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The ministry in which we are all involved can so easily become very isolated. As we know, loneliness can be accentuated simply by being amongst a crowd; similarly, just because a port chaplain is a member of a local church, it doesn't mean he is surrounded by people who either understand or appreciate his ministry. For some delegates, the sheer fact that they can hold conversations with people without having to explain or justify their ministry represents a real boost of encouragement. Many chaplains are starved of fellowship and/or encouragement and this is why these conferences can be so helpful." Mike Wilson, director of Seaman's Christian Friend Society, UK

Once every four years an evangelical port chaplain's conference is held where chaplains can gather and share problems, ideas, and prayer requests. David Hawkins, Joe and Jeannette Seale, and Roeli Elbers (from Alaska and Amsterdam), were part of the 50 or so chaplains and wives that met in Paranagua, Brazil in March. Eleven countries and 26 ports were represented. People came from many far away places, like South Africa, Philippines, Belgium, Ireland, Holland, and the UK.

We were treated to two very intense days of teaching about Islam by Dr Christine Scherrmacher from Germany. Every breakfast, lunch, dinner, and spare moment was taken up with sharing and discussing port ministries with other participants. One point I found very encouraging was the number of young men who have become port chaplains in the last 5 or 6 years. The men who work alone in their ports went away especially encouraged by talking with others who share their vision for global evangelism done by ship visiting. We all realize that the renewed and new contacts always prove so valuable in the years between conferences. We look to God for great blessings resulting from these days together.

Greetings Vietnam! by David Hawkins
"But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it." Matthew 13:23

In 1968 I was a long way from knowing Jesus. In historical and sociological terms, it was a year like no other. The war in far off Vietnam was being denounced, and, like many other young people, I demonstrated against it. We intuitively recognized the humanity of the people in that strange land, yet knew nothing of their true needs. After all, how could we share with them what we ourselves did not have? Corruption and oppression are rarely removed by violence, and these people had been dealt more than their share of these hateful practices over centuries. Now the church is persecuted there.

With these things in mind, I was thrilled to learn that the newly arrived ship loading coal was crewed almost entirely by Vietnamese. In all my years of visiting ships, I think I have only met three individuals from that country. This crew was indeed "different" but, like all others, just men beneath the veneer. Their English was poor, and their initial interaction with me was wary. Fortunately, God orchestrated events to cause the loading of the ship to take nine days, instead of the usual five. Furthermore, these nineteen men were denied permission to go ashore; not that they wanted to, as freezing northerly winds prevailed throughout their stay. Thus a beneficial stage was set to minister to this captive audience. Much of my time in these circumstances is spent taking care of the crew's physical needs in a myriad of ways. This can be wearing, but not too difficult, but how could I share with them what they really needed? That was the challenge.

The Vietnamese materials that I had were extremely helpful. This was a good reminder that although we may not encounter certain language groups too often, we should still keep those materials available. We also had a Vietnamese Bible and two New Testaments stowed away, no doubt they had been there for years waiting for just this time.

My experience with this crew was fascinating. I had never before seen and heard Karaoki performed with such enthusiasm and this to the truly exotic strains of their traditional music, so discordant to our Western ears. Trust was gradually being established, and as we neared the day of their departure, I tentatively suggested that they may like to meet and pray before leaving. No clues were given for me to gauge their interest, nor was a specific time set for this to happen, but on their last day they gathered in the Mess Room, as if spontaneously. Before we prayed, I reminded them of the things we had talked about over the previous week, and what Jesus had done for them. I struggled to make myself understood, but they were patient with me and attentive. My concern was that they didn't understand what I was proclaiming to them. I mentioned this to my new friend Mr. Duc, a young engineering officer who had better English than his shipmates. He assured me that, "they understand about 70% of what you have explained to them." All things considered, that was more than most do.

Brazilian Followup by Jeannette Seale
O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together! Ps. 34:3

Over the years Joe and I have met seafarers from Brazil so we took the opportunity to stay a few days after the conference ended to visit with them. Each has a remarkable story and we were so blessed to be able to meet them again.

The first man we visited is presently working on a ship as a cook and he was home on leave. Not only did he meet us at the airport when we arrived, he accompanied us to take medical supplies to an American missionary and his family, attended the port chaplain's conference with us, and took care of our every need. This man's help was invaluable. We know that the conference profoundly changed him. We look forward to seeing him in May when his ship calls in Whittier again and to see how the Lord is working in his life.

We also visited a man whom we had not seen for 20 years. We knew him very well when we visited ships in Juneau, but when we moved to Anchorage and he left the ships, we lost contact. Three years ago he was trying to find us and he found Joe's mother's telephone number listed in Anchorage and he called her!!! He had wanted to call us to tell us that even though he had not made a commitment to Christ when we knew him in Juneau, he and his wife had become Christians and were attending the Word of Life Institute in Atibaia, Brazil. Seeing him again and to meet his two little adopted daughters was a special blessing.

An officer's wife, who lives in Atibaia, was our next old friend to visit. She and her husband have also attended the Word of Life Institute. When you look at a map of Brazil, you can see how amazing God is to put all the people we wanted to see within a one hundred mile radius. We were able to meet her mother and brother and sisters and spend Easter weekend with her while her husband was still at sea. What a joy to be with believers on Easter in a foreign country and to sing Jesus' praises together in two languages.

We had a few days in Miami on our way home so we visited with an Indonesian ex-seafarer who lives in west Florida. He drove 6 hours round trip to pray with us and to get some counsel. We also had dinner with friends who had been to the mission in Seward 11 years ago, and he'd arranged for us to stay with friends from their church. From the instant we left Anchorage until the hour we returned, we could see God's hand moving over our travels. We want to thank God for all of the miles of safe travel and for you who prayed for our safety and health.

Stay strong as you are - God's love is always with you - it shows. UK