JESUS LOVES THE LITTLE CHILDREN ... Even the ones who live in places like Port-au-Paix, Haiti. Winter 2020
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“I thank my God every time I remember you.” – Philippians 1:3 None of the stories you are about to read would be possible without the support of people like you. This year, it has been our pleasure to show you how you are making it possible for the gospel to transform the lives of isolated people around the world. Your prayers, your gifts, your time, are key to MAF’s ministry. Thank you for sharing the love of Jesus at the ends of the earth! Director of Marketing:
Tracey Werre Managing Editor:
Chris Burgess
Every gift you send, every prayer you offer for MAF, helps change lives through aviation. We enjoy hearing from you! Please send comments and questions to maf-us@maf.org.
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Chris Burgess Jeanelle Reider Jennifer Wolf
208-498-0800 1-800-FLYS-MAF (359-7623) Cover Photo by Mason Murawski
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All Scripture references, unless otherwise noted, are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK
“As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem” – Luke 9:51
Jesus’ intentional focus on his mission is deeply challenging to me. It causes me to think about how intentional I am being in my own life. Am I living the way I want or in obedience to God?
around the world are as they follow Christ where they are. What does your daily walk with Jesus look like? Are you being intentional in your pursuit of Him? Are your eyes open for the opportunities around you? Are you being obedient to what God has called you to?
I have come to realize impactful, lasting ministry is rarely accidental. It oftentimes comes as the result of a long-term intentional commitment. Eugene Peterson calls this “a long obedience in the same direction.”
God can use us wherever we are—whether that is in Haiti, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or your hometown. Thank you for intentionally following Christ and thank you for your support of MAF. You are making it possible for the gospel transform lives around the world.
This daily, intentional walk is going to provide us with ample opportunity to love our neighbors and display the truth of who Christ is and what He has done for us. But this doesn’t happen if we do not seek it out. I’ve found whenever I ask the Lord to give me eyes to see those opportunities around me and to have the courage to pursue those opportunities, he’s been faithful to provide. When that is not happening in my life, it is because it is no longer a focus of mine.
Serving Together,
David Holsten President & CEO
I am so thankful for how intentional MAF staff, our partner organizations, and local believers 3
Ref lections of Love By Jennifer Wolf Photos by Mason Murawski How you are bringing hope to a drought-stricken area of Haiti. Mason Murawski noticed a young boy with Down syndrome wasn’t wearing a colorful bracelet, meaning he wasn’t going to participate. Mason was part of a short-term team from the U.S. that was putting on a vacation Bible school (VBS) for children in a remote area of northwest Haiti. Since Mason could speak Haitian Creole, he asked the local leaders if the boy could participate with the other children. His teammates knew how to work with special needs kids and felt comfortable incorporating him into the activities. Throughout that week, Mason, his mom, Sandi, and other members of the Denbigh United Presbyterian Church in Virginia loved on Haitian children as they led VBS at two separate churches west of Port-au-Paix area. That young boy ended up learning the dance movements and some of the worship song lyrics, in both English and Creole. He was not shy about dancing and singing with the entire group. (Continued on page six.)
This young boy, introduced above, and other Haitian children learn about Christ’s love during a VBS led by a team from Denbigh United Presbyterian Church. 4
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The Denbigh church has been sending teams almost every year since 2008. They started with building projects and then began doing VBS. “Providing Bible lessons, crafts, recreation, scripture, love, food, and relationships are all reasons we go,” says Sandi. The group also pays for a generator and brings a portable printer so they can print out photos of the children. A professional photographer, Mason takes a photo of each child, and then the kids make a picture frame during craft time so they can display their photo at home. This past summer, the team was surprised when they held up each photo and waited for the appropriate child to claim it. No one responded. Turns out they had never seen their own reflections because they don’t have mirrors in their homes. Having one is a luxury their families can’t afford. But while the kids had never seen themselves, God sees them, and knows each one by name. At every VBS He was calling more to be His own. This past summer some 30 children were added to God’s forever family. Roadblocks to Grace This last trip could have been cancelled because the country was assigned a “Level Four” warning by the U.S. State Department—the highest warning level. The Embassy was basically saying, don’t come. Exorbitantly high prices for food and fuel are putting Haitians in desperate situations. A gang had shut down the road between Port-au-Prince and Port-auPaix, making travel by road out of the question. “You need to be sure that you are called by God to come,” said longtime Crossworld missionary Bruce Robinson to the Denbigh church team. “And if you do come, the only way in and out is with MAF.” Bruce is the connection to the Denbigh church. He grew up in that church. So it makes sense that they would adopt and engage with his ministry. Bruce and his wife, Deb, have lived in Haiti since 1983, coming alongside local pastors and building schools and churches and the infrastructure to support them: 1-800-FLYS-MAF
latrines, long-gravity drinking water systems, cisterns, and irrigation systems, and wells. These serve an area of more than 100,000 people. The area is one of the poorest in this impoverished country. The people survive by farming—when there’s rain, that is. Haiti is currently experiencing severe drought. The fact that children who come to VBS are fed breakfast and lunch is a big deal. Every year the Robinsons rely on MAF to bring in short-term teams to help with building or water projects, and to run VBSs and sport camps. Typically, it’s 10 teams per year, or 60 to 100 people who come. A 45-minute flight replaces a grueling 10-hour road trip that can be dangerous, if not impossible. “In a country, where things aren’t all coming together yet, [MAF] is the only way you can get to where we live,” said Bruce. Reflecting Results MAF has been key to Bruce and Deb weathering other difficult periods in Haiti, like the 2010 earthquake and Hurricane Matthew. When Bruce thinks of MAF and its supporters, he says, “They don’t see the direct results of their ministry—the people coming to Christ, the people that get water, the people that are able to grow food for themselves. But they need to know that we can’t do that very well unless we have the backup of MAF, making it possible for us to logistically do all of this. So MAF’s donors and staff are basically doing this thing on faith, knowing what they’re doing is a really good thing, but they don’t get to see the results. I get to see the results.” And visiting teams like the one from the Denbigh church can also see a reflection of God’s transforming love. This year Sandi caught a glimpse: “When you see children eating part of their lunch and then walking to the fence and giving the rest to the kids who didn’t get to come, you know they have the love of the Lord in their hearts.” 6
MINISTRY SPOTLIGHT
The Kanagys: Two Couples, One Calling love to be a pilot.” Her response: “Why not?” So Lance moved to the U.S. and earned his degree at Moody Bible Institute. His wife, Jessica, attended there as well and finished a degree in biblical studies. “Ever since I was a kid I’ve thought, I want to do what my parents are doing. I saw the impact they had with the Xavante people in Brazil,” said Jessica, a fourthgeneration missionary. When Lance and Luke Kanagy were five and six years old, they would tie pieces of cardboard to their arms and “fly” off banks and hillsides in their childhood home of Brazil. Two decades later, these brothers are preparing to serve as MAF pilots. Luke and Lance’s parents and grandparents were missionaries. The brothers married women who had also grown up in Brazil as multi-generational missionary kids (MKs). They all felt a call to missions even if it wasn’t always clear what it would look like. Both brothers had to overcome real or imagined roadblocks. “Too expensive.” “Too difficult.”
When they finally arrive on the field, the couples will be thousands of miles apart. Luke and Jaalah will be in Boa Vista, in northern Brazil, with Asas de Socorro (ASAS), an MAF affiliate. Lance and Jessica will serve with MAF in Papua, Indonesia. The distance between them will be great, but the mission will be the same: sharing the love of Jesus with isolated people. These two brothers will finally see their long-held passion for flying used in the Lord’s service. And these four grown MKs will add to their families’ legacies by making Christ known.
One day Luke thought, What if I never try? “I would never find out what God could do through my life. Since then I have never looked back,” he said. Luke attended San Diego Christian College for his degree in aviation technology. His wife, Jaalah, attended Word of Life Bible Institute in New York and did a two-year internship in Brazil. “I have vivid memories of my dad sharing the gospel with people he gave car rides to and my mom sharing the gospel from the kitchen counter,” said Jaalah. “I knew I wanted the gospel to be lived out in my life and that I wanted others to know Christ.” Lance remembers being a senior in HS and watching a plane fly overhead and saying to his mom, “I would
Partner with us. To bring Christ’s love to isolated people in Brazil or Indonesia, visit maf.org/lancekanagy and maf.org/lukekanagy. Top Left: Lance and Jessica Kanagy Lower right: Luke and Jaalah Kanagy. 7
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Unseen Potential in a Traffic Stop Story by Jeanelle Reider Photos by Mark and Kelly Hewes One MAF couple builds bridges in their neighborhood.
Wyatt, her toddler, was crying too. The boys were hungry and exhausted from a strenuous morning of shopping in a still-unfamiliar environment. Nicole had taken a wrong road just blocks from her home in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and her last-minute U-turn had triggered the traffic stop. Deeply shaken, she grabbed her cell phone and called the MAF program manager’s wife, Jocelyn Frey, for help. Then she started praying: “Lord, give me wisdom. And somehow, please bring good from this situation.” Paying Attention One thing Nicole and her husband, Jonathan, had learned as MAF missionaries was that life isn’t just about the big stories. It’s about listening to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in every moment, trusting in His unseen plan. Long before their arrival in Kinshasa, they had been honing the art of listening. “We’re not normally the kind of people that are like, ‘God said I need to do this,’” said Jonathan, an MAF pilot/mechanic.
Traffic jams, like this one in Kinshasa, DRC, and police stops present challenges and opportunities for MAF’s overseas missionaries.
The angry shouts of the men circling her car were drowned out by the frantic crying of baby Otis in the back seat. Their forceful gestures commanded her to open the door.
But when God does speak, they pay attention. That’s how they ended up at MAF. Jonathan grew up as a missionary kid in Belgium. He had no aspirations to follow in his parents’ steps—his sights were set on becoming a commercial pilot. But through a series of events, including the unlikely arrival of an unsealed and unstamped acceptance letter from Moody Aviation, God stoked Jonathan and Nicole’s passion for missions and directed them to MAF.
Nicole de Jongh rolled down the window a fraction of an inch to hear their words. “Get out of the car! Give us your papers!” Since arriving in the DRC, Jonathan and Nicole have been part of a vital MAF ministry team that provides Papers? subsidized flights for Congolese churches, international missions groups, and others helping to share Christ’s love in remote parts of this vast African nation. Through the crack in the window, she tried to reason with them, explaining that she had no papers. Their Cookies and Cold Water voices escalated, along with a new, audacious demand: Nicole’s pulse raced as she waited for Jocelyn. “God,” she prayed, “please soften the hearts of these men.” “Make your baby stop crying!” 8
When Jocelyn arrived, the authorities allowed Nicole to drive her boys home while Jocelyn headed to the police station to meet up with other MAF staff and sort things out.
after Jonathan prayed, he spoke of Christ’s sacrifice. He explained the freedom everyone can have in Christ.
The next day, seeing the incident as an opportunity to build relationships with neighborhood police, Nicole and a few other MAF staff women brought fresh-baked cookies and cold water to the police station. It was the last thing Nicole felt like doing. Yet a still, small voice nudged her on.
After that day, Jonathan and Nicole continued to follow God’s lead in reaching out to the officers. Once, Nicole was prompted to buy a Snickers bar at the store to give to the chief on her way home. She had no idea how she would locate him. Suddenly, as she pulled through her last intersection, there he was, standing on the corner. With great joy he accepted her gift.
Still Listening
The surprised chief of police welcomed the women, and A small, insignificant moment? Maybe. But Nicole sees a friendly conversation followed. it as just one more example of how listening to God has proven fruitful since the traumatic traffic incident. A few days later, he knocked at the de Jonghs’ gate.
Nicole and Jonathan invited him in for tea and cookies, and soon they were hearing about his life, his family, his “The traffic stop was terribly painful, and I cried a lot of tears,” said Nicole. “But Romans 8:28 says God works health. all things out for good. Now, look at the outcome!” When they parted, he asked, “Will you come to my house sometime to meet my family?”
Listening is what brought Nicole and Jonathan to MAF in the first place. And listening is what allows them to keep showing their neighbors rare glimpses of the heart of Christ … even in the most unexpected moments.
This was not a decision to be taken lightly. In Kinshasa, relationships with the authorities are often looked upon with suspicion. “Like Jesus and the tax collector,” explains Jonathan.
Thanks to your prayers and gifts, MAF missionaries like the de Jonghs can be a presence of His love in neighborhoods around the world.
Nicole and Jonathan spent several months seeking the Lord about whether to accept the invitation. Gradually, a strong inner conviction settled in. It was the right thing to do. On the appointed day, the chief met them at a gas station, hopped in their car, and they headed out. “First, we’re going to my brother’s house. Then to my other brother’s house. Then to my house.” A pause. “Oh, and Jonathan, you will be speaking at each place.” Jonathan had recently given a talk to MAF staff from 2 Chronicles 7:14, “If My people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray...” The Lord’s timing was not lost on him. From house to house, Jonathan shared God’s Word. When they finally arrived at the chief ’s house, the chief asked Jonathan to give a blessing. It was clear that internal fears and superstitions drove his request, so
Another street scene in Kinshasa, DRC.
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TECH CORNER
The Ugly Duckling
There is a saying around MAF: “Planes change, but the mission stays the same.” And truly, MAF’s mission of taking the gospel to the ends of the earth has not wavered since 1945. However, the airplanes used to complete this task have changed drastically throughout the years. A look back through the flightlogs reveals one airplane that stands out: the Gruman Duck. The “Duck” was designed in 1933 and was a military airplane used around the world throughout WWII. The Duck was a single-bay, bi-wing amphibious plane. In simple terms, this oddlooking aircraft had one main float under the center of the plane and smaller floats under the lower wings. It was so strange-looking, some called it the “Ugly Duckling.” In 1946, Wycliffe Bible Translators acquired a Gruman Duck and needed MAF’s first pilot, Betty Greene, to fly it to support their work in Peru. Betty shares about her experience flying the Duck over the Andes in the book Flying High: “I was eager to begin my assignment and went out to see the Duck 1-800-FLYS-MAF
the next morning. That afternoon I met Marine Corps General Ross Powell, chief of the navy air mission of the United States in Peru. The Duck had been under his command. General Powell, a marine to the very core of his being, was opposed to a woman pilot flying the plane. He thought it absurd to think of my flying the ship at all, to say nothing of me crossing the Andes with it and navigating on treacherous tributaries of the Amazon River in the Peruvian rain forest. “Having served as a WASP I knew how to take initiative. The Lord blessed me with the ability to stay cool under pressure. After rehearsing all the procedures, I turned on the engine and warmed it up. The sound of the roar rejuvenated my sagging spirits. I took off alone and soon found that the awkward-looking Duck was easy to fly. By the time I came down for the landing I knew I would enjoy flying the plane.” Betty is recognized as the first woman to fly over the Andes—a feat she accomplished in this unique airplane.
Above: The Ugly Duckling of MAF’s early fleet: a Gruman Duck. 10
NEWS & PRAYER MAF Haiti Employee Certified
Prayer Requests
Zacharie François, a Haitian MAF employee, successfully completed his Airframe and Powerplant training at the School of Missionary Aviation Technology (SMAT) in Michigan in August 2019. He has returned to Haiti and is playing a more active role on the program as a certified mechanic. It’s a huge answer to prayer as the team has been praying for a maintenance specialist for several years!
Some MAF programs are unsettled because of political unrest, militia activity, or Ebola. Please pray for Christ’s peace and healing in Haiti, Papua, Ecuador, and the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. And please ask for God’s protection and comfort for MAF families during these stressful times. Lift up Aaron Bear and Ruth Harrison in their new roles within MAF.
Before going to SMAT Zach was employed by MAF for some two years as a mechanic apprentice, baggage handler, fueler, flight follower, and hangar helper. He wants to go on to flight training after completing his two-year commitment to be a mechanic on the program. “We are all looking forward to furthering his opportunity as the Lord provides,” said David Simon, MAF Haiti.
Remember the people who are still recovering from Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas. Give praise that MAF’s new amphibious Caravan has been released from customs in Papua Indonesia, and is now serving the people of that country. May it be a blessing to many.
To learn more of Zacharie’s story, read “A Dream Takes Flight” at maf.org.
The stories within FlightWatch are highlights of MAF’s ministry. Some days our missionaries get to see and experience the amazing things our Lord is doing. Other days are spent quietly and diligently serving the Lord through routine flights, maintenance work, and simply living among others in foreign countries.
New Executive Leadership Hires Many of you have been praying for God’s guidance about new hires for MAF’s Executive Leadership Team. Thank you! We’re happy to announce that the team is now complete. Aaron Bear has accepted the role of chief advancement officer. Some of you may have interacted with Aaron as he was most recently in the role of director for Major Funding/Planned Giving. He has held various management positions within MAF for the past 13 years. Another new addition to the team is Ruth Harrison as the chief human resources officer. Ruth has served with MAF for many years, first on the field and most recently as director of Member Care. She will continue to provide a deep level of care for our staff and understands the complexities and blessings that come with serving in a cross-cultural ministry.
We believe that God works through all areas of service and at times blesses us with extraordinary glimpses of His work. 11
Visit maf.org
MAF NEEDS PEOPLE LIKE YOU.
ARE YOU A PILOT, MECHANIC, IT-SPECIALIST, OR TEACHER? YOU CAN SHARE CHRIST’S LOVE WITH ISOLATED PEOPLE.
Find out more at maf.org/go.
There are many opportunities to serve with MAF. Right now, we need pilots, mechanics, certified flight instructors, avionics specialists, IT specialists, K-12 grade teachers, and more! Match your gifts with your calling! Visit maf.org/go. 1 12 2