This is why....... I do it.

A father of one of the patients recently wrote this letter upon his disembarkation:

Dear MERCY SHIP

Thanks for the joy you've brought back to my life and the lives of many others. God bless the works of your hands everywhere you go and may you be of blessing in the lives of others in the world. I will continue to pray for the Mercy Ship, her sponsors, and all those who makes her what she is. To the Captain I say navigate well. To the engine men let her never break down. To the counselors take away our trauma with kind words. To the doctors and nurses I say make us smile, hold, walk, see, and talk again in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. May the blessing of the almighty God be with you all.

Thanks
Bami Seydou on behalf of my son Yemi Seydou


This is what makes it worth it! This is why we do what we do. This is why I am here.

God is good all the time.

New Photos!

There are new photos on my Flickr page..... Click on the ~NEW links to the right under Photos to view them. Enjoy!

Sorry-O

Oh my gosh I just realized I have not posted a blog since the 2nd of September. That is almost 2 weeks ago. It has been so long since I logged on to my account that I forgot the password. I have had somewhat of a writers block for the past few weeks, but you will be glad to read that I am still alive and I am back. I have new stories and lots of new photos.

This week the dental team is taking it easy. Our dentist is in bed with a bad back and we are only working a few half days this week. It is really nice but I would not want to do it all the time. Today I arrived back to the ship at 1:00 in the afternoon. It is a beautiful day out there today, so a friend and fellow co worker and I decided to hit deck 8 to get some sun. I just got done soaking up the rays and reading for the past few hours. It was glorious.

Now I am off to do a little tae-bo work out session. I have been noticing a bit of extra weight hanging out in my mid section and I can not have that. So I ordered a tae-bo dvd and it arrived today....... how exciting. I have high hopes for Billy Banks. Billy is going to do his best at getting me back in to shape. Jen and I have been doing this work out/eating plan for the past few weeks. Basically low carbs and no junk food. We are calling it 6 weeks to dead SEXY! We are currently ending week 4. We are not dead sexy yet....:(

Well that is all I time for now. Within the next couple of days I will post NEW stories and photos. Please don't give up on reading my blog....I promise I will do better

Psalm 146

Psalm 146:3-7

Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them--the LORD, who remains faithful forever. He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets prisoners free.

I read this verse the other day and I keep coming back to it 3 days later. I think so often I try to wrap my mind around God and all that He is. I try to convince myself that I know everything there is to know about GOD the creator of the universe. I often try to make myself out to be smarter, wiser and more important than He. It is very easy to do that in the mission field, especially in a third world country where every one has a need of some kind that you are able to meet or help them meet most of the time.

Thankfully, God so graciously reminds me of who I am and who He is. It never fails I get to thinking that I am more important than I am and God knocks me back down to where I belong, a humbled and gracious servant of the the same God that Jacob served. How exciting to think that I will never fully understand God and His POWER. He will always be a mystery to me, and the more and more I learn of him the more and more I fall on my knees and worship him. Because I serve a God who upholds the oppressed, feeds the hungry, gives life to the lifeless, set prisoners free, is faithful forever, and is the maker of heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them.

Just a little something to think about: where does your help and hope comes from? Maybe it is time for God to knock you back down to where you belong. A humbled servant and not the creator of the heavens and earth.

Blessed am I for my help and hope is found in the Lord and NOT mortal men!!

A Modern Day Leper

Ward A on the Africa Mercy is full of ladies that are currently getting treated for VVF. Vesico Vaginal Fistula is a hole between the urinary tract and the vagina causing a continuous involuntary discharge of urine. Urine leaks from these ladies all the time all day long. This condition is common in women here in West Africa who are A: very young pregnant woman whose bodies are not developed or ready to carry a baby causing a rip or B: women who endure days and days of very painful childbirth often times in the deep bush hours and even days away from medical treatment causing great pressure and a rip. This disorder and it victims just break me. These ladies communities, friends, and families often outcast them for having this “disease”. They are shunned and left to fin for themselves broken and “ruined”. Being equivalent to a leper...... A modern day leper.

Often times the babies of these ladies do not survive leaving the women with great sadness and pain with nothing to show and nothing left to live for.

I refer to these ladies as leaking but I think that might give you a sugar coated image of what leaking really means. Female readers imagine just for a moment what it would be like to have a continually flow of urine flowing from your vagina 24-7, and for treatment you use old cloths to soak up the wet discharge. Male readers imagine for a moment living with your wife who is always wet, and smells of urine. I would like to say that if this was a problem in the US that we would accept these ladies. That we would truly live out what it means to love like Jesus. That we would be less superficial or more accepting, I however am not sure. I think our society has a long way to come before we can truly say we love like Jesus.

The stories of these ladies are heart breaking.

However…….. There is a happy ending to some of the ladies that are currently sleeping and living on board the African Mercy. Doctors and nurses on board the ship are working very hard to treat as many of these patients as physically possible. A 15 minute surgery can change the lives of these leaking women, giving them a new start. The ladies leave here and are often accepted back into their communities and families.

Last Tuesday I was able to attend a dress ceremony for a few of the ladies who were about to embark on their new lives. The dress ceremony occurs when a lady is “cured” and ready to go home. She receives a NEW dress that symbolizes her new start. As I stood there and watched these ladies celebrate to new beginnings. I thanked God for giving me a new beginning through Jesus and also for sending skilled Jesus loving people to West Africa to be His hands and feet to these people. I prayed for strength and courage for the ladies. I prayed for healing physically and emotionally, and I also prayed that maybe just maybe one of them saw HIM through the healing that had taken place on board the Africa Mercy.


The ladies who were going home leak free at last Tuesdays dress ceremony. These smiling faces represent stories and pasts that will break your heart. Thank God for healing and a new beginnings.

Relaxed and Rejuvenated

I am just coming off a long holiday weekend. Which basically means we had 4 days off to relax and rejuvenate. A groups of 13 traveled 2 1/2 hours north to a beach town called Robertsport. There we spent 3 days and 2 night camping and enjoying the beach. It was WONDERFUL. The weather was sunny and hot, NO RAIN! We laid out, and YES!!! I am well on way to having the "African Tan" I have been longing for. We read books, sang songs, had a campfire, roasted marshmallows, took long walks along the beach, napped, and most of all just enjoyed each others company. It was so easy to see to God all around us. All you had to do is perch yourself on top of one of the many huge rocks that overlooked the sea and watch the waves come crashing in.

The beauty in simplicity.

Saturday I was walking along the beach and I ran into my little friend Emmanuel. Emmanuel is an 11 years old who lives with his father in Robertsport. He came up to me as I was sitting on the sand and asked me if I wanted to take a walk with him to some "really big" rocks a ways up the shore line. I thought to myself seems safe enough he is 11 and I can probably take him if need be..... so I agreed. As we walked he shared with me that his mother had died during the war and it was just him and his father. He asked me why I was in Liberia, and I told him then he asked me if I missed my family and I said YES!!! of course. After that he asked me the question that I have been waiting for someone to ask me..... WHAT MADE YOU WANT TO COME TO LIBERIA AND HELP US????? I was then able to share my heart with an 11 year old. Of course I had to put it into term that he could understand but it was still the "moment" I had been waiting for.

Finally after several miles of walking and chatting we reached our destination. And it was a beautiful site. On our walk back to my camp site we sang songs. He taught me a traditional African church song, and I taught him Jesus Loves Me....he LOVED that song. haha anyway over the next 2 days he came to visit me several times, each time I had PB&J sandwiches and yogurt waiting for him. I was his new best friend.

After an amazing weekend I am once again back and ready to work . Bring on another 6 weeks!


Below are a few pictures from the weekend. Please click on the Robertsport link to the right hand side to view more photos from our trip.









Emmanuel and I

The View

The beach

Beach Church

Let your words be few

I was reading today in Ecclesiastes 5 :

1Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.


2Do not be quick with your mouth,
do not be hasty in your heart
to utter anything before God.
God is in heaven
and you are on earth,
so let your words be few.

I am so quick to go before God and tell him all my wants and needs for my day, week, month, year and even life. I often forget that God is in heaven and I am on earth and I should let me words be few before Him. Sometimes it is just nice to enter into his presence in silents and just sit and wait for Him to speak. No list of demands no needs just simply being. This verse reminded me of the song Let My Words be Few by Phillips Craig and Dean:

You are God in heaven
And here am I on earth
So I'll let my words be few Jesus,
I am so in love with You


Chorus:
And I'll stand in awe of You, Jesus
Yes, I'll stand in awe of You
And I'll let my words be few Jesus,
I am so in love with You


The simplest of all love songs
I want to bring to You
So I'll let my words be few Jesus,
I am so in love with You

Such a simple song but oh how it reveals the desires of my heart.

I think this week I will let me words be few leaving room for me to listen rather than speak.

And I'll let my words be few Jesus, I am so in love with You