The Logos Hope is in Nassau, Bahamas!

Praise the Lord! I want to thank each of you that have been praying for me, especially over the past 3 days as we’ve been sailing. As many of you know, I typically get very motion sick. I was so nervous about this 3-day voyage from Kingston to the Bahamas. Praise the Lord! We arrived safely into port in Nassau, Bahamas on 26 March. I am so thrilled to say that I did not get sea sick! There was one afternoon that I was feeling a little strange, so I decided it would be a good thing to take a little nap, but after that, I was feeling much better!

I have thoroughly enjoyed these 3 days of sailing. A highlight for me has been going up to Deck 8, standing in the wind, watching the ocean. God is so good to me. I thought, Wow, wouldn’t it be awesome to see a dolphin or SOMETHING?!?! Guess what!!? I was able to see dolphins!!! There were several dolphins swimming alongside the ship one afternoon!

God did some amazing things during our time in Kingston, Jamaica! I am so overwhelmed but His grace and strength that He gave the entire crew while we were serving in a very long port.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to be a "Buddy" to the Deep Volunteers! I am so thankful for the friendships that I have made with the volunteers from both Montego Bay and Kingston and look forward to getting to know the Volunteers here in the Bahamas.

Every Thursday night, we have Prayer night. This week was a special prayer night. We had our prayer service on Deck 9 as we were sailing around the Bahamas. It was amazing sitting up on top of the ship, singing "How Great is our God", watching the sun set over the beautiful ocean, and praying for the time that we will be here in the Bahamas.

Please pray that we will not get caught up in the "tourism" of this port, but that we will take every opportunity to share the Hope that we have within us.

Tomorrow (Sunday, 28 March) I will be going to a Haitian Fellowship with 5 others to do Sunday School for the children, as well as a Drama, Songs, and testimony. I am really excited about this opportunity. I will also be on Deck 4, talking with people who visit the ship. I am very thankful for the opportunity to learn the “official” tour route of the ship today, and was able to connect with several people both from the Bahamas, as well as tourists that are in the area.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! I love you all!

Kingston-A brief summary of this week!

Hey there!

I wanted to post a quick blog, and just let y’all know how things are going! I have survived the 10-person cabin now for 1 month and 3 days!!! Praise the Lord! I have to admit, the 10 person cabin is not as bad as I had expected, but don’t get me wrong, there are challenges! :) God is definitely teaching me a lot throughout this process. I don’t know for sure how long I’ll be in this cabin, but it will probably be until we leave the Caribbean.

God has definitely been working and moving here on board, as well as here in Kingston.

One of my favorite parts of this week was actually when I was vacuuming early in the mornings. I have taken the advice of some of the previous Angels to pray for different people and different activities while I’m cleaning different areas of the ship. For instance, when I’m vacuuming the Hope Theatre, I am praying for the people that will be sitting in that very room later on in the day. When I am cleaning in the Logos Lounge, I am praying for my home church, Mount Vernon. When I am climbing ALL these stairs, I am thanking Jesus for who He is and praising Him, as well as thanking Him for each of my supporters and prayer partners. When I am cleaning the toilets, I am praying that God would teach me the lessons that He has for me that day. So, that’s just a few of the locations that I am frequently cleaning and the things I am praying about while doing it.

Today, (Saturday) was my E-day. We sent 3 hours on Deck 4, connecting with people, and just talking with the visitors on the ship. For about 2 hours, I was face painting! This evening, I was team leader for a team of 5 that went to Trenchtown. We went and did an hour long kids program. I really didn’t know what to expect, so it was interesting! :-) I absolutely love the children here in Jamaica. They are so precious and are so anxious for someone to love them. They love playing with your hair and petting your white skin! We did a quick mini presentation of the various jobs on board the Logos Hope. We had a Galley uniform, an Angels shirt, a book fair shirt, a deck uniform, and the engine room jumpsuit. The kids dressed up in the uniforms, and we explained what the different jobs entail.

Another aspect of the ship that I really love is the Devotions each morning. It is such a blessing to be able to come together as a ship’s company and thankful for the encouragement and challenge each morning. This week, we have had a guest speaker, and he challenged us to really take time out of our busy days and schedules to encourage one another.

I had the privilege to work with a Vision team this past week and get to know some great girls from Florence, SC. They were here with their school for 1 week, working in each of the departments.

I hope you all are doing well. I am so thankful for each of you! God bless you! Keep serving Him!

For His Glory and renown,

Bethany

Hello from Kingston!!!!

Hey everyone! First of all, I want to apologize if some of you are getting the same info a couple times. I am going to put this in sections, so that you can pick and choose what you want to read! I hope you all are doing great! Love you all and am so thankful for you.

PST MOBAY!

We had an amazing time with our PST (Pre-Ship Training). I got to know several trainers, as well as the 69 people that joined the ship the same time I did. I absolutely loved our venue for the training; with the exception of one thing…There were BUGS and MOTHS everywhere! It took some getting used to, but I finally got used to them. Another good thing about that is that we were VERY excited to get warm showers and no bugs!!! I enjoyed the opportunity to hear many amazing sermons, as well as practical trainings.

BUS RIDE TO THE SHIP

Praise the Lord! We were able to leave during the day, and I was able to sit up front and watch where we were going, as did several others, so the bus ride was not nearly as bad as it was to the camp. It was very exciting the first moment that I got to see the water! Since we were in the Mountains, and we arrived at night, that was the first time I’ve seen water THAT BLUE and BEAUTIFUL! Wow!

ARRIVAL TO THE LOGOS HOPE

WOO HOO! The long awaited time had arrived! It was so exciting going through port security, knowing that on the other side, the SHIP was right there! After passing through security, we loaded back onto the bus so that the bus would hide our view of the ship. We piled out, and then the bus left, exposing the ship and the ship’s company to us! I was very exciting! The crew was cheering and made tunnels that led up to the gangway, using their country’s flag. After we got inside, we had a welcoming party in the Hope Theatre.

MY CABIN!

So—as most have probably heard….I am on Deck 1, in a 10 person Cabin! Honestly, when I first found that news out, I was scared to death! I was thinking….how is this going to work!?! THANKFULLY, our cabin is the bigger of the two 10-person cabins! My cabin mates are precious. They are from Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Malaysia, South Korea, Holland (2 from there), Australia (2 from there) and ME! We are getting along very well.

MY JOB!!

I am a part of the Accommodation team. We are called the “Accom Angels”. We clean the ship. I am actually enjoying it! My hours are 6 am-3 pm. It is really nice though, because we can attend crew devotions each day at 7:45, as well as Angel devotions! I am enjoying getting to know the people I am working with. They are such a blessing and encouragement.

MY FIRST VOYAGE!!!

I am so proud to say, that on my first voyage from Montego Bay to Kingston, approx. 17 hours, I did not get sick!!! There were about 5 fellow angels that were sick this morning. We were able to go up to deck 9 as we sailed away from Montego Bay. It was SOOO beautiful! Wow! I really enjoyed that.

A LITTLE LH LINGO!!! (I think until the day I die, I will still think LIGHTHOUSE when I see LH! :)

Well, we have E-days. This is experience days. Sometimes we will go to different places onshore to do ministry, and other times we will stay on Deck 4, and share our stories, do face painting, serve in the i-café, or something along those lines. My E-day was this past Saturday. I went with at team of 5 others, and we went to the Care Center. This is a building in downtown Montego Bay that different organizations feed the homeless breakfast and lunch. We actually got lost, so we missed feeding them, but we helped clean up and had some great conversations with people. I was able to share with several people, and pray with 3 ladies who had various medical or emotional issues. I loved it! Then, that evening our team went to Deck 4 and assisted with the large crowds in the book fair. So, in a typical week, I work 5 days, and one E-day, and one off day. Also, as Angels, we do activities on Saturday afternoons together. This past week, they went to play soccer against a local team. I didn’t go on this outing because it was my E-day.

COMMUNICATION WITH ME!?!

If any of you are wondering, the easiest ways to contact me are email (either bsmith8121@gmail.com or Bethany.smith@gbaships.org) I actually have my g-mail account forwarded to my gbaships account. Also, one of my FAVORITE things is that I can receive phone calls! The ship has a satellite phone, which for you, is like calling Florida! The phone number is 954-518-7256. Feel free to give me a call if you want to, anytime after 3 pm. :-)

Well, I am going to go, but I hope you all are doing well! I will try my best to respond in a timely manner! :) I love hearing from you all!

For His Glory and His renown,

Bethany

A glimpse of my Adventure thus far!

This is in Mosbach Germany! There was an Aldi! I got to go to in honor of Mom and Sarah M and crew on Wednesday! :) The next picture is at PST @ Moorland Camp. It is Hema (Trinidad and Tobago) Me, Emma (Netherlands) and An Na (South Korea). It's cool....Me, An Na, Jessie, and Thera were roommates at the GO Conference. Then, at PST, An Na, Thera, and I were 3 of 10 people....and now, on the ship, Jessie, An Na, and I are 3 of the 10 people. Sooooo, An Na and I have been together since Jan 12! :) We went for a walk one afternoon that we had free time at PST, and this was all our feet!

This is what we saw as we arrived out of the bus! It was so special to be welcomed by so many people from many different nations! I can't wait to get to know them! This picture is on Deck 9, we were up there celebrating Alison's Birthday! :) It was so pretty! I enjoyed getting to know some people outside of our PST.

This is an awful picture of me on my bed, but just so y'all can get a slight idea! Pippa's bed is folded up at the moment!! what a blessing that they do that! I love y'all and thankful for y'all!

"Couples Bunko Party....YEAH RIGHT!!!"

Wow! I don't know where to begin! Several weeks ago, Emily emailed me some of the "key dates" that she needed me for in December. One of those was 04 December. She said that she and Jeff were hosting a "Couples Bunko Party", and that they would like for me to keep the kids in the basement, and possible their nephews and niece would possibly be there. So, 04 December had been on my Calendar for a while!

Several things had come up for possibilities of other plans that evening, including the Appalachian State Scholarship Christmas Concert. This is a fun concert, where all the groups come together for a great night of Christmas Music. Tara Holt Jackson was in town, so I thought that Mom and Dad were going to the concert with Tara.

Mom made a very yummy dinner, and I ran out the door to babysit around 6:35 or so. I was a little early, but needed to get an extension cord to Emily, before her "party" started. As I was on my way, Emily called to say I could come a little later, but I had already left. In hindsight, I now know that they would have preferred me to come later.

After I got there, I walked into the living room, and there stood Allison, Mary Helen, and Sabrina! I was BEYOND confused! Emily said that it was "my people" there, and I kind of stood there like, yes, those are my friends. Well...THEN, she was like no...its a party for YOU tonight and alot of people are coming over!

I have some of the BESTEST friends in the whole wide world! :) This is the invitation that Allison, Mary and Emily sent out to alot of very special people.

There was soooo much food, and some VERY special people there. I am SO thrilled to say, that through personal financial gifts, from last Friday night alone, I received enough money to cover my flight to Germany! :) God is SO good and SO Faithful!

I stand amazed in His Presence...

I have to add....that Allison has tried to host a couple surprise birthday parties for me, but she has not succeeded! :) I'm kind of nosey, I guess you could say! :) She did an amazing job of pulling it off! :)

I honestly have no clue how many people were actually there! It felt like a house full! Here are a few pictures from the evening! Jeff and Emily did an amazing job of decorating and the house was Beautiful, as was all the food and people! :)
Here is a picture of some of my most FAVORITE kids in the world!!! I've been babysitting Sara Fran (the oldest) since she was about 8 months old! She is now 11 years old! That's right, I've been babysitting for about 10 years now! I cannot even begin to share how much of a Blessing this family is to me!
In addition to Allison keeping the entire party a secret, she and Mary Helen had a BEAUTIFUL Quilt made for me. I will treasure this quilt....it's not just any ole quilt, but they had soooo many people sign the different triangles for me! It was so special to sit and read the things people wrote on the quilt!
Blogspot is having some issues it looks like, so see my Facebook for more pictures! :)

THANK YOU AGAIN everyone for making this such a special evening...Thanks for praying for me and loving me...but most of all, for Loving our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

As for support...after I check with a few more people, It looks like I am ABOUT at 100%!!!! :)

PRAISE THE LORD!!!!!! I cannot wait to see what God does these next couple of years! It's HARD to believe that I will be leaving in 30 days for Mosbach! :)

A few pictures from MO!

I forgot I had uploaded a few pictures, so here is a couple! I'll add some "thanksgiving" pictures whenever I remember...and I'm at home! :)

Just call me Lindley....;) It's been a Month!?! SORRY

I'm following in Lindley's footsteps and updating once a month! HAHA! :) Love ya Lindley! :)

Sorry it's been so long since I updated. Things have been such a whirlwind, but have been so great! About two weeks ago, I went to go see my sister in MO. It was such a blessing! I didn't know what to do with myself for the first few days, because I am so used to running, running, and running! It was a blessing to be able to sit and chill! I went out there on Wednesday, the 18th of November. Thursday, I went to work with her and played with Richie, Avery, and Carson. On Friday, I went to her Ballet class, and then during Rehearsal, Petra Ballet Company presented an in-studio presentation of "The Call". It was such a blessing to me. There were parts that really "hit home", so to speak. After it was over, they gathered around me and prayed for me. I will have to post pictures later, because they are on my computer at home.

Saturday was alot of fun! Cathryn, Stacey and I cooked Thanksgiving Dinner! Stacey did most of the work, and we enjoyed it!! :) Cathryn did make the mashed potatoes and Sweet potato stuff! It was so much fun!

I got home on Tuesday, the 24th. We went to Easley for Thanksgiving, and it was good to see everyone. I always enjoy the Picken's get togethers with all of my dad's side of the family.

As for support goes, I think I am at 77%!!! :) PRAISE THE LORD! He is so Faithful! I am so excited. This leaves me with approximately $222/month left.

I will post pictures later on! I hope you have a wonderful day! God Bless You!
~Bethany