Miami, Florida…[Libna Stevens/IAD]
About 800 Seventh-day Adventist from the Inter-American Division (IAD) territory recently boarded the Caribbean Princess cruise ship for a seven-day cruise especially geared to strengthening couples and families. The cruise sailed the Caribbean from Aug. 19-26.
Organized by the IAD’s Family Ministries department, the excursion sought to provide the tools and give the opportunity to couples and families to sail away from daily activities and come together while enjoying beautiful parts of the IAD territory, says Pastor Jansen Trotman, Family Ministries director for the church in Inter-America and organizer of the first IAD cruise.
“I think all over world we recognize that families need strengthening and what we are hearing is that the family is in trouble everywhere,” says Pastor Trotman. “In the Seventh-day Adventist Church we don’t trail too far behind the national statistics, so we are on a concerted effort to strengthen the family in all the ways we can. The cruise gave us an opportunity in a refreshing way to share some family strengthening principles with people, gave them a chance to interact with the family members all across the Inter-American territory.”
Family experts like Dr. Ricardo Norton from Andrews University and Dr. Colwick Wilson from Loma Linda University were among the guest speakers aboard the cruise. Pastor Jansen and Gloria Trotman and Dr. Elie Honore were among the other seminar presenters.
Seminar topics ranged from a Christ centered family, forgiveness and healing, facing family crisis, getting along with difficult family members and creative conflict management, among others.
For Terri Romero, who sailed with husband of only 16 months, the family cruise was the perfect getaway.
“The cruise was a unique way to disconnect from work, cell phones, computers, cars, the noise that surrounds you daily and truly have wonderful quality time with your spouse,” says Romero. “You get to enjoy the vast ocean around you and see the clear moon and the stars and just feel such a great sense of awe for God’s wonders.”
Romero adds that she enjoyed the seminars which she thought were in tune to today’s family needs. She said she learned how to better her marriage while mingling with other Adventist couples and families.
In addition to seminars, special prayer sessions and devotionals were held early every day and a special Sabbath worship service was held in the ships’s main auditorium.
Pastor Leon Wellington, vice president of the church in Inter-America, said he enjoyed the cruise with his wife Shirley of 35 years.
“The cruise offered everyone an opportunity to mix and fellowship in a way that would not be possible in a regular seminar [meeting],” said Pastor Wellington. “One of the most valuable presentations I enjoyed was a seminar on forgiveness, it was revealing to know the health benefits one can derive from one’s willingness to forgive a transgressor.”
Pastor Trotman, who travels throughout the church territory giving seminars on strengthening families, says that this cruise was great for the body and mind and the mingling with fellow believers.
“What gratifies me after I travel from place to place with family ministries seminars is the fact that afterwards someone will call or write expressing how the seminars really helped them, how the seminars benefitted them,” said Trotman. “We are discovering that there are so many people hurting in the pews, so this cruise was another way to give the opportunity to church members to strengthen their marriages and families.”
