"It's lovely to have a little taste of heaven again."
These were the words of a departing surgeon as he came and chatted with us in the Purser's office prior to his departure last week. This has got me thinking about how serving here on Mercy Ships is like "a little taste of heaven" - and I wholeheartedly agree with this statement, because from my experience serving in this sort of community is the closest thing to heaven that you can get here on earth.
Of course, we're all fallen human beings, saved by grace, but there is something more in this environment. There is unity. We are all here serving one God. We are all here on a common purpose and mission: to serve God through bringing surgical intervention to the poorest of the poor. This includes our national offices back home, the departments that keep the ship running, such as Deck and Engineering, and then the Hospital itself, where the primary focus of our mission is centred. And despite the fact that the focus of the ministry in the Hospital, it is no more important than the people who clean the toilets and mop the floors. They are also integral to the mission.
Mercy Ships crew are people of integrity who serve humbly and really see their work as their worship. And this - along with our common purpose and unity - is why the Mercy Ship is "a little taste of heaven" here on earth.
