Discovering a Friend
Brittany Bedford shares about her Discovery trip
In the village of Wulugu, in the Northern region of Ghana, market happens every three days. Women with babies on their 
backs sell onions, tomatoes, beans and rice. Colorful cloth can be bartered for by the yard, and soap, notebooks and sandals are usually available too. Set under a giant tree for shade, market is an important social event.
My favorite part of market was buying wagazi, a fried cow milk treat, which tastes similar to cheese. In order to make a new friend and practice my Mampruli greetings, I bought from the same seller each time. Zeena cheerfully greeted me and taught me words like bench: ‘koka,’ spoon: ‘diriga,’ and bowl: ‘kuriga.’
Unexpected Company
After a few weeks I decided to follow a Ghanaian custom and visit Zeena’s home unannounced. She welcomed us and provided water. I learned she has three kids and her husband is a mason in Kumasi, a large Southern city. Zeena showed us how to make the wagazi and served us rice. Sometimes it was hard to communicate with her because of my small-small Mampruli and her little English, but we made do.
Because Zeena was my friend, I wanted to share the gospel with her in Mampruli, with my host mother’s help. I prayed for just the right opportunity to do so. Our last week Zeena visited us at our house, and I was able to share with her. I gave her a Mampruli New Testament and promised to pray that people from the church would visit her and explain more.
Taking it home
Sometimes I wonder if someone from the church met with Zeena? Then I am convicted about how rarely I witness to others at home. So my conviction about my friend Zeena is two-fold: first, to be faithful in praying for her and then to witness to those at home.
I have known I wanted to be involved in missions since I was young. When I learned about Wycliffe and its goal to translate the Bible for those who do not have it, I wondered if that was the area of missions God was calling me to. I am currently a Bible College student and I had to do an internship so I chose to go on a Wycliffe Discovery Trip to see what part of Bible translation would fit my gifts and interests.
I was excited to go on this 6-8 week Discovery trip overseas that connects participants directly with long-term staff and translation work in progress. The trip was just long enough to learn and put into practice language and culture acquisition skills through a visit to a translation project and a village stay. God taught me so much while in Ghana about patience, diligence in prayer, sacrificial giving and more. This Discovery Trip confirmed that I want to pursue Bible translation as my calling!
(Story by Brittany Bedford)
Find out more about Discovery Trips and hear about others who went on Discovery trips.