Thank you for your partnership in the ministry we are involved in with MAF in Chad. It is hard to believe we are beginning our third year since arriving in Chad. God has been faithfully upholding us and He promises to continue doing so – in that we are greatly encouraged. Variety is the masala of life – and when it’s sprinkled over a thing as normal as our flight schedule here in Chad, it makes the work so much more rewarding. I know some people thrive on routine but I would likely shrivel up and expire if I flew the same people on the same routes on the same days of the week. For that reason, the last few months have been a reminder of how blessed we are to be here in Chad, doing what God has for us right now. These are a few of the trips I’ve completed since returning to Chad.
Just after Christmas, His Excellency, the President of Chad needed to preside over an official event at a short airstrip in the south so David Pearce and I had the privilege to fly him down for the day and back again. It was memorable to see our humble Caravan with a grand red carpet rolled up to the back door. Idris Deby, the 25 year-long leader of Chad and former helicopter pilot was a nice enough guy but was somewhat preoccupied by the smallness of our avion. He was probably just used to his personal Boing 737. I didn’t mention that the Caravan is the largest aircraft I’ve flown! He also wasn’t much for chit chat, but we were able to present him with a signed copy of MAF founder Stuart King’s autobiography which in one chapter details the story of MAF’s work in Chad since 1966 and tells liberally of God’s miraculous interventions through those almost 50 years.
AIM doctor Ann Fursdon and her medical team once again teamed up with us to carry out a multi-stop, multiday medical tour around several villages in the south of Chad. It was the first chance I’d had to do one of these tours with Ann and the experience was excellent; seeing and helping as she and her team arrived, set up and began seeing a steady stream of people suffering with what are mostly treatable ailments. All the while they were ready to explain openly with each one about the hope they have in Christ. It was a busy week and one I won’t soon forget. Leslie and Carol Carew of Baptist Mid-Mission needed to move from southern Chad to Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic (CAR), to continue their teaching work amongst Sango speakers there. Because it would be a permanent move and they had over 400 kg of belongings and books to bring with them,