Rosen Journey

During our time in Freetown Sierra Leone (Salone) we had a reoccurring experience while out and about in the city.  Many people simply referred to us as “Mercy Ships”, as if it was our name.  In the West African city of 1.5 million people, seeing a white person is not a common occurrence.  Now let me pause to say this, not all of our crew are white skinned, not even close.  As a matter of fact at any given time our crew is more than a third African, meaning as many as a third of our crew are also dark skinned.  This is one of the beautiful things about this organization.  We are made up of more than 50 nations of the world including nearly all the African countries.  While we serve the peoples and nations of West Africa, many African brothers and sisters from all over the continent are participating in the mission also.  I love this!

Even still we would hear the refrain, “Mercy Ships, Mercy Ships!”  This was the case whether walking the streets to buy mango’s, driving congested roads or traveling in more remote upcountry regions.  It was as if we were celebrities and “Mercy Ships” was our name.  I thought about this often during our time in Salone.  It causes me to consider two things.

The importance of having and guarding a good reputation.  For many years Mercy Ships has served the beautiful people and nation of Sierra Leone.  Each period having an active ship in country doing surgeries is called a Field Service.  In June we completed Mercy Ships seventh Field Service (doing surgeries for 9 months at a time) in the last 30 years in the country.  Over all those years there has been consistent love and compassion given in the model of Jesus to every patient.  This has been noticed by many, even by Sierra Leone’s President.  Just before the ship sailed, His Excellency, President Julius Maada Bio came on board for our Partners Appreciation event.  As the President addressed hundreds of Mercy Shippers, dignitaries, NGO workers and medical personnel, his appreciation was clear.  “While the vessel may be departing Sierra Leone’s shores, its impact will continue to be felt through the thousands of lives transformed, healthcare professionals trained, and institutions strengthened. The legacy of Mercy Ships will remain embedded in our healthcare system for generations to come.”

As the Global Mercy has just completed it’s third consecutive field service in Salone, the number of people impacted ran well into the thousands.  Since its arrival in Freetown in August 2023, the Global Mercy – the world’s largest purpose-built civilian hospital ship – provided over 5,400 free surgeries and trained more than 590 healthcare professionals.  This is the type of impact that changes lives and builds a reputation.  

Another of our farewell events was one held for the pastors, churches and ministries we have partnered with over these last three years.  During this time, numerous pastors stood to thank us for the work that Mercy Ships has done for their people and their nation.  But interestingly, a common theme was how Mercy Ships has been doing this for decades.  One pastor, David, boldly stood with papers in his hands and said that Mercy Ships changed his life.  He had my full attention!  He proceeded to tell the story about how he first encounter Mercy Ships as a patient himself in 2011.  The papers and picture in his hand were his Pre-Op Summary detailing a severe leg and foot deformity that was clearly painful and debilitating.  But now here he was 15 years later with two shoes on walking without a limp.  In front of the group of 60 pastors he declared the goodness of God and thanked Mercy Ships!  Just one story among thousands and this is how a reputation is built for Jesus and the organizations He institutes.

So when people call out “Mercy Ships, Mercy Ships”, my hope is not that people would be drawn to me or to Mercy Ships but instead to the Jesus we follow.  Interestingly people called out to Jesus in a similar way when He ministered on this earth.  In Matthew 9:27, 20:30, two blind men called out “Jesus, son of David, have mercy on us.”  Also in Luke 17:13, ten lepers cried out, “Jesus, have mercy on us.”  My hope and prayer is that as people call out, “Mercy Ships” that they would know that it’s not because of us, but the Jesus that we serve, that true hope and healing can come to them.  

After all, as followers of Jesus, we should be known for doing the things that Jesus did.  In Acts 3 we read the story of Peter and John healing a crippled man as they went into the temple courts.  This brought a great deal of attention to them which they quickly turned towards Jesus saying, that it was in Jesus name that this man was healed.  Of course the religious leaders were disturbed with this and questioned the disciples, “By what power or name did you do this?”   Again in their response, Peter and John firmly deflected the attention to Jesus.  As a result the religious leaders in Acts 4:13 took note that “these men had been with Jesus”.  

So what does this mean for us today?  For those who follow Christ, our lives should be known and marked by the very things that Jesus did.  We all have a reputation, what are we known for?  Is mercy and compassion something that exudes from our lives?  It did with Jesus and His disciples so it should with us also.