Blessed to be a Blessing
Sarah Johnson has been a practicing nurse for 12 years, working in both labor and delivery and ICU. From the time she was a young girl, Sarah always desired to help people in need, especially in under resourced countries — that’s why Mercy Ships was a perfect fit for her.
In this episode, Sarah shares how her passion for faith and nursing has paved her life’s path. She tells how she used her experience in labor and delivery to help her patients in a very special way and the importance of intentional living.
Sarah has formed strong bonds during her time volunteering with Mercy Ships. From her first patient to the national translators she worked with, her desire to build relationships has provided her with deep, long-lasting friendships.
Looking for a way to join our mission of bringing hope and healing? Partner with us through a gift, volunteering with us, or by joining us in prayer.
New Mercies Podcast Transcript
Welcome to the New Mercies, a podcast by Mercy Ships, where we’ll take you behind the scenes and on board our incredible hospital ships that are transforming lives all over the world. We invite you to join us each week as we sit down with our crew, patients, volunteers, and partners to hear their stories of life-changing hope and healing.
Sarah Johnson has been a practicing nurse for 12 years working in both labor and delivery and the ICU. From the time she was a young girl, Sarah always desired to help people, especially in under-resourced countries and that’s why Mercy Ships was a perfect fit for her. Get ready to have your heart warmed by this amazing woman and her love for Africa. Here’s my interview with Sarah Johnson.
Raeanne Newquist:
Well, Sara, I am so excited to get to speak with you today. So welcome to the podcast. Welcome to New Mercies.
Sarah Johnson:
Thank you so much for having me.
Raeanne:
Why don’t you first tell us where you’re at right now and what you’re doing.
Sarah:
I’m currently living in North Carolina and working as a labor and delivery nurse.
Raeanne:
Oh, how fun. So you get to bring new babies into the world, and how many babies do you think you’ve been a part of their delivery?
Sarah:
You know, when I first started out and labor and delivery, I always said I would try and count and I always lose count! So lots of babies!
Raeanne:
How long have you been doing this?
Sarah:
I have been very fortunate in my nursing career to toggle between ICU and labor and delivery. So I started out as an ICU nurse and the hospital, I was able to switch to labor and delivery and train there and still keep up my skills in the ICU, picking up shifts every once in a while. combined. I want to say maybe seven years combined.
Raeanne:
Well, Sara, we have you on today because you have volunteered with Mercy Ships. Why don’t you tell us why you chose Mercy Ships.
Sarah:
Specifically, I was looking for a faith based organization that was directly involved in health care of primarily third world countries. And I really, really respect and honor the model and the vision of Mercy Ships. I mean, they say this kind of over and over again, but it is a priority to allow everyone be able to come to the table of humanity. I wanted to be a part of this and contribute and I knew that I wanted to travel somewhere outside of the United States. I have a very soft spot for Africa, in general, so to be able to volunteer, and also do nursing at the same time in West Africa was a wonderful opportunity.
Raeanne:
Well, you first got on board in 2018 in Guinea, so why don’t you tell us about the first patient that you cared for on board and what that was like.
Sarah:
I took care of a young lady named Isatu, she was my very first patient. There was a lot of follow up with Isatu and one thing that was very special was that she brought her baby son with her on board. His name was Amadou. Isatu had a nebula tumor, and had to get a nebula ectomy and she was my first patient ever, and I was able to take care of her immediately after she came out of surgery. And for her specifically, I remember her demeanor when she first came on the ship. We have our own culture on the ship. Someone is coming from Guinea, their homeland, onto the ship with a bunch of strangers, but soon you develop relationships, soon you become really friends and family. And I saw where she was first very withdrawn, very quiet, and looking around like What is all this about, as she was physically healing. I think this is really the beautiful thing about Mercy Ships, we really saw her spirits and her emotional healing happening as well. So towards the end of her first day, I believe she came back and she had a two part surgery towards the end of her stay, she really kind of came into her own and started to really vocalize her feelings and vocalize her joy. And something that is extremely special is deck seven time. And for those of you who don’t know what deck seven time is, it is required time outside because we all need sunshine. Yes, Sunshine is a part of healing. And I remember specifically this one time, we were walking to deck seven, and her and I were actually kind of on the tail end of the line. She started singing and dancing. And I just remember that first encounter with her where she would barely make eye contact. And now she’s singing and dancing. And she was actually saying “give God the glory.” She’s like, do you see what has happened to me? And she stopped me in my tracks, put her hands on my shoulders and just said, Do you see what’s happening to me? Just the biggest smile on her face. Even now, I mean, that happened in 2018, it still brings so much joy to my heart to see her transformation not only on the outside, but on the inside. And I think that’s specifically a difference with Mercy Ships in general, is yes, we want to heal people physically. But there’s so much trauma and repair that needs to be happening on the inside. And a lot of that does happen on the ship as well.
Raeanne:
Wow. That is your first experience, what an incredible one. I mean, how amazing and you’re so right, I think that a lot of these patients receive kind of this emotional healing as well because of the unconditional love that they receive by our nurses and our doctors just to be touched and looked in the eye and hugged and just embraced. It changes all of us, but especially someone who has been through trauma. Now I just have to ask you, who took care of the little baby while she was in surgery?
Sarah:
That was the best part, we all kind of took care of him and she had a caregiver, I believe it was her mother, but we got to hold the baby a lot too. I really love Mercy Ships because they’re very detailed oriented and I very much appreciate that. This mom was caring for her baby, but also she needs a caregiver as well. Much of the time patients will come with family members to be caregivers. And I can definitely tell you there are several opportunities where we wanted to care for Amadou or babysit him. And you understand this little kiddo when he arrived on the ship, they dressed him in a Santa Claus outfit, which was just adorable! And so he brought so much light and love and laughter to all of us. Not to mention, even though my role on the ship at the time was medical isolate doing ICU, I had just come out of doing labor and delivery. And so I’m all about breastfeeding and bonding with your baby. So I actually was able to help her with breastfeeding and pumping and all of that so that important piece of her bonding with her baby was still being supported, even though she was having surgery.
Raeanne:
Wow, how incredibly special that you had those skills and training and experience that you could also give her that gift of being able to bond with her baby in that way. That is so cool. Well, Sarah, I know that working in ICU and being with people post operative can be stressful, and it can be an intense environment working in a hospital in general. Through your time volunteering was a moment when you felt totally dependent upon God.
Sarah:
There’s definitely a couple of moments of dependence on God, one in particular was when I was volunteering in Senegal, there was one patient, her name is Mandela. She had quite a bit of swelling after her surgery, so it required her to be in the ICU on a ventilator so that she could heal and the swelling would go down. We were providing her physical care, but a lot of us you know, we came together and prayed over her. It was a lot of dependence on God to help us get to the next step. That was definitely something where we had to depend on God and depend on him to equip us with the skills and resources. That is a beautiful, beautiful thing about the ship too is all of us come from so many different backgrounds, we have so many different skills and resources. And it’s so unique to see how each person is able to utilize what they know, and how they’ve been trained in a particular way to really fit into the puzzle piece of how we do our healthcare on the ship.
Raeanne, you are with me on this one is the pandemic. March 2020, there’s this little thing called COVID-19. I was very, very fortunate to be there and to be volunteering. I mean, we had such wonderful leadership, and a team that had the insight that, hey, this is a big deal. And we need to move fast. And to go ahead into quarantine and to go ahead and take those next steps and really weigh the risk and benefits of staying in a port in Senegal versus leaving. And I always like to reference the book when helping hurts, I encourage every single person to read that book. Because it is always our intention to go into a community or society and to try and help. But if we do not weigh the risk and the benefits of our actions on how they are going to go into that community, we could actually hurt. That’s one reason we ended up leaving during the pandemic. And so being an ICU nurse, I think there was one of eight ICU nurses on board. And again, leadership was very, very transparent with the reality of COVID-19. We don’t know if we have it on the ship at this point. We’re doing quarantine, we’re taking all these measures. But we’re also about to have a two to three day. sail and as an ICU nurse who’s able to run a ventilator, I was asked to stay in the off chance during the two to three days that we’re out in the ocean, somebody gets sick and needs that support and care. And I was saying that was total dependence on God, I prayed. And it was only his peace that helped me be able to say, Yep, I can do that. And I talked with my family, and it was so crazy, because during this time of stress and anxiety and turmoil and just so much of the unknown with a pandemic, I had this sincere peace, about moving forward that really could only come from God.
Raeanne:
And praise God that we never had to use those ventilators, you know, praise God that nobody got COVID on board.
Well, you got to experience quite a few amazing things, both in Guinea and Senegal, during your time volunteering. Sarah, maybe tell us about a patient that impacted you and why. I know there’s many you’ve already shared about Isatu and each patient leaves a mark on your heart, but sometimes there’s just that one that you’ll absolutely never forget.
Sarah:
There’s definitely several patients. But one that was a unique experience for me was a young lady named Umo. Who had an F lander flap.
Raeanne:
What is that for non-medical folks?
Sarah:
Yes, so sorry. So if you can imagine taking your fingers and pitching together the side of your mouth, it’s the first step in her procedure, then that heals and eventually that will be released for another procedure. So I met her right after she had her surgery. And she again, one thing people really need to know is a lot of our patients that have some type of deformity or abnormality, unfortunately, they have kind of been cast out from society. Because you can see it physically and it is a very sad thing. But there is a lack of love that has been given. And so we do find people that are just very withdrawn and sad and don’t even really know how to receive us trying to care for them. And you know, they even question why are you caring for us. And this young lady, I will say was a hard nut to crack. So, this took place in Guinea, and 2018. I took care of her numerous times. And again, she just rarely made eye contact, rarely talked and not to mention, because of her surgery, it was difficult for her to talk, if you can imagine pinching this out of your mouth and trying to talk it. It’s very difficult.
Myself and my coworker friend Yona, we made up a song and dance and we had these hand motions, and it was about elephants and turtles and birds. And we were being so silly, and we did it multiple times in front of her and finally, she couldn’t help herself, she cracked a smile and laughed. And it was just such a nice thing that she was like, hey, it’s okay to smile. It’s okay to feel it’s, okay to laugh. So our friendship started to grow. I was her nurse, but we became friends. One of the last times I was with her again, on deck seven, she was just having kind of a sad day. And I was with her and we would walk and color a little bit. And she sat in a chair and I sat beside her and my head was about her knee level as I was sitting beside her and a day crew member, which is one of our translators helped me to talk with her and just say, hey, what can we do here on deck seven today? I want to see that beautiful smile of yours. What can we do today? And I will never forget her hand just gently started patting my head — she wanted to do my hair. And so I sat in front of her, and let me tell you, usually braiding hair takes a while but she actually has a very, very good talent for it. I mean, in less than 30 minutes she had braided all of my hair. And so it was a very special time.
So one thing about Mercy Ships I love is that they look at the whole picture. They look at preoperatively. They looked at the time that patients in the hospital, but also the time that the patient’s are outside of our hospital. And they even go as far as developing something called the Hope Center, where patients who live far away are able to stay and then go to their outpatient appointments. So there’s two different times of the week that I could go and see her. There is a time during the week that somebody from Mercy Ships takes a group of people to the Hope Center, just to do activities with the patients during the day. And then on Sundays, there’s a Sunday service. So a couple of times I could go there and see her and we’d sit together, we had this very special nonverbal communication. And I didn’t speak her language and not to mention she had trouble speaking because of her surgery. But nonverbal communication became a vital skill. And we developed our friendship through nonverbal communication. And so we have this inside joke where we’d sit together and hold hands while we were praying and then kind of bump each other’s elbows and kind of give each other this side eye to see if we were actually closing our eyes during prayer or not. So I think for that patient in particular, it was just was such a nice flow of seeing how the developing of the relationship inside the hospital and then really a friendship outside of the hospital.
I loved continuing just to pour love and care into her to just show her, Hey, even though you’re still not in the hospital, I still care about you. I still care about your friendship, we all do. And you are an important person. And your life matters. You are worthy.
I came back home before she had her second surgery, but I was able to, through the blessing of Mercy Ships media, I actually saw her follow up photos after her flap was released. And she’s got the biggest smile now. And then there is actually a picture of her doing hair on deck seven which just made me smile so much. Because that was something that was a talent of hers, and something she kind of held close to her. And now she’s really freely giving. Wow. And I really believe that was contributed to Mercy Ships.
Raeanne:
You’ve had such a blessing to be witness to these transformations. But also to build relationships with these beautiful people. As you mentioned, it’s not just caring for them in the hospital, but getting to visit them at the Hope Center and through different services or playing games or just being together outside. It’s so amazing to get to build those relationships with your patients. Now I know that you cared for many patients in your field services, with Mercy Ships. And that can be a huge blessing. But it also was really exhausting as any job is. What did you do to kind of refresh yourself or to just have fun outside of the hospital on your days off?
Sarah:
One of the greatest things about leaving your country and going to another country is really trying to be immersed in the culture and the people of that nation. And specifically in Senegal, because I was there for a longer period of time, I was able to get quite close, especially with our day crew, the translators that help us. They really are the bridge from what we want to give and the people that we want to help. Many times on my days off, I would reconnect with our day crew. And there’s been a number of times where I visited their families or we’d have lunch together. But really, on days off I’d either rest on the ship and just kind of have some debriefing decompressing time. Because I mean, it does take a level of emotional endurance with what you see and what you feel and all that transpires. But also just going out into the community, really, really getting to know the people really getting to know the culture and the languages was something I loved to do. But it was taking the time to meet not only my friends and co workers, but their family members and to see the people that they live with and what their life is like. I think that’s such an important thing in general, especially coming from America, we have a very individualistic lifestyle here. And especially in Senegal, it’s very community based. It’s very family based. It’s very much this awareness of we do life together. And that relational mentality is something that is a part of me now and it’s almost it’s a necessity.
On days off, we would, you know, tour different sides or meet maybe day crew and family members even had this one evening where we had a basketball game. That was pretty fun. So, I will say there was some height differences where my friends had some advantages. But it was a lot of fun.
Raeanne:
Well, I know that you definitely took full advantage of, as you said, getting to know the culture, getting to know the local people. The blessing is a lot of those local people work on board our ships when we’re in port, because they are translators, and they help in every single department, which is awesome. And I love that you mentioned that you got to go into some of their homes and meet their families and really get a taste of the culture from these wonderful coworkers that you had. Why don’t you tell us about one of these day crew workers that you’re able to still be in contact with.
Sarah:
One of the very special things about Mercy Ships is the relationships and friendships that you develop and no matter what country you’re from, those relationships last. And there’s numerous, numerous people that come to mind. But I have to mention my friend, Abby, who was featured on this podcast previously, yes, Abby is very special. And she’s a very special translator, and very gifted, and I not only was able to work alongside Abby, and have her be on the ship during the pandemic while we were wrapping everything up. Abby has since come to the United States, and I’ve actually been able to see her in person, and really just continue that relationship and that friendship. The ship has its own culture and when you live on the ship, and you work on the ship, you become blended into the culture of the ship. So no matter if you are from America, or Sweden or from Senegal, when you come on the ship and you are blended into the ship culture. And that is a family that is a community. So it is a very special relationship to maintain. And to just have this awareness of like, Hey, how are you doing? And like, know that each of you have a point of view from living and working on the ship that has really impacted your life and changed your perspective.
Raeanne:
And you’ll have those friendships and relationships for the rest of your life. Sarah, why do you volunteer? What compels you to go out and just give your life away? You have a great job in North Carolina, working in a hospital labor and delivery, I’m sure that’s a lucrative job. But why do you volunteer? And why do you volunteer with Mercy Ships.
Sarah:
For me, it started at a young age, specifically, exploring other cultures outside of America. I think I was 15 or 16 and I read this book about South African apartheid. And it really just kind of popped my American bubble. And it really showed me life outside of America is different. And I wanted to know that difference. And I had such a curiosity. It was really kind of setting that foundation for the rest of my life and traveling and then adding on this portion of wanting to care for people who do not have the resources, or the economic infrastructure to support either themselves, their family, their health, and I have learned that God has blessed me, he’s blessed everyone, we are blessed to be a blessing. That is actually something I learned through a course called perspectives. That really, really helped shape a global perspective. But in wanting to care for others, it really is the basis of my faith. My faith has given me an urgency that I can’t sit still, I can’t not go. When I have this awareness, it’s just this urgency that really kind of burns to make you to stand up and go, and kind of coming back to that idea of, of blessings. It’s really God’s math, right. I mean, he takes loaves and fishes and multiplies them. I mean, this this young boy in the story of feeding the 5000 was blessed to have loaves and fishes. And God uses that blessing to bless 5000 people. So by some chance the tools and gifts and talents that God has equipped me with can bless others, well I want to go out and help and serve and volunteer and do what I can with what God has equipped me with.
Raeanne:
You are blessed in order to be a blessing, not to hoard the blessings. But to give them away and to bless others. And God does multiply. You’re right. That’s how his economy works, which is so great. Sarah, as we wrap up our time together, why don’t you tell us how your life has been changed and impacted because of Mercy Ships.
Sarah:
I think the word that is coming to mind for me is to be intentional, to be intentional in life, and relationships. And also to be intentional and sensitive to other people’s needs. People usually are the way they are for a reason. And whether they’re quiet, sad, withdrawn, even angry, there is some type of circumstance or situation that has made them that way. So being intentional, not to dig, but to really let that person be able to either share, or just develop a relationship be like, Hey, it’s okay to not be okay, giving someone the space and freedom to be who they are, and to be intentional about authentically caring for them. So I would say, being intentional in life, and relationships, and that really translates over in to the work I do now. And it’s even my family and the relationships I develop with my friends, that intentionality of seeking people out, showing them that you care with authenticity, and living with intention. Really, you know, if you have skills, and resources, being a good steward of those skills and resources is important.
Raeanne:
Yeah, I heard somebody say once, life is not a dress rehearsal, right? It’s not a practice so that you get to do it again. It’s like, No, this is the show.
That’s right. So you gotta live it on purpose. You have to live with intention. And steward well what God has given you. Sarah, you are a blessing to many and I know that you’re blessing those who are listening to this even now. So thank you so much for taking the time to share with us just a little bit about your Mercy Ships journey.
Sarah:
Thank you very much.
For more information about Mercy Ships, go to mercyships.org, and to keep up with the guests on New Mercies, follow us on Instagram at NewMerciesPodcast.