Living an abiding life takes commitment because our everyday existence can distract us with its highs and lows, and everything in between
Despite its good intentions, western culture tends to condition us to tick our spiritual box with early morning Bible readings, Sunday church programmes plus midweek house groups for the people who are sometimes seen as ‘super spiritual’. They are all good practices, but I think we’re missing something. An abiding life is a life that overflows — a life where God dwells in the midst of our day-to-day lives, whether they are mundane or extraordinary. It’s a life in which God is present in our struggles, fears and victories. As we take time to , and , let’s also reflect on how we can live this abiding life. When we abide in Christ — mindful of His constant company — we are changed, and the world in which we live is also transformed.
God bless you
Rev Victoria Fagg Prayer Communications Leader, MAF UK
Happy New Year! At MAF, we are of the unshakeable belief that prayer works. Behind every successful mission, lies the fervent prayer of those seeking success for the Gospel. So let’s praise God for upholding and expanding the work of MAF worldwide as we fly in the spirit of our founding principle — to help missionaries in remote communities. Give thanks that aviation and technology continue to play a crucial role in lives being physically and spiritually transformed through His love.
Many people who live in remote places often have nothing to rely on except their own resourcefulness. However, as followers of Jesus, we know that God is our ultimate provider (Philippians 4:19). Sometimes, it can be difficult for us to give up control — to not rely on ourselves and truly hand over all our needs to God. Today, pause for a moment to ask God to highlight if there are any areas in your life where you need to hand back control to Him.
Please pray for the Yolŋu people of Arnhem Land. This vast area of Australia contains more than 50 Aboriginal homelands where extreme seasonal changes to the weather add pressure to their harsh daily lives. MAF flights help men, women and children to remain in contact with each other, and attend funerals and tribal celebrations in spite of the very long distances involved.
Praise God for all that He provides through an immense variety of NGOs, charities, missions and humanitarian organisations. MAF flies more than 1,400 organisations which deliver hope in all its forms to countless communities worldwide. Give thanks to Him for nurturing our expertise in aviation and technology for eight decades, so that we can continue reaching those in desperate need of belief in a better tomorrow. Take a moment to consider how insecure and unpredictable today will be for men, women and children living in remote communities. Many of those to whom we fly experience great suffering due to natural disaster, disease outbreaks or civil war. Pray they will find their hope in God who is the same yesterday, today and forever — the One on whom they can depend in times of great trial and tribulation.
Last year, in South Sudan, MAF Pilot Chris Ball flew four trainers from Christian discipleship project Rooted in Jesus from the capital Juba to Maridi. The UK team delivered the introductory conference that began a three-year discipleship programme. Pray for everyone involved in that this initiative — which aims to counter the unique problems and challenges facing the African Church — will greatly benefit those who attend it. There is great hope that discipleship programmes like these will transform many thousands of lives throughout this vast continent.
MAF ‘frequent flyer’ Dr Rosie Crowter has served in Papua New Guinea (PNG) for a quarter of a century! Thank God for her dedication and passion for seeing people transformed spiritually as well as physically. Pray for all the medical work that is ahead of Rosie this year, the people whose bodies will be healed because of her love for them, and that the books she has written will inspire her readers to grow in Christ.
Decades ago, the Lord inspired the creation of MAF Technologies to begin reaping the life-changing potential of radio for people living precarious existences in the mountains of PNG. Pause to consider what technological items you use in your day to day to communicate with others, and imagine the challenges you might experience without them. Then give thanks that now, in addition to simple communication between communities that can be thousands of miles apart, our team’s ability to install HF radio enables the likes of Enga Baptist Health Centre to order medical supplies in good time for them to be restocked.
Please remember those living under the most stressful conditions in the refugee camps in Bunia, Democratic Republic of Congo. Violence continues to wrack the country and, for thousands of people, the daily pressure of life in makeshift homes in the camps has become their ‘normal’. This includes the suffering caused by injuries sustained in the murderous attacks on their communities which caused the majority of them to flee to the Bunia settlement. Pray for them and the many volunteers who provide food, counselling and medical treatment.
Give thanks for our staff both in the UK and overseas for their passion, energy and commitment. The ministry of MAF is in their hands on a daily basis, and all that we achieve would be impossible without them. Please pray for our overseas families as they develop networks of friends who will help them feel rooted in the countries where they serve, strengthening them personally and professionally.
Harriëtte Knigge, wife of MAF Pilot Wilfred, has been visiting a prison in PNG to share her faith with the female prisoners there. Reflect for a moment on how it must feel for these women to have a lifeline in an institution that does not operate to the standards we expect in the UK. Pray that the women will come to know God’s love for them and that — when they leave prison — will continue to follow the path God has set for them.
Please pray for the new cohort of MAF trainees who began studying in the UK this January to become our engineers and pilots of the future. New recruits are precious to us because they carry with them the seeds of MAF’s next half-century of mission. Pray that many Christians within the UK would be moved by the Spirit of God to consider overseas service with MAF.
Praise God for the tremendous leadership of Ruth Whitaker, former Chief Executive of MAF UK. At the end of 2022, she retired from the role, having dedicated 16 years to resourcing our overseas programmes through delivering significant growth in income. Everyone at MAF UK greatly appreciates Ruth’s leadership through several challenges — not least the pandemic. Please pray for Ruth as she seeks God’s will for her life.
Pause this week to remember the unsung leaders of any charity, namely its Board of Trustees. At MAF UK — under the leadership of Chairman Matthew Burton — trustees Max Gove, Andrew Hawkins, Richard Jones, Carl Knightly, Bill Lowe, Steve Osei-Mensah and Ann Saunders set the tone and direction for our worldwide mission. Pray that their accountancy, business, legal, management, fundraising, evangelism and aviation experience will continue to be an immense blessing as we go forward.
Please pray for the Senior Leadership Team of Alison Chambers, Mike Fagg, Alex Finlow, David Leek and Vivienne Pattison, who are charged with the day-to-day leadership of MAF UK. Ask God to put at least one of them on your heart so that your regular intercessions on their behalf will ease the pressure of executive responsibility. May they see their individual and collective action bear great fruit through the teams they manage.
Praise God that, in August 2023, MAF Liberia delivered more than 6,000 French language Bibles to Zwedru — that is more than a tonne of Bibles in one aircraft! The precious Word of God was then handed out by MAF partner Wordsower to eager people in communities across the border in the Ivory Coast. Some of them will be reading Scripture in their own language as you read this.
Put yourself in the place of someone receiving their very first Bible, and think of what this life-changing event means to them. Those who receive Scripture from Bible Boxes in PNG are so thankful that they often cry tears of joy. Today, read Psalm 100, think about what you are grateful for and praise God for His remarkable provision in your life. We are truly thankful that, for more than 25 years, MAF has been able to fly teams from Wycliffe in Madagascar as it continues its linguistic research and Bible translation. Such endeavour represents some of the most patient, painstaking and rewarding work that we support. Pray that it will result in thousands of men, women and children growing in faith and coming to know the love of Jesus.
The climate crisis is a worldwide threat and, therefore, has a huge impact on remote communities. Once predictable wet and dry seasons can now fluctuate wildly, causing harvests to be devastated. Give thanks to our Creator God that He has placed MAF aircraft in more than 25 countries to help mitigate immediate ecological damage and provide long-term relief for men, women and children whose lives have been turned upside down.
A general or local election in the UK conjures emotions of democracy and debate. However, elections overseas are often fraught with danger and division. Pause with God for a moment to consider how fortunate we are in the UK that we rarely experience the levels of violence seen in many of the nations in which we serve. From that place, pray for peace during times of political activity, safety for our staff, and for the lawful election of leaders who will rule with justice and for the common good. Today, pray that God will ease the many economic pressures felt by isolated people in remote communities. In many of our programmes, inflation is just one of the ever-present obstacles to be overcome — the toll it takes on communities can cause immense harm. Soaring food and fuel affect both indigenous people and those serving them. Please pray also that rising costs will not put undue pressure on MAF’s worldwide operations.
Praise God for the courageous step of faith taken by families when moving from the comfort and security of the UK to the unpredictability of life overseas.
A wide variety of changing family needs — caring for parents, children’s education, illness and the stress of living in another culture — often cause disruption to ‘normal’ life. Pray for those serving in our programmes, and remember too their wider families and those who support them through their sending churches.
Take a moment to think about how challenging learning a new language can be, and from that place lift up the MAF families undergoing language studies in Java, Indonesia. May their words, tones and accents become beautifully clear to those around them, so that God’s Word enters the hearts of those to whom they witness. Pray that our families become so proficient they can eventually pray and communicate as effectively in a new language as they do in their mother tongue.
Lift up the Draper family who have just moved to Uganda, where Mark will serve as an aircraft maintenance engineer. For some overseas staff, the first few weeks of ‘transition’ into an MAF programme may be the hardest they face. Pray that the family will settle in quickly and that their faith will remain strong during this period. Please pray for the Lord’s peace as they overcome geographical and cultural disorientation to emerge into a brilliant new way of life.
Thanks the Lord that we were able to fly a team from KuLIT and Wycliffe Timor-Leste to Same to deliver the book of Ruth. This special flight delivered the very first part of the Bible to be translated into the Mambae language, which is spoken by the country’s second largest ethnic group. Please join Pastor Carlos in praying they will soon translate the book of Mark, and that this particular Gospel will have a significant effect on the devotional lives of the community.
Take a moment to pray for MAF partner Every Village, which works in South Sudan spreading the Gospel via radio. Imagine your primary contact with Scripture coming to you through the airwaves — probably on a solar-powered radio. Pray that this ministry of the spoken Word will produce much fruit in remote communities where people know that God has not forgotten them.
Please pray for the successful completion of a church building project in Kuebunyane, Lesotho. After two years, construction is nearing its end. MAF has been working alongside the Lesotho Flying Pastors to deliver all the necessary materials via several flights. Pray that those who have waited so long for a structure to be built on holy ground will remain patient, and that many people will come to faith because of the dedication of everyone involved in this project.
Praise God for the thousands of flights we make every year to ensure people receive the medical treatment which is rarely more than a few miles of paved road from you and me. One such flight enabled a young girl in Madagascar to return home from hospital following life-changing surgery. The short trip with MAF saved her from a 56-hour journey on dangerous roads.
During the past two years, many of us will have experienced the unique pressure of home-schooling for the first time. For the majority of our missionary families with primary school aged children, this is standard practice. Take a moment to consider what this might look like day to day. Then please pray for patience and energy for all the MAF parents who have to learn how to become teachers of their youngsters, often using only basic educational resources.
Last year, several of our staff in the western Democratic Republic of Congo blessed children in the community through a Bible School programme held at a local church. Please keep these young people in your hearts — for some of them, this would have been their first experience of Christianity. May all of them grow in the knowledge of God’s ways, His Word and the life to the full that is within their reach.
Praise God that the airstrip at Wetap in PNG is now open for business! It has taken six years of committed hard work to enable our pilots and planes to serve these isolated men, women and children. Pray that MAF planes will be able to fly to and from this remote community for many years to come. Give thanks to God that lives will be saved now that medevacs are possible in this area of PNG.
Last year, in a tremendous answer to prayer, our new hangar in Mareeba, Australia, was finally opened. This is an excellent, purpose-built facility which now serves the whole of our Asia-Pacific fleet. Take a moment to remember all the MAF maintenance staff who dedicate their lives to ensuring the flight safety and fuel efficiency of our aircraft. Not a single take-off is possible without the work of our experts in the hangar.
Please uphold our newest programme in Guinea. ‘We’ve been praying for an air service since we got here over a decade ago,’ our first missionaries passengers told us last year. ‘There are no domestic aircraft in Guinea so we have to drive, but it’s the most stressful aspect of life for us. It’s dehumanising and demoralising. There are no lights so driving at night is very dangerous. MAF will be a life-saver for us.’ Pray we'll recruit the staff we need to bring physical and spiritual help to the people there.
and celebrate the thousands of mums that MAF reaches through the miracle of aviation. Pray for them all — the young, the old, those who are pregnant, those with large families and the grandmothers whose words and actions often set the tone for an entire community. Think of the unique influence your mother has had on your life and how she has been unique in shaping who you are.
‘Flying preserves our bodies, giving us longevity in the field,’ says missionary Amanda Simmons, who relies on MAF flights to reach isolated women in rural Kenya. Amanda uses the stories of women in the Bible to share God’s love for them. Take a moment to reflect on the many unseen women like Amanda serving Jesus overseas, faithfully loving those in front of them. Pray that gender barriers that still exist within the body of Christ be removed, releasing more anointed women of God to reflect His goodness across the world.
Pray for the exciting new ‘Mama Waiting Hut’ project that has been established in PNG’s Eastern Highlands. A new solar installation provided by MAF Technologies means that reliable electric power is now available for mothers as they give birth. The alternative is torchlight that can cease at any moment as batteries run out of power. Give thanks that this will help reduce the high incidence of infant mortality and increasingly lessen the misery and desperation of parents mourning the unnecessary loss of a precious child.
Praise God for Mothering Sunday
Praise the Lord that — four years ago — Pastor Justin and his organisation Mission De La Parole Vivante ‘adopted’ 40,000 unreached people in Goz Beïda, eastern Chad. In addition to this incredible evangelical ministry, supported by MAF flights, Justin has explained to village leaders that there are people who can teach them a far more productive and sustainable way of growing crops. May God bless what could be an agricultural revolution in this part of Chad.
Pause and consider the balance MAF has to strike between physical and spiritual needs. Matthew 4:4 and Luke 12:15 remind us that people do not live by bread alone. However, in meeting the spiritual needs of those struggling with spiritual poverty, MAF must also help to fight the daily hunger so many people face. Contemplate the words of James 2:16, ‘If one of you says to [a brother or a sister], “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?’
The Hewa tribe comprises approximately 4,500 people. They live in little hamlets, scattered over 60 miles of rugged terrain in the Central Ranges of PNG. Uphold Jonathan and Susan Kopf as they share the Gospel with the Hewa and translate God’s Word into their language. These missionaries and MAF partners not only spread the Good News but also support the villagers with medical equipment and Biblical resources. Give thanks that our flights in this country enable people to receive the Bible and experience its transforming power.
