Merry Christmas Dear Friends and Family!

Merry Christmas Dear Friends and Family! 

We are so thankful for everyone who has come along side us in our MAF ministry already! It's been an exciting two months, filled with so many blessings! Thank you again!

I have a secret to admit ... I love Christmas! Okay, that's not a secret. I love everything about Christmas! Christmas even makes cold weather fun! But when I was in high school, and people asked me what my favourite holiday was, I would always have to answer something different then Christmas: My favourite holiday is Easter. 

Because Christmas is really about Easter. I love all the joy and hope that surrounds Christmas ... and I love being surrounded by friends, family, eggnog (Marcel LOVES eggnog), and Christmas cookies ... but the real joy and the real hope is that Christmas is the beginning of a story that literally changed the world. Christ came to this earth as a baby, but left as a Saviour--perfect, sinless, and pure, He died on the cross not just as a marvellous display of humility and innocence, but to literally bear all of humanity's burdens and sins.

I know that Christmas isn't exactly everyone's favourite time to talk about sin (can't we just skip this part?), but I don't think it takes much convincing for anyone to see this world needs a saviour. It longs for someone even greater than Ghandi, the Pope, the Duck Dynasty clan, or even Mandela. We need a King ... we need a Saviour ... we want a reason to hope.

Friends, our reason to hope has already come. Our perfect King has already come to this earth. His stay here was short, but His reign is forever. He died on the cross, but death didn't keep Him forever. He conquered death after three days and because of that, his death wasn't some meaningless, though beautiful show of sacrifice. He made a ways for us to be "at peace" with God. He permanently established a way that we too can find freedom from our sin, freedom from death, and the joy and hope of eternal life. And ... what some of us look for more than we like to admit ... joy and hope here on this earth. Joy and hope in this season of love and giving. Joy and hope for the rest of the year. Joy and hope when the purpose of life is so unclear, when nothing makes sense, when this world seems to crush any "fa-la-la-la-la-la" feelings we ever had.

My prayer for you this holiday season is that you enjoy family and friends, relaxing and giving and sharing and feasting. I pray you find warmth and life and happiness. But my prayer is that when you experience all that joy and hope, it turns your heart towards the Giver of Hope and his marvellous Son. Find a bible and reread the Christmas story (Luke 2). Christmas is fleeting ... it comes and goes for a short time each year, but the message of Christmas (and Easter) is one that lasts forever.

Blessings,
Kelly

2 Corinthians 5:21-- "God made Christ, who never sinned, to be he offering for our sin, so that we may be made right with God through Christ."

A little taste of MAF ...

Hey guys! For those of you who haven't had an opportunity to talk with us or look up what MAF does, here are some quick facts, stats and stories that give you a little glimpse into the MAF world. So whether you like numbers, or stories, I've tried to include something for both types of people here!

• MAF's mission: Sharing God's love through aviation and technology
• MAF's vision: Isolated people physically and spiritually transformed in Christ's name.
• MAF operates in 30 countries around the world.
• MAF currently operates approximately 136 aircraft worldwide!
• Almost 1500 people work for MAF around the world--expats, nationals, and support staff.
• MAF partners with almost 1500 organizations to multiply their effectiveness--including organizations like World Vision, Samaritan's Purse, Tearfund, and UNICEF.

Click here to see this 2012 MAF fact sheet enlarged. So many cool stats!

So, those facts are pretty astounding ... but what does this look like on the ground level? What are MAF pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers, and IT staff doing on a day-to-day basis? We've been told it's hard to generalize--every day could look completely different! I did come across a cool story though that gives a little glimpse into one way MAF pilots and staff partner with others to "demonstrate and proclaim" the name of Jesus. It's a recent story from the MAF base in Madagascar.

A young woman in rural Madagascar was violently beat by cattle thieves and needed desperate medical attention for herself and her unborn child. It was a matter of life or death, and the only hospital that would be able to properly provide medical attention for her was in the capital--200 miles away, or a two day trek on some very difficult roads.

MAF was able to partner with two trusted doctors and fly out to the village the next day. Meanwhile, one of MAF's partners, an NGO called HoverAid, put all the necessary pieces in place to get the young woman to the airstrip where MAF could pick her up. The doctors were able to do a quick ultrasound to determine the baby was still alive--but the bleeding was such that no one was sure the baby would survive.

MAF was able to safely deliver the young woman to the hospital, and from there, to step back and pray for her. Fortunately, both mom and newborn daughter are doing well--and the young mother named her new daughter Faustine, after one of the doctors that had come to save her!

How cool is that? As Marcel and I wait to hear where we are going ... we love reading the stories of MAF's work. It fits so well with what we both believe is our jobs as "Christ-followers" in this world--to love people, serve people, and proclaim Jesus while doing so! MAF does just that--loving and serving (isolated) people! (P.S. More stories to come!)

People gathered around an MAF plane in Madagascar.

The young woman was transferred to an MAF aircraft and taken to the hospital.

We Bought A What....???

What would be the last thing you would think of purchasing if you were planning on packing up and heading overseas within a year? If I had been asked this question even six months ago, I would have thought "well that's easy, something that's big and requires a lot of upkeep, like a house!" ...so that's exactly what we purchased. 

This brings up the same question that was titled in our November 22 blog - WHY? 

5 months ago at my sister's wedding, we were sitting at a table with another couple who had started with MAF this past February. This was great as Kelly and I were able to unload all kinds of questions on them, and they were happy to answer them for us. The answers seemed to be about as normal as we expected until they suggested that if we were able to purchase a house to rent out while overseas, it might be a good thing to look into for two reasons: It would provide some income/equity from renters, and two, it would give us a place to live while we are back home.

Here's a hypothetical situation of something we'd like to avoid: Kelly and Marcel head overseas for the next 35 years. They have had a good run but are getting older and consider moving back to Canada, so they do.  Back in Canada there are several big expenses they must make including purchasing a vehicle and a house. Now they are first-time-home-buyers, and at the age somewhere between 60 and 70, have begun a 25 year mortgage. 

This situation isn't the most ideal and is something I have seen happen, so if we can prepare for the future right now, we will. There is probably a saying out there that says something along the lines of "The best time to start saving is now". Thankfully, the Lord has blessed us with the opportunity to purchase this house so we can start preparing for many years down the road. 

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19 ESV

 

Reason to Pray

Prayer is truly divine--but I find it very difficult to pray sometimes. It's that paradigm switch from thinking of prayer as a last resort--a "Dear God, help me!"-- to thinking of prayer as a first resort. But one of the things I have definitely been learning since starting our ministry work with MAF is that prayer is our lifeline. It's our fuel. It's absolutely preposterous to try to drive the car of ministry without prayer, and totally life-giving when we take things first to God.

The MAF Ministry Partnership manual has this verse in it: "Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain." Psalm 127:1.

I love this verse. How true it is! Thinking back ... I can see the truth in this verse in so many areas of my life. And looking to the here and now, it is a great reminder that I need to be in constant communication with God during my work day. I need to lift up our ministry--the joys, the issues, the big and little obstacles, the donors, the friends, the prayer partners, the family. I need to lift up our needs, our wants, our dreams, our fears.

If you are reading this, I hope you will take some time to pray for us today, this week, this month, this year. It might seem like a small thing--maybe even trivial. But I will tell you the truth ... when I go out for a walk in the morning and pray, or when I'm struggling with doubt, or when I'm stressed about something that may or may not be important--I (we) need your prayers. I wait for them. I thirst for them. Like I said, they are life-giving ... and they really are felt. Thanks to everyone who has already been praying for us--and thank you if you are praying right now!! :)

Oh--and if you're wondering what to pray for, there's a list over here on the right. You can also pray for Marcel's sanity as he deals with such a crazy wife like me. :)

~Kelly