust off my very rusty French for the whole flight to Accra.

He was Catholic, and somewhere over West Africa I got to walk him through the plan of salvation. He listened politely and asked some good questions. I have no idea what the Lord will do with that seed, but I am praying he gets saved someday.

Every Bag Made It

We landed in Accra, and every single one of our bags came off that carousel. All of them. We walked straight through customs without a hiccup. The agent asked if I was a missionary, and when I said yes, he just waved us through without even opening a bag.

From there we walked the quarter mile from the international terminal to the domestic one. Pastor Bob Reno was waiting for us there, and I helped him wrestle his luggage out of a taxi and into the terminal. The three of us sat down at a little restaurant, drank some instant coffee, and got properly introduced before heading to check in for the flight to Takoradi.

Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, and Very Tired Eyes

The flight to Takoradi only took twenty-five minutes, and it saved us a twelve-hour drive. I will take a short flight over a long drive every time.

James Ruckman, who leads the church-planting work of Hope of Africa Baptist Ministry in Takoradi, met us at the airport and helped load every bag straight into his truck. We drove to his house, where Mrs. Angie Ruckman had a supper of chicken and mashed potatoes waiting for us. I ate like a man who had just traveled 12,500 miles.

We sat around and fellowshipped for a while after supper, but my eyes would not stay open much longer than that. Tomorrow brings several church services and lunch with some other missionaries, and I will tell you all about it.

References:
Hope of Africa Baptist Ministry: https://ruckmans2africa.com
Follow along with the Consfords: https://consfords.com/connect