Mighty Encourager
Stefan Schmid grew up in Germany with missional-minded parents who planted churches. His theological teaching came at the dinner table where his father would nightly share scripture with the family and pray. Stefan had a heart after God and a desire to make an impact in His kingdom. Through various ministry opportunities, Stefan and his family eventually moved to East Texas to serve with Mercy Ships at the International Support Center. Stefan serves as the Field Service Coordinator where he gets to train and equip new crew before they go on board our ships.
Stefan has been volunteering with Mercy Ships for 22 years and in this episode, he shares how God is using his gifts to encourage and challenge crew. He tells stories of God’s miraculous provision during field practices and how prayer is the key to unleash God’s power.
You will be deeply encouraged by this man as he testifies to God’s goodness.
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.
Stefan Schmid grew up in Germany with missional-minded parents who planted churches, Stefan as well had a desire to make an impact in God’s kingdom and He began to minister after he finished school. His ministries eventually led him to Mercy Ships where he moved his family to East Texas to serve at the International Support Center. Stephane serves as the field service coordinator, where he gets to train and equipped new crew before they go on board our ships. Get ready to have your spirits lifted from this mighty encourager. Here’s my interview with Stefan Schmid.
Raeanne Newquist:
Stefan Schmid, the mighty encourager, welcome to New Mercies.
Stefan Schmid:
Thank you for inviting me. And thank you that I could be a part of your new program here.
Raeanne:
Well, we’re excited to have you. Now currently you are in Texas. Is that correct? You’re working at the International Support Center?
Stefan:
Yes, that is where I am.
Raeanne:
What’s it like in Texas today?
Stefan:
Today, it was cold in the morning, we almost had a freeze. But this was at five o’clock when I go out. But otherwise, it’s going to be warm. And it’s going to be a nice day.
Raeanne:
Well, that’s good to hear. I know that you didn’t grow up in Texas. So as we start together, why don’t you give us a little bit of background about where you grew up? And when did you first know that you wanted to do ministry?
Stefan:
I live in East Texas, but I’m not from East Texas. It’s obvious. I grew up in Germany. But the interesting thing is the first time I came to United States, I came to the United States on a ship in 1962, in Rotterdam, and then we crossed the ocean, and we got to New York. And then from New York, we went by train to Columbia, South Carolina, when my dad went to Bible college. My mom told me on the train, I was making such a ruckus that people looked at us and all that. And so they tried to give me beer to keep me quiet! Just a little bit. So I was in the United States from 1962 to 1964. And then we went back to Germany, and my dad was building churches in Germany, and it was mostly Catholic, and especially the southern part of Germany was Catholic. And so it was very, very hard. But I was talking to my mom and I said, you created a playground for us as boys so we could go to the ends of the earth. My other brother was a missionary in Indonesia and started a work there. And he came back to Germany and built construction company. And this September, he leaves back to Indonesia, he’s 54. And my son was supposed to take over this company. But this is how I grew up. And one thing to my up bringing was this, that my dad was very stern with us. And it was in a good way because I never had to go to Bible college because I had Bible College at home. And this is how Bible College would look like. You would not leave the dinner or lunch table before dad had read something out of the Bible. Of all the Bible stories in the Old Testament, I still remember when he was reading to me the story about the Prophet coming to David and said, Look, this man took the lamb from that poor man. And then later, Nathan told David Hey, it’s you. I still remember my dad reading us that story and my emotions and my thoughts to that. Yeah, I grew up that way. And then I did what every German does, I made an apprenticeship and that’s another story how I did that.
And then I was finished with my apprenticeship and I said, Okay, I’m going to work a half a year and then I go into missions. And so my dad encouraged all his sons, he had six sons, one of them died. But all five of us he said, You have to go to the United States, because there’s something different that you have to experience. So, after I’ve worked a half a year I saved all my money. And then I did the incredible thing. I bought a one-way ticket to Los Angeles to go to use this admission. And I remember, I was standing in line in New York, and the immigration person, I could hear him, the passengers in front of me, he would ask him, where’s your return ticket? How much money you have? And I’m saying, Okay, God, well, I think this is what you want me to do. So you have to show up.
So, I got there. And when I got to the guy, and I told him that I go to the school in Los Angeles. And so he put the stamp and moved me on. So I got into the United States this time. And then I flew to Los Angeles. And I called YWAM to pick me up and nobody answered the phone. So I landed in LAX, and I was wandering through the terminals, like a lost puppy, because nobody was there to pick me up. And then I guess some people noticed that I’m kind of lost and they came to me and said, Hey, we just flew from in from Israel. And then they said, why don’t you just come with us, you can spend the night with us. And then tomorrow, we go to church, and then we bring you there.
So I just walked with them and I thought, Okay, God, I guess you’re in that, because there’s no other place to go and no other way to move forward. And so I went with them. And exactly like they said, that happened. So back then credit card didn’t exist. So the money that I had was all cash. I slept in his apartment and I remember I put all my money in the socks.
Then in Los Angeles, the course was a five month course, three months lecture phase and a two months outreach. So I paid my school in cash and had $500 left over. And a little story — in the course, being European, in some areas we’re very arrogant and very, yeah, let’s just put it that way. We are arrogant. And so I was sitting at a classroom table, and I looked around, and behind me was a husband with his wife and he had a big hole in his shoe. It was a huge hole in the sole of his shoe. And I saw that and I was about to turn around and talk to my classmate who was from Canada. And I wanted to tell him, Look, how can this guy have those kinds of shoes on and go to the classroom, like this is this is totally unacceptable. But in this transaction, the Holy Spirit told me, he said, Stephen, you have $500 I want you to give $50 to him. So I gave him $50. And then he came back, it was on the weekend, and he came back and said, Stephen, I could buy shoes for me and for my full family with what you gave me.
And then there were some other people, like some other people didn’t have their tuition. And so there was a fundraiser. So to make a long story short, I gave all my money away. And when it came to outreach, I was broke. And I said, Okay, God, it’s up to you to take care of me because I’ll do what you call me to do. And here we go. And I learned this because my parents also lived from support. They laid a foundation in my life that helped me to trust God like that. And so I was at the school, and then I did another school and God provided also there.
And there’s just one more story. I was on staff at those schools. And I remember, we drove with a school bus from Los Angeles to Arizona. So in Los Angeles in the evenings, it cools down and all is nice. But when you get to Arizona, you think somebody forgot turn off the thermostat! Oh man, and those old school buses, there was no AC and I remember we stopped at the gas station. This is just another cool example how God’s faithfulness is. The Holy Spirit was asking me so Stefan, what would you like to drink? And I’m a Dr. Pepper fan. I said yeah, I’d like to have a Dr. Pepper. But I knew my wallet would not agree with that because there was nothing in it.
After I had this conversation, this was just some thoughts and stuff. After I had this conversation with the Holy Spirit, one of the most difficult students of this school walked up to me in the back of the bus. And he said, Stefan, what can I buy you to drink? And so I have experienced God, I was 22, or 23, or 24, in this age, in that time, I experienced him.
I had this neighbor that was sitting next to me in school and he was very, very good at math. And I always encouraged him, Hey, you have to do something with your math. So encouragement was already planted in my heart, and was always there, but wasn’t really developed. But it was there. So this a little bit how I grew up.
Raeanne:
It’s incredible to hear. Just you’re growing up and the parents that you had that really taught you the Word of God and modeled, as you said, modeled, living a life raising support, but also a life of ministry. I have to ask, in the very beginning, you mentioned taking a ship from Rotterdam in Europe over to the United States. What was that like for you as a child to be on the ship? Because that must have been a long journey?
Stefan:
Yeah, it was a 10 days journey. I don’t remember too much because I was 2 years old. But I just remember these things that my mom brought me to the childcare place. And when they got there, because they both was seasick, I threw up there. And then instead of people to clean it up, my mom had to clean it up.
Raeanne:
Well, I just think it’s a little bit ironic that now you work for Mercy Ships, and you have spent a lot of time on ships. Your journey brought you to the United States working with YWAM. Tell us then how you came to Mercy Ships.
Stefan:
When I was finished with YWAM, I got married. I met my wife in YWAM and we moved back to Germany. And one of my heart’s desire was to take teams out from Germany and to make them move. You know, we Germans are very stoic. Security is our biggest fear blanket that we have. And this is why you don’t see a lot of Germans on the mission field. There are some but it’s not the majority, to say the least. The interesting thing is, so I worked as an electrician for nine and a half years, and I broke my Achilles tendon playing soccer, my favorite sport. And I worked for this Christian guy, and he had to let me go. So I was without a job. My Achilles tendons were healing slowly and so it gave me time and I decided to just look around and find the biggest construction site in town. And I found this construction site. And I said, I’m just going to apply there as an electrician. So I applied there, as an electrician, I still was kind of upset that this other guy, Christian guy, let me go and all that. In the meantime, I took teams to Ukraine twice, and a team to Brazil. So I did that. And then I had a meeting with the pastor. And the pastor said to me, after nine half years, yeah, you have to wait a little longer. And then I said, I’m done waiting, I need to go. This doesn’t work anymore. And so the interesting thing is, my friend started a new work in San Diego, basically in Tijuana, with YWAM. And so he invited me to come.
And then there’s another story and my mother in law, bought me my round trip ticket to San Diego to check it out. So I went there, I checked it out and said, Okay, we’re going there. Then I came home, we sold everything. We raised support. I had two boys. There were six and nine. They only spoke a little bit of English, but not much. And so we moved to Mexico. I worked there for three years. But I knew this wasn’t what I wanted to do. And I felt like God was telling me, Stephen, I want to use you to disciple the nations. So then I thought, Okay, I need a playground where this way I can do that. By the way, when we lived in Germany, my wife helped start the German Mercy Ships office.
Yeah, to make a long story short, we moved from San Diego, then to East Texas, to work with Mercy Ships. The first encounter I had with Mercy Ships was in 1982. I was in the Anastasis when it was in San Pedro in Southern California. The ship came there and like I said, I was on this DTS, Discipleship Training School, I think the school was 70 students. And half of the school went to the ship, okay, on the ship I remember asking God if it was time then to go on the ship. And normally when I had these questions, I would talk with my parents and my mother, she had always very discerning spirit, because if I dated some girls, she said, this girl is not good for you. And most of the time she was right. And so she wasn’t around. So I said, God, you have to speak to me. And I remember driving with a lawnmower and God says this is not for you.
And so this is how I ended up and Mercy Ships. I had three boys. And we moved from Southern California. Well, my boys were Beach Boys, kinda little surfers. Yeah, to redneck Texas. And it was hard.
Raeanne:
Was it your wife’s job when she was in Germany, starting the Mercy Ships Germany office, was it really her connection that brought you?
Stefan:
Well, we knew Don. And so I was just writing down a letter and say, hey, look, is there an opening and he said, just come by. And so I came by. And I felt like this is where God wants us to be. And wherever God has called you, there’s a challenge that comes with that. And you can read this, David was sent to bring the smorgasbord of the household goods to his brothers. And in that, he got challenged in his faith. And he never intended to do that. But there was an incredible battle between what’s right and what’s wrong. And so whenever God has called you, there’s a lot of times he does a lot of miracles to make it happen. But in that calling, there will be also time of testing. Because when you go through this time of testing, you mature, and God allows this testing, so you get to know him better. You and I will know all about that.
Raeanne:
Well, that’s how he better equips you.
Stefan:
And the other thing is, he allows his testing because he wants you get to know Him. And when you get to know him, you have authority, because you have stories to tell. So one of the stories there was, I lived in this house, five of us lived in San Diego in a little apartment with 1200 square feet. And so we moved in this house to East Texas with 3500 square feet. And the owner said to us, you only can rent this for half a year. We said okay, God, half a year is over soon. And so I just asked him, God, I want to be in the center of your will. I learned of the years that you listen to sometimes special requests. So I said this is my special request, I want to be in the center of your will. But I would like to live between Van and Mercy Ships, Van is the next little country town over and I’d like to have a lot of property on my house. I’d like to have a house and a little bit property. I’d like to have four bedrooms so I can host people, two garages and a little bit of ground around it. And I said I only have $500 to pay for rent.
So the thing is, my dad was the accountant for my uncle. And my uncle had a very successful organ factory and was building organs, all over Europe. So I called them and said, Do you have any money? And he said, Why don’t you call me back tomorrow. And I called them back the next day. And he said, I gave just your uncle $50,000. So I’m broke.
And so I said, Okay, God, then you must have a better plan. And we have these prayer meetings on Thursdays and they used to be when you get a phone message, you had this pink slip of paper that you wrote down the name and who called and blah, blah, blah. And I remember I’m in this meeting on a Thursday, and one guy comes to me and said, Stefan, somebody called and they have the dream house for you. Whoa, whoa, what is it. As he said, it’s between Mercy Ships and Van. It’s 2500 square feet. It’s four bedrooms, two bathrooms, has a pool and has 80 acres of land. Oh, my goodness. And then I just said, Okay, that sounds great. How many banks do have to rob to have that place? And this was his answer. He said he only wants $500 rent. So I went and looked at place, it was a two story house, it was 80 acres. But there was a tractor that came with the property two riding lawnmowers with a cutting tool in the back. And I looked inside the house. And what happened is that somebody abandoned that house and the family had to find somebody quickly. So inside the house people smoked. So you had to basically rip out the carpets upstairs. You had to paint that whole thing new and all that. And if God says a, he says b, all the way to the end of the alphabet.
So being a missionary, I didn’t have any money, and all that. And one of my friends, God gave him a dream. He was painting floors for car dealerships so when the oil spills, it can be wiped it away, and the floor looks clean. So this basically was his business and 3M, the big company came to him and said, can you develop a floor paint that takes away the electric static from computers? And it was in a super dream that God gave him the formula. So he calls me and said, Stefan, by the way, there’s another story. He gave me a car. And that’s a totally different story anyway. So he called me and said, Stefan, do you need anything? I said, No, you just gave me the car and everything. And so long story short, he just said, I’m just giving you $10,000. And then the money was enough money to renovate the inside of the house totally.
Everything, you know, new paint, new carpet upstairs, new things, all that. And I lived in this place for seven years. And there’s a funny story because we had goats on the property and there were coyotes on the property. And so I remember one day, one of my sons had one of those torches that shines like a mile long. And he noticed that on the end of the property, there were wild hogs. There was a tree that had that V and so he put his flashlight in there, and then the gun on top of the flashlight and so he shot the wild hog. And it was on a Thursday. And then on a Saturday morning I said, hey, somebody’s chewing on your wild hog. So his bedroom was upstairs, he didn’t even have to get out of bed, he just opened the window and put the coyote next to it!
So the next thing would happen. We had a big buzzer convention there. And so the oldest son, he said, because he lived in Africa, he lived in Australia and lived in Asia in different places, and so I asked him, What is your favorite place? He said Southeast Texas because you can shoot the wild hog and still be on time to school!
So this is how God provided a place for us and the guy never raised his rent. So we lived there for seven years and it was very cool how God just did that for us.
Raeanne:
Yeah, well, it was evident that, as you said, you want to live in the center of his will and it was evident that it was his will for you guys to be in Mercy Ships because he kept providing extravagantly for you and your family. And I know there are so many people who have been blessed because you serve with Mercy Ships. How many years has it been now that you’ve been serving with Mercy Ships?
Stefan:
It’s been 22 this year.
Raeanne:
Oh my goodness. Well tell us what your initial role was. Are you still doing the job that you were actually hired to do?
Stefan:
Yes, I’ve worked with onboarding and onboarding is for people that want to come full time for Mercy Ships and basically I train them so that they can be successful when they come. Our ministry, I always tell people, we exchange hopelessness, for help.
And when we do that, you will have resistance, because that’s not something that comes easy. And we have an enemy who doesn’t like to give up his territories.
Raeanne:
So in your time of training, new crew, or new people who are working for Mercy Ships, I know there are many things that are covered during onboarding. I’ve been through the program myself. But for you, what is the most exciting thing that you get to teach or the most exciting thing that you get to speak into the lives of the new crew?
Stefan:
My most exciting thing is what I practice every day. Because I get up like I told you, I was up this morning at five or 4:30am. And at five o’clock, I had one prayer partner, but this prayer partner died. And now I have another one. And he’s more relentless than the last one. My last prayer partner woke me up at six, this one is at 4:45 is this, oh, my God, I’m ready to go. And it sounds very spiritually, but they all had four legs. It’s my dog!
So I love talking about prayer, because I practice every day. I prayed this morning, I got a message that, for instance, the president from China is meeting Putin. And since the war I pray for Putin every day. And so I stand in the gap there and say, Okay, God, you move. And so I teach on prayer, because prayer is an incredible tool that we have, but a lot of times the enemy has told the church, it doesn’t work, or it’s too much time, or you have to be gray and crippled, or whatever. Because when you go to a prayer meeting, you don’t find a crowd that you find in the Superbowl. And somehow, we haven’t gotten to that. But this is what I love to pray. I love to pray, and I love to teach about it. Because I feel like if people understand prayer, and get that they have a tool in their toolbox that has incredible power. And I just wrote a story about prayer, and in the story that I wrote something to that effect, that when we get to heaven and God asks us about the tool of prayer, it should be used and abused and not brand new and still in the cover, and we have to blow off the dust. Right?
Raeanne:
Yeah, no, that’s very true. It is an incredible, powerful weapon that God has given us that we can speak to him, and that he listens to us, and that he responds. And I had a pastor say once that prayer is an amateur sport. And I love that you said it’s not for professionals. You don’t have to know the right words to say, but it’s an it’s an amateur sport. I thought, yes, it’s for everyone. No experience necessary. Right? Exactly. But it radically changes your life. You know, like you’re saying, when you’re intentional with the discipline of prayer, you see miracles happen. Well, one thing that you also do with the on borders is that you get to take them to field practice. Tell us a little bit about that.
Stefan:
My biggest group was 65 and my smallest group was three.
I was in Sierra Leone, this is now 10 years, 11 years ago. And I worked in a school and when we got there, the school and the church and the chickens were all in one building. So I worked there. I think the first time we went there, we built latrines. And then the second time, I built actually a school building next to it. And I had the team divided up. Some worked on stones and very hard work and the other ones were teaching in the school. After our time was up, I said, Okay, I want to make a treasure hunt with the kids in the school. So there were kids, like from 16 down to, I don’t know, six, seven years old.
And then I thought, How do I divide them up? You know, God give me wisdom, how to divide them up because if you give them numbers, they don’t know how to reach and then God gave me this idea, just use different colors. Everybody understands colors. And the thing is, when we were there, a fjord came in from the ocean, on the bottom of the village. So I talked to the chief, and I gave the chief money for the gasoline for he had two boats. And these kids never were able to get out with their boats. So after the whole thing was over, these kids went on two boats, and they drove out into the ocean. And I wasn’t on it. But I had two different staff members on it. And when they drove out there was singing, oh, and people from the villages when they drove by came and looked at them and saw them. And then that time, there was a commercial about American Express or MasterCard — They say money can buy this, and this, but money can’t buy that.
And when they all came back, the joy the children had was amazing. That they all could go out and ride in these boats that were was there, but they were never eligible to ride on this boat, because it was there just for fishing purposes, and no waste. It was unbelievable, the joy of these kids to see that and the impact that we could have, with a little bit of adventure, a little bit of thinking outside the box and to bless them — that was one of my highlights. I mean, I have lots of highlights, I have a lot of things. But this was just one of them to see these kids, and having this experience. And we were able to let them to do that.
Raeanne:
Wow, that is so neat. And how cool for your team to be a part of that. Once people finish their onboarding in Texas, then they go out to kind of like a mini mission trip, if you will, we call it field practice, but they can be anywhere before they then go aboard the ship. And how encouraging for them to see the impact they could make, really impacting these kids’ lives to get them fired up for what is possible once they get on board the Africa Mercy or the Global Mercy and do all sorts of neat things. I love that you have that opportunity to lead that because you are such a strong man of faith, and a man who listens to God and the Holy Spirit speaking to you, that causes you to really obey him into these interesting situations. And you see him move and you see lives transformed because of it.
Stefan:
And so I went in this orphanage in Benin and I knew that the kids like to play soccer there. But the soccer goals were always a decaying thing. So they have a big property and so I looked around and says this is how also God moves, s I got all the scrap metal that I could find. And I brought it to a welder and he welded two goals. And it was 2012 when he welded two goals. And I remember taking all the orphan boys going to the welder in town, and we all carried them home through the town to the city.
And the incredible thing was I went there six years later, and those goals are still there today. So that was another cool one.
Raeanne:
That is very cool. I know, in addition to getting to minister to local people, when you’re getting to travel for these field practices with the crew, I know that you also have a lot of opportunity to minister directly to the crew, not only during field practice, but then after when they are on board the ships and you’re back in Texas. How do you minister to the crew?
Stefan:
Okay, this is interesting that you say this because on Friday, I knew her since 2009, she was on one of our last outreaches that we did in the Dominican Republic. And she was a single lady. Now she is married and her husband was supposed to be on the Global Mercy but he had to have an operation and so he could not and he had two children and he cannot carry them because of his back operation and then his wife has had COVID for several months now. And so what happened is that I asked God in the morning, I go out in the morning and ask God, so who should I encourage today? And since we have Teams, I see who’s online and who’s not. And so, for instance, I called them on Friday. And he said, Yeah, it’s hard. My wife can’t really do anything, but the church doesn’t understand. If the foot would be broken, then they will come. But with COVID, you get a lot of advice, but practical help doesn’t happen. And then on Sunday, I meet with a guy every Sunday to pray, and we prayed for them that somebody would come by and help them. And this morning, I got the text, somebody unexpectedly came by on the weekend to help them. And so this is what I experience. And I make it my priority is to be a sumo wrestler. So when people are walking or talking to me, after they talk to me, I want them to be pressed closer to God. So I’m basically a sumo wrestler for God.
And I know that when people go to the frontline, and like I told you, our ship, what our ship does is frontline ministry. And it’s unique, and it’s incredible. But these people need to be encouraged. And so this is kind of my job to encourage them from Texas.
Raeanne:
Well, you do an incredible job at being an encourager. I know, we actually just had a fellow Mercy Shipper come and visit us, Cassie, also from Texas. And we were chatting one evening, and your name came up, of course. And she shared about how her phone rang one day while she was on the ship, and it was you. And God had put her on your heart and you called to encourage her and I said, Well, that happened to us too. All of a sudden, in our cabin, one day, the phone rang, and it was Stefan. And it’s kind of strange, because on the ship, at least for us, your phone never rings in your cabin. You know, I mean, especially a phone call from the outside, but it was just phenomenal how you are a man who intentionally spends time with God and listens and says, God, who can I encourage. And then you do that! There are countless stories of crew members who can say I got the most random phone call from Stefan, but it was exactly what I needed to hear that day, he spoke words that it’s almost like he knew what I was going through. And you are such a gift. And I’m so grateful that you’re obedient with the gift that God has given you the gift of encouragement, because sometimes it’s a little risky! But every time people are so blessed by you, and really, you are impacting so many lives, because you’re encouraging the frontline workers who then go out and minister to the patients and you know, local people all over the world. And so what you’re doing is really a powerful ministry. Thank you. So grateful for you. Well, you’ve shared with us how God has provided for you and your family in miraculous ways. And other crew. Tell us though, how has your life been impacted because of Mercy Ships? How are you different because of the last 22 years of volunteering?
Stefan:
It’s a school of character. And, like I told you, my parents, my dad and my uncle were very famous. They were pioneers, and whatever my dad touches turns to gold, you know. And he was an incredible pioneer. I remember one time he said, okay, we lived in a second story apartment and he said, Okay, wherever we’re going to get a house. This is where we’re going to move to. And when he went there, he went to every house and everybody in their mailbox, got an invitation to come to church and have the conversation, who’s a God you serve, basically. And he was very, very diligent with that. And he was an incredible pioneer.
So when I grew up, I wanted to be somebody, we all want to be somebody. I knew that I knew the Bible, and I’ve always wanted to be the leader, and being the leader being recognized and all that, and I never got that. And it was hard for me to digest that. But it made me to be the person that I am today. And it brought my giftings out, and there were lots of doors that I thought should be open and they were closed, right in your face, sometimes very drastically. But it made me to be the person that I am today. And Mercy Ships is an incredible playground for me to use my giftings to push forward the kingdom. You know, like there’s a story. There’s a guy named Ben who used to work in the HOPE Center and he got married to a girl in France, he had to learn French, he is also an electrician and made his apprenticeship. And he has two daughters. One is Down syndrome, and one has a cleft lip. And so it’s very hard for him. And so I pushed him, I encouraged him. And so last week, he went to a special school for his apprenticeship and the professor after he was finished with that, he said to him, in those eight years, I’m doing that I never given somebody like 90%. But I gave you 90%, because you did an incredible job. This is also for me, I have people outside of Mercy Ships that I just encourage. And this is one of my benefits.
Raeanne:
So many people are blessed by you and the work that you do at Mercy Ships, not only teaching people about prayer, and getting them excited before they go out into the world, go out to West Africa and beyond the ships to minister, but also your encouragement even beyond their time on board is so valuable. And we are so so grateful for the work that you do. And Stefan, thank you so much just for sharing with us a little bit about your Mercy Ships journey. But more so for encouraging all of us to maybe get a four-legged prayer partner who’s going to get us up early in our journey to seek God and watch miracles ensue. So thank you so much, Stefan for sharing with us.
Stefan:
Thank you.
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