Weekly Scoop (14 March)

NEWS UPDATES

Easter Sunday--Messages of Hope

Andre hadn't been able to lift his right arm since he was six years old! After he was badly burned more than 30 years ago, Andre had almost given up hope of ever moving his arm and neck freely. Then a total stranger paid for Andre to travel to the Mercy Ship to be assessed for surgery. Andre's flickering hope was fulfilled, and his healing is wonderful to behold. With physiotherapist Tracey Merril (USA).

Each Easter Sunday dawns with the Africa Mercy crew members gathering, reflecting on the immeasurable hope given to us this day. We ponder the transforming power of Christ and thank God for his healing of our patients.

Nearly all of our goiter patients have returned home after being freed from the deforming growths from their necks. Among the 51 patients that received restorative surgery was Vaviroa, who could not wait to return home and show everyone that her burden had been lifted!

What's Jocelin thinking about? Maybe he's thinking about what adventures the big white ship has inside? Or perhaps Jocelin is excited for his admissions appointment and his surgery the next day and wonders what he'll look like without the massive cyst on his face and neck.

See the "Patients Update" section for more information on Jocelin and what he looks like today!

"When the world says give up, Hope whispers ... try it one more time." -Anonymous

As we celebrate Easter, we remember the hope offered by a Mercy Ship beginning a new field service as thousands flock to receive much needed medical evaluation and possible specialized surgeries. We look forward to our next field service in Benin beginning August 2016 and the hope and healing that the Africa Mercy will bring to many people there!

PATIENT UPDATES

Albertine's Finish

Albertine's journey with Mercy Ships began over 14 months ago when she attended a screening in Mahajanga in January 2015. Carrying the burden and pain of a tumor that grew from her jaw, Albertine had desperately searched for a solution that would remove her tumor and allow her to continue supporting and raising her children.

After successfully removing her tumor last field service, Albertine returned this field service to have a new jaw fashioned for her. We have grown to love her smile and wonderful spirit. Although it is tough to say goodbye to her, we are excited to return her to her husband and two children physically restored and eager to embrace the future.

Thank you very much to Mercy Ships for the help they are doing in Madagascar by giving free surgeries to people! -Albertine

Jocelin's Joyful Journey

Over the last 18 months Jocelin's father, Jean Paul, struggled to understand the growth emerging from his son's face and neck. It first showed itself as something small just before Jocelin's 11th birthday, but within a few months it was so large that Jocelin began hiding it with a scarf, embarrassed by the deformity. When Jean Paul heard about Mercy Ships he knew it was his only hope for his son.

In the last week, Jean Paul's hope became reality as volunteer surgeons aboard the Africa Mercy removed the cyst filled with nearly one liter of fluid. No longer will Jocelin be embarrassed by his cyst and hide behind a scarf!

PRAYER REQUESTS

Unsung Heroes

Near the Africa Mercy chain locker, on one of the lower decks near the bow of the ship, an amazing group of people work strategically to support the Mercy Ships hospital from behind the scenes. Please join us in prayer for their vital detailed work, and pray for others to be inspired into action through information and the data they gather.

Some manage the logistics behind our patients' experiences, others oversee numerous details to assist local health care training, while others track statistics and reporting during each field service. Together they provide information and planning that allows our healthcare and mentoring work to be targeted, accountable, and measurable.

A New Hope

A new group of OBF patients arrived on the Africa Mercy this past week. Our OBF ward is full of ladies who have recently had their fistulas closed. Soon these ladies will move off site to our OBF clinic to continue their healing. Will you pray with us that these ladies will experience full restorative healing over the coming weeks? 

CREW BIO: Dr. Sherif Emil (USA/Canada)

For most people the path to study medicine would not include a trip through engineering school but that's exactly where Dr. Sherif Emil began his career.

After growing up in a family of doctors, Sherif thought he would like to try something different and carve his own path. He completed an undergraduate engineering degree before coming to the realization that he really did want to pursue medicine.

"I like the personal aspect [of medicine], I like the interaction and I like the human aspect of it." 

That change in career path would lead him to specializing in pediatric surgical medicine in the United States and Canada and eventually would bring him to Mercy Ships. After accepting a position on the Canadian Mercy Ships board in September 2014, Dr. Sherif began preparations to visit the ship as a volunteer surgeon. Recently those plans came to fruition and he was able to experience the joy of serving in the operating theatre aboard the Africa Mercy. 

He shares: "There is such a great sense of fellowship in the OR here. Where I work [in Canada] there is no room for error, which is great, but there is also a very narrow margin for tolerance and I didn't feel that here. We're not here alone, God's here working with us and you fill it in the most profound ways. I've operated in many places in Africa, including university hospitals and the resources there are nowhere near what this ship has to offer in terms of medical care." 

Dr. Sherif was most impacted by a case involving a five month old baby, named Paulinah, who had the largest teratoma he had ever seen growing from her buttocks. Despite the number of obstacles htat stood in the way of the baby's survival, Dr. Sherif was impressed how Paulinah had chosen to live. In addition, Dr. Sherif was amazed by the care she received. 

Photo: Paulinah [Read Dr. Sherif's article on the surgery here.] 

Paulinah's case was the highlight of Dr. Sherif's visit but he was also touched by the care he saw after the baby's surgery. 

"This is a difficult patient to take care of (because) you have huge incisions that need to heal. (You have to) keep the area clean and to keep the wound from getting infected takes a lot of work. This baby recovered without the infection. It was a testament to the incredible amount of care and compassion the nurses showed this patient and every patient." 

Dr. Sherif was impressed by the unique nature of a hospital ship providing the best specialized surgical care possible in the developing countries in Africa.

"The Africa Mercy is unique," he says. "There is no other way of providing surgery globally that comes close to what this ship does because of the way it organizes itself, integrates itself and the way it leaves something behind when it's gone."

"The ship is making a difference in the lives of families and communities. We had a saying when you save a child, you're not just saving a life, you're saving a lifetime and there a lot of children that receive that treatment on the ship."

Weekly Scoop (7 March)

NEWS UPDATES

OBF Update

We're passed the halfway mark in our OBF program and nearly 200 women have received free surgeries aboard the Africa Mercy. Many have returned home completely restored while others continue to pursue full physical healing. No matter their final result, these women have experienced the power of community and unconditional love at Mercy Ships land-based OBF Clinic. With 10 weeks to go in our surgery schedule, we look forward to many more women receiving their healing!

PATIENT UPDATES

Lalao's Grateful Heart

Losing her job because of her appearance was devastating for Lalao. The goiter made her neck very thick and she wore a scarf to cover the lump at the base. Lalao's hope was fulfilled when she was offered free surgery on the Mercy Ship, but her condition required frequent pre-operative checks and blood tests. This meant travelling for nine hours each way, each time, each month. Without a steady job it was difficult to find transport money and sometimes she had to borrow. When she received news that she was ready for surgery Lalao sold the last of the family chickens to buy a bus ticket to the coast.

Lalao's beaming grin reflects her grateful heart. "The most important thing is that the goiter is gone and I'm healthy! I look in the mirror and I'm amazed each time! I'll be able to go back to work and pay back what I owe." 

Serafine

Like so many of our patients, arriving to the Mercy Ship was a whole world of new experiences for Serafine. The 54 year-old farmer's wife had been told by her children about the free goiter surgeries being offered after they saw a local Madagascar news programme about the ship's work. 

"I had no money for surgery. I'm really, really happy and thank God for sending Mercy Ships with the free surgery," she says. "I had never heard of a hospital on a ship before. I was not afraid. God gave me this solution. Thank you for coming to Madagascar and taking care of us."

PRAYER REQUESTS

Healing for Plastics Patients

It began with a surgery to release a contracture but two months later some of our plastics patients are still in the middle of their healing. They've endured countless bandage changes, hours of physical therapy and overcome infections. Will you join us in praying for their final steps of their journey towards healing?

OBF Surgeries Resume

After a brief pause in between surgeons, OBF surgeries resumed this week as we welcomed a new group of ladies for evaluation. This past Tuesday was International Women's Day and as the ladies were seen by the surgeon, they also had the job of a surprise luncheon celebration. We lift these ladies up in prayer as we watch them take their first steps in their journey towards hope and restoration.

CREW BIO: Elizabeth Harter (USA)

Nurse Elizabeth Harter describes being deeply touched mid-shift in the Africa Mercy B Ward. She noticed the room full of patients got up and gathered around a child's bed. She heard one of the patients ask Grandma, the patient's caregiver, if they could pray for the child who had developed medical complications. The group of all ages, sporting a whole range of bandages themselves, joined hands and prayed for the child's recovery.

"In that moment you know you haven't just helped them physically, you have made an impact spiritually too," reflects Elizabeth.

Elizabeth heard about Mercy Ships when she was in high school, but she never considered volunteering until her graduation from nursing school. She was looking for mission opportunities that would include a chance to build relationships over a period of time with the people she was serving. When she came across Mercy Ships she thought, "This is it! This is what I wanted!" The more she learned, the more excited she got. 

"It's so evident that God is working through this. I wanted to be a part of it!"

So the orthopaedic trauma nurse from Nashville, TN signed up to serve with the Africa Mercy for the complete ten-month Madagascar II field service. The mission has impacted her so much that she is seriously considering extending her voluntary work for the next field service beginning in August in Benin. 

"I'm an extrovert! I love the constant hum of people and the community," she says. "I love being surrounded by everybody. Being here with the same mind and purpose bonds us in a special way."

One of the big surprises for Elizabeth was the depth of involvement Mercy Ships has with the host nation. She was aware of the surgical work, the dental and healthcare services that are provided, but the scope of Medical Capacity Building was a new concept. She has grown to appreciate the lasting impact of supporting growth in the healthcare system.

"It allows the work of Mercy Ships to continue helping people long after the ship has gone," she observes. "What is most impressive to me is that Mercy Ships cares not just about their impact but about the people and the country too." 

As hard as Elizabeth will find it to say goodbye to Madagascar and so many friends at the end of her 10 months serving its people, she is also really excited about heading back to West Africa. "It seems like a different kind of heartbeat." 

Weekly Scoop [29 February]

NEWS UPDATES

Goiter Program

Goiter operations are an annual feature on the ship's surgical calendar. Already 41 patients have received thyroid treatment and goiter surgery during this field service, with another 10 people scheduled before general surgeries are completed. 

Commonly goiters are prevented by an additive to salt. Processed salt has an important added ingredient--iodine--which our thyroid glands need to function normally. However most Malagasy use a locally sourced salt; they don't buy it processed from a supermarket. Madagascar is historically iodine deficient, and some regions produce an unusually high number of goiter cases. This is guessed to be a combination of environmental and genetic causes.

Hopital Be Renovations

"Paul Farmer is quoted as saying: 'Surgery is the forgotten stepchild of sustainable development in the developing world.' Mercy Ships provides training on purpose, we call it capacity building. The goal is to increase the level of healthcare delivery in the country so it is far stronger after we leave." 

-Don Stephens, Founder of Mercy Ships

Hospital Chaplains Encourage Patients

Music speaks what cannot be expressed

Soothes the mind and gives it a rest

Heals the heart and makes it whole

Flows from heaven to the soul

-Author Unknown

We are so thankful for our hospital chaplaincy team that come and bring our patients hope every morning through songs and words of encouragement!

Thank You!

Thank you to our donors for your support in bringing hope and healing to the world's forgotten poor!

PATIENT UPDATES

Lalao's New Look

Lalao lived for 13 years with a goiter--a developing growth in her thyroid. Eventually she could no longer turn her head or breathe easily lying on her back. But the biggest impact was the loss of her desperately needed job simply because of her appearance. The relatively simple, free, goiter operations she received on the Mercy Ship brought immediate change for Lalao. She can't wait to show her family--and get back to work!

Serafine's Chance

What began as a small lump in Serafine's neck grew over 34 years until she looked like she had swallowed an orange. People would laugh at her deformity, so she wore a scarf around her neck in public, despite the intense Malagasy heat. Five years ago, the goiter finally prevented Serafine from bending to work in the family's rice fields. Consulting a doctor was too expensive, so she visited a traditional healer. He charged a lot of money for bogus treatments and then left her in the same condition. She was out of options until she heard about Mercy Ships.

Free from her burden at last, Serafine says, "I had no money for surgery. Thank you for coming to Madagascar to take care of us. I am really, really happy and thank God for sending Mercy Ships."

PRAYER REQUESTS

With just a few months to go there is still quite a bit of healing happening aboard the Africa Mercy. Will you join us in praying for our patients as they reach the final steps of their journey? Also please continue to keep our crew in your prayers that they can continue to stay healthy to finish strong the mission in Madagascar. 

Weekly Scoop (22 February)

News Updates

International Women's Day

In recognition of International Women's Day, we celebrate our women's health patients, who have pursued healing despite great obstacles. These ordinary women have shown extraordinary courage after suffering from rejection and loss. We celebrate these beautiful women and their journeys!

Don Stephens Visits the Africa Mercy

"According to the Lancet Commission on Global Surgery, 5 billion people on the face of the Earth lack access to safe, secure, and effective surgery. That statement alone explains why Mercy Ships exists." -Don Stephens, founder of Mercy Ships

Fun Deck 7 Time

Four year old Sasimeny is a plastics patient currently recovering from surgery to restore function and mobility to her right arm. About a year ago, Sasimeny fell onto ash causing a severe burn contracture where she lost function of her right hand and her arm was unable to bend. Her playful attitude and wide eyes make her a favorite among nurses and visitors when spending time outside on Deck 7 each day.

"The development and growth of Mercy Ships has one key element: people. The quality of people, their call, their commitment, they share a common vision and purpose, that's the reason for the growth of Mercy Ships." -Don Stephens

Patient Updates

Elina's New Hope: This girl is getting more and more excited with each passing day. Elina's burn grafts have taken nicely and her wounds are hurting less and less. This has given Elina more time to focus on making friends and just being six. Elina's mama now has new hope for her daughter's future! It is thanks to donors and volunteers working together that Elina's future is looking bright!

Sasiline's Love: Sasiline loves the patients' daily excursion to Deck 7 for fun and fresh air. A month ago the burn scars that immobilized her elbow and hand were released by surgery. Then last week she received a skin graft from her thigh to restore her arm and hand. Nurse Monica Ciolfi is one of the fabulous nurses helping Sasiline along the challenging raod to complete healing. #followSasiline 

Elvie Throwback: Before. Elvie was born with a clubbed foot, which made her different from the other children. But despite that difference, Elvie's mothers, family, and village showed her love and support. "Regardless of her clubfoot, she is my daughter and I love her!" said Elvie's mother. But when they heard about Mercy Ships, Elvie's family knew this was her once chance to fix her foot so she could be like the other girls and go to school and get married. 

Elvie's Casting: After a surgery to straighten her foot, Elvie was in a cast for several weeks. Every time Elvie came in for a cast change they were amazed by how perfectly white her cast remained over the previous week. Elvie's mother said she wanted to do everything right so her daughter could be fully healed.

Elvie's Rehab: After weeks of casting, Elvie began physical therapy exercises. Physical therapy was fun work for Elvie who enjoyed the games. And sometimes Elvie's physical therapy sessions ended with a dance party! 

Elvie's Transformation: "I am so proud of her beautiful face and smile. We are so happy...happy because my daughter will now be like other children!" -Elvie's mother

Prayer Requests

Fifaliana's Prayer: Fifaliana and her mother had mixed emotions this week. While one of Fifaliana's legs is now completely healed and straight, the other leg is not quite whole yet. in characteristic strength of spirit, this tiny ten-year-old resolutely stepped out with a new light-weight fracture brace on one leg, and another glitter-sprinkled cast on the other. A new series of rehab begins as she relearns to walk, and continues to strengthen muscles that her previous disability prevented her from using. 

Will you join us in praying for Fifaliana and our other patients undergoing physiotherapy? They need both patience and determination to learn to move their bodies in new ways after their reconstructive surgeries.  

Crew Bio: Laura McDonald (USA)

Nurse Laura McDonald from Missouri USA refuses to let language be a barrier between her and her Malagasy patients on board the Mercy Ship. 

Recently changing the would dressing of one young woman, Laura describes the tears that were rolling down her patient's cheek as she gently worked. Laura looked deep into her patient's eyes and asked through the translator, "Am I hurting you? Is everything OK?" The young woman replied through her tears, "No, no it doesn't hurt. Thank you so much for caring for me--I can see it in your face!" 

Laura says she has learned to become increasingly conscious and comfortable with non-verbal communication in all her role as a Mercy Ships nurse entails.

Itw as on social media at nursing school that Laura first learned about Mercy Ships. When a friend returned from serving six weeks on board, Laura decided this was definitely something she wanted to do in the future. "It was one of my dreams," she recalls. "I wanted to use my skills as a nurse in some capacity. I really like [the Mercy Ships] vision; going to really poor countries where people would never have opportunity for surgeries, and providing them for free. It lines up with how Jesus helped the poor, and it really stuck with me." 

The nurses in her ward are from a broad mix of nationalities. While English is the professional working language they all hold in common, she says terminology can be a challenge. Despite people being from all over the world, she says they work well together as a team. "We support and encourage each other, which makes a difference when we are working towards a common goal. Also, not being paid pulls us together. We're all determined to make a difference, and to make our time count." 

Cross-cultural communication turned into a significant learning curve for Laura as she goes on to describe the comradery she shares with the Canadian, Dutch, and French women in her six-berth cabin. "It's good to live in community and have close relationships with people. It shows you things about yourself that don't show up when you're living on your own.

"Being here helps me to see I have a big capacity to love people," Laura reflects. "Even one person makes being here worth it!" 

Weekly Scoop

I am going to change the name of this blog to www.KatieWillPostOnceinaBlueMoon.blogspot.com. Sorry about that folks. I've opened up to write I don't know how many times but the words just don't come. 

My first of only 2 blog posts this field service was a short poem (if you can call it that) called "Stretch". Reading back over it, I can definitely say that everything in that poem has been true at one point or another. It has undoubtedly been a year of growth. I've thought back to it many times. But it's hard to find the appropriate words to unleash into the limitlessness of the internet. I keep coming back to a blog post and I think soon I'll be able to share something personally but until then, I thought I would start taking advantage of this great resource that our communications team gives called The Weekly Scoop. The Weekly Scoop is a weekly collection of news items, patient updates, prayer points and features a crew biography. Photos and captions are both handled by our photographers and writers on board. To be honest, I had this idea back at Christmas time and I just haven't done anything about it yet. My own fault. 


I like it because it gives a much better idea of what's going on in the hospital that I could ever hope to do. I'll be posting these every week but this will be the only time I announce it on Facebook; after this time I will only post to Facebook when I've written something on my own. 

So without further ado, here is the weekly scoop from the week of February 15th (they are posted a week after the fact so that Mercy Ships has the opportunity to use it for organization-wide marketing efforts without timing and releases being affected.) 

News Updates

Plastics Update

Our reconstructive plastic surgery program is in full swing. Heading into the last week of surgeries, already 60 children and 36 adults had received complex plastic surgeries. Many of these procedures restored joint function for patients whose limbs or neck had been frozen by burn scarring. It is a great joy to see children who arrived fearful and in pain, now rushing around the wards giggling and playing. Although surgeries are nearly done, there are still many more weeks of rehabilitation and recovery ahead for our courageous patients and their supportive nurses and physical therapists! 

Biomedical Graduation

These six men represent hope for safer surgeries in Madagascar. This is the first graduating class of professionally trained biomedical technicians in the country after successfully completing an intensive four month course led by Medical Aid International in partnership with Mercy Ships. Biomedical technicians are instrumental in maintaining all hospital equipment functioning properly, particularly operating room equipment, which is vital to conduct safe surgeries. Tim Beacon, founder of Medical Aid International, shared the following words: "Your work over the last few months has been a journey. This is the beginning of a journey for a lot of people. [You] are the seeds that will grow the biomedical program in this country." 

Patient Updates

Lantosoa

Lantosoa looks like any other Malagasy teenager--until your gaze reaches her feet. The bubbly 14 year-old refuses to be phased by the contrast between her ordinary-sized left foot and her right. She loves to play hop scotch and soccer/football. She skips rope and walks to school each day. But none of these everyday activities are easy as "Lanto" resolutely carries the huge weight of a foot afflicted with gigantism.

A friend of Lanto's sister told their family about Mercy Ships treating conditions like this, with no charge. So Lanto, along with her sister, bravely travelled to have her foot examined. Now Lanto is on the Africa Mercy on a journey to find hope and healing and potentially wear shoes for the first time!

Elina 

A tragic situation led to six-year-old Elina suffering from third degree burns on the right side of her face, neck, and arm. Her mother, Charlotte, came to Mercy Ships to ask for help in restoring her daughter. As a single mother, she could no longer afford to provide the medical care her daughter urgently needed. Mercy Ship donors and volunteers renewed Elina and Charlotte's hope for the future by offering her access to immediate medical care as well as a free surgery to restore Elina's mobility in her neck and arm.

Prayer Requests

Prayer for Albertine

Albertine has had a long healing journey. She first came to Mercy Ships in January 2015. After a free surgery to remove the facial tumor that burdened her for so long, Albertine returned home where she was reunited with her husband and children. She needed time to recover before a second surgery would complete her physical restoration. It's taking Albertine a little longer to heal from her latest surgery. Will you join us in praying and showing lover for this courageous young woman? 

Crew Bio: Elizabeth Lefeber (USA)

Nursing on this floating hospital has been a goal of Elizabeth's for half of her life. During her early teens in Wisconsin, Elizabeth was deeply inspired by the novel The Dangerous Voyage Reel Kids Adventures) by Dave Gustaveson. In the story, the teenage characters had an adventure that brought them on board the Anastasis, our first Mercy Ship. Elizabeth's heart was captured by the idea of serving the poor and she set her mind to pursue a career in nursing. "I wanted to be a part of that," she reflects. "Mercy Ships remained in the back of my mind all the way through college. When I made contact regarding opportunities during nursing school, I found I Needed to have to years' experience after graduating. So I talked with a friend on crew, I stalked the website, and I read the blogs of people serving. Then I waited until I had enough experience to apply. Elizabeth gained that experience in working in a surgical rehabilitation center in Illinois. "Everything worked out in God's timing," she says, regarding her five year wait. In late December, she arrived for her two-month voluntary service. "My eyes teared up when I first saw the ship. When our bus pulled up I was shocked and full of joy. I'm so glad to be here!" 

Serving with the admission team in Madagascar has been all Elizabeth hoped it would be. "I love it! I love getting to meet and welcome our patients. Sometimes they are nervous and sometimes they are excited. Their medical problems have completely affected their lives. This is their hope. I especially love to walk the patients (as they embark for their surgery) up the gangway. Professionally I have learned a lot about different conditions; things I hadn't experienced before. My first patient was a little girl with (the flesh eating disease) NOMA. Her whole face was disfigured. We had talked about it as a team a few days earlier. It is surreal that this still exists. Cleft lips and tumors too, on people who are so much older. You would never see that in developed countries. Yet these people have and manage it all their lives. They still work--this is their normal." 

Elizabeth believes she will go home having witnessed surgical work that transforms our patients, transforms their families, and their communities. 

About Face

Beware: this blog is full of nothing but Katie’s thoughts; a somewhat scary place to be. No pictures or fun stories to be had. You have been warned! 

Like usual, all has been quiet on the blog front. It’s not that there’s nothing going on—on the contrary, life has pretty much been going non-stop. I don’t bother feeling the Monday blues any more because if I just blink it will be Friday again. I just haven’t been too sure what to write about.

My office shares a wall with the gangway so I have a pretty good view of who comes and goes each day. Today, orthopedic surgeries started and so last week I got to see parades of adorable children making their slow way down to deck 3. Give those kids a few weeks though and they will be tearing around creation on straight legs. Today I went down to the hospital to get the serial number off of a refrigerator (yes, my job is really random sometimes) and a line of patients with tumors—some small, others bigger—walked by on their way back outside; they were getting screened and (hopefully) scheduled for surgery. As I peeked into the ward to see if I had permission to come in, a child that I’ve never laid on eyes on before saw me and started waving frantically at me with the biggest grin on her face.

Those moments are just incredible. When I come face-to-face with a patient’s life that is being drastically changed, the small difficulties of my day melt away. 

But while those patients are ultimately the reason that Jordan and I are here, and for which we feel incredibly privileged, they are not that ones that are in my primary circle of concern. It’s a blessing to get a glimpse into that healing but that’s not what most of my days are made of. I’m here to serve the crew and I feel specifically called to do so. (Aside from knowing that I’m not called to serve on the “front lines” in the hospital, I am perfectly happy up on deck 5, thank you very much. I’ve heard some nurse’s stories and I will take potatoes and mops over blood and guts any day!) 

Like most jobs, the days I tend to remember when it’s time to sit down and write aren’t the ones that did go perfectly but the ones that didn’t. The stressful days where I didn’t feel good enough, didn’t get even half of my to-do list done, had hard conversations and overall felt like a fool. For one reason or another though, it’s not entirely appropriate for me to share those days, both for the content and because it would be impossible to try to get my feelings across accurately. On the flip side though, it doesn’t seem fair to you to just post pictures of sun shine and Presidents visiting and making new friends from all over the world because that’s not an entirely accurate picture either. 

So I’ve been thinking about this long overdue post for several weeks completely stumped on what to write. I wanted to be honest and let you know how I’m really doing but I couldn’t figure out how. 

Then last week I had what I like to refer to as a “smack-down” moment with God. You know, a moment where you know that God said “uh-uh”, snapped his fingers in a z-formation and told you to where to get off? I did an about-face earlier this week and it hit me that I’ve had lots of those moments on this crazy ship! I have been changed just as much as some of those patients. I have no doubt that’s part of the reason God brought me here—to work on my heart. So why not share? 

Time for a little vulnerability.

This ship community life is intense. What often gets quoted is working, playing, and living literally right on top of each other and the challenges that brings. But did you know that it’s incredibly easy to judge in this environment? I can judge how healthy you eat just by the line that you hop into at lunch. I can judge where you go in the evenings just by walking out to the gangway and see where you signed out to. I can walk through the port and see who’s at the bar and make an automatic judgement. I can go to the crew bank to get some cash out and look at the list above me to see who was just in there and make a judgement. I can happen to be walking by the chaplaincy office, see someone duck in and make a judgement about why they’re there. I can get an email from someone and read it while completely missing the spirit in which it was sent—and make a snappy judgement. In my job, there’s a lot of public areas that I officially oversee and it’s hard to shut my judging mind off over the weekend (not that I really should anyways) when I go to do my laundry and I see someone breaking one of the 400 rules in there. Or when I go walk through a hallway and see a mug that someone left on a railing instead of returning it to the dining room. Those things technically do concern me but I’ve been dismayed at how easy it is for me to pass judgement on the action—without even knowing who was behind it. 

As I wrote those examples I could sense the awkwardness of hitting “publish” on this blog and letting those confessions out in the open. But I’m being honest—it’s really that easy for me.

Over the last several weeks, I have been exhausted as I dealt with people that I judged. Once I pass judgement on someone, it is so. very. hard. to give that person a clean slate. And from judgement it’s a slippery slope to gossip, which is even harder to get out of. 

Then last week, two things happened that made me step back. The first was when I was praying for a friend, which is generally a good thing, right? I was praying for something specific for this friend, and it was not a “bad thing” that I was praying for. In fact, I can guarantee that God would have no problem with me asking for this particular answer to prayer. But in the middle of my prayer, I was interrupted with the simple command: 

STOP. It is not your job to ask for that. It is your job to pray that your friend draws closer to Me. I will take care of the rest because I know best in that life. 

Yikes. 

Then later on in the week, I was involved in an activity where I was interacting with someone that I had formed my own private judgment about. During this activity I was really struggling to concentrate and couldn’t stop the nagging feeling that I was still judging. I prayed silently that God would take those judgements away—basically so I could have peace and enjoy myself—and He replied with: 

STOP.  This is bothering you so much and there is literally nothing you can do to fix it. You don’t have the influence over them that I do; after all, this is my child. It is your job to pray that this person would draw close to me—and then trust me to take care of the rest. Their journey will look different than yours and there is nothing wrong with that. You be confident in the journey that I called you on and leave their journey to me, the Map-maker. 

Again, this was someone that I felt righteously justified in judging, although as I type that sentence I realize how stupid it sounds. It blew my mind that God could take two separate incidents where no one would have begrudged me for the opinions I had and left me speechless at my own audacity.

As if I needed any more convincing, the sermon in church on Sunday (delivered by the amazing Nick Cash) was about shutting down gossip amongst ourselves.

Allllllrighty then. I get the picture. 

So speak and act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgement. -James 2: 12-13

A positive bit of homework for myself that I’ve taken away this week: I realized that a lot of judgements that I make come out of seeing things that I don’t agree with because of personal convictions. What is the journey that God has called me on? What are my beliefs/standards and where do the values behind them come from? How can I shine my Light if I’m silent? Is it fair to judge someone who has no idea that I hold a different standard if I’ve never made that clear? Still mulling on what that one means for me … but for now, good night from this side of the International Date Line. 

Stretch

Mada II

I’m ready for this year and I’m not.

I’m excited for it and I’m dreading it.

Whether or not I would make the same choices to get here remains to be seen.

But whether or not I will look back with gratefulness is entirely up to me. 

There will be moments when I’m overwhelmed

And there will be moments when I feel made for this.

There will be days when I see God everywhere

And there will be days when I wonder why He hasn’t shown His face.

There will be painful decisions

And there will be moments  of relief when everything works out.

There will be confusion

And there will be clarity.

There will be days when I will want to shake everyone’s shoulders with frustration

And there will be days when I am so grateful for a community that presses in on me.

There will be days that drag

And there will be days that are over in the blink of an eye

There will be days when I will want nothing to change

And there will be days when I just want to get to what’s next

There will be days when I just want to hop on a plane

And there will be days when I never want to leave.

There will be days of monsoons (hopefully no cyclones)

And there will be  days of plentiful sunshine.

There will be many hellos

And too many goodbyes.

There will be days when I am the teacher

And there will be days when I am the student. 

The good, the bad, and the ugly?

No; the good + the bad = this beautiful life. 

So I will take a deep breath—

Here we go!