Our plans for next year - by Rachel

If you've been reading our blog posts, you are probably already aware that our time in Worcester has been challenging. For several months now we have been sensing that perhaps Worcester for us is supposed to be more of a bridge than a destination.  Our time here has so far been tough, but also GOOD - God has used this time to really delve into our hearts and challenge and change us in many ways.  So often, it seems, He has to get us out of our comfort zones and into a time of confusion and discomfort, to be able to do that.  We have felt it to be a time of preparation for what is to come.

We will be taking the Couples and Families Counseling school here from January to April, and we are really looking forward to being in the position of being "learners" again after a long time, as well as getting the opportunity to become equipped with tools that are specific to our calling and to where our hearts are at.

And after that?  Well, it seems that we finally have some answers:  

We have spent many years on board Mercy Ships in the past.   (8 years for Rachel, 6 for Kevin.)   We first met on the Anastasis in 2000, and have served on board as singles:

 a married couple:

 new parents:

 and a family of 4: 

Actually, we have "tried" to leave Mercy Ships a few times in the past, only to unexpectedly return.  And then we left in 2010 because God put it on our hearts to adopt internationally.  

In many ways, Mercy Ships is our spiritual home.  We have invested much of our lives in this organization, we know the quirks and foibles of living on board, the joys and the tough parts.  For 4 years we worked on board as Chaplains to the international crew - a position that we really enjoyed fulfilling together, and which is a really good fit for both of us - encompassing both of our strengths in counseling and teaching. And the occasional bout of crisis management.  :D

It just so happens that a position in Chaplaincy will unexpectedly be opening up on the Africa Mercy in August, and the position has been offered to us.  The ship will be coming to South Africa in July.  

Ironically, before we moved here to South Africa, Mercy Ships allowed us to send two boxes of clothes etc. to their head office in Texas, so that they could put them on a container going to Durban.  By mistake, they ended up on the Africa Mercy in Madagascar, where they still are now. Looks like we'll finally be reunited. (Did God know all along?  :D  )

Because we have been away from the ship for many years and we will be in leadership positions we will need to attend the On Boarding Program at the Mercy Ships headquarters in Texas in June.  This is a 5 week training program to prepare crew for service on board the ship.  We will then fly back to South Africa in July to embark the ship, and from there to sail to Benin (West Africa) for the following Field Service.

This is clearly a change of course for us, and definitely not what we expected when we moved here to South Africa.  But we really  feel right about returning to the ship and serving the international crew in the role of Chaplains.  We plan to make a 2 year commitment, and go from there.  (As a side note, the Africa Mercy has an excellent school on board.  We are very excited about this.  We have some stories to tell about the kids' school experiences in South Africa!)

In the new year we will communicate more about Mercy Ships and what the next season will look like for us.  Meanwhile, if you would like to find out more about the mission of Mercy Ships, you can find out here.