Market Day

We left the monuments of Ghana’s first president, no more statues or fountains and it left me feeling a little like a man who had been looking out of prison being free at last.  One thing I’ve learned for sure about overseas travel:  If you are a person who has a way of doing things and expects it to always go your way you’ll never survive.  Life itself is filled with unexpected things the question is how will we react when it all happens.  I have learned to relish these challenges because I know that though it all may look orderly right now that can all change.  Peace is a valuable thing not because it happens randomly when everything goes our way but it sustains us in chaos. No place is it more necessary to hold onto your peace than at the local market in Accra.  Here you find various crafts and things that you can’t find easily elsewhere but to get these treasures you have to face very aggressive salesmen…you’d better have some Ghanaian friends to face the onslaught.  This menacing face seems foreboding don’t’ you think ?  Usually I’m a weapon fanatic when I go to such places and always it seems I end up with a dagger or two.  One thing I always notice about the Ghanaians is their hands…they have such beautiful hands.  Our son Mike has an interest in weapons too so it was no surprise when I found him posing like this in the nearby stall.  Lovely’s interests were more in accessories that could hold her camera equipment…in the end she opted for the black version of this bag.  Notice the symbol on the bag.  It means:  Gye Nyame which means:  Except God, I fear none.  Though I am interested in weapons I also like to see what else there is in the market.  I wondered what snake this skin came off of.  Our Nigerian friend Ade likes to find masks and there were plenty to choose from.  These spoons aren’t for eating but rather are symbols of prosperity.  Note the pebbles in the game on top of the drum on the left…that’s mancala…I used to know how to play that but I’ve forgotten.  I know for sure that if I had a house of my own in Ghana I’d have these sorts of things in it.  I love their crafts.  The problem often is that the wood splits when we bring it back to our dry climate.  There’s many amazing crafts that I would be interested in but I can fit only so much in the luggage.  The local salesmen can really ham it up to get a sale…just look at this guy!  Leaving the market we passed the Ghanaian version of the white house.  The heavy clouds never did drop any rain which really surprised me.  Ghana’s flag flew proudly in triplicate.  The state symbol showed two eagles togetherI thought of how God had brought our ministry (Eagle Ministries) together with my African brother who calls himself the Black Eagle.  All the weight of the trip before we left, the financial burdens etc.  fell away in the miracle of what I was seeing with my family right now.  Peace reigned even through the hard times.  The battle is always over our faith…no matter what it looks like:  financial troubles or physical problems…what ever we’re facing may be.  It still boils down to a struggle over our faith.  Peace can only be found in faith because without out it circumstance drives our feelings.  Once again I tell myself that I won’t be shaken by the circumstances I face because here again I see where God’s promise stands triumphant as it always has.