The MAF Blog: Worldwide Pulse

Posts Tagged ‘haiti’

High Maintenance

Posted on: May 16th, 2012 by Christine Harms | 1 Comment

When my husband David puts on his old glasses, I know what that means: aircraft maintenance. In a moment, he’s transformed: off goes the pressed, white pilot shirt with captain’s bars on the shoulders, on goes the plain, blue work shirt with a few holes and the rubbery red RTV stain I can’t get out. When he comes back into the office, there will be grease and oil and, most likely, he’ll smell like gasoline. In a commercial airline scenario, you’d never catch a pilot dirtying his hands like this, but most of our guys on the Haiti program serve as both mechanics and pilots. In fact, that’s true of all our programs.

David Harms doing routine maintenance on a Cessna Caravan.

I never had a true appreciation for the intricacies of maintenance until my new role as flight scheduler required me to schedule inspections. To comply with our Aircraft Operations Manual (the “other” MAF bible), we have to make sure we don’t fly more than the prescribed fifty flight hours between inspections. Since I have the most contact with the schedule, that job naturally falls to me. But it’s not quite as easy as it looks.

“How many days does it take?” I’d ask. “Which inspection is it?” David would reply. He and our maintenance specialist, Todd, have served as my guides as I learn. “What do you mean, which inspection? There’s more than one kind?” It turns out there’s actually twenty different kinds, depending on which combination of elements are being inspected and how long it’s been since the last time it was inspected. Most take three days, but Inspections 6 and 13 take a week—as long as we have a full staff, longer if we don’t. And just for fun, Inspection 19 takes two weeks…try scheduling that two months in advance!

It’s all worth it, though: our maintenance habits are one of the greatest gifts we can give our passengers. Even in my own mind, I feel a lot better strapping my loved ones into a plane that’s been regularly cared for…after all, it’s not like our pilots can just “pull over” if it starts to smoke. Whether it’s changing an oil filter, a tire, or an engine, their training and attention to detail keep us flying safely to God’s glory. Now that’s “high” maintenance!

Not Just Another Plane Dedication

Posted on: April 27th, 2012 by Jason Chatraw | Leave a comment

With a pilot for a father, I grew up around airplanes. However, they never really grabbed my attention. I never stared at them with much awe as they rose from the ground and disappeared into the deep blue sky. It was a way to get around, to move from point A to point B. I didn’t even like model airplanes.

Yet as someone whose attention is fully arrested when I see a tool for the Gospel, my perspective on a certain object changes. I’ll never forget the first time I realized I could go into a chat room online and talk about the Gospel with people who were searching for answers. That same “ah-ha” moment for me happened when I first experienced how effective airplanes are at taking the Good News of Jesus into isolated and remote areas.

On Saturday, April 28, at our headquarters in Nampa, Idaho, MAF will dedicate a Cessna Caravan for the program in Haiti in a special ceremony. And after my recent visit to the program, I realize just what an impact that plane is going to make in Haiti.

With a litany of projects that could never be finished by missionaries alone in a lifetime, work teams coming from all over the United States and other countries around the world routinely descend on Haiti to lend a helping hand. Once these teams arrive in Port-au-Prince, there’s not a minute to waste in getting to a remote location. Missionaries only host these teams for a short period of time, so they want to ensure they maximize their time in Haiti.

Without MAF, that time would be diminished greatly, perhaps by as much as two days. Bouncing along the rough dirt roads that splinter throughout Haiti consumes hours of time, perhaps even a full day going and a full day coming. But not if mission teams fly—and the Caravan enables MAF to transport entire teams in an efficient and cost effective manner that saves hours of time.

I know this Caravan is going to get a full workout on the field—and the people it will be carrying are going to present the Gospel in a powerful way. It will be an effective tool and just might be the catalyst that results in a greater impact for the Kingdom.

Watch a video and read the MAF Haiti Outlook Report to learn more about Mission Aviation Fellowship being the catalyst for change in Haiti.

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Seeing God in the Chaos

Posted on: April 17th, 2012 by John Boyd | 1 Comment

Haiti is one of the most difficult assignments for our MAF missionaries. The lifestyle in Port-au-Prince is challenging. It’s a large metropolitan area with constant traffic, poor infrastructure, and a lack of standard amenities—pot holes that could swallow up small children, intermittent electricity, and congested traffic that makes Los Angeles roads seem like wide open freeways. Even on the best day, life is tough.

A westerner glancing around any random section of Port-au-Prince can’t help but sense the overwhelming hopelessness exuded by the Haitians walking down the road and lingering in the crowded tent cities housing those who lost their homes in the earthquake. But then you notice a smile, a respite from the daily struggle. There’s a grin and then a laugh—and a face just lights up.

Consider the Apostle Paul’s words:

Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.” Philippians 4:11-12 (ESV)

What was Paul’s secret? How did he discover joy in Christ whether he was preaching to hundreds of people or unjustly sitting in a prison cell?

Being content is the secret. It’s how we experience the joy of the Lord in what others might consider horrible circumstances. Yet when we know that God has us in a place for a reason—and we seek to understand that reason and obey—we can find joy, too.

There are times when I reflect on my past assignment in Haiti with wonder. Only God could have given me the strength to endure there with a cheerful spirit. Then there were the times when I saw joy shining on the face of a Haitian who undoubtedly had a rough life. That’s when I was reminded that true joy is not found in “blessed circumstances” but in our diligence to obey God’s call, no matter where we are or what we are doing.

The Value of Being Present

Posted on: March 20th, 2012 by John Boyd | 1 Comment

Lost in all the aftermath of Haiti’s devastating earthquake two years ago is the fact that this beautiful country has been under siege from natural disaster and health epidemics for years.

When I served in Haiti in the late 1990s, it was a difficult place. The challenges of daily living are extraordinary and pull even the most committed missionaries out of their comfort zone. And many of those challenges remain today.

Despite the difficulties of living there, during my recent trip to celebrate 25 years of MAF service in Haiti I saw signs of hope, signs that things are changing. And I also saw that MAF is needed in this small Caribbean nation more than ever.

The value of being present in such a dark place is immeasurable, both from a physical and spiritual sense. When people know you truly care about them, you can help them so much more. They trust you—and you empower and equip them.

Infrastructure is slowly improving and Haiti is progressing, but the value of MAF airplanes and our presence in the country was borne out through my conversation with the people I met. Over and over, those serving the Lord in Haiti told me how much they appreciate MAF and our ability to transport people safely and swiftly, so they can focus on doing work instead of taking a day to recover from traveling brutal roads.

The impact of MAF’s presence in Haiti for a quarter of a century was tangible. Relationships with Haitian workers and aviation officials are strong. The partners we serve in the interior of the country value our presence. And most importantly, all of this synergistic relationship means the Gospel is going forth to people who are desperate to hear it.

I bought a ticket for Haiti the day before the earthquake

Posted on: March 8th, 2012 by David Harms | 3 Comments

When David and Christine Harms were assigned to serve in Haiti with MAF, they had no idea what they were getting themselves into. Always challenging, Haiti can test the resolve of most missionaries, even on her best days. Then the earthquake happened.

“We bought our airline tickets the day before the earthquake,” David said. “It really threw us into the fire.”

The Harms spent their first four months in Haiti in Pignon for language school—but there was plenty of ministry taking place there, too. Despite being located in the interior of Haiti, Pignon became a haven for refugees seeking food and shelter.

Then it was on to Port-au-Prince to help with the continued disaster cleanup and relief support.

“I like being able to help other organizations—and help them do what they do faster and more efficiently,” said David, who merged his passions for missions and flying together with MAF. “Most days, it’s a pretty satisfying job.”

What’s also been satisfying for David has been the way he has stretched and grown in his faith since starting his four-year term in Haiti in March 2010.

“I think one thing that has been reiterated in my life through being here has been that our plans aren’t always the same as God’s plan for our lives,” David said. “Haiti wasn’t high on my list of places to come. But you know you can always trust God—He knows better than we do. And our time here has proven that to me over and over again.”