Working with manuals and data might not seem like most people’s idea of a good time. But Joey Martin, International Director of Quality, said, “Everyone can get behind a system that will improve our overall safety.”

Joey began his MAF career as a pilot/mechanic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where he and his wife, Kathleen, served for eight years. There is a lot of need in the DRC, but they consistently saw Christ-followers meeting those needs in creative ways.

“There were Bible translation projects we were supporting, humanitarian responses to various crises—like malaria, typhoid, Ebola, sleeping sickness—evangelism and discipleship efforts, transporting literally tons of medicine for hospitals, flying sick or injured patients to places where they could receive care, and bringing short-term teams for specific projects,” he said.

Joey especially enjoyed flying Bible translators. “A single flight for that missionary usually will not make or break the entire project,” Joey said. “But the faithfulness of MAF over many years will make it possible for the translator to accomplish their work.”

Then the Martins moved to Lesotho, where they appreciated the interpersonal relationships with the team. “Most of the flying in Lesotho is in support of medical work in remote mountain clinics. It was a joy to be part of meeting the very tangible needs of the Basotho people,” said Joey.

After three years in Lesotho, the Martins returned to MAF headquarters as Joey’s job changed.

“My experience as a pilot/mechanic, and in safety and quality, provided the background necessary to perform our internal audits and to understand how the various pieces of the aviation puzzle fit together,” Joey said. “Looking back, I can see how God was preparing me.”

These days, Joey spends his time on manuals, revisions, audits, data, and spreadsheets. “My job sounds quite boring to most people, but I love it!” he said.

And it all contributes to greater and greater operational safety for all MAF staff serving around the globe.

With seventeen years spent as part of MAF, the Martins have a more mature perspective than they did as freshly minted missionaries. “The daily troubles, the struggles to get electricity and clean drinking water, the loneliness, the interpersonal conflicts, and the losses—these things can bring discouragement in the moment,” Kathleen said. “But the Lord uses all of it. We only have to be faithful to do what he gives us to do each day, and then trust that he has a bigger plan than what we can see.”

The Martins are looking for new ministry partners to pray for their ministry and provide financial support. To join their team, visit www.maf.org/jmartin.

Story ran in the Vol. 2 2024 edition of FlightWatch. Read the entire issue here:

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“Airplanes are unique machines. And they’re not just unique because they can fly, but have you ever noticed how there’s always a story that surrounds airplanes?”

David Holsten, MAF’s president and CEO, spoke these words during a commencement speech he gave at the School of Missionary Aviation Technology (SMAT) graduation this summer. He was addressing an auditorium full of maintenance and flight students, and their families and friends, as well as several MAF staff who were there to show support. The event was held at Restore Church in Ionia, Michigan, on Monday, August 22, 2022.

“One day we’re all going to look back on our lives and there will be a story that will be told about our lives,” David continued. “What is the story that you want your life to tell?”

Three of the graduates that night were MAF’s own staff, representing three different countries—Haiti, Mexico, and Lesotho. God is writing each of their stories, and it’s evident by their faith and how they strive to use the skills and talents He’s given them.

There’s Zacharie François, who graduated from SMAT in 2019 with his Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) certificate and served as an MAF maintenance specialist in Haiti before returning to SMAT for his flight training. He’s the first international student to attend SMAT’s flight training program and has earned his Commercial Instrument Pilot’s License with a High-Performance, Complex and Tail-Wheel endorsement.

On graduation night, Zacharie had this experience: “You look to your left and to your right on stage, and all your classmates have captain bars on, and your friends and family are either in the room or live-cheering you on. You tear up how faithful our great Heavenly Father is.”

“It’s so rare that somebody from these countries would have acquired these sorts of skills,” David said, “but the fact they’ve acquired it within the context of ministry, to be utilized for the kingdom, is even more unique.”

Two other staff members, Mantlibi Mafa from MAF Lesotho, and Juan Antonio Rivera from the MAF affiliate Alas de Socorro in Mexico, graduated with their A&P certificates. Mantlibi had done an internship with MAF as part of her auto mechanic’s schooling, and later she was hired as a maintenance assistant. She’ll be the first female maintenance specialist at the Lesotho program.

Of her experience at SMAT, Mantlibi said, “Graduating from SMAT has been such a huge blessing. I am thankful to have had the opportunity for that training and so thankful that I performed well in such a short period of time, and passed. Glory be to God.”

Juan Antonio and his wife, Amy, have a heart to serve in a restricted-access country, and MAF is more than glad to send them to one in the near future. “We are grateful beyond expression for the opportunity He is giving us to serve Him overseas in a closed country where His light has not yet reached,” Juan said. “For now, we are in the process of completing a few more requirements and preparing for this next step as soon as the doors open.”

“It has been a pretty special year for them and for me,” said MAF’s Dave McCleery, former Latin America regional director, based in Michigan. “I felt a bit like their dad at times … ‘Careful driving in the snow. Do you have enough cold-weather clothes? Is your housing working out okay?’”

Several of the SMAT staff had mentioned to Dave that our trainees had a positive impact on this year’s class. “They had a quiet influence in a good direction,” Dave added.

Each of them did well in what is known to be a challenging program. There’s a lot of training compressed into 12 months.

“You could tell they were respected by their peers and faculty. Everybody was speaking very positively about their character, how they handled going through the program. I felt very proud of that,” David Holsten said after the event.

MAF desires to have close relationships with mission-focused schools like SMAT. David says it’s because “we’re not just interested in technical things. There’s an ethos that surrounds the training that helps prepare men and women for the mission side of things. It’s technical training done with a Christian worldview.”

The resources these young adults need are not typically available within their own countries. But MAF’s commitment to strengthen the capacity of our staff in the places we serve, and God’s provision through generous donors, made this training a reality.

“I’m excited because this will increasingly be the picture of what we do around the world, working with brothers and sisters of the countries we serve in. It’s a partnership. In the U.S. we have access to resources that can come alongside of them, both financially and with training,” David said. “It reflects the body of Christ that way.”

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“There are 100 ways to be isolated,” said Paul College.

He and his wife, Beth, are part of MAF’s Member Care department.

They explain that for missionaries on the field, isolation can look like being the only Westerners in a place, which is what they experienced in Kalimantan, Indonesia, where they served with MAF as a pilot/mechanic family for 10 years.

“Most of MAF’s staff are isolated from things most of us take for granted—reliable power, access to good medical care,” Beth explained. They live in places where they can experience high stress.”

“I think as a human being, you struggle equally just about anywhere you go,” Paul said. “But in these locations you’re far more isolated and have fewer resources to deal with that.”

Even before they transitioned back to the U.S., Paul and Beth had often found themselves in a shepherding role. Their couch had become the place where their teammates could sit and process things.

MAF’s Member Care department could see they were naturally caring for staff and invited them to join the team. The Colleges have been serving in Member Care remotely from the East Coast since 2017, working mainly with overseas staff.

“Most people are looking for someone to listen, to understand them, not to fix them. Being able to offer that has been fulfilling,” Beth said.

MAF is a technical organization that relies on checklists and manuals, and it cares for complex machines.

“But humans can’t be treated like machines. You can’t just apply a certain process and then they’re good to go,” Paul said. “We’re not in the fixing department.”

“We’re in the ‘companioning’ department,” Beth added. “We want to connect with people on a heart and soul level.

Paul and Beth stress that missionaries aren’t superheroes. They carry the same fragility that all people do. They need to hear the same message that they’re taking to isolated people.

“What we’re trying to do is actually offer the good news to MAF staff who are intending to then offer the good news then to the world around them,” Paul said.

This is how Paul and Beth are fulfilling the mission of MAF to bring help, hope, and healing to isolated people. Beth adds, “We just get to do it for MAF staff.”

Member Care is such an important piece of the MAF puzzle, and the Colleges know they can’t do this alone. They’re seeking to grow their team of financial and prayer partners, so they can take even better care of staff that are in difficult places. Visit maf.org/college to join them.

This story ran in the FlightWatch Vol. 3 (summer) 2022 issue:

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When John and Joanne* first heard about asset-based giving, they dismissed the idea, thinking, “Well, we don’t have anything.”

For years, God had been growing in them a heart for missions. As a young adult, Joanne had traveled to visit missionary friends in Papua New Guinea. While there, she flew on a tiny airplane to a village in the middle of the jungle. When the missionary pilot announced that they were going to land, she glanced out the window at the handful of huts and thought, ”There’s no place to land!” Then she noticed a small dirt area the size of a toothpick.

Joanne remembers, “Well, we landed on that toothpick and it was just wide enough for the plane.”

Joanne was struck by how much the villagers, and the missionaries who lived with them, relied on that little airplane: “It was their only contact with the outside world.”

Soon after John and Joanne got married, they took a trip to Ecuador to see where MAF pilot Nate Saint and four other missionaries had given their lives to bring the good news to the Waorani people.

For John, it was a turning point. “As soon as I saw that, I was hooked by MAF.”

Later, the two of them had an opportunity to become part of the support team for MAF missionaries Doug and Karin Allrich. They supported them for about 30 years, during which time they also made donations to other MAF funds. Through the years, their appreciation for MAF’s ministry grew.

In Joanne’s words, “It’s just wonderful that MAF is meeting both the spiritual and the physical needs of people—it’s the whole person.”

A step of faith

Over time, John and Joanne became intrigued by the idea of using more of their resources to support MAF, but they couldn’t see a way to do it.

Then God showed them an opportunity.

About 34 years ago, Joanne and her sister inherited a farm from their parents, who had been deeply missions minded and generous in supporting missions. When the time came years later to sell the farm, John and Joanne hoped that somehow they could use their portion of the farm to benefit missions, specifically MAF.

But they hesitated, thinking, “We might run out of money, you know, old age and health problems.” They asked God, “Is this really okay to do?”

John shared, “It was easy to procrastinate, and we finally said, ‘If we’re going to do something with MAF, let’s do it now where we can enjoy knowing that it happened.”

So they reached out to Aaron Bear, MAF Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, who offered them a solution that would benefit both MAF and them. Through prayer, and with the affirmation of their financial planner, they decided to step out in faith.

Working closely with Joanne and John’s attorney and CPA, Aaron walked them through the process of putting their farm into a charitable remainder trust, with MAF serving as the trustee. The property was then sold through the trust, tax free. MAF is the remainder beneficiary of the trust, and John and Joanne will receive income through the trust for the rest of their lives.

Blessed to be a blessing

In September 2021, at the invitation of Aaron Bear, John and Joanne shared their story before a crowd of MAF supporters at the President and Board Summit.

The last thing in the world they wanted to do was draw attention to themselves. Joanne explained, “This is God’s ministry, and God has blessed us to be a blessing. So we don’t want any attention.”

But they knew their story might inspire others who, like them, may not have been aware of the giving opportunities that are available.

They were delighted by the responses they received afterward. As John talked about those conversations, his face lit up. “I’m just glad that some people could say, ‘We can do that!’ That’s what is exciting.”

Joanne and John hope more people join them in bringing help, hope, and healing to isolated people by exploring the many creative asset-based giving opportunities that are available through MAF.

You can find out more here or by contacting MAF at 1-800-261-7280 or plannedgiving@maf.org.

__________

*Names have been changed.

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Dan and his wife, Jodi, began their ministry with MAF 27 years ago as a maintenance specialist family in Kalimantan, Indonesia. They served for eight years on the small island of Tarakan, where Dan helped maintain MAF’s fleet of Cessna 206 and 185 aircraft. As a family, they served in a variety of ways through hospitality and ministry in their community.

Knowing their three children would need better education options, Dan and Jodi prayed about where their next assignment might be. An opportunity arose from a familiar place, Dan’s alma mater, Moody Aviation, based in Elizabethton, Tennessee, at the time.

In 2003 MAF “loaned” the Applebys to the school, which teaches the technical and theological disciplines needed by MAF staff. They served there for two years, then made the move to Spokane, Washington, when the school shifted their operations there.

As an advanced maintenance instructor, Dan is responsible for the implementation of maintenance instruction for the advanced pilot/mechanic students. In her role as administrative assistant, Jodi assists staff and students in a variety of ways, including maintaining FAA records, conducting weekly student record audits, serving as Internship Coordinator, and assisting the Ministry Partnership Development Program.

Dan and Jodi are also involved with students in a non-technical capacity, connecting through Bible studies, having students over for meals and games, and challenging them to daily walk with the Lord. Through this informal interaction, they have the opportunity to share about MAF.

“We get to be champions for MAF’s ministry in a lot of ways,” Jodi shared. “Meeting with the students and sharing why we chose MAF, why we’re excited about it, what kind of ministry opportunities are out there.”

The Applebys are grateful for their support team, including some who have supported them since they were students at Moody. “Everybody plays a part, and we really feel like it’s a team effort to be able to do this,” Jodi said. “We could not be here doing this without them.”

Dan and Jodi are seeking additional prayer and financial partners to support their ministry in shaping the next generation of mission aviators. Will you join their team? Learn more at www.maf.org/appleby.

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Story by Gene Arnold, MAF staff on-loan to Moody Aviation Institute’s missionary aviation training program in Spokane, WA.

This season I am teaching instrument flight to our senior class. Instrument flying allows a pilot to navigate through the clouds and other weather without seeing the ground, except for the moments of takeoff and landing. As amazing as blind navigation is, the moment-by-moment control of the airplane is even more critical. The reason for this is that once humans are in flight, our bodies are completely incapable of telling the difference between gravity and the other forces associated with motion. In short, without seeing the ground, we can’t tell which way is up! Students learn to read and trust the instruments even when everything inside them is screaming that some other direction is up.

Recently, my students proved this to themselves as we flew from Spokane, WA, to Lewiston, ID, to Moses Lake, WA, and back to Spokane on instruments. Throughout each flight, the student piloting the plane wore a hood on his or her head, allowing a view of the instrument panel only. There was a lot of joy in the airplane when I let the student look outside a few seconds before landing and there was the runway right in front of us! I think you can see there’s a spiritual lesson here, too. Just like with instrument flying, when we set aside our natural inclinations and trust the truth set before us, we can arrive at the right destination.

After a long trip

When the trip is long, it makes that final approach to land even more joyful. In a way, this happened recently in Papua, Indonesia. Let me set the stage with a little background.

In 1956 missionaries Gordon Larson and Don Gibbons hiked into the Ilaga Valley in what was then Netherlands New Guinea. The valley was shared by two tribes, the Dani and Damal. Gordon Larson turned his focus to the Dani, and Don Gibbons to the Damal. They had worked toward this event for three years, but God had been at work even longer.

Although Don didn’t speak any Damal, God prepared a translator in the form of the Damal chief’s son, Sam, who had studied in the Indonesian language at the government school. But even more significant, years before, God had placed the thought in the heart of Sam’s father, Chief Den, that someday someone would come to give the Damal people the key to heaven. Over the months, Don Gibbons learned enough of the Damal language to present Bible stories and the gospel. Finally, Chief Den became convinced that this gospel was the key to heaven he had been looking for. He and his people were animists, believing that spirits lived in everything around them and influenced all aspects of life. For this reason, all the people kept fetishes designed to appease these spirits, but in a great act of faith, Chief Den led his people in burning all their fetishes.

Don and his wife, Alice, built their home in a place called Beoga, deep in Damal territory. There, supported by MAF, they lived for the next decades and continued to teach the Damal. They also started to translate the Bible into the Damal language. The Damal received these early portions of God’s Word gladly.

In turn, they preached it through their villages and then to the neighboring Dani and beyond. Eventually, the Gibbons retired and have now passed away, but others continued translating the Bible into Damal. At last, a few months ago, the translation of the entire Bible into Damal was completed! This has been a long approach and was celebrated with great joy!

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“When I get a request from overseas, I try to make that the highest priority so they can keep on going,” said Darryl Cedergren, who handles MAF’s payroll, insurance programs, and cash management from MAF’s headquarters.

Darryl and his wife, Debbie, began their journey with MAF 28 years ago as a pilot/mechanic family in Venezuela, where they served for eight years. Back then, MAF served New Tribes (now Ethos360) and other missionaries that were bringing the gospel to the indigenous people.

While using his technical skills to operate a small aircraft in the jungle, Darryl enjoyed caring for others. Whether that meant bringing a two-liter bottle of Coke or a box of Frosted Flakes to a remote missionary, avoiding flying through clouds so passengers would have a smooth ride, or even handling the finances there.

Today he applies the same care for MAF staff around the world.

“I want to serve our staff so they don’t have to think about the issues of money,” said Darryl. “There are so many other pressures they have to deal with. It’s one less thing they have to worry about.” As for her husband’s current role, Debbie says, “God has gifted Darryl with a keen awareness for financial details such as budgeting, saving, planning, and projecting future outcomes. I feel that over the years God has prepared him for this.”

Debbie continues to follow God’s call on her life and serves as an educational coach for children who struggle with learning. She’s also still very involved in communicating with their donors, writing letters, and visiting supporting churches.

Just as Darryl helped missions move forward in Venezuela so that people would come to know the Lord, now he works behind the scenes to make sure MAF can continue to reach isolated people around the world with critical help and the hope of the gospel.

“It’s like engine oil,” Darryl explains. “I’m not providing the main power, but without the engine oil—without money—your engine’s going to seize.”

While Darryl’s role is behind the scenes, it’s a vitally important one that ensures payroll for MAF staff, manages 14 insurance programs, and makes sure the field programs have sufficient cash flow.

When an MAF pre-fielder arrived at their assignment in Haiti, he located a car to purchase. He’d already raised the money for it, but now he needed to get the cash there to purchase it. Many of the countries in which MAF serves are cash economies, by the way. Darryl wired the money to the seller, and now that MAF missionary has a family car to use in Haiti.

That’s just one example. And Darryl adds, “If payroll does not go through, I’ll have 328 people rightfully upset with me all around the world.”

Due to rising costs, MAF missionaries have had to increase their monthly support goals this year by $600. As a result, the Cedergrens are looking for prayer and financial partners to join their team.

“It will be encouraging to have new families and churches come alongside us and be a part of the greater ministry of reaching others for Christ through MAF,” said Debbie.

“I believe the Lord is calling me to be here. I evaluate that every three to five years,” explained Darryl. “And here we are, coming up on 28 years with MAF. We’re moving the gospel forward, by God’s grace, and that’s why partnering with us is important.”

Would you like to play a crucial role in reaching isolated people through the Cedergrens’ ministry? Visit maf.org/cedergren to learn more or join their team today.

A shorter version of this story appeared in the Winter 2021 edition of FlightWatch. Read the full issue here:

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“Lord, thank You for the opportunity to be involved with MAF in making a difference in the world…. In Christ’s name, Amen.”

In one short prayer, Dr. Gary Coombs—missions pastor at Shadow Mountain Community Church in El Cajon, California—summed up the symbiotic relationship between churches and MAF. From grand vision to ordinary task, we are in this together.

We, at MAF, could not do our work (nor would we want to) without local bodies of believers standing with us in prayer, financial support, and encouragement. And churches would find it challenging to directly impact the lives of isolated people if they did not partner with frontline organizations like MAF.

Local congregations would also miss out on the beauty of deep friendships with those who live and work among the world’s most isolated. And MAF staff would be all the poorer for it.

Dave and Linda Ringenberg had been supported by Shadow Mountain since joining MAF in 1997. When their five-year-old daughter, Hannah, became sick with a brain tumor in 2002, they returned home to care for her in the church’s missionary apartments. Throughout that excruciating time, up until her death, the church stood by their side.

“Their special care for us during that hard season of our lives was truly a great blessing to our family, as is their continued prayer and financial support,” said Linda.

Chuck and Susan Weatherstone have partnered with Calvary Church of Santa Ana, California, since 1985. Calvary saw them through two evacuations and several violent conflicts as they served with MAF in various countries. Today, Calvary is helping raise up the next generation of MAF missionaries as they support the Weatherstones in their role as mobilizers.

“Through Calvary, we have experienced the love of the body of Christ,” said Susan.

Calvary Church has shown that same love to several generations of MAF missionaries, starting with Francis and George Boggs—one of MAF’s earliest pilots—back in 1956.

Besides staff support, both churches have also contributed to several important MAF funds: Global Ministry, Haiti Disaster, Mali Well projects, Mobilization, and a Kodiak airplane.

What drives churches to partner with MAF, generation after generation? Dr. Coombs summed it up well:

“How do we get the gospel out to the more remote places on this earth? We support MAF because we believe they have a key role in accomplishing the Great Commission.”

This story appeared in the Summer 2020 edition of FlightWatch:

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Joe Adams, a pilot/mechanic in Lesotho, describes his technical evaluation as he was joining MAF in 2018 and tells how God used his instructor pilot, Tim Imbrock, to help him work through a difficult situation.

The airplane rolled to a stop on the 1600-foot dirt airstrip in Idaho and the engine was shut down. Many things had gone right on this training flight, but many things had not. The pilot under training—an instructor himself—was his own worst critic. He knew that after more than a week of flying with some of the best bush instructors in the world, he was only slowly progressing in learning MAF procedures in the Cessna Turbo 206. This training allows MAF pilots to safely operate in isolated, mountainous areas around the world.

As the two sat in a moment of silent reflection, discouragement washed over the pilot. His eyes filled with tears. He turned to his instructor and choked out: “If I can’t get through this training, I know that it’s God’s will and that’s the best for me, but it will be so hard.”

The instructor heard the desperation in the pilot’s voice. He had been a pilot with MAF for more than three decades and had faced his own setbacks. He knew what to do. Instead of sharing expertise on aerodynamics, airstrips, and aircraft, he addressed the root of the problem. He shared about a time when he cried out to God and told how God came through with unmistakable deliverance and strength.

He led the pilot in prayer and asked for ability, peace, and the power of the Spirit of God to enable him to accomplish the work to which he had been called. As they prayed, the burden and the discouragement lifted. No more problems to be hidden or overcome in his own strength. God calls, God equips, and God empowers His people to do that to which they’ve been called.

They returned to the training, and joy and confidence replaced trepidation and doubt. In the following days, prayers from the instructor and many others continued—and continued to be answered. There were still tough moments, but the pilot was empowered to successfully meet the standard. He realized that in flying, like in all of life, nothing can be accomplished in our own strength, but only through the power of the Spirit of God. He can say with the Psalmist:

“Blessed be the Lord!
For He has heard the voice of my pleas for mercy.”

Psalm 28:6

Story appeared in the May 2020 FlightWatch, a special 75th anniversary issue:

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