On a Sunday in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Zacharie François got a call from one of the MAF pilots at the hangar. The starter generator on the Cessna Caravan was smoking.

Zacharie, the first Haitian to graduate from the School of Missionary Aviation Technology (SMAT) in Michigan (2019), was then working as a maintenance specialist with MAF Haiti. In fact, at this time he was serving as the interim director of maintenance.

“They shouldn’t smoke,” Zacharie explained. “If it smoked, something arced inside. Given that the starter-generator is connected to the engine’s compressor shaft, a current may have made its way through there and welded the bearings, thus seizing up the engine; and that is not good.”

“We’re going to ground the aircraft,” Zacharie told MAF pilot Eric Fagerland. “I’m going to come in at six. We’re going to take this thing apart…”

What did Zacharie find when he took apart the starter-generator? First things first: How did Zacharie come to be serving with MAF in Haiti?

The Road to MAF

“Due to my parents’ work, I grew up around MAF families. And because of that, I’ve known about MAF my entire life,” Zacharie said to a crowd of donors and guests at a special event at MAF headquarters in September 2021.

“I was never really interested in becoming a pilot or mechanic for them,” he continued. “But all that was going to change after my first flight.”

In May of 2013, close family friend and MAF pilot Will White prepared to take Zacharie on a flight. The sun was just rising and God was painting a glorious white-orange sky as Zacharie boarded the small MAF airplane. He was about to gain a new perspective.

Up until that point, Zacharie’s view of Haiti had been limited to the capital of Port-au-Prince—a city of 2.7 million people—where he’d lived his entire life. Then, as 16-year-old Zacharie peered at the rural parts of his country from the air, he experienced a rush of emotions.

Two things struck him on the way to a remote village:

“One: I realized how poor my country was, but I knew the potential that exists within the land of Haiti,” Zacharie told the guests. “And two: I realized that mission aviation can make a difference. It can actually change the ending for so many isolated people.”

After that flight, Zacharie’s heart was moved to want to become a missionary aviator—he had his doubts, though. On his own, he couldn’t see a way to make that happen. But after he graduated from high school, God nudged Christine Harms, one of the MAF wives, to approach him—a friendship was formed, which eventually led to him becoming an aircraft mechanic apprentice with MAF.

In this role, he had opportunities to ride along on some flights. On one medical flight in particular, he and the pilot waited at the airstrip for the paramedics to return from transferring a patient to the local hospital. In the meantime, the local children had come out to see the airplane. They had a lot of questions, which Zacharie happily answered. But one six-year-old boy said something that broke his heart.

“Haitians can’t fly this thing,” the boy said. “They can’t work on this.”

Zacharie tried to tell him there were Haitian pilots and mechanics.

“Not Haitian, can’t be,” the boy replied, and the other kids around him echoed in agreement.

That six-year-old’s comment stuck with Zacharie and served to cement his calling to become a missionary pilot/mechanic. He began to see how God could use his upbringing.

“I grew up in a Christian home, and I was able to hang out with missionaries from different countries,” Zacharie continued. “But I also lived with the struggles that other Haitians were living with—my parents are from a poor family.

“Our heavenly Father allowed me to grow up in this environment, so he could use my story to inspire others to seek a deeper, more meaningful relationship with Him.” 

An Extra Pair of Wings

“We have some big butterflies in Haiti,” Zacharie laughed as he shared in an interview with MAF staff what he had found when he opened up the starter-generator of the Cessna Caravan.

Somehow a large butterfly had made it through a little hole located behind the propeller, through a spinning fin, all the way to the back of the engine and the starter.

Zacharie knew he would need to explain to Nampa (HQ) that a butterfly had destroyed this very expensive part and could have potentially destroyed MAF Haiti’s turbine engine—a half-million-dollar engine.

So he took a photo of the butterfly. And because of Zacharie’s discovery, butterflies are now “a thing”—something that’s covered during MAF’s maintenance standardization classes.

“Upon further inspection, it was determined that no damage had occurred to the engine, Zacharie added. “We praise God for such protection and give thanks that we had the funds to buy another starter-generator.”

Nothing Impossible

Zacharie was much like that butterfly that found itself in a seemingly impossible place. But as you know, nothing is impossible with God, and Zacharie was proof of that as he shared with the crowd at MAF headquarters in 2021 about the milestone he had just reached.

“Two weeks ago, I started my flight training at SMAT,” Zacharie said as he began to tear up.

The crowd cheered and clapped, then he concluded: “And yesterday I had my first flight as a student pilot.”

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At the time of this posting, Zacharie is finishing up his last quarter of flight training. He is the first foreign student to be admitted to SMAT’s flight program and expects to graduate this August. From there, he will return to Haiti and continue serving as an MAF mechanic while adding to his flight hours before he  goes through MAF’s technical evaluation and flight standardization; once he passes those he will be accepted as an MAF Pilot.   

The post Flight Path to Possibilities appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

A pilot’s first solo flight is always an exciting and memorable event (mine was on March 14, 2014). The same applies to a pilot’s first solo flight on the mission field.

On September 28, 2021, I did my first Congo solo, flying from Bunia to Isiro to Dakwa to Banda and back to Bunia.

But what was truly inspiring were the people I was flying: three Congolese missionaries who were students at Centre Chrétien de Formation pour Evangélisation et Mission Intégrale (Christian Center for Evangelism Training and Integral Missions, or CCFEMI) in the city of Bunia.

The three men had done some training and then been sent to the province of Bas-Uélé for a one-month mission trip, followed by several weeks of serving the local church in Bas-Uélé. My task was to fly them back to Bunia for their next module of in-class training.

The three missionaries were eager to tell me their story.

During their one-month mission trip, their main assignment had been to perform an in-depth survey of three unreached tribes deep in the Ituri rainforest. The area is very difficult to access, so—unsurprisingly—there has not been much mission work there through the years.

Any evangelism and church planting that has been done has been mostly among one of the larger tribes, along the main road in the area. It’s just been too difficult to reach the more remote areas.

The men told me that one of the tribes they had surveyed was the uncharted Kango people, a fishing tribe living along the Uélé River, 270 miles deep into the rainforest. After the men had made initial contact with two of the Kango settlements—one on each side of the river—they’d been told by the people that it was the first time in known history that missionaries had come to visit them in their homes!

Throughout the month, the missionaries had continued to connect with the other tribes they had been tasked to survey. They’d also come alongside the few church plants in the area to share the good news of Jesus with people who did not know Him.

The men excitedly shared with me that 25 people had given their lives to Christ during that month! Praise the Lord!

One of the missionaries, a 64-year-old soldier-turned-pastor, had felt led to continue the work among the Kango, so he had revisited the two settlements. During his return visit, the people had asked him to plant a church! He had then traveled 48 miles (one-way!) by foot to continue surveying three more small tribal villages.

His research showed a desperate need for more evangelism and will help future missionaries work more effectively.

MAF is thrilled to partner with organizations like CCFEMI and their missionaries. The tribes that they are serving are located in areas that are extremely difficult, if not impossible, to access without an airplane.

CCFEMI reports that MAF has “enabled [them] to promote the security of [their] missionaries and bring the gospel into some of the least accessible parts of this country.”

Some of the missionaries on my plane that day plan to return and continue the evangelism effort that has been started.

I for one am very excited to fly them back!

Here’s how MAF celebrated my first solo flight in the DRC when I returned to Bunia. Click here to watch the video! 

The post A MEMORABLE MISSION appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

Now, more than 75 years after the start of MAF’s ministry, its aircraft have changed dramatically. But one thing that has not changed is MAF’s mission*—to share the love of Jesus Christ so that isolated people will be physically and spiritually transformed.

The Beginnings (1945 – 1965)

Fabric-covered airplanes like the Piper Cruiser, Piper Pacer, and the Stinson Voyager helped start the earliest programs, in Mexico and Central and South America. These light aircraft served remote jungle outposts where western missionary families were bringing the gospel to remote tribes. MAF pilot Nate Saint was passionate about reaching one tribe in particular—one that was feared as a “tribe of killers.” In 1948, he wrote to his parents that he expected the airplane would play a part in reaching them with the gospel.

His prediction proved true. In January 1956, Saint landed a bright yellow Piper Family Cruiser on a sandbar nicknamed Palm Beach, along the Curaray River. Initially, he and four other missionaries had friendly interactions with members of the feared Waorani. But then, days later, the world learned of the five men’s martyrdom at the hands of the tribe.

Far from slowing down the dream of those early WWII pilots, this incident catapulted the idea of missionary aviation across the globe. As a result, young Christians caught the vision of using airplanes to reach the lost—and MAF grew rapidly.

The Growing Years (1965 – 1990)

As MAF moved from fabric-covered to aluminum aircraft, small Cessna aircraft became the workhorses of the day.

In Indonesia, Cessna 185s and 206s served western missionaries and local evangelists in hard-to-reach areas, and the gospel continued to spread. These new birds nearly doubled the range and load of those earlier aircraft and opened more doors for physical healing, education, community development, and disaster relief to reach isolated people.

A second-generation MAF pilot, Dick Parrott, son of MAF founder/former president Grady Parrott, recalls opening the West Kalimantan, Indonesia, program in 1969 with a brand new C185, PK-MCB, that came to be known as “Charlie Brown.” As the sole pilot/mechanic on the program at the time, Dick was responsible for fixing and flying the airplane.

Of course, other pilots and airplanes followed, and the program expanded to East Kalimantan (now North Kalimantan) and, later, Central Kalimantan. Those small Cessnas brought physical healing to isolated people through a partnership with a Baptist mission hospital, and they enabled the training of 100,000 Dyak Christians through a theological education program. MAF also served a C&MA Bible school there.

A few years ago, when Dick learned that Charlie Brown was going to be removed from service, he was surprised.

“I was amazed that it was still in operation,” said Dick. “You know, MAF does a great job keeping their equipment operational.”

Over in Papua, Indonesia, MAF was continuing to serve western missionaries who were working on Bible translations. Along with the small Cessna airplanes, MAF introduced another aircraft to its fleet in 1976, the helicopter. This new tool helped missionaries survey still-unreached areas and allowed them to live remotely until an airstrip could be built.

Recent Years (1990s – 2020)

In more recent years, MAF introduced larger, more complex turbine-engine aircraft to its fleet—Cessna Caravans, Quest Kodiaks, and a PC-12. These brought another big jump in range and load capabilities, plus advanced technology that increased safety and efficiency. And, they use jet fuel, verses aviation gasoline (Avgas), which is more readily available overseas.

In March 2016, an MAF Caravan landed at the Todro airstrip in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It carried MAF staff, SIL missionaries and local dignitaries who had come to celebrate the completion of the Logoti-language New Testament—a project that moved forward with MAF’s help through years of war and insecurity.

MAF’s service spans multiple decades when it comes to bringing the gospel to a remote people group, serving missionaries working on a translation, delivering completed Bibles, and supporting local churches.

These decades of service typically represent multiple aircraft as well—the right aircraft for the job.

But no matter the airplane make, model, or size, each one serves a kingdom purpose—to reach isolated people with the love of Jesus Christ. And each one is meticulously maintained thanks to the support of people like you who have stood with us through the years; people who still believe that the airplane can play a part in introducing people to the gospel.

*When this story was written, we were still using our old vision and mission statements. In 2021 we rephrased them slightly, though the intent is the same.  You can see them here. 

The post Changing Airplanes, Unchanging Mission appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

MAF Haiti usually doesn’t fly on Sunday unless it’s a life-threatening situation. This time, two lives hung in the balance: a woman in critical condition following a stroke, and a young boy with a high fever and shakes. HERO, a medical organization, called MAF’s after-hours phone number requesting Sunday medical evacuations from Cap Haitian to Port-au-Prince.

A number of “coincidences” happened to line up that day so the patients could receive the urgent care they needed:

• Because it wasn’t known if the boy was contagious, two airplanes were needed so the stroke patient would not be exposed to the unknown illness.
• Two airplanes had just enough flight time available to make the flights before they would have to come off the line for an inspection.
• These two airplanes were scheduled for flights of the same length on Monday, so they were already fueled and ready to go.
• One had a flat tire repaired on Saturday, instead of Monday, because a pilot decided to take care of it when he stopped by the hangar to work on a few things.
• HERO sent two paramedics on each airplane so they could attend to each patient during their flight.

That last bullet point turned out to be extremely important, as the pilots realized when they landed in Cap Haitian. “It was immediately apparent that the stroke victim was not doing well,” said Dan Wanvig, one of the MAF pilots that day. “It was an all-hands-on-deck situation to get her stabilized and intubated in preparation for the flight.”

Because there were four paramedics, three of them were able to work on the stroke victim, while the fourth tended to the boy.

“I don’t know how they would have managed with any fewer paramedics,” Dan said.

So two medical evacuations at the same location, on the same day, plus four paramedics, and two MAF pilots and aircraft that were available on a Sunday adds up to one big God who was overseeing all the details.

Both patients were safely delivered to Port-au-Prince, where they were loaded into an ambulance and whisked away to the hospital.

HERO paramedics stabilize a stroke patient prior to an MAF flight in Haiti. Photo courtesy of Dan Wanvig.

The post DOING GOOD ON THE SABBATH appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

Hundreds of people welcomed us as they jumped, shouted, and waved banana and palm leaves. The atmosphere was electric, energized by the crowd’s smiling exuberance. They formed two columns, allowing me and the team of national church pastors and Samaritan’s Purse leadership to walk between them as we approached the new health center for its dedication. I’d never experienced anything like it. It felt like I was time warped back to Bible times.

Here’s the end of a long line of community members celebrating as Chad and the pastors/SP leaders approached the health center.

The occasion was the dedication of a new health center in a lush jungle village called Bakundangba, which is 30 minutes outside of Doruma by motorcycle. Doruma is a roughly hour and a half flight from Bunia and is close to the border of South Sudan. The previous health center was destroyed by a rebel militia group. This new health center represents hope for many isolated people. How many generations will now receive basic health and hygiene care? Babies will be born with more safety margin. People will receive care for malaria. Lives will be saved and quality of life will be improved for so many people living in deep poverty!

After the dedication we rode motorcycles back to the airstrip and departed for Dungu, a 45 minute flight. After a quick supper, I helped present the “JESUS” film at which over 200 were in attendance and roughly 40 came forward to accept Jesus or re-dedicate their lives to Him. The following morning, I joined the team, traveling by two Land Cruisers 28 miles to a village called Ngilima. This ride was on a rough, muddy road and gave me fresh appreciation for our aviation ministry. Our reception was similar to the previous day’s, just on a larger scale. On our arrival hundreds or even thousands of excited people waved, sang, and danced as they led us to the area where the dedication would take place.

It was estimated that 1,800 were in attendance for the Bible school’s dedication and graduation ceremony. Local church and community leadership were in attendance. I was asked to preach and was humbled and honored to do so. The message was about unity, encouraging others, and being quick to forgive offenses. Afterwards, the 31 new graduates came forward to receive their diplomas and thus commence their new ministries to evangelize, plant churches, and disciple people in their region.

When asked how MAF has supported the school’s efforts, Pastor Mukanirwa, ministry advisor for the school, said, “Without MAF there would be no way to send Bible teachers, Bibles, and other necessary supplies.”

This day was seven years in the making! MAF began flights to this area in 2013, transporting Congolese pastors who did training and seminars for the pastors who would be teaching classes, which include New Testament study, church history, fundamental doctrines, and discipleship. The goal is to have 30 or more students per three-month session—around 100 graduates per year. To date 379 evangelists have received their certificates—and strong doctrine—and returned to their communities to help strengthen their “home” churches.

It’s not every day that I get to see the fruit of our work, but this was one of those days. God is doing some very special things in this part of Congo and your prayers are needed to protect these graduates from the evil one and help them continue to thrive as they serve.

The post Hope through Health Care and Evangelism appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

Story by Daniel Bristol, an MAF pilot/mechanic serving with his family in Papua, Indonesia.

The Mamberamo is a large river that flows into the lowlands of Papua and makes its way to the Pacific Ocean. The Dani are a people group from the highlands, but they have been so moved by the gospel that many have uprooted from their villages to take the gospel to those living in the lowlands of the Mamberamo.

A few months ago, I transported eight Dani women—three of them with babies in tow—from the mountain village of Mulia down to the Mamberamo village of Faowi. These eight evangelists had traveled there to conduct a week-long revival.

A week later, I returned to pick them up. As the women neared the plane before departure, I asked if anyone would be willing to say a prayer of praise for their time in Faowi. The women immediately knelt or sat on the tarmac. But they weren’t the only ones—everyone near the plane followed suit.

As I watched, a pastor walked through the crowd of people on the ground and began to praise the Lord in their language. It was incredible to witness the honor and reverence this people group have so openly for the Lord.

When we returned to Mulia, an additional group of eight women and a child was waiting to go to another Mamberamo village called Derapos. They were on the same mission of revival as the previous women.

This new group boarded the plane, and I flew them to Derapos. Upon our arrival, we were met enthusiastically by most of the village. They had dressed for the occasion and were singing and shouting joyfully because of the evangelism team that had come to help them. The women were then paraded to the city, where they were encircled by villagers singing and waving palm branches.

What a joy it is to observe the Christian culture of a people group so different from ours! The people of Papua live a much less privileged life than we do, yet their praises rise so beautifully to the Lord. How wonderful it will be to join with them on that day when all of God’s people gather around His throne and sing praises to Him!

MAF is honored to partner with people of different cultures who share our passion for reaching others with the good news of Jesus Christ. If you are interested in helping make stories like this happen, you will have a special opportunity on November 30—GivingTuesday. More information coming soon!

The post PRAISES IN THE MAMBERAMO appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

The hamlet of Mokndoma sits high in the mountains of Papua, the western half of the island of New Guinea in Asia Pacific. With no roads and limited government exposure, there has been little influence from the outside world.

You won’t find Mokndoma in any tourist guidebook, but the topography makes you think this area would be designated a national park if it were in America, with rugged mountain peaks, dense tropical rainforest, and rushing rivers.

Walking through the village is like a step back to another time. The Wano, the people group who populate Mokndoma, are living much the same way their ancestors did before them. They live in simple conical huts called honai. They cultivate sweet potatoes in their gardens and have pig feasts for special occasions. The women wear skirts, the men have their noses pierced, and almost everyone wears a beaded necklace. Anything that needs to be carried goes into a noken, a woven net bag usually worn from the head.

But in other crucial ways, the Wano people are living a new way of life very different from their ancestors. Formerly an animistic tribe, they lived in fear of the evil spirits they believed controlled everything. But after the message of Jesus’ love for them took root in the hearts of a core group of believers, the Wano in Mokndoma are walking a new path, one not of fear, but of following the way of Jesus.

These believers were taught and discipled by the Ingles and Wild families, expatriate missionaries who lived among them. Before the airstrip opened in Mokndoma in 2014, the two families used a helicopter to get in and out. The Wano put in thousands of hours of labor into the construction of the airstrip, which sits high at 7,000 feet above sea level. Since the airstrip opened, MAF has been able to provide transport, bring in medicine and other supplies, and do medevac flights.

Our family lived for a number of years in the town of Sentani, about an hour and a half flight from Mokndoma. We became friends with Mike and Libby Wild and their four boys and as we learned about their ministry, we came to have an affection for the Wano. Eventually, our family had the opportunity to visit Mokndoma in 2017.

When my husband David, who served as regional director for MAF’s operations in Indonesia at the time, flew us in, our first attempt at landing was aborted because of clouds covering the airstrip, a common occurrence at that elevation. On our second attempt, the clouds parted, and the 1,500-foot-long airstrip came into view (by contrast, a typical commercial runway at major airports is between 8,000 and 13,000 feet long).

Shortly after we landed, our Kodiak aircraft was surrounded by our friends and many of the Wano. We were met with the traditional greeting of “Wa, wa, wa!” and a handshake that involves joining knuckles and pulling back hard for a satisfying snap.

We got the grand tour of the village, including the clinic, the church, and the literacy building. I even popped into the honai of Grandma, one of Libby’s close friends, who shared a roasted sweet potato with me. One of her grandchildren handed me a roasted honeybee from a comb that was found in the jungle (if you’re wondering, it tasted like a smoky nut).

I was struck by how friendly the children were. Many times on my trips with David into villages, my attempts at friendly interaction with the village kids sent them screaming and running away. But in Mokndoma, the children came right up to us, slipping their hands into ours as we walked around.

After one of our meals, Libby and I stood at the sink together, washing dishes. The kitchen had a large window that looked out over the village. Below us, we could see a man named Liku and another man squatting on the ground, talking and playing with their children while their wives worked in the garden.

“Before the teaching, you wouldn’t have seen that,” Libby said as she handed me a soapy dish.

The teaching she referred to is the chronological teaching, from creation to Christ, of God’s redemptive plan for mankind. The Ingles and Wild families spent years learning the language and culture of the Wano, putting it into a written form, and translating portions of scripture. They also held literacy classes so the Wano would be able to read the scriptures for themselves. It all culminated in 2010 when they were able to present the teaching, and right away, there were many sincere testimonies of faith.

And then the changes began. Warriors laid down their weapons. As the men began following Jesus, they embraced their roles as husbands and fathers and were learning to help their wives. Men were trained as Bible teachers, and several of them, including Liku, began to have a desire to reach Wano in other areas.

There is much more to this story, which you will be able to watch in the upcoming documentary, Ends of the Earth. I can’t wait for you to “meet” the Wano for yourself and see how God is raising up men like Liku with a heart for evangelism, and how MAF is partnering with them to reach others with the good news of Jesus.

The post Walking a New Path appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

My sweet friend, Maggie, lives in the jungle among the Fayu people. Her family relies on the MAF floatplane for medicine and food. After months in the tribe, it was time to resupply. Greg flew four hours from MAF’s Merauke base on the South coast so he could make the 30-minute supply run. I prepared a package of fresh English muffins, candy for the kids, and a note of encouragement to send. I was delighted when Greg said, “Actually, there’s an extra seat! Would you like to deliver the package yourself?” Otodemo is one of our more challenging water strips. I gripped my seat as Greg weaved between the trees and touched down on one float in the river bend. Amazing! We are blessed to be a blessing. It is fun to find creative ways to care for and encourage the missionaries we serve.

Our Nabire patio is serving Bible translation work and strengthening the church. Here, Seth meets with Barnabas and Klaus, his Fayu language helpers. Seth is with one organization. Iwan and Maggie are with another. Seth sometimes travels to Otodemo with Iwan and Maggie. Both are focused on the same people group. Pray for the gospel to take root, for the Church to be established. Last month Seth launched a tour of villages, recruiting Fayu helpers for the next Bible story set.

Significant unrest in the Wolani valley has meant no air service of any kind. Troublemakers have moved on and things are returning to normal. The Sunday school kids in Bugalaga sang these words of Thanksgiving when Brian landed: “Yesus adalah penolong kita, dia setia… Sebab itu mari kita memuji dia.”(Jesus is our help. He is faithful. So, let us praise Him!) It is the first time any plane has landed there in six months!

Kegata village received a monetary blessing from the government. They are using it to build a new sanctuary! Brian has made 20 flights so far with plywood, roofing, tile, cement, and nails. Builders went in several weeks ago. The head pastor was away on an evangelism trip, going from village to village. He finally came by road to Nabire and Brian flew him back to Kegata the next day. Boy, was he excited to see progress on the new building.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these firsthand accounts of how the Marx family is able to bless others in Papua. Please pray for them as well as for Maggie and her family in Otodemo, Seth, Barnabas, and Klaus and the Fayu translation work.

The post Blessed to be a Blessing appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

For the first time in a long time, I sat behind the controls of the airplane. My instructor began to teach me the unique aspects of flying in Papua such as navigating between mountains, learning new weather patterns, and most of all, how to land. I have landed an airplane thousands of times, but I have never needed to be as precise as I do now. Landing our airplane at most of the more than 100 airstrips we fly to is like landing on a postage stamp. Hand-carved out of the mountain face, these airstrips are often located in deep valleys near rugged mountain cliffs surrounded by dense jungle vegetation. Precision is required. After landing in the remote villages, I love to greet as many people as I can. Hundreds of people gather around to see the spectacle of the arrival and departure of the airplane that brings more than just food, medicine, and supplies—we often bring a chance at life.

The call came to us over the radio. A mother had given birth three days before in Lelambo, but due to complications, she had still not passed the placenta and continued to bleed. The mother was not able to walk, becoming dehydrated, and both mother and baby were in danger of not surviving.

My instructor and I were in the middle of a busy day of flight training, but after hearing the request for help, we altered our plans. As we neared the airstrip, it became very clear to me why she needed a flight out of her village to reach medical care. Geographically, the mother and her newborn baby were located deep in a mountain valley with few other villages nearby. Jungle and rugged terrain stretched out for miles in all directions.

Desperation was written across the father’s face as we greeted him and the crowd of locals that gathered around the airstrip. Wrapped in a small satchel, the newborn baby cried and cried. The mother was brought to the airplane in a makeshift stretcher and we quickly loaded her into the airplane. Carefully, I strapped her to the floor as she could not sit in a chair, and then I paused. I paused for a moment to pray for her and the baby in the name of Jesus. This is why we have come here.

My mind was racing. My heart was pounding. I could not help but think about all the years of flight training and preparation, hundreds of people giving and praying, and now here we were—face to face with people who just needed a chance at life.

Launched from the steep mountainside, our small airplane was able to swiftly bring them to medical help. Help that is impossible in the tiny, cut-off, and isolated village deep in the jungle.

May we never lose our compassion for our fellow humans. Instead, may we be moved to act, love, and serve as Jesus has demonstrated His love to us.

The post A Chance at Life appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.

Peter is an MAF pilot serving with his family in Papua, Indonesia. He wrote this story back in March and we’re sharing it here in hopes that it will encourage you. 

It was another beautiful morning in the mountains of Papua, Indonesia, as fellow pilot Tom Bolser and I started our descent into the village of Silimo. Silimo is about an hour flight from Sentani, to the south side of the awe-inspiring mountain ranges that split the island of Papua almost in half horizontally. On board with us were two long-time Western missionaries (20-plus years in Papua), as well as their two national partner translators. Also on board were about 300 kgs (around 300) of Ngalik New Testament Bibles. This team of translators finished the full New Testament translation several years ago and only lack two books of the Old Testament to finish the work.

This was my first MAF flight since arriving back in Papua in late January, after an “adventurous” travel experience from the States and a five-day hotel quarantine in Jakarta. What a great way for me to start off this year of flying in Papua.

After landing, the local villagers quickly unloaded the New Testament Bibles, and a local church leader led us all in a prayer of thanksgiving.

I talked again with the missionary that I brought in that morning, and he reported that all of the Bibles we flew in that day were sold within a week. The Bibles are subsidized 75 percent but they still require the people to contribute a bit so that they truly value them. It had been several years since their last printing and these new copies were received enthusiastically by the Ngalik people.

In the midst of continued COVID-19 challenges, political strife, disappointments, and uncertainties about the future, please take heart that God’s Word continues to go forth throughout the world; and you are making an impact in the lives of new believers and seekers by supporting the work of MAF in Papua.

Thank you!

The post God’s Word Continues to Go Forth appeared first on Mission Aviation Fellowship.