Ship of Life

I have just returned from four days in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. As we have reported earlier, the capitol of Vietnam is a beautiful city in many ways and as ugly as you can get in others. I visited one of the slums with our brother Tom Tune while there this week and was astounded at some of the conditions present. We have all seen the pictures and television shows documenting the slums of places like Calcutta and Haiti but until you stand right next to these places and smell the smells and see the looks of desperation peer into your own eyes, you really have not “seen”. I keep seeing evidence of the need, sometimes daily, for Gods people to love their neighbors.
I went to Vietnam to oversee the installation of equipment in the dental clinic of the boat project. We had spelled out in detail instruction how we wanted the clinic to be laid out and expected upon arrival to simple set in the dental chair and unit. To our great surprise, all of the cabinetry was oversized and left no room for the chair! The cabinet makers must have thought bigger was better. They then had to spend two days “redoing” the cabinets. Because of the delay, I will go back to Vietnam next week and make sure everything is installed correctly.
Despite the nearly nine months of delays, the “Ship of Life” seems close to departure. Next Tuesday the ship will be launched into the water for the first time and unless there are major problems, will stay in the water until departure scheduled for early April. God has His own time table for all things. I keep telling myself that often. Isn’t she a beauty though?
Rick