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April Showers (Finally!) Bring May Flowers (And Hope)
Surveying the site for a new airstrip for the village of Lotimor
This is a very overdue newsletter and update to all of you who have done such an incredible job of supporting our ministry here in East Africa. Moving north to Lokichoggio meant accepting a lot more responsibility. It has also provided opportunities to see the advancing of God's Kingdom firsthand. One of AIM AIR's core objectives is to serve missionaries and the African Church in remote areas. We were privileged to be a part of surveying and opening this new airstrip in South Sudan (pictured above) to meet the needs of this infant church that was previously an unreached people group. Praise God! Thank you for your prayers and support. You are helping take God's Word (water) to this very dry, parched land. Thank you.
  
(Top) The "Go Away" bird is always squawking! (Middle) Renee has affectionately named him Mr. Banana Beak. (Bottom) Turkana name is Namaritakogu; Bird book name is Abysinnian Roller...we call him "Pretty Bird"
Now that we've settled into life in Loki, we have discovered that although the pace of life is much slower in the country, WE are not! We are thankful that the Lord is active in South Sudan, thus keeping missionaries in the country and requiring AIM AIR services. The conflict in South Sudan continues, so it’s a moment by moment evaluation of safety for the missionaries and for the pilots serving them. The wind (gusting up to 30mph), smoke (yearly burning of grass plains), and dust have added another element of difficulty for Joel, so thank you for keeping him in your prayers. With all the hours being flown, he has felt completely covered in the protection of your prayer and our Heavenly Father, especially when he's flying precious cargo.
"Mom, Dad, see you next break!" Bus driver Joel takes missionary kids from a small village in South Sudan back to boarding school.
Our transition to Lokichoggio has been an adjustment and challenge for both of us to balance responsibilities of AIM AIR, hospitality, family, community and self. Loki is such a strategic base for work in South Sudan, we sometimes have more requests than we can handle. We are praising God for the possibility of a third AIM AIR pilot/mechanic family that is looking at joining us here. They will be taking our place in June while we return to Canada and the US for a short home assignment and Lord willing, decide to make Loki their permanent home. OH YEAH We are coming home this summer. More on that later.
One of the joys of Africa aviation in the bush, routine maintenance on the ramp in wind, sand and sun.
We’re coming to the end of a long, hot dry season. The rains should be arriving soon, and with it, relief from the heat and dust. Temperatures rise to about 110F in the daytime shade, and dip to a balmy 85F at night. The locals say that when it gets hot like this and the winds really pick up, the rains are coming. They started saying that a month ago. Others say that when the cattle move from here to there, it is about to rain. The cattle have moved several times. You have to love their optimism! Not accurate, or at least in our terms, but that is their heart. It’s hot now, but we are praying for rain.
With the hot temps, a dip in the pool is such an amazing reprieve for kids and parents alike. And no, the water is not that dirty anymore. With all the wind and dust, the filter could not keep up with keeping it clear. We have since devised a cover and the water is back to a crystal clear appearance, kind of.
Settling into life in Loki has also meant engaging in the community. LaReina has been co-sharing Monday morning devotions translated into Turkana with 12-20 ANA ladies (the ladies who made the Christmas bracelets). It’s been a joy seeing the Holy Spirit move in the hearts of these precious ladies as truth is spoken about their identity in Christ and the freedom from darkness available through Him. I apologize that I don’t have a picture, but in such sacred moments of connecting with our Savior, it felt inappropriate to take pictures.
Jimmy and his family are on the left side of the photo, Eunice and her girls on the right. The white legs in the middle...That's us!
Remember Jimmy? He's the man who calls us Mother and Father. He brought his mom and family by, and had a goat for us. About a month ago, he asked Joel if we could have the goats as a big meal (with his mom coming over to teach LaReina how to cook African style). Joel said that would be fine, just kill the goat in town and bring the meat out. No live goat slaughtering at our house (Renee and neighbor Grace would never forgive us). Eunice (our house-help) saved us yet again from cultural blunders. She works 2-6 at our house, so Joel asked if she can help LaReina prepare the meal and if her girls could join us for dinner. Eunice knows how we like to prepare meat and produce, so she cut and cleaned some of the meat from the fat and gristle that's usually left on, and left some with bones and all the other parts that locals like to eat. Jimmy and his mom, Jane provided the goat, so we provided the rice and veggies. Because Eunice stayed for dinner, she helped LaReina dish up and serve everyone's bowl (making sure we were served pieces we would enjoy). She guided LaReina through how to serve (it's never self-serve, you dish up the bowls and serve them in a particular order) and about going around afterwards with a basin, pitcher of water, and dish soap to wash hands after dinner. It was such a comfort to have her there.
Dinner is served. Sukuma Wiki (greens), Goat stew and rice.
Probably the funniest part of the evening was the ice-cream we served for dessert. Oh my. Talk about culture shock for sweet Mama Jane. This extremely cold, sweet stuff ... she tried to choke it down the best she could, but ended up asking Jimmy to ask us for a bag to take it home so she could eat it when it wasn't so cold. Jimmy's wife came as well and none of them were impressed AT ALL with the ice-cream. It's like us trying to eat the innards and goat meat the way it's traditionally prepared. We were all able to laugh about the experience and had a great time. Such a different perspective.
I think the translation was.."Oh wow, that's cold!!!!!"
Oh the experiences we’ve had and the privilege it has been to see and be a part of God moving in East Africa. We look forward to sharing more of these stories with you WHEN WE’RE HOME THIS SUMMER! Yep, our first term is wrapping up and we’ll be back in Canada and the US this summer. Here are some tentative dates we will be back.
Mark your Calendar, or "Save the Date" or whatever the term is that they use now, we don't want to miss seeing you!
Thorsby, Alberta: May 24 th – June 9 th
Alaska (Kingdom Air Corp): June 13 th – July 5th
Thorsby, Alberta: July 10th - July 15th
Duvall/Seattle: July 18 th – August 8 th
Michigan: August 21 st – August 31 st
New York/Pennsylvania: September 4 th – September 14 th
We have not finished working out our schedule past this point but are hoping to see our East Coast friends and supporters between September 14 th and the 1 st of November. We will also be looking to see a number of you in our travels between the major areas above. Please pray for us as we continue to try to work out these details. We are looking forward to seeing as many of you as possible. Please contact us as soon as possible if you would like to hook up with us while we are in your area.
In Christ,
Joel, LaReina, Renee and Ian
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