Looking up, looking down

rice fields
​Wes saw mile after mile of carefully cultivated fields full of rice (above)

Wes Bergen and his wife, Deborah, serve in Ghana, West Africa, with Mennonite Mission Network. Wes teaches at Good News Theological College and Seminary, and Deb works as a consultant psychiatrist with the Mobile Member Care Team. To read their original post, visit their blog.

In mid-August, I went to Bolgatanga, Ghana, up north near the Burkina Faso border. I was expecting to see a dry, brown countryside largely devoid of trees. Instead, I saw mile after mile of carefully cultivated fields full of rice, maize, millet, groundnuts, and other crops. Some of the millet and corn was close to 10 feet high.

And the trees were numerous and huge.

I also saw a church full of people eager to learn. We gathered twice a day (morning and evening) for three days, with sessions often lasting three or four hours. We walked through the stories of the Old Testament, from Genesis through Kings. Since they knew the basic stories, we got to spend time looking at the details of the more interesting bits. (I think all the bits are interesting, but not everyone agrees.)

Most of my teaching involves asking questions. We would read a passage (such as Genesis 3), and I would ask a question (Where was Adam when Eve was being tempted?). Students would then look up from the passage and tell me what they thought. Much of my teaching was to encourage the students to look down (back to the Bible) to find the answer there (see 3:6).

I don’t think the answers to all of life’s questions are found in the Bible, but I do believe that it is worth checking.