Experiencing Missionary Life in Ghana: A Day of Visits, Fellowship, and Ministry

One of the most meaningful parts of experiencing missionary life in Ghana is realizing that ministry is not always a dramatic event or a large gathering. Often, it is the small moments—visiting friends, holding a newborn baby, or simply sharing a meal together—that remind you how deeply relationships matter on the mission field.

August 29, 2023 was one of those days.

We woke up a little later than usual that morning. The night before had been a little longer than expected, so everyone appreciated a few extra minutes of sleep. After getting up, we enjoyed breakfast together and started preparing for the day. Our plan was simple: spend the day visiting friends with Bro. Prince.

Although the schedule was not packed with meetings or preaching, it turned out to be a perfect picture of what experiencing missionary life in Ghana often looks like—building friendships, encouraging believers, and strengthening connections that help ministry grow.

Visiting Friends and Strengthening Relationships

Our first stop was the home of Bro. Prince’s parents. The moment we arrived, their faces lit up with joy. They were just as happy to see us as we were to see them.

Mission work is deeply relational, and visits like these remind us how important those relationships are. The Ghanaian culture places a high value on hospitality and family, and taking time to visit people is not considered optional—it is an essential part of life.

We spent a few minutes catching up, talking about family, and sharing stories. Of course, no visit would be complete without taking a few pictures together. Moments like these may seem small, but they represent the kind of connections that make long-term ministry possible.

These simple visits are a big part of experiencing missionary life in Ghana, because they help missionaries remain connected to the community and the people they serve.

Meeting the New Baby

Our next stop was to visit Bro. Prince’s wife and their new baby girl.

The baby was only about a month old, and everyone was excited to meet her. Unfortunately, there was not enough room in the taxi for everyone, so Danny stayed behind at the house. The rest of us squeezed in and made the trip together.

When we arrived, the little baby was sleeping peacefully.

Each of us took turns holding her for a few minutes. She was so calm that we joked about how impossible it seemed to wake her up. In fact, we actually tried—but she remained perfectly content to sleep through all the excitement.

Moments like these highlight something special about missionary families. The relationships between missionaries and local believers often become as close as family. When a baby is born, everyone celebrates together.

The baby’s name was Martina Jacqueline, and her name carried a special story behind it.

She had been named after Mrs. Jackie Siekbert, a missionary who served in Ghana for many years alongside her husband and family. Her faithful ministry left a deep impact on many people in the area, including Bro. Prince and his family.

Holding that baby was a reminder of how one missionary family’s influence can continue for generations.

Shopping in Takoradi: A Changing Ghana

After visiting with the family, we headed toward the mall.

This was another reminder of how much Ghana has changed over the past decade.

Ten years ago, many of the stores and restaurants we now see in Takoradi did not exist. Back then, finding certain supplies could be difficult. Missionaries often had to travel all the way to Accra several times each year just to buy basic items that were not available locally.

But today, things are different.

The mall now includes stores like KFC, Pizza Hut, and other modern conveniences. Large grocery stores like Melcom and Anaji Mart provide many of the supplies that used to require long trips to the capital.

Ghana has made tremendous progress in development. Access to food, supplies, and basic goods has improved dramatically.

Of course, there is still room for improvement—especially when it comes to roads—but the progress is remarkable.

Seeing these changes firsthand is another aspect of experiencing missionary life in Ghana. Missionaries watch communities grow, develop, and change over the years, and they often witness the transformation of entire cities.

Pizza Hut in Ghana

While we were at the mall, we discovered that Pizza Hut was offering a buy one, get one free deal.

That sounded like a great idea to everyone, so we ordered four pizzas.

While we waited for the food to be ready, we did a little shopping inside Melcom. One urgent task was replacing Bro. Ruckman’s coffee maker, which had recently broken.

Now, I personally do not drink coffee, but everyone else seems convinced that I eventually will. Bro. Ruckman even joked that by the end of the year I would probably become a coffee drinker.

We will see about that.

After finishing our shopping, the pizzas were ready. We sat down and enjoyed lunch together.

The pizza was good—maybe not exactly like the Pizza Hut back in the United States, but certainly good for Ghana.

It was one of those funny little reminders that even familiar foods can feel different when you are overseas.

A Quick Trip to the Seamstress

After lunch, we had one more errand to run.

Bro. Prince, Danny, Bonnie, and I went looking for fabric to make shirts. Ghana has a strong tradition of tailoring, and it is common to buy fabric and have a seamstress create custom clothing.

We found some material that we liked and delivered it to the seamstress so she could begin working on the shirts.

With that finished, we headed back to the house.

A Creative Surprise for a Missionary

When we arrived home, I started working on a little surprise project.

Earlier that day, we had taken pictures of each of us holding the baby Martina Jacqueline. Since she had been named after Mrs. Jackie Siekbert, we decided to send those pictures to her.

Her response was immediate.

Her first message simply said:

“I am jealous.”

That gave us an idea.

I decided to create a picture where it looked like Mrs. Jackie herself was holding the baby.

I took one of Mom’s pictures holding the baby and carefully cropped Mrs. Jackie’s head from another photo. Then I blended the two images together so it appeared that Mrs. Jackie was the one holding Martina.

It took about three hours to get everything just right—but the result was worth it.

The finished image looked incredibly realistic, and it was a fun way to make her feel connected to a place and a family she had invested so much of her life serving.

Moments like this are another reminder that experiencing missionary life in Ghana is not just about ministry tasks. It is also about friendships that span continents and decades.

Preparing for the Next Days of Ministry

As evening approached, we began preparing supper and looking ahead to the next few days.

The schedule was about to become busy again.

Mom, Dad, Danny, and Bonnie would soon be traveling to Accra. They planned to leave Thursday and fly out of the country on Friday.

Meanwhile, I would remain here for a few more days.

Thursday would include more Fante language lessons, which have already proven both challenging and enjoyable. Learning the language is a critical part of connecting with people here and communicating effectively.

Friday night we will have a youth meeting, and I have been asked to give a ten-minute challenge during the service.

Then on Saturday, Bible Institute classes will begin.

That is where much of the real work of ministry training happens—teaching, discipling, and preparing the next generation of leaders.

And that is truly the heart of experiencing missionary life in Ghana: investing in people who will carry the Gospel forward long after we are gone.

If you would like to learn more about how young people can participate in this kind of ministry training, visit our page about the missionary internship program:
https://consfords.com/missionary-internships/