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Mission Trips Loewen-Rudgers Report July 2018 NEWS FROM DAMARIS AND DANIEL Dear Friends, just last week I flew a group from California partnering with Missions of Hope. MoH runs schools in the remote parts of northern Kenya for some of the most disadvantaged children in Kenya. They are partnering with a church in California to provide medical, technical and most importantly, prayer support for the work they are doing. MAF was asked to fly up to Lodwar, close to lake Turkana, to pick up the group visiting from the Californian church and fly them to a small community west of Marsabit called Kargi. I flew up to Lodwar in the late afternoon to join the team for the early departure the next morning. At dinner some of the visitors at my table were commenting on how remote Lodwar was. But, they were in for a treat, because by comparison, Kargi is a few houses in the desert! The next morning I flew the 1 hour flight over the jade colored lake Turkana from Lodwar to Kargi with the first group. We overflew some of the most wild and beautiful country I have ever seen. En route I chatted over the radio with Melvin who was on his way from his home base at Logologo to Lodwar to pick up his group of five. All in all we had 30 people to move and soon I was heading back to Lodwar for my second load of passengers. By 2pm I was back in Kargi with the aircraft locked, chocked and ready for the night. Melvin and I would stay with the group till the next morning to fly them back to Nairobi. For many in the group this was a huge culture shock. They were in the middle of nowhere having landed on what they described as a piece of desert. Now they were asked to get to work on a number of projects that had been lined up for them. There was a playground to build, games to play with the kids, medical checkups to do, and only two days to get it all done! Melvin and I helped out a bit here and there, and were also able to chat with some of the group members. For many this trip was a big eye- opener. Melvin remarked that this was the way that he had first been exposed to serving cross culturally, and said that this was going to leave a bigger impression on the visitors than it would on the hosts. I think this is often the case. Some feel that it is a big waste of money for churches to invest so much into transporting people around the world when the money could be better spent in other ways, but I would argue that it is not that simple. As I read through 1. Thess. 5 it reminds us that we are children of the light through the sacrifice of Jesus for us, and it continues to tell us in verse 11: “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up…” I could see this happening as the visitors worked side-by-side with the hosts, and as they talked and prayed together. It was a blessing to see how, regardless of our cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, Jesus unites us as a family. In the evening the group leader shared more encouragement with the host teachers, and they gave out gifts in appreciation for their hard work. Again I was struck by the value of encouragement. The next day the team was up early to try and get all the projects done. The group of medical staff had their hands full with walk-in patients. One of the patients was a young mother with a very sick child. The medical team was very concerned that the child should get to a hospital very soon. They did not know if she would make it the next few hours due to dehydration. There was a discussion about how best to get the mother and child to Marsabit hospital. Initially the aircraft was suggested by Melvin, but the mother refused because she was scared to fly. When I arrived a few minutes later, I was filled in on the decision. I went to the leaders again and asked if they had explained the gravity of the situation. 2 hours by very rough road, or a 15 minute flight in the 206. I said this was a life and death decision for the mother and they needed to make sure she understood that. She changed her mind, and 30 minutes later an ambulance had picked her and the child up at the Marsabit airfield. On our return flight in the afternoon I was the only one still awake. Cruising southward I looked down as the dry desert changed to green highlands. Behind me everyone was bone tired from the trip. Soon they would be in their hotel with hot showers and internet, but I expect they are changed people. They had come to encourage their fellow workers in Christ, but I am sure many of them will reflect on what they have learned, and some of them will be motivated to act on that knowledge. For me as a pilot with MAF, I can see the value in trips like these and I feel it is a blessing to see how Jesus is building His Church around the world. To be able to support that effort in a small way through serving with MAF is a privilege. Issue 54 Playground “in the desert”
