News for Prayer 22 January 2015
Issue 517
A heavenly home MAF wives Angela Lowe and Jenni Bottrell spend part of their week at Casa Vida Internacional – a special shelter in Dili, Timor-Leste, which cares for young women and girls who have suffered sexual abuse. Since it opened in 2008, the ‘House of Life’ has welcomed over 150 girls. It provides them with counselling, education and vocational training. Angela, wife of Programme Manager and Pilot Jonathan, says she ‘received a beautiful letter from one of the girls telling me what God has done for her through Casa Vida and the hope she now has for her future.’ The girls there, she explains, ‘have a piece of my heart’. Jenni, wife of MAF Pilot Michael, teaches English and says although her work doesn’t have anything to do with flying, ‘I’m playing my part in transforming people’s lives.’ Grace Pitanuki, Casa Vida’s Human Resources Manager, agrees. ‘To change somebody’s life, bring a smile; bring hope – that’s what we do for vulnerable women and girls.’ Praise God for Angela and Jenni as they seek to heal the broken-hearted. Pray that the vulnerable girls who leave Casa Vida will not only be able to support themselves but will reach out to others. Above all, we pray they would be deeply healed by the transforming love of Christ.
Jenni and Grace are transforming lives at Casa Vida
Getting ready Give thanks for the wonderful news that new cases of Ebola have dramatically dropped in Liberia. Pray for a complete end to the disease, that government offices will reopen, and that we will soon receive the necessary permissions to begin operating in Liberia. Pray too for those who have lost loved ones and that those who are ill will soon find healing. Uphold Programme Manager Emil Kündig and his wife Margrit, our Finance Manager, along with MAF Pilot Arjan Paas and his wife Aartje who are still waiting to move to the capital, Monrovia. Give thanks for their willingness to assist in other MAF programmes in Uganda and South Sudan while they wait (NfP 514).
Settling in Please pray that MAF receives authorisation to fly into the countries surrounding Uganda again very soon (NfP 512). The restriction placed on Ugandan airlines significantly impacts MAF’s ability to serve our partners in neighbouring South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Pray too for Andrew Dick, Area Finance Manager for East Africa, and his wife Nadia, who recently moved to Uganda to take up this new role. They ‘are very grateful for the time spent with family and friends in New Zealand,’ and say, ‘Please pray for us all as we transition into life in Kampala.’
Pray they settle in quickly and that their children Olivia, Harrison and Keeleigh adapt well and make good friends.
Living the dream Praise God for the four prospective pilots from Timor-Leste who are training in Australia as part of a new arrangement between MAF and the Timorese Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources (NfP 513). ‘It’s an honour,’ exclaims pilot intern Armando Dasilva after he received a Timorese Government scholarship. ‘It is something we are really proud of. A dream come true!’ The authorities are giving scholarships to young people with the potential to become pilots so that, once qualified, they can fly for the government. Armando and his three friends spent four years in the Philippines gaining a Bachelor of Science degree in Air Transportation and a Commercial Pilots Licence (CPL), before moving to Mareeba, Australia, where the new pilots are currently training with MAF. Once they have gained their Australian CPLs, the four interns will obtain further experience flying with MAF in Timor-Leste. The young men have dreamt of becoming pilots since they were boys, and say they value MAF’s vision of using aviation and technology to share God’s love. ‘The work MAF does in developing countries is so valuable. You are helping the people a lot,’ affirms
Sertinho Soares, one of the interns. Please uphold the four men who come from families that can’t even imagine travelling in a plane, let alone flying one. Far from relatives and friends, the young pilots sometimes feel lonely and isolated as they seek to make their dream a reality by serving the people of Timor-Leste. Pray that MAF’s Christian message will continue to touch their hearts.
Time to sow seeds An MAF flight for a team of evangelists enabled them to spend two weeks travelling across Madagascar, sharing the Gospel and distributing free copies of a Christian devotional calendar to hundreds of Malagasy living in remote areas. Kathy, one of the missionaries, is passionate about sharing God’s love with those living in difficult and remote places, and was incredibly happy when she heard the team could fly from Antananarivo to Mandritsara with MAF. The journey would have taken over two days along very bumpy roads if it weren’t for our little plane. ‘It would have been so tiring,’ Kathy explained. ‘My home church sent a missionary pilot to Papua New Guinea (PNG), so I’d heard a lot about MAF. What a great organisation!’ Pray that the seeds sown by the team will result in many Malagasy following Jesus, and give thanks that our aircraft can reach isolated and inaccessible communities safely and efficiently.
• ANGOLA Pray as we seek to build new runways and open more services
won’t be disrupted.
to remote communities, including the Flying Doctor Service run in co-operation with the Lubango Evangelical Medical Center. • ARNHEM LAND MAF staff have been holding Bible studies with prisoners at the detention centre in Nhulunbuy. Pray for God’s Word to change hearts and lives. • AUSTRALIA Orientation for new MAF staff is taking place in Cairns and Mareeba until 30 January. Pray that by the end of the course the attendees will be ready for service with MAF. • BANGLADESH Pray for peace and the protection of MAF staff. Political unrest has claimed at least 15 lives over the last few weeks. • CHAD Visibility has been greatly reduced due to dust storms, causing us to postpone or delay flights. Pray for safety in the air and that busy schedules
• MONGOLIA Please pray that a suitable person will soon be identified to lead the team as Programme Manager. • SOUTH SUDAN Uphold the John Dau Foundation medical clinic which, for 7 years, provided medical care for some 80,000 people in Duk County. Although the health centre was destroyed by rebels in 2014, it now operates as a mobile clinic – supported by MAF flights. • TANZANIA Praise God for Rufiji Medical Safari flights to Jaja and Kiasi which saw 300 people receive medical treatment, 100 mosquito nets distributed and 50 people prayed for – with 2 of the villagers becoming Christians. • WORLDWIDE We need aircraft engineers for Arnhem Land, Bangladesh, Kenya, Liberia and PNG. Please pray that these positions will be filled.
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