Dear Friends & Family,
It's almost time for
us to be coming home on furlough! We are very excited to be
so close. Only one month left! We are looking forward to
seeing many of you as well as letting you know what God is
doing here in Africa. Below is a schedule for our family so
you know where and when to find us. We
are still working out some of the details and visits, so
more will be coming:
Nov 7th-8th -- Flight home!
:)
Nov 10th-14th -- Meetings
at MAF HQ in Nampa ID.
Nov 15th-18th -- Boulder
City NV
Nov 18th-Dec30th --
Lancaster / Palmdale, CA
Jan 1st-30th -- Victor
Valley, CA
Feb 1st-9th -- Lancaster /
Palmdale, CA
Feb 10-March 15th --
Traveling to Northern CA, Oregon, Colorado, and finally Ohio
April -- Baby arrives
May -- S Ohio & N Kentucky
It has been an interesting
challenge getting all the kids paperwork together for their
visa's to the States, but we are ready and have the visa
appointment on Monday with the Embassy. The kids are really
looking forward to coming to America for the first time. It
will be fun to watch them as they take in all the new sights
and sounds. Hopefully the grandparents won't spoil them too
much!! :) Please pray that we will receive 10 month Visas
for the kids when we actually enter the country -- sometimes
this depends on the mood of the Immigration officer!
I have been flying quite a
bit this past month since some of the pilots are away on
holiday or furlough. We have also been receiving increased
requests both for Uganda & Sudan. At the moment things are
stable in these countries. Unfortunately, the DR Congo
remains instable. There has been a recent increase in
activity with militias. Some of our staff families were
evacuated from Bunia due to some militia activity just to
the south of town. Just a few days after this, the town
where MAF used to be based, Nyankunde, was again looted by
the militia. All of the missionaries and MAF staff are O.K.
but it is certainly discouraging to see these evil men
continue. In addition to this, the areas North of Dungu
(where MAF Congo often flys) are seeing renewed attacks from
the LRA. This militia started in Uganda and has created
horrible unrest in Northern Uganda, Sudan, East DRC, and
even as far as Central African Republic. As the LRA moves
about it attacks villages and doesn't just loot them, but
brutally kills and mames people. Often the children are
taken as soldiers or sold as slaves. MAF will be busy
moving supplies to help with this tragedy for groups like
MSF (doctors without borders) and other aid agencies who
work with displaced peoples. Please continue to pray for
the protection of these people.
In more positive news, I
was able to spend some time with a group working deep into
Southern Sudan. I flew almost 5 hours straight to get there
covering over 700 miles. The region was affected
significantly by the recent war. This group (Far Reaching
Ministries) works with the Chaplains in the SPLA (Sudanese
Peoples Liberation Army -- South Sudan Govt Military). They
are beginning to see wonderful results from training these
leaders over the past 10 years. Many have gone on after
their service to the army to lead churches among their local
people. They are also seeing fruit among the military
itself which is a huge need. I really enjoyed my time with
these men of God from the States who were working with these
Chaplains. It's not often that we get to hear how all of
our ministries intertwine, so it was good to spend the night
in the middle of "no-where!"
I look forward to sharing
much more with you on our visit to the States!
