1 Peter 4:7 – 9 “The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear-minded and sober, so that you can pray. Above all, love one another deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without complaining. “
“Dr.! Uncle Bob! We can’t leave for Tamale! Big Man just got a phone call and there’s trouble in the North!” It was February 4, 1994. We had been in Accra for a week, buying drugs and medical supplies for the Assemblies of God Clinic, Saboba, the mission clinic where we were working. That morning we had the clinic vehicle loaded teo the hilt – the inside packed with drugs and supplies, and 4 LP gas bottles on the luggage rack on top of the vehicle. (We had no electricity in Saboba and we depended on gas refrigerators.) Now our driver was telling us that the day before, conflicts had broken out in several locations and that it was unsafe to travel to Saboba.
What we didn’t know at that point was that this news signalled the beginning of months of conflict in which people would die and numerous villages would be destroyed. We would be trapped in Accra for nearly two months, only returning to Saboba March 31, 1994. And it would be during that conflict that our small clinic with eleven workers was to be re – born as a bush hospital, Saboba Medical Centre. (Re-named as Assemblies of God Hospital, Saboba in 2015 and presently with 112 beds and more than 200 workers.) With no place else for Konkomba tribe members to go, we were the only safe hospital. We began operations and blood transfusions and other lab tests, using nurses to do basic screening procedures. Some of our staff came to us as refugees, having fled from other areas where it was no longer safe for them to live.
In case you are wondering why you heard very little about the Northern Ethnic Conflict of 1994, it’s because there was trouble in a place called Ruwanda at the same time. The problems there far outshadowed anything happening in northern Ghana.
The most amazing part of our experiences in 1994 was the response of Konkomba Christians health workers. Our staff cared for everyone who came, regardless of their tribal background. Our hospital was a safe place for anyone who came. In the most trying of times and under the worst of circumstances, our staff graphically demonstrated that love that covers a multitude of sins and hospitality that refused to complain.
Why is Peter making such a big deal about loving others and extending hospitality? The key statement is this: the end of all things is near. At the time Peter was writing this, Emperor Nero was beginning his reign of terror against Christians. Before it was over, Peter himself would be crucified and the Apostle Paul would be beheaded. Peter is advising his hearers that the time when they could play games and indulge in lust and orgies is over. They are facing eternity, and they must be able to pray. It is impossible to pray extensively with a mind fogged with drugs and alcohol. It is also impossible to pray with a mind twisted by hatred and obsessed with revenge.
This election year we are seeing and hearing vicious rhtetoric spewing out on all sides of issues. But Peter’s advice still stands. We must love one another deeply, so deeply that we remain unoffended by opposing political views. Elections come and go, but divisions within the Body of Christ will remain rooted in hatred unless and until Christians are willing to love deeply. How deep is your love?
PRAYER: Father God, help us to love as you love! Help us to love, forgiving others and opening our hearts and our homes to others. Let your love so fill our hearts and minds that others will be warmed by that love and want to know you, the one true living God. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
Leave a comment