The Anchor Published Monthly by Global Maritime Ministries, Inc.

Volume 29 Number 4

April 2014

With a Song in Our Hearts Alicia Weber

I would bet that you thought

singing would not be part of the

job description of a port chaplain.

Surprise! Sometimes it is.

During a ship visit, I was wel-

comed by a group of seafarers

who were in port for a few

weeks. All the ice and bad

weather had kept the cargo oper-

ation from being completed at a

normal pace, so we got to know

the guys on the ship quite well.

Often, I would be requested to

come pick someone up and

would be invited on board for a

meal and conversation while the

guys got ready. One memorable

evening after I returned them to

their ship following an outing,

they insisted that I come on

board to have dinner and wait for

the next round of guys. Next

thing I know, dinner is over and

I’m being ushered into the rec

room where there is a micro-

phone and a book of music laid

out. This is when I start panick-

ing. I don’t sing in front of peo-

ple. Singing in church is one

thing, but a small room with a

bunch of people watching me

karaoke is another! I attempted

to decline politely, but the cap-

tain convinced me to sing by

saying he would sing first. I

agreed, assuming he was jok-

ing...he was not. He allowed me

to take some pictures, however,

so I figured I owed him the co-

medic spectacle. Thankfully, I

shattered no glass, and soon more

of the crew filtered in to join in

the silliness. Admittedly, it was

a lot of fun and the guys were

very good, due to lots of practice,

no doubt!

Cue one of our volunteers:

James Long. He had been com-

ing to the center primarily to

interact with the Chinese seafar-

ers because he speaks the lan-

guage. If there is an opportunity,

I like to give volunteers the expe-

rience of riding to the port. It

isn’t something one gets to do

every day. James found out just

how interesting this can be! We

made a request for his first-ever

visit to a ship. The captain was

kind enough to show him the

bridge and common areas, as

well as answer the myriad of

questions that non-seafarers

have. Not only was James given

a tour, he was also treated to his

own karaoke debut.

Like any other job, we have

our ups and downs. We also

have the experience of never

knowing what the next day will

bring. Will we need to offer en-

couragement to a lone Christian

on a ship? Will we need to help

someone buy a gift for his wife?

Will we fellowship in unexpect-

edly musical ways? Will we

need to practice the disciplines of

waiting and patience when noth-

ing is afoot? One thing is cer-

tain: where there is a need, we

are waiting with outstretched

hands. We are ready to share the

love of Christ with the world and

to do it with a song in our hearts.

The Anchor

Page 2

A Blessing To Be a Blessing Ahsaki Hammond Being a port chaplain is so exciting! I

love being able to interact with different

nationalities and cultures from around

the world. There is never a dull mo-

ment, and I am grateful for the oppor-

tunity to serve alongside those who once

served me when I was a port worker. As

a port worker, there were many long,

weary nights and it seemed as though the

twelve-hours shifts would last an eterni-

ty. I would look forward to seeing a

friendly face and a smile. The chaplains

would always ask how I was doing. I

thanked God for the many visits from

GMM port chaplains as they not only

took care of the seafarers but also the

port workers. I am grateful for the

cookies and every cup of hot coffee

given to me as well as every word of

encouragement that was spoken to me.

I must not forget the Christmas presents.

Now I am on the other side and I love

it! I enjoy being able to serve coffee

and cookies to the port workers. I was

even able to deliver some of the Christ-

mas presents this past year. I enjoy tak-

ing the seafarers out shopping for gifts

to take back home to their loved ones. I

also enjoy them coming to the center

and helping them connect with their

loved ones via Skype. It is nice to see

them being able to talk to their family

whom they haven’t seen or spoken to in

months due to lengthy travel at sea. It is

a blessing to be a blessing.

Giving and Receiving Ann Davis I have learned a lot of things during

these past few weeks at GMM. Some

things I knew but experienced in a new

way. When we give to others, we re-

ceive so much more in return. The sea-

farers I have met are so grateful for the

smallest kindness, whether a smile or

help with something. Sincere thanks are

heard all day, and many are eager to

return the kindness and share what they

have to give. I have learned it is im-

portant to accept what is offered even if I

don’t feel I have done anything to de-

serve it. I have two examples of such

appreciation. The first was from a

sweet, young lady that gave me fruit that

she had just bought from Walmart. The

second was from Marvin. Marvin is a

ship photographer. He was recently

looking for a package containing some-

thing he needed for an upcoming wed-

ding. He was eager to receive the pack-

age because this was his first wedding on

the ship. I made one phone call and was

able to find the package. We have been

friends ever since. He took a couple of

pictures of me and my husband and re-

turned the next week with an album for

us.

The most inspiring thing to see is the

eagerness of the Christian crew members

to share their faith and what God is do-

ing in their lives. Leonard and I came to

GMM to love and encourage others, but

we are finding out that we are the ones

receiving the love and encouragement.

Central Baptist Top Ten We recently received an email from

Suzanne, one of our faithful Central

Baptist Church (Jonesboro, Arkansas)

volunteers. She listed the “Top Ten

Reasons to Minister at Global Maritime

Ministries.” Drum roll, please. Her list

is as follows:

10) Family Friendly - Great trip for

families with children. Remember, these

men and women are away from their

families up to 10 months at a time.

9) Cost - It is relatively inexpensive to

go on this trip.

8) On-site Accommodations - The

bunkrooms are upstairs at the center and

are very comfortable. Philip has also

made arrangements for a special rate at a

local hotel if needed.

7) Location - This is a seven- to eight-

hour trip from Jonesboro. Short-term

trips are available, such as a four-day

weekend.

6) No Job is Too Small - Many ran-

dom acts of kindness can be carried out

such as baking cookies and cakes, serv-

ing lemonade, and cleaning the facility.

5) Many Ways to Give - GMM accepts

donations by check and automatic draft.

We witnessed first-hand how conscien-

tious they are with the funds donated.

4) Bibles - There are currently Bibles in

fifty-eight different languages. Other

languages need to be ordered, and mon-

ey sent with our team will be used to

purchase some of these Bibles.

3) Need - Many of the duties are carried

out by volunteers. Without teams of

volunteers to purchase and prepare

snacks each week, the food that is served

to the seafarers is diminished.

2) Ann & Leonard Davis - Help en-

courage and support our Central family

on the mission field.

1) Share the love of Jesus with people

from around the world.

Page 3

2014 Statistics As of March 31, 2014

Ships visited 118

Seafarers contacted 5,124

Port workers contacted 33

Countries represented 40

Seafarers visiting center 2,755

Scriptures distributed 80

Significant Ministry Opportunities 32

2014 Budget Requirements

Budget needs $ 82,750.00

Budget income $ 63,549.37

The Anchor

In Memory

In Memory of: Given by:

Ruby Mildred Davis Buddy & Sandi Johnston

Ruby Mildred Davis Sammy & Gina Sabine

Ruby Mildred Davis Philip & Sandy Vandercook

Ruby Mildred Davis Williams’ Life Group

Central Baptist Church

Millard Mangum Ernest & Sherri Andrews

Millard Mangum Ray & Lori Griffin

Millard Mangum Paul & Misty Nelson

Millard Mangum Sammy & Gina Sabine

Millard Mangum Bill & Margarita Stanford

Millard Mangum Philip & Sandy Vandercook

Radie Reviere Robert Purvis

Rev. John Vandercook Thomas & Judy Brunet

Rev. John Vandercook Joe Earl Watford

Robert B. Winegeart E.K. Field Sunday School Class

In Honor

In Honor of: Given by:

Dale & Jo Patterson Philip & Sandy Vandercook

Chepita Dinicola Barbara Talley

Cameron Blake Osborn Sabine GDad & GiGi Sabine

Volunteers In Partnership

Anchor Angels

Steve & Shirley Barnett

Illinois State WMU

FBC Davis Oklahoma

Casey, Angela, Zachary, Abby,

Toby & Emily Harris

Rob & Shelley Noles

Martin & Nancy Russell

Chris Shaffer

Building Fund

Leonora Dowell

Deepest Sympathy

We have recently experienced two deaths in the Global Maritime family. Please pray with us

for the families of Norman and Priscilla Mangum in the death of Norman’s brother, Millard

Mangum, and also Leonard and Ann Davis in the death of Leonard’s mother, Ruby Davis.

* Save the Date *

Friday, October 10, 2014

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Web Site

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Global Maritime Ministries, Inc. Global Maritime Ministries exists to provide holistic

Christian ministry by meeting the spiritual, emotional, and physical needs of seafarers and maritime workers .

that he still had notes in his Bible from

years past that he was still praying for

because nobody told him to stop praying

because God had answered their prayer.

He instilled 1 Thessalonians 5:17—“Pray

without ceasing”—to every student that

went through his class.

The reason I am telling you this is to

ask you a question. Have you been pray-

ing without ceasing? As part of our min-

istry, we are constantly being asked by

When I was getting my Associate’s

Degree at a little Bible school in North

Carolina, I had a professor who had a

profound effect on me. This man had

had his Bible re-covered, if memory

serves me correctly, four times. The

pages of his Bible had notes written all

over them. I do not know how he kept

things straight. He stated continually,

“When someone asks you to pray for

them, drop what you are doing and pray.

Do not say ‘Yes, I will’ and walk off.”

He would tell us that by the time you turn

around and walk away, you will have

forgotten what is was they asked you to

pray for. He would also tell us that if he

was out in public and he heard someone

ask one of his students, present or for-

mer, to pray and they did not do it at that

moment, he would walk up to them and

tell a present student to write a ten-page

paper on why they did not stop and pray.

If they were a former student, he stated

that he would ask them if they needed to

take his class over again. He also told us

Don’t Stop Norman Mangum

seafarers and port personnel to pray for

them, for their families, and for special

needs. When I am asked to pray, I hear

the little voice of my former professor

saying, “Do it now.” Have you been

praying continually for the little girl with

juvenile arthritis or for the staff at Global

Maritime Ministries? There are times

when our staff is drained spiritually and

physically because we are continually

standing in the trenches and providing

spiritual help to the men and women

with whom we come in contact every

day. We also experience struggles and

needs in our own families.

Prayer is the strongest tool a Christian

has. Nobody can take it away from you.

Your Bible can be taken away from you,

but your prayer life can never be taken

away. Bend your knees and pray. If you

can’t bend your knees, sit down. God

will still hear you! While you are there,

please remember to say a prayer for us as

we minister here in the port.