DEEP on the Logos Hope Part 1: Before the Logos

Part 1 of a 3 part series. (Find Part 2 here and Part 3 here)

In February 2017, at a Missions Conference at Abundant Life Assembly, I heard about the Logos coming to Barbados. In February! And since my life wasn’t going exactly as planned, November was far enough away that I could set my eyes on it whenever I felt disappointed. If I couldn’t do one thing, at least I would be able to ‘dip my feet’ in the waters of cross-cultural missions again.
I invited Paul Wheatley, the regional director of OM, to share at WYcliffe Club (WC) in May. James and Althea also came and their testimonies were powerful and inviting. Three of us from WC became DEEP volunteers onboard!

At the end of August, I got my first e-mail with information on how to apply. I was stoked! I got my reference in from my Pastor then lined up an interview with Haruka from Japan. She was always available to talk on whatsapp if I had any questions, and she was always so warm. I didn’t feel like an outsider. She made it clear how much we local volunteers were wanted and we would not need to tiptoe around ‘their’ boat.

We had an orientation the Saturday before the ship arrived at the James Street Methodist Church (What a beautiful Cathedral!)
We learned the basics - like no hooking up and how many toilets there were on board, lol. What stood out most during training and while on board was that this ‘book ship’ truly did centre around Jesus and the gospel. It was clear from the way people spoke and behaved. And although our work was the usual ‘customer service’, we were encouraged regularly to find time and creative ways to introduce Jesus to the people we spoke to. And I'm sure having more hands working on board also allowed more of the ship's crew to go out and do ministry on the island.

Our second orientation was on board on Thursday, November 9th, where we found out exactly what we would be doing.
We were first divided up into the three types of volunteers: Tour Guides, Ambassadors and DEEP volunteers.

A volunteer in the
 Journey of Life

Tour guides would show members of the public around on the ship and explain the work that the Logos Hope does.
Ambassadors would work in the ‘Journey of Life’, which was right after the book fair, where visitors had to pass through to exit the ship. It has large pictures on display depicting the story of the Prodigal Son. The Ambassadors would tell the story as they walked with people, and had the very important job of getting people to think about their lives and consider Jesus.
DEEP stands for Discipleship, Exposure to Missions, Expression of Love and Practical Work. It is intended to be a missions experience for local believers while in port. We got to experience what some of the crew did on their stays of 3 months or 1 or 2 years.

Us DEEP Volunteers got to meet our amazing coordinators Gabby (The Texan-Mexican) and Ofa (from Papua New Guinea), and we were then divided into the four departments we would be working in. I was assigned to the Book Fair, Lydia went to iCafe (a small food court for the public) and Sharicka worked in the Galley (kitchen). Even though none of us ended up in the same department, it was still nice to look out for each other on breaks and to hear about the different experiences we each had.

The 4th department was the Angels. They probably work the hardest to keep the ship clean and tidy.

Each local volunteer was matched with a ship buddy; someone to look out for us and help us feel more comfortable and welcome during our short stay. It was also a good opportunity to get to hear of the Lord’s work in their lives in leading them to missions on the ship and to learn about a new country/culture. My buddy was Camila from Brazil. She coordinates events on the ship (super-important job!). As soon as we were matched, our buddies took us on a tour of the ship. We have to pause here for a bit of a back story…

Jun and the boys after church on board. 

So, to my great surprise, the first person I met working on board was a Jamaican! And not just any Jamaican, it was Dewayne! He had worked with ISCF in Jamaica, and so he also knew Mario. It was a grand reunion. Mario, my mother and the boys were with me. Since they had to drop me to the ship for orientation, and the ship was open to the public, it was the perfect time for them to go through the book fair, before there were crowds. My darling mother flew in from Jamaica, to be with the boys and homeschool Judah while I was ‘away’ on missions. That’s such a big sacrifice and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without her! While I was in orientation, I expected them to go through the book fair then head home, but Dewayne graciously invited them to dinner, so they had some time to kill in the iCafe. Jun, from South Korea, was on his C-Day (I’ll explain what that is in Part 2: A day in the book fair), and ended up spending the evening with mummy and the boys. Jun became Judah’s new best friend after that and throughout the ship’s stay, both boys regularly asked to go and see Jun.

Mummy and the boys with 
me and Lydia on the bridge 
during the tour of the ship

So the two stories collided when it was time for me to go on a tour of the ship with Camila, and I found out that mummy and the boys were still on the board, and that they would now be joining me on the tour then for dinner. I was glad that they got to have the tour and get an inside view of the ship, but what I didn’t like was that instead of me getting to know Camila, and hearing more about the work on the ship, I had to be wrangling two tired children, walking up and down stairs with Ezra in my arms and trying to hide my embarrassment when my children were the only ones crying in the large communal dining hall! I felt so dejected! This is not how the mission was supposed to start. This was supposed to be ‘my’ thing. But already, I had to learn what it meant to be a family on mission. (I was single and child free in my experiences before). I saw with different eyes what it must be like to not be able to focus solely on the work at hand but to also have to raise your children quite publicly. There was no hiding the struggles of discipline and training.
My thoughts were confirmed when I got to chat with Stefanie, who had her two boys on board with her. It was refreshing to speak to another mother, and to know that I wasn’t alone in this experience. There were many other families on the ship. There is also a school and even a playground that the boys got to play in after Sunday School on board. So though it would take some getting used to on my end, children and families are a welcome part of missions on the Logos.

My first meeting and dinner with Camila didn’t go as planned, but I did get to have lunch with her and some other Brazilians. It was probably my favourite lunch. The Brazilians were so friendly, and hilarious too! It’s great to be a part of a multicultural family. It’s nice to have a taste of heaven.  

Having lunch after church on board with my family, Dewayne, Uncle Philip and Aunty Janice. (Dewayne was taking the picture)