Pray for Ghana

Here, strangers are welcomed as family — the vibrance of a Ghanaian greeting underscored by the colorful patterns of their clothing. Across the nation, community is important, and people treat each other with deep respect and compassion. People gather together for meals and community dances and celebrate each other’s company. Ghana’s North and South are so distinct that they almost seem like entirely separate nations. The fast-paced cities of the South enjoy better infrastructure, jobs, and schools, while laid-back northern villages have less access to resources, cars, electricity, and clean water.  Schools, roads, and economy are underdeveloped there, so many in the North lack material needs and proper education. Southern Ghanaians rarely travel North, and poor roads make travel difficult. Some northern Ghanaians are moving South for better job opportunities and sending money to their family up North.

Even in the South, Ghana needs economic, educational, and infrastructure development. The democratic government established in 1992 guarantees political rights and civil liberties, but ingrained corruption stalls national progress. Leaders pocket money allocated to development projects, leaving buildings half-finished for years. And every four years, newly elected leaders undo previous the party’s work, locking the country in place. While major highways are paved, most roads are cratered with potholes and eroded by seasonal rains. The nation also suffers from frequent power outages. Jobs are scarce, and many struggle to survive on an average wage of just $300 a month. To shield their savings from rampant inflation, many convert cash into physical assets like cement and steel rather than letting it devalue in a bank.

In the Christian-majority South, many churches are Bible-believing, but a large percentage capitalize on people’s greed for personal gain. Ghanaians call them “one-man churches.” Promising financial gain, prayer, and consolation, pastors will exact payment from people, leading the vulnerable astray as they put their hope in unbiblical practices. These churches have led non-believers to criticize the Church as a whole. Even among the Bible-believing churches, southern Ghanaians lack a vision for bringing the Gospel to the predominantly unreached North. Missionaries are working to change that. There is also a growing opportunity for Muslims and idol worshipers from the north to hear the Gospel as they migrate south for better jobs, and Muslims and Christians typically share their beliefs with peace and love. However, idol worshipers’ beliefs run deep, and they often struggle to fully accept the Gospel and burn their idols for fear that they will be struck dead.