Greetings again from us as we update you on the goings on in our lives and in the ministry God has entrusted to us!
We have so much to be grateful for in this report! Last month we expressed some pressing needs and we have seen God provide again in such a wonderful way.
First, let me report on the banquet that was held to inform others in a more personal way about our journey to Ecuador. It was a great turnout as a little over 100 people attended! Thanks to those who came and those who weren’t able to make it but sent their best wishes and donations to us anyway! God raised up many people who commited to keep us in their prayers and keep in touch with us while we are away. He also challenged many to give generously and enough money was raised on that evening to finance all of our one-time expenses to get us through the rest of our training and to Ecuador! Praise him, he he is so good to us!
We have decided to fly to Idaho for the training in February. It is much less expensive than driving and friends there in Idaho have offered us the use of their vehicle to get around in once we are there. Another huge blessing from God!
In the mean time, God has shown David several ways to become more prepared and equipped to go to Ecuador. David has been doing research in ways to make the transition to the nationally run format less painful and more productive. (Read past letters from our blog to get up to speed on the transistion.) That search has lead him to a group in Alaska (MARC – Mission Aviation Repair Center) that is doing things in a very similar way to what the group in Ecuador is trying to accomplish. That is – open the business to the general public charging normal rates to be able to subsidize the mission operations. The fine folks at MARC have agreed to spend some time with David and give him valuable pointers in making the same thing work in Ecuador.
So David will also be travelling to Alaska the first week of February to spend time with them. Not a pleasant thought for the “Jungle Boy” to be in Alaska at that time of year, but God will be gracious, we are sure!
There are other opportunities that David has to become more informed of operations of a business of this format that he will be taking advantage of locally as well. Visiting ITEC, Steve Saint’s organization to research and provide effective ministry tools to the indigenous people will be one stop as well as several other aviation companies local to the Tampa Bay area.
God has also provided David with somewhat stable work in the hangar working on airplanes at the flight school that he used to teach at. (He has been able to get some work instructing as well, but has been intermittent.) That will also let him see the inner workings of the operations of a for-profit organization and give him continued experience working on airplanes.
The family is doing very well, thanks be to God. The kids are healthy and progressing well in school and their other activities. Karina had a big concert the other evening as part of her Advanced Women’s Chorus group from her school. She is really enjoying music. Josh also has a chimes recital coming up. What a blessing to have two kids who excel in music! The young ones are growing much faster than we would like!
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