A Foot in the Water: Update for March 8, 2009

As a whole load of kids filled what us crew here jokingly call “Lifeboat 7” I stood observing a new culture that seemed to be an extension of home; the difference was in the language they spoke. This past Tuesday I was working on our visitor deck as a ministry day and we had a lot of children come. Our set up teams managed to get schools to pay the ship a visit while we’re around here in our second week in Harlingen, the Netherlands. I was fortunate enough to be able to share my testimony with two or of these groups in our Lifeboat Theatre, which is part of our Deck Four experience, but that’s not what affected me most.

One of the guys here (whose name I will withhold) has an incredible testimony of drug abuse and attempted suicide. The whole point of his testimony is that God looks in the inside, and not our appearances. I am not very close to this guy, but his testimony is very good, and so was one of the kids’ responses. In front of his whole class he told his teacher that “Jesus looks on the inside and loves the person, not the looks”. The boldness and unashamed love of this kid struck me almost like a coup de tat. In hindsight, I can draw a lot of personal attention to this, and how I can be so timid at times, while this little kid didn’t blink under the social pressure of his peers, who may not have even been Christians! Truly a child-like love is unhindered and fearless and this is why we are urged to love like children.

Like I said earlier, these kids were like something from home (except with way different clothes and hair styles) in how they acted with each other. They chased each other around madly and just had a blast with each other. I remembered that no matter how loud and, at times, annoying kids can be, they are awesome! I really can’t wait until I am able to raise my own one day, and I hope I do as good as my father and his father before him did! I can also pray that my wife is able to do half as well as my mother did with us! I don’t know where I’d be without them walking me along the bumpy road full of mistakes and love. I love you guys, know that always.

On Tuesday we sail to Scheveningen (which when said properly sounds like one is hacking up a fur ball) in the Netherlands for 2 and half weeks or so. This port is supposed to be much busier for us because it’s quite a bit larger. After that port we set sail to Edinburgh, Scotland, which is a place I have wanted to go for a really long time, and also the childhood home of Pastor Peter. I love this whole traveling thing!