Delays

"Waiting may seem in the way of us getting to where we want to go. But many times, it is through waiting that the sight of a truer destination appears." -Duke Rohe

If you haven't figured it out yet, I live on a ship. This former cruise ship is anything but that now. The Anastasis (Greek for resurrection) was built over 50 years ago. I have lived here almost 6 of those years and it has become my home. But my home has been showing its age for some time now. I am constantly amazed how God uses this broken down vessel (sounds like a good sermon illustration in there). From busted pipes to broken down engines, this ship always seems to have something leaking or not working.

The latest is one of the generators. This affects all 350 of us (no air conditioning). The generator has to be repaired before sailing, the part has to come from Asia and the biggest obstacle is yet to come, getting it through customs in French West Africa.

Change of plans.

We did not set sail Saturday as what was stated in our original itinerary. We were sailing to Ghana to have a break for a week before sailing to Liberia to begin our field service in the war-torn country.

We still are taking a break but staying here in Benin. Personally, I am happy to stay here longer but I do know if it is much longer it will affect many people in Liberia.

We have been delayed more times than I can remember and many times I find myself asking the Lord, "What does this mean?" "Are you trying to tell us something?". And other times I realize that maybe it doesn't have to have some deep, spiritual meaning except to know that the Lord is faithful in all circumstances.

So, I figure my responsibility in all of this is to wake up each morning and ask the Lord to help me to be faithful today with what He has given me and what His Spirit shows me, wherever I am.

I would appreciate your prayers that the parts would arrive in a timely manner and for the engineers who will have to work through the night for a week once the parts arrive.

More to come......

What Can You Do??

Many times I look around me and think about all the things that I can't do to help people, it can be overwhelming. I try to re-focus and look at what I can do with God's help. And I realize that is the question I should be asking myself, "what can I do?". Am I being faithful with what God has given me?

I just received an email from a couple who are working in Punta Gorda, Florida helping the people who are still suffering from the active hurricane season last year. They have taken a camper down there for a few weeks to work with the North American Mission Board. What I find extraordinary is these two people. He just turned 69 today, his wife is in her late 60's too. She is an amputee(leg), who gets around in a wheelchair or on crutches, and has suffered from severe phantom pains for over 20 years until recently when she had a pain pump installed. The pain was so severe in the last few years it had kept her bed ridden at times.
"This is not like a toothache or a headache - it is real, excruciating, undescrible pain that she describes as feeling like being stabbed by hot knives or stung by millions of bees. "

He is helping rebuild a house for an elderly lady, she is doing counseling. They both are working in a food bank 2 days a week. I see them as being faithful with what God has given them and not focusing on what they can not do(because of their age and physical limitations) but on what they CAN do.

Mom and Dad, I'm proud of you!

Galatians 6:10 So then, while we have the opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially those who are of the household of the faith.(empahsis mine)

A Time To Dance....

There have been a variety of surgeries performed on board this floating hospital ship but none of them has caught my attention quite like the VVF, fistula repair, surgeries that began about 3 ½ years ago.

"According to United Nations statistics, an estimated two million women in Africa and South Asia suffer from vaginal fistulas. A fistula occurs during long or obstructed childbirth, when the baby's head presses against the bones of the pelvis for hours, sometimes days. The pressure destroys part of the birth canal tissue, leaving a hole through which urine or feces continuously leak. A woman might live with the unpleasant smell and unrelieved shame of this ostracizing condition for decades. In many cases, the baby dies during the difficult childbirth".

In January a team from the ship went 10 hours inland to screen potential women for this surgery. Several were selected and they boarded, along with some male relatives to help care for them, a small bus to make the trip to Cotonou for the surgery on board the ship. Because they were from various villages in the North they were from different tribes and spoke a variety of languages. Even though this had the potential to be a frightening experience, coming to the city and boarding a ship with a peculiar culture of its own, they seemed to adjust quickly.

One of these women was as young as 14 while another had lived with a fistula for 20 years. But they all had one thing in common, they had lived with shame. Many had husbands leave them because of the smell while others were unable to sell in the market for the same reason.

This is one of the things I love about doing what I do. Being a part of helping to restore dignity to these women and showing the love of Jesus. I am not able to frequent the hospital ward on the ship often but the few weeks of the year that we do VVF surgeries that is where I can be found in my free time. There's something about these women that captures my heart. Their recovery after the surgery is usually about 2 weeks so I am able to spend some great time with them. Whether it's painting their nails, watching the Jesus Film in their language, doing a puzzle, or explaining what the love of Jesus means to them, it is a precious time to me.

When it is time to go home we have a tradition on the ship (borrowed from a fistula hospital in Ethiopia). Each women is given a new dress, as most of their clothes are soiled from the leaking, and have a celebration in the ward with dancing, singing and many smiles. We celebrate their recovery and praise the One who made it possible. Over 30 women had a VVF surgery on board in January and are going home with not only a new dress but a new life.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-4
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die, .
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance.....

From Shame to Dancing 

Fatmatou in her new dress 

Saying Goodbye...

I live on a ship with over 350 people. In this close community I have built life long, intimate friendships and through them have come to experience the true meaning of words like accountability, intimacy, confronting in love and just having a good time.

People are constantly coming and going on the ship. Some serve for as little as 2 weeks while others come for years. Weekly a list is read of new arrivals and departures for the week. In a way I've gotten used to it after almost 6 years.

But from time to time someone leaves and there is a noticeable void in my heart. I am thankful for this because it helps to realize that I haven't hardened my heart to relationships, but it is very difficult. Last night I drove two very dear friends to the airport and said goodbye. They need to return to the States for medical reasons. I am a better person for having known them and am thankful for the many hours of talking, crying, and laughing with them.

When I became a missionary I realized that I would have to say goodbye to friends and family at home and that was very difficult but I was prepared for that. This is not what I expected but the friendships I have made are not what I expected either, they have been beyond my expectations and for that I am thankful, but that makes saying goodbye all the more difficult.

Patrik and Diana, I will miss you!!!

Tozer

Wanted to share this quote I came across the other day about motivation:

"It is not what a man does that determines whether his work is sacred or secular. It is why he does it." - A W Tozer

The One Motivation

"What's your motivation?"

I get this question asked of me from time to time but I find it is a question I ask myself on a consistent, almost daily basis. Why do I question my motives so often? Am I over-analyzing? Probably. But I think one reason is because I don't always naturally do the things I do with the right motivation.

As a missionary, I can easily get into a rut of just "doing my job". I tell people about Christ because that is why I was sent here and that's what I'm supposed to do and I need to live up to what I think are other people's expectations of me.

Or my motivation can be to "win" people to Christ. Some of you might be thinking, "that sounds like the right motivation." I have to disagree.

I first want to say that I believe that I am here to let people know who Jesus Christ is. I don't want to just do humanitarian acts without ever mentioning the reason why I do what I do. I want what I do to have eternal value. But my main purpose is to show the love of God to a hurting world.

When I thought about writing on this subject I asked myself what was God's motivation. The famous scripture of John 3:16 came to mind. For (because) God so loved the world, He gave... There it is, God's motivation was love.

A few years ago I was challenged with the following statement;

"Do I love people so I can tell them about the Gospel? Or do I tell them about the Gospel because I love them?"

You see, the first statement is relationship with a catch. I will love you so that..... The second statement I see as the way of Jesus; unconditional love.

So my question is, "where does all of our techniques of evangelism fit in?" "Our expectations on short-term mission trips to see a lot of people saved?" "Our reporting of statistics?" There is nothing wrong with these things as long as our primary motivation is sincere love. The word of God even gives us statistics (Acts 2:41).

Many say that our acts of love, mercy, and justice should be a channel to lead people to Christ. This too can be love with a catch. I don't see it as two different acts or as a "channel". It is what God commanded us to do.

St Francis of Assisi is credited with saying, "Preach the Gospel at all times, if necessary use words." I don't totally agree with this because I believe words are important too but I like the point he is making. Our lives need to show Christ before our words do. How do we show Christ? We imitate him. And throughout the Gospels His acts of love stand out.

I will be the first to say that more times than I would care to admit my motivation has not been love in showing acts of mercy, justice and love. And I know God can and has used me in spite of that. But in my desire to become more like Jesus I will continue to ask myself, "what's my motivation?"

Parakou

I arrived back to the ship last night after a adventurous 7 hour drive from the interior of Benin.The Pastor's conference took place Friday night and all day Saturday. Over 200 pastors and church leaders attended to hear from the speakers. We were also able to do a Bible distribution.

On Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, teams did 4 different workshops in various churches. The topics were training on: teaching Aids awareness from a Biblical perspective, creative teaching for children's Sunday school teachers, teaching Adult literacy, and Micro-finance.My colleague and I trained 10 facilitators from 7 different churches to teach Adult Literacy. In the future I will write in more detail about what I do. Please pray that they will start classes soon and the participants will be able to learn and be open to the Bible discussions that take place in every class.

The Jesus Film was to be shown Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. The first two nights obstacles were faced and it was not shown. On Sunday night it was shown in an open field with pastors there to preach and do any follow up. Many responded and God was glorified. I am thankful for the opportunity that God has given me to preach His Good News. Thank you for your prayers.

New Literacy Facilitators in Parakou

Prayer Requests

Tomorrow morning (Thursday) I am going with a team of 15 to Parakou about a 7 hour drive north of the ship's location. We are hosting a Pastor's conference for all the churches in the area. I am going to teach a workshop on facilitating adult literacy classes.

Please pray:

• For the Pastors and church leaders attending the conference that they will be refreshed and challenged.
• For our travel to and from Parakou, for safety and a good time with the team.
• For the different workshops, that we will be able to teach the material well in the limited time we have.
• For the showing of the Jesus Film on Friday and Saturday night in various villages that people will respond as we have local pastors there to follow up.

We will return late Monday night. Thanks for your prayers!

Simplice

simplice
Originally uploaded by vothj.

I am currently working in Benin, West Africa with Mercy Ships. This is my third time to this country and am thankful that each time I come here I make new friends as well as catch up with old ones.

This past Saturday I was able to visit one of those old friends, Simplice. Simplice is a young boy who I met with his grandmother 4 years ago when he was 6 years old. I was working and living with a small team in the area where Simplice lived. We had shown the Jesus Film and began a weekly Bible study in his village. Simplice's grandmother, Josephine brought him to the bible study to see if we could help. Simplice had cataracts in both eyes and only had about 10% of his vision. In the West this is a simple surgery but to those that live on about $1 a day it's not so easy. Even though the surgery schedule was full, space was made for Simplice. He had the surgery and his sight greatly improved.

Two years later, when the ship was docked in nearby Togo, I was able to visit the family once again. It was a great reunion but I was troubled because I noticed that even though Simplice could see better there was still some room for improvement.

This past November when the ship returned to Benin I went to see Simplice and make an appointment for him to come to the ship for the doctor to evaluate if there was any more that could be done. Unfortunately, there wasn't any more help that we could give due to neurological damage. I felt discouraged and helpless that I couldn't do any more for Simplice. In my discouragement God touched me through Josephine as she looked at me and spoke these three words, "you love people". Through her words I felt God saying to me, "well done good and faithful servant." This reminded me of what I knew all along; I must show compassion and help people with any means I have available to me but the greatest thing I can do is to love people.

1Cor. 13:3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn't love others, I would be of no value whatsoever.