2021 MAF Ministry Highlights Report

2021 MAF Ministry Highlights Report Undaunted Mission

Th e c ouns el of the L O R D stands fore ver, the p la ns o f h is hear t to a l l g enerations . —Ps a lm 33:11 (E S V )

God’s Faithfulness in the Mission No challenge or obstacle can thwart God’s purposes for His people. This truth has sustained the mission of MAF every year since its formation—and 2021 was no exception.

In a year that saw horrific violence, destructive disasters, toppled governments, mass evacuations, and a pandemic that continued to turn intentions on their head, the Lord

The Reach of the Mission

28 Staff 3 Airplanes

Haiti

MAF Headquarters Nampa, Idaho

205 Staff across the U.S. 8 Airplanes for training and future overseas use

Mozambique

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25 Staff 2 Airplanes

Programs operated by MAF-US

Programs operated by MAF Canada

Programs operated by MAF International

Latin American organizations affiliated with MAF-US

powerfully made His faithfulness known in the places served by Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF).

We pray that the examples and stories shared on the following pages will remind you that we are partners in a mission far greater than any of us can imagine—a gospel mission ordained and empowered by God to bring lasting change in the lives of isolated people for generations to come.

5 Staff 0 Airplanes

Mali Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

5 RestrictedAccess Areas

76 Staff 6 Airplanes

73 Staff 8 Airplanes

Indonesia

Lesotho

146 Staff 10 Airplanes

19 Staff 4 Airplanes

MAF-US is part of a global family of organizations that includes M AF Canada, MAF International, and five Latin American affiliates. In addition to the countries shown here, MAF-US operates in five restricted-access areas not marked on the map.

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Same Mission, Fresh Clarity MAF’s purpose remains as strong today as in 1945, the year of our founding. Our vision and mission statements bear this out:

MAF’s Vision: To see isolated people changed by the love of Christ

MAF’s Mission: Serving together to bring help, hope, and healing through aviation As we’ve given thought to the question, “Are we still on mission?,” we’ve discerned five central outcomes which we believe directly serve our ultimate goal of seeing isolated people changed by the love of Christ.

We strive to prioritize our flights, activities, and interactions with these outcomes in mind.

MAF airstrip agent John Ukudri and pilot David Petersen prepare for a shuttle flight from Bunia to Aru, DRC. Photo by Bernhard and Marleen Vreugdenhill

Searching for new disciples by bringing gospel awareness so isolated people have an opportunity to hear about Jesus

Supporting existing followers and disciple makers by coming alongside other believers in their walk and in their work

In 2021, MAF flights, activities, and/or staff participation helped enable …

• • • • •

Bible translation and distribution Biblical training for church leaders Church planting Church conferences Evangelism

• Bible teaching • Discipleship groups • Intentional relationships that opened up conversations about the gospel

Strengthening the capacity and talent of national staff by taking intentional steps to further the education and development of MAF’s local overseas employees In 2021, MAF national staff were trained and developed through …

• National staff training for skills such as IT, dangerous goods transportation, and accounting • Four national staff pursuing pilot or mechanic training at schools in the U.S. (funded by MAF) • National staff participation in Bible studies and discipleship activities “I thank the donors and everyone who helped make this moment happen. It was not an easy road … but God is never wrong and He knows when He will shine the sun and when to give us rain.” –Mantlibi Mafa of MAF Lesotho, upon arriving at the School of Mission Aviation Technology in Michigan (SMAT)

Serving people’s core needs by helping meet needs that are central to the wellbeing of those we serve In 2021, MAF flights, activities, and/or staff participation helped enable …

• • • • •

Disaster response Clean drinking water Life-sustaining food sources Shelter and clothing Health care, medical aid, and medical evacuations

• Vaccines and medications • Education and vocational training • Community development projects

Stewarding creation as a reflection of God’s love for mankind by supporting projects related to the care of God’s creation In 2021, MAF flights, activities, and/or staff participation helped enable …

• Wildlife research and surveys • Revitalization of a community plantation of rubber trees

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Resilience in the Mission Traumatic events seemed to cascade one upon the other in the places we served in 2021: January 2021—Papua, Indonesia An MAF pilot was held at gunpoint while violent separatists burned and destroyed the airplane.

March 2021—Mozambique A vicious insurgent assault forced thousands of residents to flee the town of Palma, many of whom were evacuated by Ambassador Aviation, as MAF is known in Mozambique.

April 2021—Democratic Republic of the Congo Violent conflicts forced MAF families and planes to relocate from their base in Nyankunde to the city of Bunia, where they continued to serve our Congolese sisters and brothers.

Summer 2021—Restricted-Access Country Turbulent political developments forced MAF to discontinue operations in the country, uprooting international and local staff. We pray fervently that God will reopen the door for our return.

Summer/Fall 2021—Haiti The president’s assassination, an earthquake, kidnappings, and escalating gang violence led MAF to bring its families temporarily back to the U.S. The pilots and mechanics rotated in and out of the country to serve alongside our Haitian national staff.

“Congo is home for us. We are firmly committed to continue to serve those in dire need. We want to defend the defenseless, to see their relationship with God repaired and their relationships with each other restored. Because Jesus did it for us.”

–Cory and Annaleis Woodsum, MAF pilot family serving in Nyankunde/Bunia, DRC

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In each of these circumstances, the upheaval our staff experienced in their hearts and lives was great.

The upheaval in the lives of those we served was immeasurably greater.

There’s good reason why MAF staff are willing to prayerfully accept a certain amount of risk and heartache to bring Christ’s love to the suffering. MAF president and CEO, David Holsten, explained it like this: “When we’ve faced the sort of challenges and emotional swings that this year has held for us, it’s important to know that … we are walking with the King who has come to ‘deliver those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery’” (Hebrews 2:15, ESV).

Helping others know the freedom of Christ is what kept our staff resilient through the tumult of 2021.

But it wasn’t just MAF staff who were resilient.

It was the village pastor who risked his life to shelter the MAF pilot with his body during the frightening encounter with the separatists who burned the airplane.

It was the friend of MAF who later was moved by God to offer to help replace the aircraft.

It was the individuals and organizations who stayed during extreme situations, in faith that MAF aircraft would help secure their sustenance and safety.

On the following pages you will read how God used the resilience of His people in 2021 to accomplish great things in the lives of those for whom Christ died.

We pray these stories encourage and challenge you, as they do us.

2021 MISSION METRICS

437

PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS SERVED

4,356,946 lb.

OF CARGO CARRIED

41,780 PASSENGERS TRANSPORTED

34

BIBLE TRANSLATION PROJECTS SUPPORTED

303

AIRSTRIPS/WATER LANDING SITES USED

15,681 FLIGHTS ACCOMPLISHED

EVERY

40,758 DAYS OF TRAVEL TIME SAVED

17 MINUTES AN MAF AIRPLANE TOOK OFF OR LANDED

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The Mission in Indonesia In a region where wild rivers, dense jungles, and rugged mountains isolate many people from life-changing help and resources, God has raised up compassionate health care workers, educators, churches, Bible translators, missionaries, and financial supporters who are committed to reaching them.

It brought us joy to partner with these individuals to express Christ’s love in tangible ways in 2021.

KALIMANTAN

Medevac flight in Kalimantan.

Photo by Isaac Rogers.

• 184 patients were medevaced to medical facilities for life-giving care.

• 5 translations of the Gospel of Luke moved forward through Kartidaya, an Indonesian Bible translation and discipleshiptraining ministry supported by MAF flights and MAF staff who came alongside Kartidaya workers for the purpose of encouragement and English practice.

PAPUA, INDONESIA • 300-500 individuals from the Dem people group gathered each day in the village of Bina to hear 79 Bible lessons from Creation to Christ in their own language, with many deciding to follow Christ. It was the fruit of an 8-year work—supported

by MAF aircraft—where missionaries learned the language, absorbed the culture, taught literacy, and translated portions of Scripture.

• 60 teachers and nurses working in 7 interior Lantern of Hope schools and 6 associated Siloam medical clinics served 700 students and their communities, through the support of MAF aircraft.

Children at the Siloam Health Clinic in Nalca, Papua, wait for dental care from a team flown in by MAF. Photo courtesy of Siloam Health Clinic.

“We Dem people are like the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, but God sent you [missionaries] to us to tell us about Him so we can be saved … If you hadn’t told us, we would die like the people back then.”

—Dem man, after hearing the Creation to Christ Bible lessons in the village of Bina

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The people of Liku’s home village, Mokndoma, gather for a very special showing of Ends of the Earth.

MAF airplane touched down in their village for the first time.

THE STORY’S NOT OVER Last October, 24,000 people in over 600 theaters watched Ends of the Earth, a feature-length documentary about MAF’s ministry in Papua (now available for viewing in churches and homes at maf.org/endsoftheearth).

If you were one of those who watched the movie, you saw the longing on Wano believer Liku’s face as he spoke of his desire to share the gospel that had radically changed his life—and the lives of his fellow villagers—with the neighboring village of Puluk.

You felt the Puluk villagers’ elation when, after 15 arduous years of building an airstrip by hand, an

But what you did not see—because it happened after filming was completed—was Liku and another Wano evangelist stepping off the MAF plane three weeks later to begin several months of teaching that introduced the people of Puluk to the gospel in their own language.

Nor could you see the angels rejoicing in heaven when 78 Puluk villagers, upon hearing of the death and resurrection of Jesus, embraced Him as their Savior.

Liku’s words said it all: “Jesus is the one that brought light to this world. And we are opening up the airstrip in order to bring this light to the people here in Puluk. The plane is making a way for these people here to be able to … become a part of Jesus’ family!”

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The Mission in Latin America In addition to the operation of MAF’s program in Haiti, MAF is honored to collaborate with our affiliates in Brazil, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Suriname to bring help, hope, and healing to the isolated in Latin America.

HAITI The events of 2021 shined a particularly glaring light on the great need that propels MAF to join hands with 120 partner agencies—including American churches and Haitians living in the U.S.—to express the compassion of our Savior in this place.

• When gang violence and kidnappings effectively cut off transportation between Port-au-Prince and the peninsula to the west, MAF flights provided the lifeline for missionaries, aid workers, and health care personnel whose work depended on safe transportation and delivery of critical necessities like fuel, water, and food.

• On December 14, when a fuel tank truck exploded into flames in a Cap-Haïtien neighborhood and killed 75 people, MAF transported the critically wounded to hospitals in Port-au-Prince.

Rick Emenaker, MAF pilot and Disaster Response department manager, gives water to a victim of a fuel tank truck explosion.

Photo by Fran Derocher.

In August, Zacharie François, a Haitian MAF mechanic, became the first foreign student admitted into the flight program at the School of Missionary Aviation Technology (SMAT) in Michigan. Zacharie—who has a passionate heart to serve the hurting people of his country—hopes to return to Haiti as an MAF pilot and help those who face heartbreaking situations like the above.

HAITI EARTHQUAKE DISASTER RESPONSE After a 7.2 earthquake on August 14 killed more than 2,200 people, injured 12,000, and destroyed some 36,800 structures, MAF piloted and coordinated flights in partnership with Samaritan’s Purse, Agape Flights, and Missionary Flights International (MFI) to bring help and medical aid to devastated areas.

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• • • • •

27 organizations flown 216 flights 1,033 passengers 193.4 flight hours 50,941 lbs. of cargo

The Mission in Restricted-Access Countries In some restricted-access countries, MAF flights in 2021 literally made the difference between life and death. Many people living in extremely harsh and hard-to-access areas—as well as the humanitarian and like-minded organizations that served them— relied on our airplanes for critical supplies and safe transportation over arduous and life-threatening routes.

In another country, MAF continued using aviation to cultivate relationships through training programs that are helping the country reform its civil aviation. In the last couple of years, one student has given his life to Jesus, and on Christmas Eve one of the program’s advisors announced that he believed God was asking him to leave his family’s traditional religion and accept Christ. Please pray for God to continue to open hearts to the truth of the gospel.

“Just wanted to let you know how much we appreciate what you all have done for us over the last month or so. I am counting about five separate charters into tough situations. It has made a huge difference for us, and in one case we think that it was a key part in actually saving lives.”

—Partner organization in a restricted-access country

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The Mission in Africa Rainforest or mountain plain. Straw hut or rondavel. Islam or spirit worship. Swahili or Sesotho. The four countries in Africa where MAF operates vary greatly in geography, culture, religion, and language.

But they share one thing in common: Large numbers of people who, because of isolation, live in extreme poverty and vulnerability.

Here are some of the ways your partnership with MAF in 2021 helped bring the lifechanging love of Christ to the isolated people of Africa.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO (DRC) MAF aircraft and staff were able to play a significant role in the following stories: • 26 Sunday school leaders from 9 churches participated in Kids Action Network workshops in the village of Tshikapa in preparation for teaching God’s Word to over 650 children in their spheres of influence.

• Approximately 40 women received life-changing surgeries through an annual fistula campaign at the hospital in Vanga.

• 1,800 people celebrated the dedication of the new École Biblique Portatif (Portable Bible School) in rural Ngilima, as well as its first graduating class. These 31 graduates are now equipped to begin ministries of evangelism, church planting, and discipleship in their respective regions.

Kids Action Network/Reach Global workers lead Sunday school teacher training workshops in Nioki, DRC. Photo by Emily Hochstetler.

“Without MAF, there would be no way to send Bible teachers, Bibles, and other necessary supplies.” —Pastor Mukanirwa, ministry advisor for École Biblique Portatif

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30 Years in the Making 1991

FOUR PEOPLE GROUPS, NO WRITTEN LANGUAGE: the Pagabete the Mono the Ngbandi-Ngiri the Lobala

Bible translators begin arriving to live among them.

MAF airplanes support their work.

1996

WAR BREAKS OUT. THE MISSIONARIES ARE FORCED TO LEAVE.

Villagers carry on the translation work.

MAF airplanes support the work, as war allows.

2021

THE DEDICATION OF FOUR NEW TESTAMENT TRANSLATIONS. Nearly HALF A MILLION PEOPLE now have the New Testament in their HEART LANGUAGE.

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LESOTHO • 18 round-trip flights allowed the Lesotho Flying Pastors to travel high into the mountains, where they hiked from village to village sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.

• In the village of Kuebunyane, construction began on a church building, a pastoral couple moved in to serve the people, medical staff and supplies were flown in for the health clinic, and a new literacy class began—all through the support of MAF aircraft and logistics.

Church under construction in Kuebunyane. Photo by Joe Adams.

The rescued pangolin. Photo by Keith Beggs, Niassa Carnivore.

MOZAMBIQUE • 119 patients from 6 villages in the Niassa province were treated for eye problems, bone fractures, malaria, epilepsy, crocodile wounds, and other health conditions through MozMed flights that resumed in 2021. (COVID-19 restrictions forced cancellation of MozMed work in 2020.)

• 1,025 passengers and 32.2 tons of medicine, food, and relief items were flown on 157 flights from March 31 through June after an extremist group violently attacked the town of Palma in a conflict that drove many residents into the bush and displaced over 50,000 people.

• 1 large pangolin—a highly trafficked protected mammal whose meat is considered a delicacy and whose scales are used in traditional folk remedies—was rescued from poachers by police and flown by MAF to the Niassa Reserve for rehabilitation through a flight chartered by the Niassa Carnivore Project.

MALI • 4 well-digging projects were completed, during which many men, women, and children heard the gospel through the “JESUS” film and intentional conversations around the Word of God.

Well digging in Mali.

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Check out MAF’s 2021 Year in Review video at maf.org/report for more highlights and challenges as we share the love of Christ.

The Mission Continues Through your prayers, encouragement, and generosity, isolated people were changed by the love of Christ in 2021.

How many more lives will be changed in the future, as we serve together to bring help, hope, and healing in His name?

We’re so grateful for you.

Villager in Lesotho.

Photo by Grant Strugnell.

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Cover Photo: An MAF Cessna 206 serves the people of Lesotho.

Photo by Grant Strugnell.

Mission Aviation Fellowship PO Box 47, Nampa, ID 83653 maf.org | maf-us@maf.org 208-498-0800