“That from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus”.
2 Timothy 3:15
The above verse applied to Timothy’s salvation, and I think the same is true as far as my own salvation is concerned. I was born in Ghana, West Africa in 1971, and was born again in Canada in 1991. Growing up, I had the privilege of attending Sunday school in a local Pentecostal (charismatic) church where my father served as an elder. Also, the public school that I attended had Bible Knowledge (BK) as one of its subjects. Thus, I memorized many Bible verses as well as learned about many Bible characters for which I am thankful to this day!
I came to Canada in 1988 at the age of seventeen. Coming from a developing country like Ghana, I had planned to obtain a higher education. However, my plans did not work out that way. Perhaps the saying that “man proposes but God disposes” is somewhat true in my case. I found employment in a food manufacturing company as a summer student and continued working with the company for 13 ½ years. I worked during the day and studied part-time in different educational institutions near where I lived. I was able to obtain a diploma in computer programming at a private technical institute and certificates in a local community college.
In February of 1990, my brother and I walked into an assembly, and I witnessed the breaking of bread meeting for the first time. Although I wasn’t saved at the time, for some unknown reason I knew that was the place for me. I met several young people and quickly developed friendships with some of them. Among my new friends was a young man by the name of Roger Singh who had been saved from the Hindu religion. Through Roger’s faithful testimony and encouragement, I became aware that I was a sinner and needed to put my trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. In May 1991, I confessed my sins to the Lord, and He graciously saved my soul! I was baptized two weeks later June 2nd, 1991.
In November of the same year, Roger took me to the Toronto Missionary Prayer Breakfast. There I was especially challenged by the testimony of God’s faithfulness in the lives of two missionaries. I believe my interest in missionary work began at that prayer breakfast.
As I was contemplating on leaving my company which I considered to be a good job with a decent salary, including seniority (in a union environment), and benefits; the Lord showed me in several ways that He would meet all my financial and practical needs. I’ll mention one such example of the Lord’s faithfulness, perhaps to encourage someone who might be thinking of how the Lord would meet their needs if they obeyed His directives to serve Him full-time.
When I was baptized, Roger and his then fiancée Pam gave me as a present, a NIV Student Bible which I read through and studied diligently. I also had the New Testament portion of the Believer’s Bible Commentary by Bill MacDonald, but I was having some difficulties following the commentary as most of its references were from the New King James Version (NKJV).
Just then, two things happened that I thought would solve my problems. First, Gospel Folio Press was selling The New Scofield Study Bible in the NKJV. Second, Bill MacDonald released a whole Bible version of the Believer’s Bible Commentary. I purchased a copy of the commentary at a conference, but not the New Scofield Study Bible even though I could afford it. Somehow like Gideon (Jdg. 6:36-40), I wanted the Lord to buy it for me as a sign to me that He would take care of my needs if I returned to Ghana as a missionary. Shortly after I purchased the commentary, I found an envelope with my name written on it in my mailbox at Shoreacres Bible Chapel. Upon opening it, there was forty dollars in cash, but I had no idea who was the donor. In the weeks that followed, I found more envelopes with various amounts of money addressed to me and I kept all the money in one of the envelopes. Weeks went by and there were no more envelopes, so one day I phoned Gospel Folio Press to order a copy of the New Scofield Study Bible. When they told me, the total amount including a discount, plus shipping and handling fee, to my surprise, it came to be the exact amount that was in the envelope! The Lord had provided it ahead of time; I received the Study Bible on February 24, 1997. I have read it through and through several times, studied from it, preached from it, and it’s still my personal Bible today. The Lord is faithful indeed!
Over the years, I have come to appreciate “the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3). The Lord burdened my heart to take the same truth I had come to appreciate so much to my countrymen in Ghana. There was an urgent need for sound Bible teachers in that country. The saints meeting at Shoreacres Bible Chapel in Burlington, Ontario commended me for short-term missionary service to Ghana in 2000. I came back to Canada praying and seeking the Lord’s mind as to my returning there to serve Him in a full-time capacity. On January 27, 2002, the saints at Shoreacres commended me to serve the Lord in Ghana full-time. I arrived in the country the next month on February 6 and began meeting in an assembly format with five believers in the city of Kumasi. The Lord has saved several souls and added them to the assembly.
The charismatic movement is widespread in Ghana preaching confusing messages and offering salvation by good works. Thus, it was necessary to preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, teaching “the simplicity that is in Christ,” witnessing and distributing gospel tracts, visiting people in their homes, and sometimes offering Emmaus Bible Correspondence Courses.
I was married to Heather (Collyer) Frimpong in September 2004, and we began serving the Lord together in Ghana. The Lord worked through us to establish two assemblies in Kumasi (the only assemblies in Ghana). The Lord also blessed us with three children—Emma (14), Jesse (12) and Hannah (7).
Since the summer of 2019 we have been in Burlington, Ontario, Canada due to health issues in our family, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. Since we have been here, I have been preaching, teaching, and helping at our assembly, and giving missionary reports in many assemblies and missionary conferences. I’ve also been taking yearly a one-month trip to Kumasi to spend time with the believers there. On my last trip in 2021, I brought equipment with me that enabled us to set-up for Zoom meetings with the Adumasa assembly. Thus, I’ve been preaching from here and keeping regular contact with the believers there. Also, as per the advice of our commending assembly’s elders, I have recently taken full-time employment, as we are transitioning here to take care of Emma’s special needs and Heather’s ongoing health issues.