Mercy Ships and No Longer Music

Was it just a few short weeks ago that I found myself in Ukraine, traveling with No Longer Music sharing Mercy Ships?  Go figure!  

I had run into a young Christian man who was going to school to become a third officer.  I asked him if he had ever heard of Mercy Ships?  They were in need of maritime professionals - third officers being one of the options.  Google and apply! 

I spoke with one of the NLM drivers who wondered what he and his wife were going to do when they retired.  I asked him if he had ever heard of Mercy Ships?  He was a professional photographer on sabbatical to serve with NLM and his wife worked in finance, both professions needed on the ship.  Google and apply!

And the list goes on - here a nurse, there a mechanic, here a chef . . . So my brain began to process.  Why these two organizations?  What do they have in common?  Why do I love them both?

My reasons are:

1. Unequivocally Jesus.  Through free life changing surgeries, Mercy Ships shares Jesus.  Through free drama and music, NLM shares Jesus.
2. Prayer.  Both organizations come before the throne of Almighty God and seek His will and His alone.
3. Everyone deserves . . . In Mercy Ships, we say the right to look human.  In Steiger/NLM, to know Jesus.  While I had no desire to talk to the drunk on the street, my Ukrainian teammates saw someone who deserved to know Jesus.
4. We are one.  In both organizations, it didn't matter who you were or what your job was, everyone was important, necessary and valued.  Because if everyone wasn't there, our mission wouldn't work. 
5. Both glorified God in two totally different and equally amazing ways because that is our God  - total and amazing!  To Him be the glory!