August 2026 Prayer Letter

Bro. Sammy walked into our cookout in Takoradi carrying a bag of chicken gizzards big enough to feed half the town. Years ago, when we lived in Ghana, I sat down with him as a small boy and had the privilege of leading him to Christ. I did not know back then what kind of man he would grow into, or if I would ever see him again. This time he walked up a grown man, serving his own church, carrying food to share with the same missionary who once shared the Gospel with him. That moment is a good place to start our August 2026 prayer letter, because it says more about what this month held than any summary line could.

Twenty-Eight Sermons and a Piano Player Who Meant Business

August closed with eleven days in Takoradi, Ghana, for the West Africa Pastors and Workers Conference hosted by missionary James Ruckman and Mount Calvary Fundamental Baptist Church. By the time we flew home, we had sat under twenty-eight sermons between the conference and two Sundays at local churches, and I had the joy of preaching five of them myself. A piano player kept every man honest on the clock, and when a few of the older pastors preached right past his warning chord, we handed Bro. Ruckman a hand bell and let him run the room instead. He rang it like he had been waiting his whole life for the job.

But the sermons were not the part that stuck with me. It was that cookout, standing over a grill with Bro. Sammy, watching a boy I once led to Christ serve his own church family now. That is what faithfulness looks like from twenty years out. It does not happen because a missionary shows up once. It happens because someone stays, or keeps coming back, until the seed has time to grow into a whole life.

Twenty Churches, a College Drop-Off, and a Plane to Ghana

The Ghana trip was only the last eleven days of a very full August. Before we ever boarded a plane, we presented our ministry in churches across Illinois and Arkansas, and we are grateful to report that several of them have voted to take us on for monthly support. Every new partner brings us one step closer to the field.

We also drove all three of our children to Providence Baptist College and watched them start a new chapter of their own. It was a strange kind of month, saying goodbye to our kids on one coast and shaking hands with pastors on another, but it is the shape deputation takes right now. If you would like the fuller picture of the Ghana trip itself, with more stories from the conference and the road, you can read the full recap here, and our partners at Hope of Africa Baptist Ministry have more on the church-planting work the conference supports.

What September Holds

September is already full, and there are a lot of miles ahead of us as we push toward our goal of being back in Ghana by January of 2027. We would not be able to keep this pace without churches like yours standing behind us. Thank you for the miles you have already helped us cover.

Please pray for:

• Safety and endurance on the road through September
• Continued open doors and new supporting churches
• Our goal of reaching the field by January 2027
• Our three children as they begin this new season at Providence Baptist College
• Strength and rest for Laura and me between stops

Thank you for praying, giving, and standing with us as we press toward the field. Your prayers carry us farther than any airplane does.

Download the Full PDF Letter