Waiting patiently

DHola from the Canary Islands!

It has been an interesting and challenging summer. Shortly after our arrival to Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain we went into dry dock. This is looking at the bow of the Africa Mercy.

Several teams of volunteers along with the the local Astican dock workers completed many projects on the ship. Both propellers and shafts were removed and inspected along with the rudders and the bow thrusters. The hull got a new paint job and the anchor chains were lowered, inspected and painted.

Inside the ship a new floor was laid in the hospital and new fresh water piping was installed on all the decks. There were many other projects in the engine room and around the ship but all I can say is that everyone did an incredible job and it was very fascinating to be able to watch.

It is interesting to note that the dock workers here vie for the opportunity to work on the Africa Mercy. They say this ship has a certain "karma" about it, that they are treated differently and enjoy the interaction with the people on board. I know that the "karma" that they refer to is the spirit of Jesus Christ lived out every day by the volunteers here. 

The best part of the summer was the arrival of my daughters Melina and Loren and my sister Ann. We spent an incredible ten days together. I was able to bring them on the ship for dinner and a tour. We took the ferry from Las Palmas to Tenerife where we rented a house in Arona for eight days and visited the Teide volcano, the Los Cristianos and Las Americas beaches, Santa Cruz, and other scenic places in between. We made great friends in Arona and really felt like part of the community. Thank you Dad and Catherine for gifting us with this time together.

Ann, Loren and Melina in the "Aroma Cafe" in Arona

As the world is very much aware of the Ebola situation it has caused Mercy Ships to pull out of West Africa for the time being. When I arrived on the ship in March in the Congo our next field service was supposed to be Guinea. That was cancelled and a team was sent to Benin to set things up there. We have officially cancelled Benin this past week. The borders in Africa are very porous and when people hear of a hospital ship they will travel long distances and cross countries to get to it. Crew safety and the future of our mission is the first priority for Mercy Ships.

It makes one wonder why this would happen, that the people most desperate for help can't receive it, that we should be delayed in departing for our field service. We serve an awesome God, he is sovereign over all. He has a plan for us, we wait patiently and pray for his wisdom. Even today we now see that our being delayed to begin our field service has allowed us to continue to work out an issue with one of our propellers. Many times when we are in the midst of a situation we don't understand why things are happening or the reason for them. Our trust is in The Lord and he knows the plans he has for us.

I was going to inform you of our next destination but we have been asked to wait until next week while some of the details are being finalized. Please keep this in your prayers as there is much planning and preparation to be done.

Again, I am humbled by all your prayers and financial support. God has shown his faithfulness to me through you and I am grateful.

Martha