Greetings from Texas where we find ourselves in a heatwave! We hope that you are well. It has been some time since our last update, so thank you for your patience. Life has a way of taking us through the unexpected, and this has been the case again recently.
We were blessed to be able to take a short break in early June and enjoy the cool of the mountains in Colorado for five days and on our return drive, our car was hit by a large mule deer buck. Thankfully no one was hurt, yet during that drive a pain began to develop in my left leg and a week later back in Texas, I was rushed to the emergency room.
I had been repairing our ride-on mower in the early evening when I blacked out twice. Coming to, I managed to reach my office (part of our detached garage) to call Sherry, who came immediately hearing from my voice I was in a bad way and called for an ambulance right away.
My heart was in atrial fibrillation and I was struggling to breathe, which was later diagnosed as being caused by a saddle pulmonary embolism caused by DVT (deep vein thrombosis) in my left leg. After the evening in the ER, I was transferred to ICU that night and after two days moved to the cardiovascular ward before being discharged to recover at home.
Embarkation postponed
I had been due to fly out to New Zealand a week later for a six-week deployment to be on board ship. The MV Koha, operated by YWAM Ships Aotearoa is sailing for its very first outreach to the Fijian Island chain on July 20th, after long delays because of global travel restrictions due to COVID-19. They will sail from Tauranga, New Zealand to Suva, Fiji, and then up to Labasa for medical and dental outreach. Read more here
Preparations have been two years in the planning, and it's hugely disappointing that I am restricted from flying during my recovery period. There continues to be a huge ongoing need for more technical crew but we will continue to plan for training in the future alongside this incredible ministry as it serves the isolated islands of the South Pacific.
Recalibration
A modern magnetic compass is a tool all vessels utilize. Large compasses require a recalibration of no less than two years due to the effect of the earth’s magnetic field and that of the vessel's effect, should it be made of steel. It is colloquially known as swinging the compass due to the fact that the vessel must make many turns in order for it to be calibrated.
I have been afforded time to recover from my medical emergency and we have been asking God what He is wanting to say through this. Like the person qualified to make the adjustments to a ship's compass, we are taking this time to invite God to swing our compass to make sure we are on the course He has set for us. Would you pray for us in this season?
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