Lala ka n yeligu sheli din yiri n nol’ ni na gba ku labi n sanna yoli. Di ni tum n ni lo ni di tum sheli. Ka di nasara n ni tim li ni di ti tum shem puuni.

Isn’t that exciting? What are your thoughts about it? Do you agree or do you disagree? What? You say you cannot tell whether or not you agree until you understand it? Oh, all right. Try this translation.

“So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).

Isn’t that exciting? What are your thoughts about it? Do you agree or do you disagree?

Now that you know the sense of the words, you can ponder their meaning. You can choose to believe or to not believe them. (I hope and pray that you believe them.) These words are not just any words; these are the eternal Words of God which give light when they enter into the heart! Yet the first paragraph was totally meaningless to you unless you understand the Dagbanli language of northern Ghana. Even though it was God’s Word, it could profit you nothing unless it was in a language you could understand. It could not bring you to any point of decision to agree or to disagree because it was gibberish to you. By contrast, the third paragraph, the same verse from God’s Word in English speaks powerfully into your heart if your mother tongue is English.

I share this illustration with you to share a burden that is on my heart. We live among the Dagomba tribe which number approximately 800,000 and are predominantly Muslim. The illiteracy rate here is approximately 60%. For several years the Bible Society of Ghana ran a 15-minute daily program in which they read consecutive portions of the New Testament in Dagbanli each morning and broadcasted it from Tamale out across Northern Region Dagomba villages. This program was effective and thousands of Dagombas listened to it every morning. Remember that most of them are at least nominal Muslims and would never consider going to church. Yet because this broadcast was from one of the main Tamale transmitters, they listened to it attentively. This Good Seed of God’s Word slowly began having an effect on their lives. Some have confessed privately, “I know that the Bible way is the right way, but because of my family (peer pressure)…” Some have come forward with courage to embrace Christ and His cross. The peer pressure is not as strong in the villages as in the large towns and in the city of Tamale, yet Islam is also trying to strengthen its hold on the remote villages. Sadly however, about a year ago the Bible Society discontinued this program due to lack of funds. Airtime is very expensive.

I pondered this awhile and prayed about it and finally decided it was right to involve God’s larger family. One month of daily 15 minute broadcasts costs about $1500 to $1800. It is also quite likely that we wouldn’t have to foot the whole bill to restart the broadcasts. The Bible Society has other interested donors. However, this project feels too heavy for any one donor to carry. According to their general secretary, a significant contribution would probably be a signal to other interested contributors.

As you can drive through many small villages in Ghana on the dusty road and enter the village of thatched huts, the contrast of a big, brightly painted structure catches your eye.

“What is that building?” you ask your guide.

“That is just one of thousands of such buildings going up in villages all over Africa,” your guide replies. “You built it with your money.”

“I what???” you ask, dumbfounded.

“Yes,” he assures you. “You Americans are buying billions of dollars worth of petroleum from the Muslims and they are using the money to spread Islam all over the world. That building you see is a mosque, built with money from an Islamic Society in Iran.”

We who are Christians hold in our hands and hearts the eternal Word of God, the Sword of the Spirit, which is sharper than any two-edged sword. It will not return unto Him void. But it must be proclaimed. No doubt the optimal medium is to have a human messenger standing in every village proclaiming (and living!) the Gospel, but at the present time this is not happening. Until that happens, would you join us in prayer for the Dagomba souls? Would you pray specifically against the spirits of Islam and of witchcraft? Would you pray down the strongholds of fear of man? Will you also join us in praying that God will revive this project to daily broadcast His Word in the Dagbanli language?

“The entrance of Thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple” (Psalm 119:130).

Your fellow servant,
Ross Ulrich