Was my initial reaction to the news that the Mercy Truck would be departing from our YWAM campus, here at Harpenden, north of London (where our Marine Reach Europe Office is located), heading for this tiny county in Western Africa. It’s amazing how God works! Here was a country I had never even heard of and yet 4 weeks later I too was headed for Guinea-Bissau and the YWAM base located at Gabu.
‘Linking Resources to Needs’ is the slogan of the Mercy Truck and Marine Reach ministry. I didn’t realize how direct and accurate that actually is. Guinea-Bissau is listed as the 4th poorest nation in the world so arriving in Gabu was a very strange experience. The lack of electricity, running water, and basic sanitation didn’t surprise me, this wasn’t the first third world nation I’ve been to. It was the fact that even the YWAMers at Gabu, who have been living and working there for 19 years, didn’t even have these basic “necessities of life”. It’s difficult to adjust to only three hours of electricity a day (the generators run from 7-10 P.M.), internet that only works during that period (and hardly has the bandwidth to load a YouTube video), not to mention getting your own water from the well and showering from a bucket.

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Roy Dixon, Britton Foster, Steven Pennel, sets off on Wednesday (21st January) on another mission to take humanitarian aid and equipment to parts of West Africa on behalf of the Mercy Trucks charity. Ahead of him he faces thousands of miles of motorways, sea crossings, mountain ascents and the Sahara desert, not to mention a mine field; not an easy feat driving a fully loaded 40ft container truck.

The 4,600 mile journey down to their base in Guinea Bissau will take around 23 days and take Roy and his team of volunteers across nine borders. He will be driving an articulated truck trailer unit which at the moment is a mobile laboratory and will be crammed full of much needed equipment which has mostly been donated to the charity.

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BURROWS, ANTHONY JAMES ‘Tony’ died peacefully on 7th January 2009 aged 65, after a brave battle against cancer. A treasured husband of Julie and beloved father to Lucy,  James,  Daniel and Joseph.   The family request that donations in lieu of flowers be given to the Next Wave ship.  Lucy writes below on why the family would like the gifts to go to this project.

The ‘Next Wave’, first caught my Dad’s attention in March 2008.  A dear friend of mine, Erika, had just come back from its inaugural voyage as a training vessel for Youth With A Mission.  Erika was part of the team which took 11 young people, with no sailing experience, on a three month voyage from Liverpool to Turkey, stopping at 11 ports on the way, before heading to Africa and the Middle East.  Erika’s team worked with reconciliation initiatives, and mercy ministries in Israel and the West Bank.

I told Dad about the times that I’d connected with the ship, first in September 2006, when the vision for the ship was launched and then when I went to see the ship off in September 2007.  The ship’s home port is in Liverpool and it was commissioned by the Chinese Church in Liverpool. As I sat in the commissioning service, I felt so at home, and was blessed by the Chinese hospitality.

As Dad heard more and more of Erika’s stories about the ship, its voyage and the miracles along the way he commented, “That’s the kind of thing I’d love to do!”

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Liverpool is known for many things, from the Beatles to Capitalof Culture 2008, but not many people know that it is also the home port of the Next Wave, the YWAM England/Marine Reach ship. In August, she was back home and hosting 400 youth as part of Merseyside Police’s “Operation Safe Space”. Many of the youth come from some of the most  eprived areas of the city and are at risk of doing anti-social behaviour, so the Police work to give them constructive outlets for their energy. Having kept out of trouble for an agreed period, the youth
arrived not sure what to expect, many thinking it sounded rather dull. Yet perceptions can change quickly! For many, this was their first time on water, so going up the mast or out on the front bowsprit was
amazing. Working as a team, pulling a friend up the mast, or the sense of achievement from climbing the rigging helped to show what life could be like if they made right choices. After all the activity the guests gathered to hear some of the crew’s stories. These left our visitors in no doubt about the significance God can have in our lives. By the end, many guests did not want to leave. One of the things that excites us about the Next Wave is how she embraces local and global in one package. Earlier in the year she was a base for outreach in Albania; next year she will be a base for medical clinics in the Black Sea region. Yet while Liverpool provides opportunity for the crew to have rest, it is also an opportunity to bring positive change to the local communities.

Andy Wain, YWAM Liverpool

On Day Five of YWAM’s international leadership meetings in Kona, the visionary thrust turned in an unexpected direction–toward the world’s seas and waterways. Throughout the day, leaders spoke about their desire to see YWAM renew its commitment to a global ships ministry.

YWAM founder Loren Cunningham recalled receiving a prophetic word in the 1970s about the birth of “twins” in YWAM: a university (later known as University of the Nations) and a ships ministry (later becoming Mercy Ships). Mercy Ships separated from YWAM in 2003, but the mission continues to operate small mercy vessels and riverboats throughout the world. “I believe this word to us today is a call to totally get behind Marine Reach [one of YWAM’s ship ministries], but also to renew and expand YWAM’s vision of reaching hurting people who live in ports and river communities,” said International President John Dawson.

YWAM founder Loren Cunningham was visibly moved by the expressions of commitment to this unfinished task and urged that all new initiations be built on a strong foundation of unity, humility and apostolic vision.

At Monday’s meeting Loren led an offering for purchase of a small ship called The Next Wave, and $202,566 was raised or pledged.

By Scott Tompkins, Kona, HI