Dampier Chaplain to Seafarers Jake De Salis had just 30 minutes with a seriously ill seafarer named Bert before he was medevacked to Perth. In that time Jake told the mariner about salvation through Christ and they prayed together for Bert to come to know Jesus.
Jake says this can happen at Mission to Seafarer Centres in the North West because the seafarers receive a genuine experience of the love of God expressed through the centre staff.
The seafarer’s life is tough, spending up to nine months away from home as crew aboard giant ore carriers. Mission to Seafarer Centres provide physical, spiritual and emotional care to support them in their loneliness.
Jake had received a call asking him to visit Bert who had been hospitalised with severe gastrointestinal infection.
“I was there as salt and light for the sake of God because, in all honesty, I didn’t want to go to the hospital that day”, Jake said.
“But in the end, Bert knew that I was displaying something outside of myself for him to see. As a result we prayed that he would come to know Jesus and we prayed also for his family.
“We prayed for his young wife, his mother and his sisters. He talked about going to a church that a friend had asked him to attend but he had always declined to go.”
“All of this was because Bert could ‘see… good deeds and know to glorify your Father in heaven, and I praise God for that.”
Jake says the Mission to Seafarers is a precious ministry.
“When seafarers visit a port, they find most people are there to earn money (and big money in the Pilbara). People only have a passing and mostly professional interest in seafarers.
“However, it is completely different at the Seafarer Centres. The chaplain, the drivers, the staff and volunteers all have a focused interest only in the seafarer. The seafarers love this display from us and they relish it.”
Please pray for the good news of Jesus to comfort seafarers.