When God Used Sue and a Group of Women to Impact a Nation
Sue and I will celebrate 50 years of marriage on May
17 and during a recent time of prayer, I experienced a desire to share some
personal stories of God’s faithfulness to us through the years. Today I want to
share an incredible story of how God used Sue and a small group of women to impact an African nation.
It was the summer of 1984 and Sue had arranged to
accompany Daisy Osborn and a small group of women on a trip to Nigeria and
Ghana in West Africa. It was a very significant trip on different levels, especially
in Ghana where a military coup had just taken over the government when they
arrived.
Daisy and her husband, T. L. Osborn, had become very well known throughout Africa for the giant evangelistic crusades on that continent. Hundreds of thousands would attend these outdoor gospel crusades and thousands would dedicate their lives to Christ, and many would testify to having been miraculously healed.
Daisy was around 60 years old at the time and Sue was around 38. Sue considered it an honor and great opportunity to travel with this veteran minister and missionary. The scheduled itinerary had Sue flying to Houston where she would meet up with the group at Hobby Airport and they would all proceed from there to Nigeria and then Ghana.
But before I tell how God used them to impact nation of Ghana, I must tell the miracle of God's last-minute provision for the trip.
Sue had been advised to have at least $500.00 with her
in addition to her round-trip ticket. The day arrived for her departure, and
she only had 30 Canadian dollars. Nonetheless, she was at peace and held those
promises in her heart that God had given us that, “You have no lack.”
Since she needed to exchange her Canadian dollars into
U.S. dollars, we stopped at the bank on our way to the airport. As we stood in
line, I told Sue I would go across the street to the post office and pick up
our mail. I was blown away by what I found in our box.
In the mail was a totally unexpected envelope and in
it a check for over $400.00. I hurried back to the bank, arriving just as Sue
was stepping up to the cashier and handing her the $30.00 to be exchanged. I
handed the check to the cashier and said, “Add this to the amount for
exchange.”
Because the Canadian dollar was worth more than the
American dollar at the time, Sue received back more than the $500.00 she was
supposed to have with her. Hallelujah!
Interestingly, the check was from a Baptist church and
pastor in another city. He explained that they had just completed a conference
and they exceeded their financial budget for the conference, and he wanted to
send the excess to us. It was the right amount that came just at the right
time. Is that not a miracle!
After a time of ministry in Nigeria at a massive
church founded and pastored by Benson Idahosa (now in heaven), they made plans
to proceed to Ghana. It was at this point that Daisy advised the group that a
military coup had just overthrown the government in Ghana, and since it was tumultuous
and unknown situation, anyone was welcome to return home if they desired.
Everyone
agreed to continue to Ghana and when they arrived, it seemed there were
soldiers everywhere. Sue said they could hear soldiers marching during the
night outside their hotel rooms. The coup was led by a young army officer name
Jerry Rawlings who was now the acting president.
Daisy had scheduled a conference in the Parliament
building and the new government leaders allowed it to continue. Sue was one of
the speakers at this conference where they were able to encourage the people and
much joy and praise was expressed despite the political uncertainty of the
time.
During the conference, the new leader, Jerry Rawlings,
sent word that he would like to speak to Daisy “as a mother.” He was obviously
aware of the Osborns reputation and love for the African continent.
Daisy asked Sue and two other women to accompany her
to “the Castle,” the headquarters for the new regime. At the Castle, they were
served tea and treated as dignitaries while waiting for the new president to
arrive. Rawlings eventually arrived and they had a cordial conversation in
which Daisy talked to him and exhorted him about truly caring for the people of
his country.
She then asked Rawlings if they could pray for him and
he said, “yes.” Sue and Daisy and the others then laid their hands on him and
prayed, asking God’s blessing and wisdom for him and peace for his country
After the prayer, he asked Sue, Daisy and one or two
others to go on the state-run radio and address the nation. So, Sue shared the
Good News of Jesus with the nation of Ghana, all orchestrated by that Almighty
hand that guides the course of history and nations.
They did not realize it at the time, but something was
obviously unleashed by their presence, words, and prayers. It may have been a
year or so afterwards that we were elated to see an article in our Canadian
newspaper about the unexplained change that had come over the troubled nation
of Ghana. According to the article, peace had returned to the nation, the
economy was booming, and the harvests had been unusually good.
Yes, if we are available, God will arrange our paths
and use us to impact both individuals and nations for His name and honor.
It was also during this trip that Sue solidified a
friendship with Valarie Owen who was also a part of the group. Valarie, a gifted
Bible teacher and woman of faith, became a dear friend and ministry partner and
served on the board of God’s Word to Women until her passing in 2023.
Yes, as we approach our 50th wedding
anniversary on May 17, I am writing this series of articles remembering and reminiscing
about God’s faithfulness through the years. And as I said before, if there is
one testimony we would leave behind when we depart this world, it is
this: He has been faithful!
Drs. Eddie and Sue Hyatt are still active in ministry and their numerous books are available on Amazon and their websites at http://eddiehyatt.com and http://godswordtowomen.org. Of particular significance at this moment in history is Eddie's book, America's Reawakening, and Sue's book, In the Spirit We're Equal, which contains a message that "has the power to begin a mass movement from Islam to Christianity, beginning with the women."
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