Jeff and I had the awesome opportunity to go and checkout how mission work is accomplished using airplanes. While in a period of discernment and fact gathering we knew that a chance to investigate mission aviation work in a cross-cultural environment was too good to pass up. So, in June 2007 we left the four kids in the capable hands of our families and flew to Ecuador. Ecuador was chosen for several reasons. First, we didn't have to go to the other side of the world to get there. Also, Ecuador has a rich history of missions and it has lots of work ongoing. So, eventhough we don't know which country we will serve in, we knew that there was plenty to learn in Ecuador. Mission Aviation Fellowship's (MAF) Brian Behal was our guide for the trip. Brian and his family spent 10 years as a Pilot/Mechanic Missionary family in the area in which we traveled. Brian was amazingly patient to answer our barrage of questions (usually well into the night).
Our trip was filled with the unexpected. As we flew into the capital city of Quito on the first night. I didn't expect to see a bustling, modern city of 1.5 million people. I also didn't expect to be cold. I thought that the equator was supposed to be hot! The elevation of almost 10,000 feet keeps the average temperature at a chilly 64 degrees.
The most anticipated leg of our trip was the visit to Shell (3,000 feet lower in altitude and at the edge of the rain forest). Shell is a current MAF base and former home of missionary Nate Saint and family. The intriguing story of his life and death can be seen in the feature film The End of the Spear or you can request the book JUNGLE PILOT for free from the MAF website. We spent time in the MAF hangar and gleaning wisdom from the pilot/mechanic families living there.
We met missionaries doing amazing work. We met missionaries helping with water resources, orphanages, hospitals, communications, health education and nursing. All of this work was based out of Shell and reached into the depths of the rain forest. This answered a very important question for me (Kathy). I had wondered what I would be doing on the mission field. Yes, I realize that most of my time will be spent in taking care of my 4 little ones, but, I wondered, would I do anything else? They won't be little forever, and soon they will be old enough to be useful in serving others. What was evident to me was that there are a multitude of opportunities to serve. I won't be flying planes but I am confident that wherever we go, God will be able to use me (and the kids) too!
From Shell we took a 30 minute plane ride in a Cessna 206 to Tiweno. As we flew over the Amazon jungle, there were no roads, houses, or any other sign of civilization. Then we see the hand-cleared airstrip. By this time the natives had already heard our approach and they rushed out of the trees laughing and smiling to welcome us. These people, the Waodani, who welcomed us so readily, were the same ones who were known as savages just decades before. The gospel message has transformed this culture and brought them back from the edge of self-destruction. We had barely touched down when Dyuwi began praying for us. Dyuwi was in the group of Waodani killers who, in 1956, murdered 5 young missionaries (Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, Roger Youderian, Pete Fleming, and Ed McCully). This man's life is so changed that rather than spear us as strangers, he prayed for us as brothers in Christ. We were treated to a church service Wao-style. They painted our faces, showed us how to throw a spear, and shoot a blow-gun. Our performances gave them plenty to laugh at!
Ecuador was a sobering reminder of how challenging a remote location can be and absolutely essential the airplane is in reaching the unreachable. It was also affirmed in me, personally, how God uses the sacrifices of His people to further the Kingdom. And, we gained invaluable first-hand insight into the lives of people doing the type of work that we aspire to.
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