Confessions of a Ghanaian Girl

Initially, I was quick to judge the Israelites for sacrificing their children to the god Molech. It seemed an incomprehensible and despicable act. However, with humility, I’ve come to see myself in their story. We are all human, and it’s a position of pride to believe we are somehow better than the characters in the Bible. Modern-day idols may not be physical sculptures, but they are just as powerful. They are the mindsets, values, and desires we place above God.

I’ve been asking God to reveal my own idols—the things I’ve willingly, and sometimes unconsciously, put before Him. Just like the Israelites, we don’t just worship these idols; we also sacrifice our children to them. This isn’t a literal sacrifice but a symbolic one. It means we sacrifice those things that are meant to be blessings to our lives and our bloodlines on the altars of our own self-made gods.

For me, one of the most persistent idols is societal acceptance. I’ve often found myself performing acts that don’t reflect my faith, such as choosing not to pray before a meal in public, just to avoid social discomfort. In those moments, I’m sacrificing the valuable act of blessing my food for the approval of others.

The Israelites sacrificed their children to Molech because they had forsaken God and deemed Him unworthy of worship. Similarly, we sacrifice our children—our own blessings and the blessings of others—to gain what we truly value. This might look like:

• Pushing our children toward careers that have nothing to do with their God-given purpose, simply for the sake of social status or respect.
• Remaining in toxic relationships or environments that cripple our spiritual growth because we are afraid of losing the status they provide.
• Refusing to rescue others from destructive situations because doing so would mean abandoning our own idols, even if it leads to their ultimate harm.

Ultimately, idolatry is choosing to be true to our self-made gods rather than what God desires for us. It’s a sobering reminder that we are all capable of putting something—or someone—before Him.

One of my favourite animated films is the 2016 American movie Sing. I love Sing not only for its music but also for the deeper message it carries. The film’s main character, Buster Moon—a determined koala—wants to save his beloved theater from closing down. The theater holds sentimental value for him because it was a gift from his father.

To save it, Buster comes up with an idea: a singing contest. Many twists and turns follow, and in the end, the contest cannot go ahead because the theater literally falls apart. But here’s the catch: what begins as a koala’s desperate quest becomes, for each character chosen for the contest, their own personal journey. Every contestant faces unique challenges, yet Buster’s idea brings them together, inspiring each to confront their struggles and reach their potential.

I’ve watched this film several times, drawn to both its music and the meaningful values it shares. But what I love most is this: even if an idea begins with me, it can become a spark for others—a chance for them to step into who they were meant to be. Even though the contest never took place, Buster found a tribe that helped him save his theater, and all of it happened because he pursued his idea despite discouragement from his only friend.

Sing reminds me that even when my ideas don’t materialize as I envisioned, or don’t deliver the answers I hoped for, pursuing them can still set off a chain of events and connections that lead me—sometimes by another path—to the destination I was meant to reach.

God has a way of calling people with no experience to projects and missions of great generational impact and importance. While the world requires experience for jobs and tasks, God operates differently. He recruits inexperienced people to handle tasks for which they have no prior training.

Often, our response is no because we focus on ourselves, our circumstances, and our skills, when we should be focusing on Him. We allow fear to cripple us, and we count ourselves out, detailing our disqualifications.

One thing we forget is that when God calls us, He does so because of Himself and His plan; it’s not really about us. Also, He doesn’t do things half-heartedly, or have incomplete projects or purposeless things. Everything He starts, He completes successfully! Everything He does has generational implications for His plans for us.

Our calling requires us to place our focus on Him and be assured that He will equip us with the skills, wisdom, and knowledge we need to accomplish those tasks. It’s a matter of trusting the One who called us instead of trusting ourselves. We have to walk into those terrifying places and tasks with one assurance: that He who called us will accomplish the task through us as we place our total hope in Him.

Sunday is Mother’s Day, a remarkable day to ponder and be grateful for the wonderful sacrifices mothers make. 

This time, I have chosen to dwell on just one of the many skills my mother taught me years ago that is still relevant for my daily life: cooking ☺️.

I am grateful to my mother for deciding to teach me how to cook and for successfully passing this skill on to me.  

Growing up, I often took for granted the many things my mother taught me or tried to teach me. Perhaps I assumed it was simply a mother’s default mode to impart wisdom.

Adulting, parenthood and life, however, have taught me some profound lessons. It is one thing to wish the best for your child, another thing to set goals to do the best for them and a totally different thing to put in the consistent effort, sacrifices and finances required to support your child in becoming the best he or she can be. Furthermore, it is another challenge altogether to have a child who is receptive to being guided and molded by their parent in the way the parent believes is best. 

Cooking is a fundamental life skill. That is why I am so thankful that my mother shared the knowledge she gained from her mother and her education with me. I believe she passed it on with the best intentions, hopeful that someday I would be able to use it to take care of myself and my family. 

It would be a complete lie if I said I had been an easy student for my mother, always listening and obeying. Mind you, gentle parenting was not a thing during my childhood days. My mother is a Ghanaian mother, with zero tolerance for disrespect and ingratitude. Sometimes I thought my mother was only using me to make her life easier, like making me do kitchen chores and cook for the entire family. Later, however, I realized it was a simple art of nurturing taking place. 

Cooking is much more than just mixing ingredients together. It cultivates an abundance of skills: planning (meal planning, choosing ingredients, budgeting, shopping, etc.), creativity and experimentation, problem solving (like ingredient substitution and adapting recipes), self-sufficiency, patience, resilience — the list goes on.

My mother provided an environment where I learned to try, fail, and try again and again. The first time I cooked for my family, I attempted rice and beans, a total experiment and disaster! What I learned that day was simple: beans take a much longer time to cook than rice. It is best to soak and cook the beans separately first. Even after serving my family that memorable dish of hard beans and overly soft rice, I was still allowed back into the kitchen. There, I continued to learn, experiment, fail some more — burning dishes, setting napkins on fire, breaking plates, serving saltless food, and overcooking meals. Yet, through it all, she persisted with her patient guidance.

That is why, today, I choose to thank God for her and for teaching me how to cook. Though my mother never used a cookbook, her method was more heart and people centered, freely passing on to me many valuable skills, all packaged within the art of cooking.  As I reflect on the lessons my mother imparted, I realize that this gift of hers to me was far greater — a foundation of resilience, love, and independence that continues to help me every day.

This Mother’s Day, I celebrate not only the meals shared but the lifelong skills and values she lovingly passed on, shaping who I am and who I strive to be. For that, I am endlessly grateful.

There is an Akan saying that translates to: “Character is like pregnancy, it is impossible to hide it forever.” Figuratively, time and moments beyond control will inevitably expose our true character. If we hide our character due to expectations or our need for favor, with time and in moments beyond our control, the walls and boundaries we put in place will be broken down to reveal our core selves.

The Unavoidable Revelation of Character

I have been giving a lot of thought to the concept of character development since a sermon I heard recently. The preacher told the true-life story of a renowned person who was so gifted that his talents won souls, healed the sick, and were a marvel to the church and beyond. However, with time and in moments that fell out of his control, his character, which he had not allowed God to truly develop through his relationships and community, led him to lose everything, including his marriage and position. He became very proud, refused to listen to advice, believing he was the smartest and most gifted. This life story blew me away. God placed every good thing in this man’s hands, yet that inner self or Christian character, to be specific, let all that was valuable slip through his hands.

Examining Our Inner Self: When Character Limits Us

Since hearing this message, God has nudged my heart many times to consider the many ways my character limits me from becoming who God created me to be. Traits like pride, entitlement, ingratitude, and deceit (just to mention a few bad character traits) can absolutely ruin the good things God sends our way, like friendships, family, and community. I am learning just how valuable good character is and how building that sort of character protects us from losing the gifts and people God brings into our lives.

The Ghanaian Meat Pie Analogy: Substance Over Appearance

Recently, I chanced on a Facebook reel of a lady making Ghanaian meat pies. A meat pie is a flaky savory turnover filled with spiced minced meat (usually beef) and vegetables, popular as a snack in Ghana. In the reel, the lady used thick dough but put little to almost no filling in the pies. Many comments expressed disappointment from picking up a pie with such a thick crust, expecting a generous filling, only to see an almost empty interior. Since I watched that reel, I found that very analogous to character. Because in the end, what counts is how well our inner selves have been enriched and equipped to handle times and moments that are beyond our control.

A hollow meat pie is an utter disappointment, especially when the crust looks so good on the outside. The truth is, it does not matter how much we cover ourselves in fake humility, educational degrees, prominence, gifts, or money. When those hard moments come knocking, what will make us endure and stand firm will be what we have built up on the inside.

Allowing God to Build Character: The Lifelong Process

From what I have learned in the past weeks, building good character is an ongoing process till we die. It cannot be marked as accomplished and simply moved on from. It is a process where God seeks to shine His character through us as much as we permit Him to do so. It is in our best interest to choose to be the rich meat pie, as the hawkers say – one filled with ample substance. When inevitably life slices us open, the character God has built within us will be revealed, a core that honors Him and blesses everyone around us. This is the essence of spiritual growth and true resilience.