Personal testimony: Roger & Captain Ric
By Port Missionary Rob Flinders
Mark, in his gospel, describes one of the many occasions when Jesus was teaching. Mark tells us, '... a crowd was sitting around Him, and they said to Him, 'Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.' And He answered them, 'Who are my mother and my brothers?' And looking about at those who sat around Him, He said, 'Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother' cf. Mark 3:31-35
I think one of the things we learn from this is that, as precious as the ties of family life were to Jesus, and as precious as the ties of family life are to us, they do not, and they must not, have priority over our commitment to God's family, and our commitment to doing God's will.
I mention this because, in a very real sense, one of the great blessings in my life over the last 20 years has been to know and to love a number of Christian seafarers as dear brothers in Christ, and to be known and be loved by them. One such brother is Roger (pictured), a 57-year-old Filipino who was drawn to Christ in 1998. Roger and I first met, here in Port Botany, in 2003, the year that Roger first began to lead Bible Studies for his crewmates onboard his ships.
Over the last 16 or so years, as Roger has repeatedly criss-crossed the oceans of the world onboard a range of different ships, he and I have co-laboured together in the gospel - Roger by teaching the Bible to his crewmates and I by providing Roger with the Bibles and Bible courses and encouragement he has needed to be able to keep on doing that.
It has been Roger's prayer and mine, together with the prayers of the supporters of SCFS and others, that as Roger faithfully proclaims the Word of Life to his crew mates, God, through His Holy Spirit and His Word, would draw some of those men to Christ. This article describes one such recent event.
Roger works for a Japanese owned shipping company that operates bulk carriers, vessels used to transport a variety of cargoes in bulk, such as iron ore and coal for example. Roger is employed to be the Chief Engineer onboard those ships and as such he is normally contracted to remain onboard for periods of approximately 9 months.
In September 2017, Roger flew from Manila in the Philippines to Fos Sur Mer in Southern France in order to begin a 9-month contract onboard a cape-sized bulk carrier called, 'Frontier Phoenix,' pictured above. The term' cape-size' describes a ship so large that it is unable to pass through the Suez Canal.
Life for seafarers who work onboard bulk carriers is very different from that of those who work onboard other vessels such as container ships. The loading and discharging berths for bulk carriers are often located at some considerable distance from urban centres - see the picture below - thereby often making it difficult for the crew members of those ships to access shops and recreational facilities.
Furthermore, the voyages of bulk carriers are often much longer, both in terms of distance and of time, than those of container ships, with the consequence that crews onboard bulk carriers spend far more time out at sea than their colleagues working on other types of ships.
All this is perhaps reinforced by considering the following voyages that were made by Roger during his time onboard Frontier Phoenix.
The Voyages of Frontier Phoenix
Roger joined mv Frontier Phoenix on 14 September 2017 in the port of Fos sur Mer, on the southern coast of France. Two days later his ship commenced a 10-day voyage to the Port of Pepel in Sierra Leone in West Africa to load a full cargo of iron ore that would eventually be discharged in two ports in China - Dongjiakou and Rizhao.
Also, before the iron can be loaded into a ship, it first has to be loaded into barges so that it can then be brought down the Sierra Leone River to the ship’s deep-water loading berth - see picture above. As a consequence, it took 26 days before Frontier Phoenix was fully loaded. During all of that time not once was it was possible for the crew to go ashore.
Frontier Phoenix eventually sailed from Pepel on 25 October and began the long voyage to China, first by sailing down the west coast of Africa, around the Cape of Good Hope at the foot of South Africa, and then north eastwards across the Indian Ocean towards China.
The economical speed of Frontier Phoenix is approximately 13 knots which means she covers approximately 300 nautical miles each day, depending on the weather. Because of the large distances sailed, from time to time it becomes necessary for ships to refuel and take on-board more provisions. For this reason, Frontier Phoenix made a brief call at the port of Singapore where she eventually arrived on 29 November.
After just 12 hours at anchor off Singapore, having loading fuel and provisions, Frontier Phoenix again put to sea, and began the 11-day voyage to Dongjiakou, her first port of call in China. She arrived there on 10 December and - for the very first time in 88 days (almost 3 months) - the crew was allowed to go ashore.
One week later, on 18 December, after having discharged half of her iron ore in Dongjiakou, Frontier Phoenix arrived in Rizhao further north on the coast of China, where she discharged the remainder of her cargo.
Frontier Phoenix's next charter was to load a full cargo of coal in Roberts Bank, a port on the west coast of Canada, for eventual discharge in the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
Because the ship's cargo holds were now empty, and because Frontier Phoenix was about to cross the North Pacific Ocean at the height of the northern winter, sea water was pumped into purpose-built ballast tanks in the ship to provide stability while she was at sea without cargo on-board.
Frontier Phoenix departed from Rizhao on 21 December and, after another 20 days at sea, arrived at Roberts Bank, a bulk port in proximity to Vancouver in Canada, on 10 January. For Roger and his crew mates, the voyage from Rizhao would have been yet another occasion when they were obliged to celebrate Christmas and New Year absent from their families.
At Roberts Bank, it took only five days to load a full cargo of coal into Frontier Phoenix and, on 15 January, the ship again put to sea to begin the very long voyage to Rotterdam.
Because cape-size bulkers are such large ships, they are not able to pass through the Panama Canal. Consequently, as illustrated by the map above, she sailed down the west coasts of North and South America, round Cape Horn at the bottom of South America, and then sailed north eastwards through the South and North Atlantic Oceans to Europe and Rotterdam.
This voyage from Roberts Bank to Rotterdam took 74 days - 3 days short of 11 weeks!! This is an extraordinarily long time for 20 or so men to be confined to their ship and, day after day to be able to see little else other than sea and sky and perhaps, just now and again, a few other ships.
Doubtless much to the relief of the crew, Frontier Phoenix eventually arrived in Rotterdam on 25 March. Some of the crew who had completed their contracts, left the ship in this port, returned home to the Philippines, and were replaced by new crew members. Others, such as Roger, whose contract were unfinished, were nonetheless grateful for an opportunity to go ashore for a short while during their off-duty time.
It is worth noting that during the 6 months between Roger joining the ship in Fos Sur Mer in France In September 2017 and arriving in Rotterdam in March 2018, he had, yet again, circumnavigated the world!
The cargo of coal was completely discharged in 8 days and on 3 April Frontier Phoenix set sail, again in ballast, this time to make a 20-day voyage to Puerto Drummond, a bulk port in Colombia on the northern coast of South America.
The ship arrived in Puerto Drummond on 23rd April. 3 days later, after loading a cargo of coal, she commenced a 16-day voyage back across the Atlantic Ocean to Gijon, a port on the northern coast of Spain, where the cargo of coal was discharged in 3 days. Thankfully, this was another occasion when the crew were able to go ashore.
On 13 May Frontier Phoenix departed from Gijon and this time made a 12-day voyage north westward across the Atlantic to Port Cartier on the North-East coast of Canada, there to load another full cargo of iron ore for discharge, once again, in Rizhao in China.
Loading at Port Cartier was completed on 28 May and on that date Frontier Phoenix began another very protracted voyage, through the North and South Atlantic Oceans, the Indian Ocean and the China Sea, again calling at Singapore for 12 hours to load fuel and provisions.
The ship eventually arrived in Rizhao in China on 26 July - 69 days after leaving Port Cartier in Canada.
On arrival in Rizhao, a new Chief Engineer joined the ship and so, the following day, Roger was able to say farewell his crew mates, leave Frontier Phoenix, and fly back home to the Philippines for a joyful reunion with his wife Josefina and son Josh. See picture above.
Roger was on-board Frontier Phoenix for a period of 316 days -approximately 10 months. During that time, Frontier Phoenix was out at sea, sailing from one port to another, for 256 of those 316 days. In the 10 months Roger was on-board, his ship was in port, loading or discharging cargo, for 61 days. Only on 31 of those 61 days was it possible for Roger and his crew mates to go ashore.
It is perhaps also worth mentioning that, during his 10-month contract on-board, Roger visited 8 different countries and 10 different ports.
This has been a somewhat lengthy description of Roger's voyages but it is certainly not my primary purpose in writing this article. The best is yet to come! Nonetheless, I hope it has given you some insights into the nature of life of for seafarers who work on-board bulk carriers.
Roger's Bible Studies
During his 10 months on-board Frontier Phoenix, each week, with only a very few exceptions, Roger conducted a Bible Study for his crew mates.
Each person who attended his Bible Studies was provided with a Tagalog (Filipino) Bible and a Tagalog Bible Course containing a series of lessons. Roger encouraged each man to study one lesson during his off-duty time during the week and then, at the end of the week, to answer the 10 Multiple Choice Questions associated with that lesson.
During a 9-month contract, Roger is often able to lead his crewmates through the study of 3 or more Bible Courses, such as those shown in the picture, together with a Tagalog Bible.
From left to right these are: 'Key Biblical Teachings' (6 Lessons); 'What the Bible Teaches' (12 Lessons); and 'Lessons for Christian Living' (12 Lessons)
The Tagalog Bibles supplied to Roger by the Seamen's Christian Friend Society (SCFS) are provided to SCFS, free of charge, by the Bible Society of Australia through its Scripture Grants Program. For several years, this has enabled SCFS to supply foreign language Bibles to seafarers, especially those such as Roger who conduct Bibles Studies for their crewmates on-board their ships.
The Bible courses supplied to seafarers, also free of charge, are purchased by SCFS from the Bible School of The Air in Metro Manila in the Philippines.
On Sundays, Roger and the men met together (see picture below) to discuss the Lesson and their answers to the Test Questions. This was also a time during which Roger was able to identify and correct any misunderstandings that had arisen and to answer questions the men might have had. During these times, Roger also took the opportunity to summarize the lesson that had been studied in the previous week and to introduce the next lesson in the course.
This picture shows Roger with some of his crewmates during one of those Sunday meetings.
Captain Ric
Whenever Roger is on-board a ship, he and I try to stay in frequent contact with one another as a means of encouraging one another. Also, from time to time, I endeavour to supply Roger with anything he might need or anything I think he might find helpful for his ministry to his crewmates or for his own personal edification.
In June of last year, while Frontier Phoenix was en-route to Singapore from Sierra Leone, Roger informed me that Captain Ric Condalor, the
Master of Frontier Phoenix had, for the very first time, attended one of Roger's Bible Study gatherings.
I imagine the decision to attend the Bible Study meeting would perhaps not have been an easy one for Captain Ric, inasmuch as ships' captains, because of their status on-board their ship, are sometimes reluctant to attend crew gatherings lest they are perceived to be fraternizing with their crew.
However, as Captain Ric was to tell me, in his own words, sometime later, "Brother Roger ministering on-board to my crew interested me and so, one day while they're having their Bible Study, I went in and listened to them reading. It was my first time to read the Holy Bible.
Since that night my interest became more and so I asked Bro Roger to spare me time to read the Bible with me in his cabin which he was happy to do "
Ric's decision to visit the Bible Study and his request to Roger were to prove to be watershed points in his life. The following is an excerpt from a message I received from Roger sometime later.
"Captain Ric is very active attending our Fellowship and we have also spent extra time studying the Bible in my Cabin after dinner. He is a Roman Catholic and so I shared with him the materials coming from Mike Gendron. By God's grace the Captain accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour and asked if it was possible for me to baptize him as a Christian and a follower of Christ. He is a great encouragement to our ministry on board."
Mike Gendron is a converted Roman Catholic who now has a vibrant ministry proclaiming the gospel to Roman Catholics. His website can be found at <www.proclaimingthegospel.org>
Roger's message prompted me to consider what resources might be helpful to Captain Ric. I decided to mail him a book entitled 'Preparing for Eternity' written by Mike Gendron and also 2 DVDs, one entitled, 'Where will you Spend Eternity?' and the other, 'Catholicism: Crisis of Faith.'
I also included the personal Testimonies of two converted Roman Catholics, one an American US Army Officer and the other a Maltese Paediatrician, together with an article by Dr James White entitled, 'The Christian Message,' each of which I formatted into an A5 booklet.' I also supplied a copy of these to Roger for his possible use in his Bible Study meetings.
After Frontier Phoenix sailed from Singapore, I received a message from Roger acknowledging his receipt of the A5 booklets. In his message Roger said, in part: 'Brother Rob, thank you very much for sending me the three booklets. I was so encouraged as I read these 3 small booklets and so I have decided to share them with my crewmates in the Bible Study before I sign off, because they are mostly Roman Catholics.
Captain Condalor was very happy to receive your parcel and very inspired reading your letter. He told me he is going to write to you to express his thanks.'
Not long after, I received an email from Captain Ric in which he said, - in addition to that which I quoted on the previous page - 'Dear Brother Rob, I received the package containing the book and the two DVDs. I'm elated to have these. Thank you so much.'
Each time Roger's contract on-board a ship comes to an end, the question inevitably arises whether there is another Christian on-board their ship who is both competent and willing to lead the Bible Studies Roger has been conducting. Often there is none and so, sadly, the Bible Studies come to an end. However, on-board Frontier Phoenix, happily, that did not happen!
The Bible courses that SCFS supplies to a Christian seafarer and the way we recommend they be used, mean that it is not difficult for a Christian seafarer to establish and lead a Bible Study on-board his ship, especially if he has had the opportunity to understudy and learn from another leader. This was the case on-board Frontier Phoenix.
Subsequent to being drawn to Christ, Captain Ric attended Roger's Bible Studies on a regular basis. He also had significant personal times with Roger, one to one. The combination of these factors encouraged Captain Ric, perhaps a little apprehensively, to offer to take responsibility for the Bible Studies on-board Frontier Phoenix after Roger's departure. That is what happened.
I was a little anxious as to how this might work out, but my anxiety was dispelled after I received a message from Roger in mid August while he was on vacation. This is part of what Roger wrote -
"I praise God for the life of Captain Ric. We are constantly communicating through email. Last Sunday he conducted his first Bible Study Fellowship for his crew onboard Frontier Phoenix. (See below) At first, he felt nervous because it was his first time to lead a Bible Study. Thanks be to God, through the leading of the Holy Spirit, he did it well. Josefina (Roger's wife) and I are keeping him in prayer that God will use him mightily for His glory and that every word he says will be guided by the Holy Spirit.
Captain Ric is a new creation of God. His old self is gone and the new has come. He is walking with God now and all he does is for God’s glory. God has changed him a lot. I myself was surprised by his changes. God is at work in Him and I am truly grateful for it."
After departing from Rizhao in China at the end of July, Frontier Phoenix made a voyage to Tanjung Bara in Indonesia to load a cargo of iron ore which was subsequently discharged in Mundra in northwest India. She next proceeded to Carboneras in Spain where she spent several days anchored offshore before berthing on 26 October.
Captain Ric's contract came to end at this port and on 29 October he was relieved by a new Captain and he too, like Roger before him, was able to return home to the Philippines.
During the 3 months between Roger leaving Frontier Phoenix at the end of July and Captain Ric doing likewise at the end of October, Ric continued to lead the weekly Bible Studies for the crew on-board (See picture below).
Captain Ric's (front right-hand side) First Bible Study
Ric and I remained in frequent contact with one another through out this time. I was also able to despatch four small books to Ric to help him continue growing in the grace and knowledge of His Lord and Saviour. He received these safely on arrival at Mundra.
When Ric returned home to the Philippines, Roger was still on vacation. Even though his and Ric's homes are in separate provinces in the Philippines, some considerable distance apart, nonetheless Roger, together with Josefina, visited Ric, so they could spend a few days together - Roger and Ric no longer as Captain and Chief Engineer but now as brothers in Christ!
While Roger and Ric were on vacation in the Philippines, I was able to arrange for the Bible School of the Air in Manila to supply both of them with sufficient copies of the Bible courses they would need to be able to conduct Bible Studies during their next contracts.
It is now January 2018 and Captain Ric and Roger have both begun new contracts. Ric is on-board mv Hanabusa (see below) and Roger is on-board mv Cape Unity. Both ships are bulk carriers.
Hanabusa
As I write, Hanabusa is currently en-route from Palembang in Indonesia to Tachebana in Japan. At Captain Ric's request, Last week I mailed two boxes of Tagalog Bibles to Tachebana for him to receive when Hanabusa arrives in that port. Cape Unity (see below) is en-route from Wakayama in Japan to Tabaneo in Indonesia.
Far more importantly, however, is the fact that both Ric and Roger have already established weekly Bible Studies for the crews on-board their respective ships.
Cape Unity
The commitment of both of these dear brothers to being good ambassadors for Christ and to proclaiming Christ is wonderfully expressed by the following comment Ric wrote in one of his messages to me last year, a comment that could equally have been echoed by Roger. Ric said,
'Brother Rob, I'm born again now and I'm bound to spread the Word of God.'
Prayer Points
Please thank God for Roger, who exemplifies 2 Timothy 2:21 (ESV) ‘a man cleansed from what is dishonourable, a vessel for honourable use, set apart as holy, useful to the Master of the house, ready for every good work.' Please thank God for using Roger's faithful teaching of God's Word to draw Captain Ric to Christ.
Please thank God for letting light shine out of darkness into Ric's heart to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ' 2 Corinthians 4:6 (ESV) and for giving Ric His gifts of repentance and faith in Christ.
Please thank God for encouraging Roger and me as we see the principle of spiritual multiplication described in 2 Timothy 2:1-2 beginning to occur on board ships.
Please ask God to duplicate the ministries of Roger and Ric, of Dioni and Edmund, of Jerry and Eli, and of Diomedes and Jing in the lives of other seafarers who, in turn, will 'entrust the things they learn to faithful men who will be able to teach others (seafarers) also.'
Please ask God that unconverted seafarers who attend Bible Studies onboard their ships will 'have their eyes opened to turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of their sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in Jesus Christ' Acts 26:18