Passing the Torch

One of my favorite days during this outreach was the Passing the Torch ceremony. A very symbolic and momentous day, we were to officially retire the beloved Anastasis from her service and commission the Africa Mercy for many more years of service inWest Africa.


Everyone was lined up from the gangway of the Anastasis to the doorway of the Africa Mercy. Dr. Gary Parker and his family, who have served on the Ana for over 20 years, were on the Ana. Don Stephens and his wife, founders of Mercy Ships, were in the doorway of the AFM.


Probably the most beloved piece of the Ana is the cross that was on the bow- symbolic of the God we serve and the fact that His cross will always go before us. It was that cross that was removed and would make its way to its new home on the AFM bow. As it was passed from crew member to crew member, we all said something of praise to our God for His faithfulness in times past and His faithfulness to come.



Next was the torch- made from pieces of the three previous ships in the Mercy Ship fleet- the Anastasis, the Caribbean Mercy and the Island Mercy. Although decommissioned, their spirit and memories live on. "For His fame and for His glory" was was Dr. Gary shouted over the crowd as he held up the torch with his family and began to pass it on.

"Choose this day whom you will serve...but as for me and my house we shall serve the Lord." Joshua 24: 15

"For the Lord is good, his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations."

Psalm 100:5

"And Jesus spoke to them saying, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life'." John 8:12

"I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth." Isaiah 49:6b

President Ellen Johnson

I remember sitting in Pennsylvania one morning and hearing the NBC report on the first female president in Africa that had just been elected. What an amazing woman of courage and faith-- a woman who stepped in during an extremely unstable time of her country to pick up the pieces and begin the long road of restoration. From that day on, I always remembered the story of that incredible lady. Little did I know that long before I would ever walk down the roads of war torn Liberia, the Lord had already stirred in my heart a love for this land and for her President. What a joy then, to welcome President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf for her second visit to Mercy Ships- this time to welcome the new ship and it's crew.

(Above is Mr. and Mrs. Don Stephens, founders of Mercy Ships. To the left is Solfrid Quist, our executive director on the Africa Mercy)

(President Ellen Johnson touring the new hospital ward.)

Just before President Ellen Johnson gave her address, Esther Biney did and amazing song performance. We are all sitting in our new International Lounge.

SHE'S HERE!!!

"Be on the dock by 7 if you don't want to miss her!!" Solfrid, our Executive Director on the Anastais gave us solemn warning to be up, ready and presentable that Wednesday morning. The day we had had been fasting, praying and working for, dreaming of, wishing to become a reality, was about to. After 8 years of hard labor, earnest prayer, persistant faith and diligence from thousands of individuals, the Africa Mercy was about to find her new home along the shoreline of West Africa.

Over the last few months, a couple Mercy Shippers have become friends with the guys that run the tugboat for the port. One has been to our Bible study a couple times- so they were really excited when a couple of us wanted to ride the tug to bring in the AFM-- and so we did!!

The Ana was decorated in all her splendor and the decks and dock was packed with people and flags rejoicing for her arrival.

It was so wonderful to be one of the first ones to welcome her and her crew. Many of our Ana crew had flown to Newcastle to help with finalizing details and the sail, so there were many familiar faces excited to see us.

Song and dance greeted the AFM crew along with our flags, symbolizing the many nations that are represented throughout the crew members. It was a beautiful day- a gift from our Heavenly Father, all praise goes to Him.

*Check out http://www.mercyships.org/ to see video of the ship's arrival & passing the torch ceremony*

Super Saturday

Well... on May 12th, my buddy Ben Cubbage and I had the privilege of planning and hosting the games of the M/V Anastasis' Super Saturday. It was definitely an Olympic worthy event. With both of us having been involved with Young Life previously.... the day was sure to be packed with crazy, weird, disgusting games in order to bond our already close crew even closer! What a blast we had!

Sign up sheets went up where people could sign up their team. Next they had to come up with a costume and theme song for their team. I was giving out their points.. and boy did I expect hard time and creativity to be put into them!! We had major events such as.... the three legged race... bean spitting... human sculptures (team style)... face painting... just to get them started.

The real fun started though when I pulled out the game that requires both speed, skill and courage. As you can see above, teams elected two members. One was to make a PB&J sandwich with their feet and then feed it (with their feet) to their team mate that was lying on the ground. (As seen above). The first one to finish eating the WHOLE thing won. I was amazed at what great sports everyone was. For it is one thing to make kids you don't know do this... it's another when they are all the family you live and work with. ;) No one has held a grudge as of yet.



The fun continued with eating mystery meals, putting shaving cream on your head and seeing how many fruit loops your team mates could throw and stick to it, etc... The day was packed full of fun.


We wanted to do a Land Rover pull but ran out of time because of this next game... Splish and Splash. At first different teams competed, trying to knock their opponent into the water with a pillow. But then, as the fun went on, we had everyone joining in including the captain against his son, husband against wife, roommate against roommate (all done in love I'm sure ;)).

What a great day to cherish our last few moments as just the Ana crew, for soon we were to meet a couple hundred new friends on the AFM. And just so you all know, we rewarded everyone for their hard work and sportsmanship. ;)

Closing the Ward

(Escorting our last patients home)

Soon after screening, our last patients were discharged or transferred and the ward on the Anastasis closed for forever. It was a great day as we were able to rejoice over all that the Lord has done these many years... but also sad as it was the last time a patient would grace these halls.

During the last couple weeks of the ward, two of our patients had some post op complications and were transferred to nearby hospitals. Yet, praise our Heavenly Father that they had stabilized and just needed a couple more days of hospital supervision.

Little Victoria had a large tumor that was removed and she has since gone home and is doing very well. Solomon required further surgery during our time here and was a patient we were very concerned for during his time here. Our Lord decided to take little Solomon to be with Him, as Solomon died about a week after leaving Mercy Ships. A hard time for our medical staff... Many of us were able to go to little Solomon's funeral in his home village. Please keep his family in your prayers during this dark time...

(Here is our crazy and amazing medical team. To God be the glory for all the great things He has done...)

Screening Day

*Thank you all who have been so patient with waiting for new updates. But I hope you enjoy these reflections on events during the month of May...*

SCREENING DAY

Late at night on May 4th, a group of Mercy Shippers trekked out to Harriet- Tubman Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia. Already, hundreds had gathered waiting in line to see our physicians the next morning. This late night team had the unlikeable task of beginning to turn away those we could not help. The rains came that night, but no one went for shelter. All stayed and waited for the morning light....

Potential patients were escorted into the stadium and waited for registration. But boy did they enjoy the wait!! Drums, guitars and African music were heard throughout the stadium all day. One of our guys made animal shaped balloons for the young and the young at heart. Stickers, face painting, silly songs... all apart of the waiting process. From registration, they came to my history team where we documented their chief complaint and reviewed their health history. Next was assessment by our physicians... lab... pharmacy.... prayer station. By lunch, the YWAM team had come and helped us distribute small lunches and drinks to everyone.

It had rained in the morning, and so we were lucky regarding the heat- honestly, it was only hot around lunch time- then cooled back down. God cares about the little things. After I was done with reviewing health histories I worked at the prayer station. This offered prayer and counseling for those who were denied and for those who wanted someone to talk to. I really appreciated the relaxed atmosphere and getting to hear the hearts of those who had come. It was a long day and we were all very tired by the end :) But not too tired to miss out on going downtown for ice cream. ;)

So thank you to all of you at home that held us in prayer. God is to be praised.