For many churches, another summer of Vacation Bible School has ended, and one U.S. church took its program abroad this year. A team from First Baptist Church, Oxford, Mich., traveled to Ghana to conduct VBS. In 2007, six teens from First Baptist, under the leadership of Deacon Dan and Anita Wells, went to Ghana to help organize Vacation Bible School in a church planted by John and Dorcas Abedu-Kennedy, missionaries First Baptist supports.

This year a team of nine returned to the Greater Accra and Central Region under the same leadership.

The first stop in the team’s 30-day ministry was Pastor Abedu-Kennedy’s church in Winneba. As the team taught VBS, the Lord brought great realization to many of the children; some wept as they understood that God is real, that they are sinners in need of God’s saving grace, and that Heaven and Hell are literal places. On the program’s most heavily attended day, 147 children were present. “The Lord moved among these souls, and about 30 decisions were made,” say Dan and Anita Wells.

Pastor John Abedu-Kennedy and laypeople from the Ghana church assisted the American team in counseling individual children. “It was truly a wonderful ministry, and how encouraging to see the Holy Spirit of God move in these hearts. Tears of joy have flowed from many of the teams’ eyes as we witnessed people coming to Christ, because of your sacrifices to make this ministry a reality,” the Wellses told Chris Hindal, director of GARBC International Ministries. Donations of RBP VBS materials sent by this missions arm of the GARBC made First Baptist’s ministry possible.

After concluding VBS in Winneba, the team traveled about 90 miles east to another ministry location in Cape Coast. There they held VBS that very afternoon as one large group, then divided the next two days into two sessions—one for the children, and another for the youth. The team stayed in Cape Coast for three days before heading to nearby Apam, where they ministered in the evening church service. Then there was one final stop on Monday morning before heading back to the states: a Liberian refugee camp. That final ministry was the most difficult on the team, as they were exposed to much greater poverty than what they had seen thus far.

Philippians 4:9 holds a special place in Anita’s heart: “The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” The God of peace was indeed with the First Baptist team as they demonstrated His love to children in Ghana. “I praise the Lord for the sensitivity of their hearts toward the children they have ministered to,” say the Wellses. “Praise the Lord for the souls that were saved for His glory.”